[rootrageous]

I have the classic click wheel 20gb ipod and the previous gen nano 8gb. I want to purchase an ipod touch and give my nano to my wife to use, but I have a few questions about the touch.

1. How usable is the wifi connection? can I access emails from a client such as gmail without much hassle? What web browsers work with the touch? I use firefox and would like to also on the touch, is that possible?

2. I really want the touch to take the place of my macbook when traveling for internet access and photo backups. How useful/easy is it to back up photos on the touch. I got my first 20gb ipod for that, but it was so slow/complicated and there was no way to view the files after transfer so I gave up.

3. In the real world how much battery life can I expect from the touch under constant wifi/photo transfer/video viewing use?

Thank you.

[TWM]

1. The WIFI is great and works just like a notebooks wifi. It is only 802.11g/b, no N. You can access just about anything you need to. Just keep in mind that there is no Flash player on the ipod touch/iphone. Fire fox is not available for it. It comes with Safari which works really well, and it resembles the browser in os x very closely.

2. It is pretty simple to upload photos. Just do it through itunes and you can choose to upload pics.

3. I haven't used mine in a while, but using wifi and everything i would usually get ATLEAST a couple hours... usually more. there is a screen brightness adjustment that really helps save the battery.

[rootrageous]

Originally Posted by TWM

1. The WIFI is great and works just like a notebooks wifi. It is only 802.11g/b, no N. You can access just about anything you need to. Just keep in mind that there is no Flash player on the ipod touch/iphone. Fire fox is not available for it. It comes with Safari which works really well, and it resembles the browser in os x very closely.

2. It is pretty simple to upload photos. Just do it through itunes and you can choose to upload pics.

3. I haven't used mine in a while, but using wifi and everything i would usually get ATLEAST a couple hours... usually more. there is a screen brightness adjustment that really helps save the battery.

no flash player and safari only? that seems pretty limited.

so you have to upload photos from itunes. You cannot load directly from a camera or card reader? So basically it is a very limited device unless it is paired with a laptop or desktop to update it.

[tattooedmac]

Agree with all of the ^^ but to add to the battery i can get over or closer to 4hrs constant use listening to music and around 3 using wi/fi. It drops down considerably when in a high graphic intensity game .....

[tattooedmac]

Originally Posted by rootrageous

no flash player and safari only? that seems pretty limited.

so you have to upload photos from itunes. You cannot load directly from a camera or card reader? So basically it is a very limited device unless it is paired with a laptop or desktop to update it.

Unless you have a mobile.me account where you have your pics already then its just a matter of logging into your account via wi/fi

The safari browser is really good in at, loads quickly and works well with the finger pinch the expand the page ...

[brianwmay]

Originally Posted by rootrageous

no flash player and safari only? that seems pretty limited.

so you have to upload photos from itunes. You cannot load directly from a camera or card reader? So basically it is a very limited device unless it is paired with a laptop or desktop to update it.

So don't buy one then.

I have one, my wife has one, several friends have them and love them. They don't have issues with uploading, downloading, wireless or whatever.

If, however, that makes them very limited, exercise your democratic right to buy something else.

How else would you load an MP3 player with various flavours of data, if not by a computer or laptop?

I have the oldest iTouch and still get 4-5 hours on DVD (MP4) playback. Pretty good for a device that's 18 months old and gets used EVERY day.

[todd51]

I have been using mine more and more ever since I got it, I find it very useful.

[Kash]

Looks like you're more in the market for a tablet device than a media player. I'd recommend the Archos 5 but it only has a Micro SD card slot, so you still wouldn't be able to transfer pictures straight from a camera.

Get yourself a full blown tablet or a netbook. You'll be happier than with the iPod touch.

[alexsd123]

Originally Posted by rootrageous

no flash player and safari only? that seems pretty limited.

so you have to upload photos from itunes. You cannot load directly from a camera or card reader? So basically it is a very limited device unless it is paired with a laptop or desktop to update it.

I have an iPod Touch, and it is great.

The wifi reach on my iPod Touch is good, but not great. My MBP gets a much greater reach, as it should.

Safari is a great web browser on the iPod. And yes, you will may be dependent on your computer for syncs, updates, etc.

If you are looking for a fun little device, the touch is the way to go!

[cuhnool]

1. How usable is the wifi connection? can I access emails from a client such as gmail without much hassle? What web browsers work with the touch? I use firefox and would like to also on the touch, is that possible?

Connecting to Wi-Fi will allow full internet access. You can surf the web, access emails, access the App and Music stores, use Gmail, etc. Safari is the native browser on the iPod Touch, but there are other web browsers available in the App Store if Safari does not suit your needs.

2. I really want the touch to take the place of my macbook when traveling for internet access and photo backups. How useful/easy is it to back up photos on the touch. I got my first 20gb ipod for that, but it was so slow/complicated and there was no way to view the files after transfer so I gave up.

To add photos to the iPod Touch, connect it to your MacBook. When iTunes finds your iPod Touch, click it's profile, and click the "Photos" tab. From there you can choose to add all your photos, or choose certain photos, albums, events, etc. Click "Apply" or "Sync" (forgot which one) at the bottom right to add the photos to the iPod Touch.

3. In the real world how much battery life can I expect from the touch under constant wifi/photo transfer/video viewing use?

For constant use, expect at least 2 hours. 4, maybe five at the most.

If you feel that the iPod Touch may not be the best choice for this, get a netbook or tablet, as Kash suggested.

[rootrageous]

Thanks for all the replies. It sounds like the touch is not going to do what I need and a small netbook or tablet device would suit me better.

Thanks again.