IPod Touch

The iPod Touch (often incorrectly referred to as the iTouch) is a portable media player and Wi-Fi mobile platform designed and marketed by Apple Inc. The product was launched on September 5, 2007 at an event called The Beat Goes On. The iPod Touch adds the multi-touch graphical user interface to the iPod line and is available with 8, 16, or 32 GB of flash memory. It includes Apple's Safari web browser and is the first iPod with wireless access to the iTunes Store. With a software update, which is sold by Apple, it also has access to Apple's App Store. The second generation iPod Touch, featuring external volume controls, a built-in speaker, a contoured back and built-in Nike+ support, was unveiled on September 9, 2008 at the Let's Rock keynote presentation.

Description
The iPod Touch has the iPhone's multi-touch interface, with a physical home button off the touch screen. The home screen has a list of buttons for the available applications. The iPod Touch is equipped with Wi-Fi 802.11b/g. All iPod Touch models include the applications Music, Videos, and Photos (collectively duplicating the standard functions of the iPod Classic), iTunes (providing access to the Wi-Fi Music Store), Safari, YouTube, Calendar, Contacts, Clock, Calculator, and Settings. Later models added Mail (accessing POP/IMAP/SMTP e-mail), Maps, Stocks, Notes, and Weather, which could also be added to the earlier models with the purchase of a US$20 software upgrade. The user can add direct links to web sites (called "Web Clips") to the home screen.

On July 11, 2008 the iPhone 2.0 Software Update was released for the iPod Touch for US$9.95. The update allowed first generation iPod Touch devices to access the App Store, download third-party applications, in addition to a host of minor "fixes". The iPod Touch 2.0 Software Update supports WPA2 Enterprise with 802.1X authentication.

Comparisons to the iPhone and model comparisons
The iPod Touch and the iPhone share the same hardware platform and are controlled by the same iPhone OS operating system. The iPod Touch lacks some of the iPhone's features such as: access to a phone network, a built-in microphone, a camera, Bluetooth capability, and GPS receiver; as a result, the iPod Touch is slimmer and lighter than the iPhone. Steve Jobs has referred to the iPod Touch as "training wheels for the iPhone".

The second generation iPod Touch has an external volume switch and a built-in speaker, like the iPhone. The second generation also comes with the chrome frame seen on the iPhone 3G, making the two almost identical when viewed from the front. However, there are some notable differences, as there is no speaker above the screen, no silent/ringer switch, and the sleep/wake button is on the other side. The second generation also supports audio input when a headphone or earphone with microphone capabilities is plugged into the audio output jack. Although unannounced and unsupported by Apple, the iPod Touch has Bluetooth capability, as the included Wi-Fi chip (Broadcom BCM4325) has Bluetooth and FM Radio support, as well as the advertised Wi-Fi capability. It is believed that this Bluetooth capability is being used for Nike+iPod support, as Apple has said that the Nike+iPod kit works on an unspecified 2.4 GHz radio frequency.

Second generation iPod Touches are said to have a yellower cast/tint to the display, as compared to the iPhone or the original iPod Touch. Claims have also been made that the applications processor inside the second generation iPod Touch runs faster than the processor inside the iPhone 3G. The first generation iPod Touch works with all "Made for iPod" peripherals, but certain changes that Apple made to the second generation iPod Touch prevent some existing peripherals from recharging the updated player.

Requirements
As supplied new, the iPod Touch needs a connection to a computer for initial configuration. Officially, Apple requires iTunes to be installed on either a Mac OS X or Windows operating system based computer for configuring the iPod Touch. On either operating system, the iPod Touch must be connected through a USB port. The first time the iPod Touch is turned on, a "connect cable to iTunes" graphic will be displayed continuously until the iPod Touch is connected to a computer running iTunes.

To use the iPod Touch for buying products at the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store via Wi-Fi, an iTunes Store account must be created in iTunes and the account details then entered into the iPod.

Apple states that the following is required for the iPod Touch:
 * A computer running either:
 * Mac OS X 10.4.10 or later
 * Microsoft Windows XP with SP2 or later, or Microsoft Windows Vista (32 or 64-bit versions)
 * iTunes 8.0 (with the 2.1 iPhone OS update) or 7.6 for iPhone OS 2.0.x or earlier
 * Available USB 2.0 port

Third-party applications
The only official channel to obtain third-party applications for the iPod Touch is Apple's iTunes Store. The App Store application, available in all versions of the iPhone OS from version 2.0 (or Software Update 2.0) onwards, allows users to browse and download applications from an online repository with the iTunes Store. To develop such software, a software development kit (SDK) was officially announced on March 6, 2008, at an Apple Town Hall meeting. The iPhone SDK allows developers to make applications for the iPhone and iPod Touch after paying a fee to join the development team. The developer can then set the price for the applications they develop and will receive 70% of the sale price. The developer can also opt to release the application for free and will not pay any additional costs.

Shortly after the iPod Touch was released (iPhone OS version 1.1.1), hackers were able to "jailbreak" the device through a TIFF exploit. The resulting application, "Installer.app", enabled the user to download a selection of unofficial third-party programs. Some of these give the user more control over the iPod Touch than is officially available, and also makes it work on Linux operating systems. All subsequent versions of the iPhone OS can be jailbroken. Servicing an iPod Touch after jailbreaking or other modifications made by unofficial means is not covered by Apple's warranty.

Specifications
The specifications as listed on Apple's website for the second generation iPod Touch are:
 * Screen material: glass (arsenic free)
 * Screen size: 3.5 in
 * Screen resolution: 480×320 px at 163 ppi, with 3:2 aspect ratio
 * Input method: Multi-touch screen interface, Sleep/Wake button, Accelerometer, Home button, Volume Rocker buttons
 * Operating system: iPhone OS (current version 3.0)
 * Storage: 8, 16, or 32 GB flash memory
 * CPU: Initially ARM 400 MHz, but now 412 MHz for 1st generation, 533 MHz for 2nd Generation
 * GPU: PowerVR MBX Lite
 * RAM: 128 MB DRAM
 * Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g)
 * Built-in rechargeable, non-removable lithium battery with up to 6 hours of video playback, and up to 36 hours of audio playback, times vary.
 * Built-in audio speaker.
 * 3.5 mm audio output jack
 * Size: 110×61.8×8 mm (4.3×2.4×0.33 in)
 * Weight: 115 g (4.05 oz)
 * Direct iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store access
 * Widescreen video
 * Included applications: Safari web browser, YouTube client, Mail email client, Google Maps
 * Access to App Store (requires iPhone OS 2.0 or later)
 * Widgets: Stocks, Weather, Notes
 * Access to Starbucks music (available only in selected cities across the United States)