Blogging from an iPod, now with a brief review

This is my first and hopefully only post to be written on my new iPod touch. I bought it today as part of my plan to spend money on gadgets of questionable use.

I wouldn’t normally go out and buy a $300 toy without somehow thinking that it would provide me some kind of value. In this case, it wasn’t for playing music on the go as I already have two perfectly fine iPod Shuffles. More than anything, this purchase was inspired by wanting to surf the web from outside the house without having to lug a laptop around. I also had these grand daydreams of getting lost and pulling the device out to look up my location on map. But thats all ridiculous of course, as it would be just as easy to carry around a paper map. And as far as surfing the Internet away from home, do I really need to be on it any more than I already am? The best excuse is thats really wanted an iPhone but couldn’t bear to lock in an expensive two year contract. While the pre-tax basic plan is only twenty dollars more per month than what I pay for a non-iPhone, it’s still money that would be better spent elsewhere. And it adds up: over $600 over two years. Plus, with the Touch, the wonderful browser of the phone is now mine for the browsing, and although it’s not perfect its still pretty cool. Right now I am lying on my bed. I have been typing on the floor, from a chair, on the toilet (also a type of chair).

If I compare the Ipod Touch to the Iphone, it feels like a ripoff. Not only is it missing applets (most notably, Mail and Notes!), but the battery life and screen are worse too. If I compare it to an Ipod, then the storage space is ridiculously limited and the battery life sucks even more. But somehow the thing is still appealing.

The appeal may be nothing more than looking at such a small device display the Internet in a way that was once only possible on a bulky screen. And while typing is by no means easier than on a laptop keyboard, it’s still pretty amazing for not having a physical keyboard at all. Browsing the interface by fingers is so intuitive, I wonder what people have bothered stroking with them until now.