Home > Consumer Reviews > Apple iPod nano 8 GB Yellow (4th Generation) OLD MODEL

Having 16GB of storage is a huge plus for the new version of the Nano.

The control wheel seems a bit "stiff" and it is not as responsive as past versions but it works fine.

The menus and setup choices have been improved. These are nice but don't make a major difference. "Shake" shuffle is a bit silly (in my opinion it is just as easy to push the advance on the control wheel) but it can easily be turned off.

BIG MINUS - Apple un-necessarily changed the plug on this version of the Nano. The unit will not charge using my older iPod chargers. The bigger issue is that my Bose and other expensive speaker units will play this Nano but they won't charge it.

Apple is beginning to act more and more like Microsoft - forcing its customers to make un-necessary software upgrades and expensive hardware changes in order to use their latest product versions.

Anyway - the Nano is a great product. If you already have a Nano the only justification I can find to upgrade would be the need for more storage or the desire to play video on a very small screen.

If you don't need the video or more music storage you should stick with your older Nano.

this is my 6th portable digital music device so far, and i tried to avoid ipods because they always got bad reviews for malfunctioning and lacking features. this on is a different story. not only is this ipod the thinnest ipod ever made (you can stop here, apple, any further and it will vanish), its made smart, and so far its a pretty good buy for me. unlike everyone thinks cover flow cant be turned off, it can. instantly after i connected my ipod for the first time to itunes a new firmware update popped up, and one of the updates was an option to turn off cover flow, among other things.

+ pros
-incredibly thin. i cant even tell its in my pocket
-aluminum casing and glass screen offer excellent scratch resistence
-very light
-very competitive pricing - 16 gb for what the nano offers is the most affordble nano ever. the apple reputation has never been so attainable.
- accelerometer - this adds a few fun touches to operate without pressing buttons, is very useful for rotation on the screen when viewing pictures or watching videos. games are now actually very interesting
- screen clarity
-simplicity of use
-lots of colours to choose from

- cons
ITUNES - although itunes is the gold standard in today's media players, it has a tendency to use a massive amount of resources on any pc, and runs without question parallel to quicktime. if any quirks manage to occur, renstallation is required
- battery life - other than uninterrupted music playback very disappointing, especially while playing games
-everything is automated - this pertains to 1, the fact the ipod will turn on when i put in headphones, and the rest to itunes, which tries to sync entire libraries worth of music onto foreign ipods, like friends' and family
-Apple decided to require either their brand or certification to all ipod accessories, so to anyone that has bose or othere expensive docks and such, this might be a deal breaker

er, then i suppose theres a "both" category
-genius- theres something i havent noticed people mention, or if they do, its complaints. Genius is an absolutely worthless feature when used on the ipod. It works with only about 25% of PURCHASES. And it doesn't make a very satisfying playlist even when it does work. But honestly who should expect that? When you use genius on, itunes, yeah it still sucks at making playlists, and it is frustrating, but it's an excellent tool for finding new music, because it reccomends a huge list of new songs and different artists that usually appeal to your taste.

overall a big improvement compared to other ipods ive seen. the pricing and compactness, features and ease of use stand out, though the battery life and new accesory restrictions leave something to be desired. (get the 16 gb if you really want movies, or go for the classic or touch, which are both equally appealing) i give the nano ****.

With introductions like the accelerometer, genius, redesigned interface, and an even smaller package, who couldn't love Apple's new Ipod nano? While these sound like great additions, they really don't result in a better ipod. While the new interface, genius, and size, don't hurt, the accelerometer really ruins the whole package. The accelerometer might work well in the iphone and ipod touch, in the nano it is just really annoying. It is way to sensitive and causes problems with simple things like volume. The accelerometer often changes the now playing screen to the cover flow which keeps the volume from being changed without the ipod being pulled out and flipped. The shake to shuffle also causes problems, it is to sensitive as well and will activate when it is not intended to. At least the shake to shuffle can be turned off, I just wish the the accelerometer as a whole could be turned off. If it had that capacity this review could have easily turned from a 2 to a 5.

While this nano is pretty to look at and has a few novel features, it does have an extremely irritating draw back: It can only be charged with an approved apple device or with your computer's USB port.

It will not charge with my Altec Lansing In-motion speakers, as did the previous generation, or the iPod cable on my JVC HD car stereo which also worked just fine with my old nano. These were not inexpensive devices that I purchased to make the most of my 2nd generation nano. While my 4th generation will play with these devices it will not charge. I get an error message that says it is not an approved charging device.

As if this were not enough, the new interface and larger screen drain the battery at an alarming rate. If I had not had the newest nano engraved I would have returned it and waited until the folks at Apple had been cured of their proprietary ways. Now I can only hope for a firmware update that will resolve the issue.

The new 4G nanos are NOT compatible with any of the old accessories: speakers, car cables, clock radios, docking stations, etc. If you routinely listen through one of these devices, please be aware that your new nano will not charge through these items. They will also burn through your battery because they prohibit your iPod from going into "power saver" mode- and the only way to charge the new iPod is through the USB cable on your computer. Apple does not tell you this anywhere. When I complained Apple told me "too bad." They told me all accessories that were compatible are listed on their website. WRONG- my products are not on the website at all- but is compatible with 4 other iPods we have in the house (including a new 80GB). The tech also mentioned "currently we have no speaker systems compatible with the 4G nano." Nice of them to make this public knowledge before everyone upgrades.

Besides that, the new wheel feels cheap, is smaller and more difficult to use than the wheel on my old 2nd generation nano. Should have stuck with that- but needed the bigger memory size. Nice look, good screen colors and viewing, but I just can't get past that all my old systems are useless for this new and improved iPod.