Apple Fixes iPod touch With $20 Upgrade
Jan 15th, 2008 | By James Lewin | Category: iPhone, iPod Accessories, iPods & Portable Media PlayersWhen Steve Jobs initially introduced the iPod touch, we were surprised at the things that Apple had decided to leave out. We wanted to know why Apple had handicapped the iPod touch, which buyers were expecting to be an iPhone without the phone:
Why doesn’t the iPod touch have Google Maps, Stocks, Notes & Weather? These apps are all nice features of the iPhone, but are missing from the touch. iPod owners need maps, too!
Apple today announced a major software upgrade for the iPod touch which does exactly what we said they should have done when they introduced it – give touch owners an iPhone without the phone.
The iPod touch software upgrade also includes new features such as Web Clips, a customizable home screen and beginning today, the ability to watch iTunes Movie Rentals. New iPod touch products shipping from the factory will include the software upgrade and existing iPod touch customers can get the software upgrade for $19.99 by purchasing and downloading it from iTunes (www.itunes.com).
“These amazing new mobile applications make iPod touch not only the best iPod, but the best Wi-Fi mobile device in the world,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “With its revolutionary touch interface and software, plus its stunning 3.5 inch screen, iPod touch is evolving into the first mainstream Wi-Fi mobile platform of the 21st century.”
Mail on iPod touch is a rich HTML email client that fetches email in the background from most POP3 or IMAP mail services and displays photos and graphics along with the text of the email. Users can configure Mail for Google’s Gmail, Yahoo! Mail, .Mac Mail or most POP or IMAP based mail services with just a few clicks.
Maps on iPod touch features the ability to automatically find your current location using nearby Wi-Fi base stations*, and use it as a starting or ending point for directions or to find local points of interest. Users can get real-time traffic conditions, and view maps in map or satellite view, or a hybrid view which combines map and satellite views so you can see major street names overlaid on satellite imagery.
Stocks and Weather allow users to access live stock and weather reports at their fingertips, and Notes lets you jot down information on-the-go using the intelligent keyboard.
The iPod touch home screen can now be customized, allowing users to reorder and add new icons, with support for up to nine different home screens which they can easily flick between. With the new Web Clips feature, you can even create custom icons on your home screen for your favorite websites. Web Clips are a great way to easily track web sites that you frequently check such as news, blogs, sports sites, movie listings and more.
With Apple’s new iTunes Movie Rentals, movie fans can rent movies on their computer, easily and quickly transfer them to their iPod touch, and watch them anywhere on iPod touch’s gorgeous 3.5 inch screen. Users can also now navigate forward or backward through their movies by chapters, select alternate language tracks and view subtitles, if available.
Pricing & Availability
The software upgrade for iPod touch is available immediately. New iPod touch products shipping from the factory will include the software upgrade and existing iPod touch customers can get the software upgrade for $19.99 by purchasing and downloading it from iTunes (www.itunes.com). iTunes Movie Rentals are available in the US only. Further information for iPod touch can be found at www.apple.com/ipod.
I bought a CD player the other day. When I got it home I found it wouldn’t let me pause the CD or fast forward it. But I guess I have bought it now, not much I can do about it but I did expect it to do these basic things. Thankfully the company that makes it tells me they plan to upgrade it so I can pause and fast forward, phew. But then they tell me it will cost me more money. I don’t think that is fair, what do you think? Maybe my podcast listeners would like to view my shownotes as they can do on ANY other iPod but NOT on the Touch without this charged for “upgrade”, will it cost more yet again so they we can view the full track names as they dont fit onto the Touches amazing 3.5 inch display but do and scroll on the older iPods? Am I wrong, what do you think? I know I am very angry at the moment, had my Touch for less than 30 days and its missing standard iPod features and I have to pay to get what I expected at time of purchase.
Relax people, you dont have to pay anything. I actually have 5 pages worth of apps on my thing, so just search “jail break your ipod” on youtube. Then you people will have it jail breaked, and yall can get all of the apps you want for free.
Jeez
Jail break is great if you want to void your warrenty. The original supporters of Ipod Touch have to pay? but people who waited to buy ipod touch until now and are paying less if not the same get these added benifits, while the rest of us paid original price and have to pay even MORE to get these applications, it’s not worth it. By purchasing the upgrade your basically telling apple that we will keep paying them for stuff they said they would put, but havent.
My advice is don’t upgrade, eventually they will offer it for free, or someone will find a way to add it for free
yeas… and there is also a problem of people from many European countries where iTunes is not available… how they can get the upgrade?
I totally agree with George! I guess that’s the same feeling when the iPhone $100 price drop came about. Consumers feel CHEATED.
$20 is not a huge amount to pay. But it is if you think about long term, when Apple realizes “yeah it’s ok to charge people for updates…they’re buying anyway.”
Come on people, don’t buy the upgrade. Soon we’ll all realize we’re paying some more for the video to be played in portrait mode!
Dude, I still can’t see the shownotes, even after I upgraded my iPod touch. Perhaps I am just missing something? Do I need double-tap and turn it upside down… what?
Lots of good points here. I don’t have a touch – I bought an iPhone when they were $600 (sucka!) – but they were announced with idea that they were an iPhone without the phone. If they can add automatic map locations to the iPhone, they should be able to add existing apps to the touch without stiffing you for $20.
Personally speaking, I am outraged that Apple is charging early buyers of the iPod Touch $20 for a system update that ought to be free.
While I understand Apple’s decision to charge money for the new applications the new $20 “application pack” also includes a SYSTEM UPDATE in the form of the home page editing, web clips, and lyrics features. All of these are updates to the currently existing iPod Touch software and NOT new applications, which means that they ought to be free to all users of the iPod Touch.
Adding insult to injury these applications are all hidden in the 1.1.3 system update, a whopping 104.4mb file that all users must download if they want to fix bugs in the system. These applications can only be used when you pay Apple $20 to “unlock” them, but even if you decide not to buy them they stay on your iPod taking up precious space that could be used for songs, videos, or photos.
Apple is normally wonderful when it comes to providing system support and updates, but having them shaft early adopters and loyal fans like this is offensive and shows that Apple has absolutely no regard for the iPod Touch community.
You can leave Apple direct feedback here:
http://www.apple.com/feedback/ipodtouch.html
You can also sign this petition:
http://www.petitiononline.com/freeappi/petition.html
You sad blinded fools… with your “we hate Microsoft but we love Apple” T-Shirts…
I have never heard of Microsoft charging for a “Service Pack” release of it’s software, which is exactly what this update is….
The “Accountancy” rules reason provided is untrue as well.. I have a TV PVR recorder that gets hardware updates every few months, I dont have to pay for those..
Apple is just milking all these sad people who think they have “bought a lifestyle!” Yeah.. right.. You have all bought in to being “mugs!”.. Apple is just like Microsoft and will make money out of you any way it can think of!
What’s the point of this device? You can’t download/update podcasts directly, big deal it surfs the net. If this device actually had useful features that would be one thing but the Apple lemmings continue to run out and buy every useless device Apples sells because it has an Apple logo on it….
Man I can’t wait for the new iPhone 3G S, my iPhone 1st gen really needs a replacer.