Gadgetory

I am Donnell Belle and today we're taking a first look at the fourth-generation Apple iPod Touch a CNET editors choice for three years in a row this isn't a radical departure from the iPod Touch we know and love but there are some noticeable improvements in terms of price you're looking at three different models and a gabite 32 gig and 64 gig version price at 229 299 and 399 all the hardware features from the previous versions have been preserved you still have a 3.5 inch capacitive touchscreen only now it's using Apple's higher resolution Retina display there's a home button on the bottom a screen lock at the top though now the button is shifted from the left to the right and you have controls for volume on the side here but there are now two different distinct buttons instead of one single rocker switch on the bottom you have a headphone jack a dock connection and a teeny tiny speaker grille if you take a look at the back you'll notice two things first the chrome steel doesn't bulge out quite as much as the previous version giving a slightly thinner profile a lighter feel and the ability to lay flat on the table without wobbling but the really big change is the camera lens up here at the top along with this little omnidirectional microphone this is an HD video camera that can capture 720p footage at 30 frames per second just like the iPhone you can use the built-in editor to trim your video clips or spend an extra $4.99 on iMovie app with more advanced features the camera takes still frames too but the camera quality isn't nearly as good as the iPhone 4 now if that weren't enough Apple is also giving you another video camera on the front with a lower resolution you can use this same camera for snapping self-portraits but its main purpose is for making video calls using Apple's FaceTime app by using email addresses instead of phone numbers you can make free video calls over Wi-Fi to other compatible iPhones or iPod Touches it's a cool feature it works well and Apple puts the new app right here at the top of the menu under the hood you have a few significant improvements which have trickled over from the iPhone 4 getting an a4 processor and a gyroscope sensor for detailed 3-axis motion control in games and other apps you also have support for 802 11 and Wi-Fi and existing support for Bluetooth 2.1 compare it against the iPhone 4 you don't get the phone the 5 megapixel camera GPS or a 3G data connection but you also don't have to deal with contracts the rest of the iPod Touch is just as you'd expect the core apps for email web browsing music photos and video are all better than ever under iOS for you now the new ability to rent TV shows games look and perform better than ever with the internal mic you no longer need a microphone headset or an adapter to take advantage of audio recording or the voice memo app and some third-party camera and video apps now work as well so that's the fourth generation Apple iPod touch if you've been waiting to make an upgrade I really feel that the two cameras the FaceTime calling and all the little performance tweaks really makes this year's model worthwhile for cnet.com I'm Donnell Bell