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The Apple iPod - Apple iPod nano

There are currently three models of iPod - the iPod 5G (fifth generation), the iPod shuffle and the mid-range iPod nano.

The nano is a flash-memory MP3 player that is available in 1, 2 or 4 Gigabytes. It has a color display that can be used for viewing photos or cover art and for displaying information about the current song selection.

With no hard drive, the nano has a smaller storage capacity but with the advantage of being smaller than the iPod 5G. It is the successor to the iPod mini, and is even more mini than the mini! It measures just 3.5 by 1.6 inches and is about a quarter of an inch thick. The weight is just 1.5 ounces.

Despite its tiny size, the nano packs a big sound and can store up to 1,000 songs in the 4 Gigabyte model. The advantage of flash-memory over a hard drive for storage is that there are no moving parts which can cause the music to skip. The nano can be used during almost any type of vigorous activity - the ideal exercise MP3 player.

Another advantage of flash memory is greater durability than hard drives. Even though it looks fragile, the nano will survive lots of abuse.

The nano can play several audio formats including MP3, AAC, WAV and image formats include JPEG, BMP, GIF, TIFF and PNG.  Slide shows can be programmed with various options for timing and transitions.

The 1.5 inch screen, however, makes image viewing almost pointless. It's OK for viewing headshots, but how many people have a photo collection of passport shots?

Besides playing music and viewing images, you can use the nano as a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA). The PDA functions are somewhat limited but you can synchronize the nano with the Microsoft Outlook and Outlook Express contacts and calendars and contacts can be sorted by first or last name.

There are also games, a stopwatch and a world clock. The stopwatch is sure to be useful for those who use their MP3 player for workouts, and can record lap times and automatically saves all times with time stamps so that a valuable training record can be built up.

There is a screen lock on the nano which can be used to limit access to the functions. A 4-digit code is entered by the user and when activated, the only controls which function are the Play and Pause buttons.

Like all of the iPods, the nano can be connected to a computer for synchronizing your music collection. The iTunes software can be used to organize your music and photo collection and transfer new songs and images to the nano automatically.

One of the distinctive features of iPod MP3 players is the circular click wheel that is used for controlling all the functions. The nano click wheel can be operated with one hand and is so intuitive that users can learn to use it by touch.

The built-in battery is recharged when the nano is connected to the USB port of the computer. The battery is rated to last a respectable 14 hours before needing to be charged, but when the battery dies - as it surely will after about 500 hours of use - the nano has to be sent to Apple for battery replacement.