iPod touch “features”, worth the $20?

January 19th, 2008 in Rants

I’m a cheap bastard. I balked at Job’s announcement of the $20 iPod Touch upgrade pack. I already paid for the damned thing, why another $20 for applications that are free on the iPhone?1 But guess what? The upgrade is worth it.

What you get:

  • A capable mail application
  • Google Maps
  • A weather and stock applet
  • Configurable desktop (including browser shortcuts on the desktop)

The mail application is brilliant. From the super-simple configuration, to its every-day use, it’s a robust workhorse. I had considered sticking with Google’s mobile Safari Mail, but it’s no comparison to Apple’s rich client. The only thing missing is client-side spam filtering (which isn’t surprising).

Google Maps is fun, but not a lot of use where I live (there are very few open wifi connections in the area). The weather and stock applets are cool, but are not something I’ll use that often. The new desktop features are a much-needed enhancement, but I don’t think they should have charged for them.2

And each of the new applications are fun to use. Apple has included the important features and enough flair that each bit makes you smile (at least for the first few days).

I’m happy to spend $20 on a great mail client, as it lets me detach from my computer and still stay connected. I wish that an iChat-like application would have been included, as it would make the Touch a full-blown PDA for my uses.

  1. I know there’s some accounting mumbo jumbo reason for it, but I don’t care ↩
  2. Features that make something usable don’t make for happy purchases ↩