When I ordered my iPod Touch a few weeks ago, some of my friends gave me the impression that it was going to be like a gateway drug.  “You’ll have an iPhone 3G in a week,” they said.  “Next stop is a Mac,” they told me.  The obvious implication being that the iPod Touch was so superior to Windows Mobile in every way that I would immediately want nothing to do with Windows Mobile.  While I do know a few people who have taken that extreme route, I am much more of a fence sitter.  I prefer to have my iPod and my Windows Mobile (HTC Diamond coming soon) too. 

But what is it about the iPod Touch/iPhone that so many people find so appealing?  Obviously, we talked about the multimedia aspects last week.  Today, I want to take a look at the parts of the iPhone that have been drawing so many Windows Mobile users over to the Apple camp, the iPod Touch PDA functions.  How does it stack up against Windows Mobile?  Should you be jumping on the bandwagon?  Or is it better to wait for the inevitable iPod Touch update?  Let’s take a closer look at the iPod Touch as a PDA.

Interface

If there is one feature, other than the hardware, that really had people jumping on the iPod Touch bandwagon, then it would have to be the user interface, so that seems like a great place to start.

The Lock Screen: When you turn on the iPod Touch, the first thing you will see is the lock screen.  To unlock the device, just slide the arrow to the right.  Now, anyone who has ever used Windows Mobile knows what I am about to say.  This locking mechanism is impressive, because it works.  Every time.  I have used similar programs designed for Windows Mobile.  These programs always have a lag while the screen warms up, so you have to wait a second before you can slide.  Additionally, Windows Mobile also has been known to have problems with programs loading before the unlock screen.  So, you see the last screen you accessed before you see the unlock screen.  Not so with the iPhone.  As soon as you wake up the iPhone, it jumps immediately to the lock screen, which is primed and ready to go.

That being said, I thought the unlock screen itself was, perhaps, the biggest waste of space on any device.  I am about to make a controversial statement here, but one of my favorite features in Windows Mobile is my Today Screen.  Why?  because with a glance at the Today Screen, I can see my agenda, my to-do list, the current status of my device, and any number of other tidbits of information, all without opening a single program.  Its just there, staring me in the face.  This is particularly useful for my daily schedule, as I never remember to open the calendar and look unless I have some kind of a reminder.

There is nothing like the Today Screen on the iPod Touch.  The lock screen allows you to change the picture (you can see my customized picture, above), but no other information is displayed there.  What a wasted opportunity.  Apple could have turned this screen into their own version of the Today Screen.  This could have been a message center.  Any number of options fill my head.  Appointments, tasks, email, RSS feeds, weather.  Not to mention the status of your device.  Storage and memory consumption.  Battery indicator.  You name it.  Instead, while it is nice to see a bright and vibrant customized picture of my family, it really does me no good in terms of my productivity.

One thing I did like was that you can lock down your iPod further by protecting it with a passcode.  Just turn on this setting (it is under the general menu in settings) and your iPod will require a four digit passcode before unlocking.  I was a bit disappointed that you could not use a more complex passcode.  I mean, four numbers means only 10,000 possible combinations.  Not too hard to crack if someone really wanted your private data.  It would be nice if the iPod would allow longer codes, as well as letters and special characters.

The Home Screen: Once you have unlocked the screen, we can take a look at what has probably become one of the most famous computer layouts in recent history.  By default, you will have a black screen with an icon for each of the thirteen native programs (including the app store and settings).  Each time you add an application from the store, a corresponding icon will be added.  Each time you fill the page (16 icons on a page), a new page will be created.  So, in theory, you could add an unlimited number of icons.  But I would not recommend that.  I found more than four pages (64 icons) got to be bit unwieldy.  Just flick your finger across the screen to scroll to the next or previous page.

To rearrange the icons, just tap and hold on any icon until they all start jiggling.  Now, tap and hold the one you want and drag it to any location (drag it off the edge of the screen to move it to another page).  You can also delete an icon by tapping the “x”, however, the 13 default icons are here to stay.  While you can move them, you cannot delete them.  This can be a bit annoying when you replace some of these programs with offerings from the App Store.  This duplication simply causes unnecessary clutter.  For example, by default, you will have the iPod Touch/iPhone weather application installed.  I replaced this with FizzWeather, but now I am still stuck with both icons.

While we are talking about the application icons, I should mention the dynamic icons that the iPod Touch uses for many of its apps.  I absolutely love dynamic icons, because they give you a glimpse into your vital information without opening any additional programs.  From the Home Screen, you should have enough information to determine whether you need to open the application to learn more.   Not only do some of the native applications make use of these dynamic icons, but many of the third party applications utilize them very effectively, as well.

• The Calendar has a fully dynamic icon, which displays today’s date.  This is great information to have at a glance.  Though I was frustrated that it did not display an indication as to whether I had any scheduled appointments.  A simple number would have been sufficient.  Just something to tell me that there is something more I need to look at inside.
• Email has a nice number indicator on its icon.  This indicator will show the number of new/unread messages in your email accounts. 
• Similarly, the App Store will also show you the number of new updates ready for download.

Most inexplicable, however, were the programs which did not make use of the dynamic icon.  If the calendar icon displays the current date, why doesn’t the Clock icon display the current time?  And why is there no dynamic icon on the Weather program.  Certainly, displaying the current temperature in a dynamic icon here would be extremely useful information.

Like I said, many applications in the App Store will also make use of dynamic icons, and you can learn more about those as you explore the iPod Touch later.

Accessing Applications: Now that your application icons are all neatly arranged (well, they automatically fit in a predesigned 4×4 grid..always neatly,) it is time to open an application.  Simply scroll to the appropriate page and tap the application you want to open. 

One of the things I had heard about the iPod Touch and iPhone was how smooth everything is.  No lags or hiccups like you would find on Windows Mobile (or so the story goes).  And this is true while flipping through the Home Screen pages.  The lock screen is immediately responsive, the pages flip back and forth, the apps open….Well, now we have a problem.  As you can see, above, the apps do not open quickly as you might expect.  Many applications, particularly those with a large data call, will open and then pause for several seconds or more, while the data loads.  Take a look at my contacts, above, for example.  It took three seconds from the time the program opened until it displayed my information.  Same thing for the calendar.  It opened to a blank screen.  Two seconds later, a blank calendar was displayed.  In another two seconds the application opens.  I found this lag to be extremely disappointing, because it soiled what was otherwise a fantastic user experience.

Included Apps

The applications included natively with the iPod Touch are really pretty impressive (Note that I am using the version 2.0 software.)  There are eight applications included with the device, and I am discussing them in no particular order (earlier, I said there were 13 icons.  We will look at Safari, Mail, and YouTube in a later article.  The other two are Settings and the App Store):

• Calendar: The calendar included with the iPod Touch is pretty good, and based upon the calendar program designed for Macs.  As I mentioned earlier, there is a dynamic icon on the Home Screen which will always show you the current date.  To my dismay, however,there is no way to tell whether you have any upcoming appointments from the Home Screen.

There are three views in the calendar.  List View will show a list of your upcoming appointments.  Day View shows your daily itinerary (divided by hour).  Month View (above) shows a full calendar.  A small dot on each day shows whether there are any appointments scheduled for that date.  Tap any date and a window will appear beneath the calendar, showing any appointments scheduled for that day. 

One thing I noticed almost immediately, though, was the lack of a seven-day view.  Every calendar program I have used on Windows and Windows Mobile has utilized the seven-day view.  On most programs, it is my default view, because it provides me with an organized approach, not only to today’s appointments, but to my itinerary for the upcoming week as well.  The omission of such a view in the iPod Touch Calendar was most unfortunate for me.  Long time readers know that in my opinion, any device should be able to conform to my needs.  I should not conform to what the device can do.  In this regard, I felt the iPod Touch’s Calendar program failed me.

• Contacts: I really liked the contacts program for the iPod Touch.  Even though there is no phone on the iPod, it still served as a fantastic repository for all of my contact information.  To scroll through your contacts, just flick the screen with your finger.  Or, slide your finger down the alphabet ribbon on the left to jump to a specific letter.

Once you find the entry you are seeking, simply tap the name to open the entry.  From there, you can edit the entry, or send the person an email.  Presumably, on the iPhone, you would also be able to call the contact directly from this screen.

• Weather: This is really a bare bones weather program.  It pretty much shows nothing more than the current weather, and the six-day forecast.  Although this information is extremely accurate, there are no advanced features here.  I quickly replaced this program with the much more powerful FizzWeather, for a mere $4.95.

• Notes: This was a relatively simple notes program.  It did what it was supposed to do.  You could write and store notes.  It would be nice if this program would allow you a little more control, such as creating folders and organizing your notes.  There are a lot of notes programs in the App Store, and I ended up replacing this one with the free Writing Pad from ShapeWriter.  Writing Pad does not offer any more functionality (and actually slightly less impressive graphics).  However, it does offer, as I will discuss, one of the best text input methods I have ever used.  Unfortunately, due to the design of the iPod, you cannot replace the default keyboard with another programs text entry method.

• Maps: This is probably the most impressive program in the arsenal of applications included with the iPod Touch.  The iPod Touch does not include a GPS, however, it can use the Internet to find your current location.  For a program which did not utilize GPS, I was really very impressed by its accuracy.  Using only the Wifi signal, it was quickly able to zoom in on my current location, and even give me directions to anywhere I would need to go.  Using the maps program, you can view a map, satellite view, turn-by-turn directions, and even traffic.  Wow.  Just imagine what it could do if a GPS had been included.

• Clock: This is pretty much what you would expect from a clock program, and worked quite well.  Use the world clock to view the time in any time zone in the world.  I have mine set to show the time zone at home and in Beijing during the Olympics.  You can also use this program to set any number of alarms to wake you up in the morning, remind you of an appointment, or just about anything else. When the alarm rings, it will play a chime, and display a message to either dismiss or snooze.  There are a few different sounds from which you can choose, though it would be nice if you could set it to play a song from your music collection.  You can also customize the message which is displayed, which I really appreciated.  An alarm, like tying a string around your finger, is not much good if you cannot remember why it is there.  Additionally, from here, you will find a stopwatch and a countdown timer (above), which could both be very helpful to many users.

• Calculator: No explanation is really necessary here.  When I first discovered this application, I was disappointed to find no advanced functions.  Just a standard function calculator.  It worked fine, but I felt Apple could have done better.

Then I turned it sideways, and you see what I found.  Just another example of why I love this motion sensing technology.

• Stocks: Another nice little application.  Just enter the stocks you own or wish to follow.  And this application will show you how they are doing.  Nothing fancy, but really very useful if you are interested in how your money is doing.  In addition to the day’s progress, you can also view a chart showing your stock’s progress over the last day, week, month, three months, six months, year, or two years.

I was really fairly impressed by the package of applications Apple included with the iPod Touch.  I had intended to compare it with the applications included in a standard Windows Mobile phone…but that proved to be difficult.  There is no standard Windows Mobile phone.  Every OEM, every manufacturer, and every carrier, adds their own suite of applications, making every device a little different.

As good as these apps may have been, however, the package is far from complete.  Which is why I was extremely happy when Apple opened the App Store.  The Apple App Store allows developers to improve upon the applications you find here and fill in an awful lot more. 

The App Store: One of the reasons I was so interested in trying out the iPod Touch was the inclusion of the new App Store.  My big complaint about the original iPhone and iPod Touch was that they had not allowed third party developers to add functionality.  Certainly, Apple could not expect us to believe that they had thought of and included everything.  So, once it became clear that the App Store would be coming to the iPod Touch, I decided the time had come for me to give it a try.

When I first encountered the App Store, I probably had unrealistically high expectations.  After reading for quite some time about the tight quality controls Apple had placed on the whole thing.  I expected to find tightly developed and highly functional applications.  What I found, was best described by Dan as, “The Wild, Wild, West.” 

Once you start scrolling through the apps, you have to wonder, do I need 25 BMI calculators, 15 tip calculators, 4 Magic 8-Balls, and 5 programs that simulate drinking?  Not to mention the now infamous, “I Am Rich” application, which cost $1000 to do pretty much nothing This was far from the neat, orderly system that Apple had promised.  Which is not to say there is nothing worthwhile here.  There is.  There are some fantastic games, weather applications, password wallets, and more.  But you will have to wade through a considerable amount of muck to find a few gems.

I wondered allowed at this phenomenon, and I think Brandon hit upon one reason the App Store has seen such early disappointments.  Simply put, it takes longer to make good applications than garbage. This makes a lot of sense, and certainly explains why most of the early contenders out of the gate were hardly worth the cost of the download (and many of them were free).  So, I am holding out hope that in the coming months, we will see the restlessness of the App Store die down as the true contenders allow the cream to rise to the top.

Of course, the second problem Apple has created with the App Store is that they do not offer any opportunity to try applications before you buy.  One of my favorite features of Windows Mobile is that almost every developer will allow you to have a time or feature limited trial before you spend any money on the application.  Not Apple.  You will need to purchase the app or forget about it.  Fortunately, the App Store is chock full of freeware, and some of it is really pretty good (as you can see, there are over 20 pages of free applications in the App Store.)  A number of developers are also finding ways to get limited versions of their apps into your hands.  The most common way to do this is by offering a “lite” version of the program (mostly games) for free.  Still, the lack of trial versions is a real problem, which Apple will need to resolve in the future.

Content aside, I was pretty impressed by the App Store.  I am not usually a fan of such tightly closed systems, but in a weird way, I think it worked.   Having one central authority control which apps are included and which are not, means that there is a great deal of consistency between apps, something you would never see with Windows Mobile.  All of the apps shared the same default color scheme, and had similar controls in the same place.  This significantly improves upon the learning curve associated with a new app.  It also means that the app all look like they belong together, rather than the hodgepodge of loosely related apps which Windows Mobile can become. 

Then again, the App Store does have a really cool feature, which many have attempted on Windows Mobile, but never to this extent.  In addition to appearing as part of iTunes on your computer, there is also an App Store icon on your iPod Touch.  Tap this icon and you will be taken to the FULL iTunes App Store straight from your device.  From here, you can browse, purchase, and download every application available in the App Store.  But wait, that is not the really cool part.  Tap the Updates tab, and the App Store will automatically detect which Apps are installed on your device, and whether there are any updates available. 

If there are updates available, then just tap the update button to download (so far, most updates have been free, though there is no word on whether that will change down the road.)  The updates will automatically download to your device and install.  As an added feature, these updates will also frequently crash your iPod.  Nothing serious, but I have had numerous update downloads interrupted when my iPod chose that exact moment to spontaneously reboot.

Text Entry: One of the real advances Apple was supposed to have made over Windows Mobile was text entry.  Now, we can just start this part of the conversation from the premise that I have never been a fan of onscreen keyboards.  So, I was a bit hesitant to try this one out. 

I was pleasantly surprised, however, to find the keys were well placed and fairly logically organized.  I had to hunt a bit for some of the special characters, but it would work well enough.  Then, I tried typing on it.  Holy misplaced letters, Batman.  Although this soft input panel was easy enough to type on, accuracy was not its strong suit.

The real shame of it all is that I found a wonderful SIP attached to the free Writing Pad from ShapeWriter.   Due to Apple locking down certain aspects of the iPod from developers (not to mention the only one application can run at a time rule) you will never see this SIP outside of the Writing Pad application.  To me, this is a waste of an otherwise fantastic text entry method.  Apple really needs to loosen up some of these restrictions.  There are a lot of developers out there with a lot more experience than Apple at developing mobile applications.  Apple should set them loose on the iPod Touch/iPhone and see what they can do.  This could significantly improve upon most of the native applications, not to mention the soft input panel for text entry.

A Few Things I Think Apple Missed

A lot of people refer to the iPod Touch (well, really the iPhone) as the Jesus Phone.  This moniker would imply that Apple hit every mark perfectly.  Unfortunately, I did not find this to be the case.  In fact, there were several noticeable omissions I noticed in the iPod Touch which I felt made it far from the top PDA available today.

• Multi-Tasking: One of the concessions Apple made when they introduced the App Store was the elimination of multi-tasking.  Mostly.  There is still some multi-tasking available within the native programs.  As I noted last week, for example, you can listen to music while running other applications.  However, you cannot run an application in the background while utilizing another.  This means you cannot leave your IM or email program running in the background while looking something else up online or performing some other activity.  This was a disappointment.  Apple recently announced that they are working on a solution for this problem and, in my mind, it can’t come soon enough.
• Cut/Copy and Paste: The lack of cut and paste functionality in the iPod Touch and iPhone has been documented all too well since the iPhone was introduced last year.  And I contemplated not mentioning it at all.  However, I recently had a situation arise in which the lack of cut and paste turned into a complete failure of the iPod Touch for me. 

I use eWallet to store my passwords.  The other day, I noticed a free random password generator in the App Store.  This is a great idea.  It means I can create ultra-secure passwords utilizing any number of different combinations of characters.  So, I created a password using this program, and then tried to store my new password in eWallet.  This is where I ran into a problem.  With a cut and paste function, this would be easy.  Instead, I had to write down the new password on a sheet of paper, then recopy that into eWallet.  This double transcription leave an awful lot of room for errors (which I apparently made because the password no longer works).  This is another feature which cannot come fast enough for me.

• Camera: The iPhone has one.  Most Windows Mobile devices have them.  Most Symbian Phones have them.  Almost every dumb phone, even the free ones have them.  Yet the iPod Touch does not.   I can’t really explain that one. Can you?
• Office Suite: Neither the iPod Touch, not the software store, offers a solution for reading and editing documents and spreadsheets.  Really, if this is a device which is ever going to be more than a music player with extra features, it needs to be able to edit documents.  I need to be able to create a document on my computer, transfer it to my ipod Touch, edit it, and then transfer it back, with all of my formatting and edits intact.  Let’s be honest, this is an area which poses a real opportunity for Apple.  Most Windows Mobile users have expressed disappointment with the included Mobile Outlook package.  Apple could have and should have put a lock on that box with their own office suite. 
• BlueTooth: This is another area in which I feel like Apple has shown a complete disdain for its users.  While it is true that most media players have not traditionally used Bluetooth headphones, this feature is starting to become more utilized, with Sony and Samsung both offering media players with native Bluetooth functionality.  Nonetheless, the iPod Touch is not just a media player.  It is also a PDA, and it is almost unheard of for a PDA like this not to include Bluetooth for external keyboards.  Then again, even the iPhone does not use it, making it the only phone available today not to allow Bluetooth headsets.  This is one area in which Apple really just needs to get with the program.  Sure, it would negatively impact battery life, but this is a necessary concession which Apple must make in order to offer a necessary functionality.
• Task Manager: This is probably the function I use most on any PDA.  My daily Todo list is critical.  The iPod Touch includes a calendar, appointments, and contacts, but leaves off this critical function.  Sure, there plenty of excellent options available in the App Store, but this is a feature that really should have been included natively.

The good news is that a lot of these omissions are already on Apple’s radar.  In fact, word is that many of them should be coming soon.  The rest, well, a lot of the rest can be fixed by the phenomenal and growing community of iPhone developers.  The bad news, though, is that some of these upgrades would require new hardware.  Things like GPS, a camera, and Bluetooth can only be done by releasing a new device.  Then again, whose to say Apple won’t do that either.

Wrap Up

When the iPhone and iPod Touch were initially introduced, they were referred to as revolutionary.  Not just a PDA, but a whole new mobile computing experience.  And I can’t really dispute this claim.  It does do a lot of things that should have Windows Mobile developers slapping their heads and saying, “why didn’t we think of that?” 

That being said, there is considerable room for improvement in the iPod Touch.  Many areas, including the App Store, reveal Apple to be the newcomer to this market.  Rookie mistakes abound in terms of what they allow in the store, how their filters are implemented, and more.   Of course, as they say, the devil is in the details, and Apple has unearthed quite a few devils with the iPod Touch.

Personally, I think the interface is fantastic, and I am only now starting to understand why so many Windows Mobile programs have tried so hard to copy it.  Likewise, I think the App Store is a terrific idea, and I really liked the one stop access and automatic updates that the App Store provided.  However, this wild west town needs a much stronger sheriff.  Someone needs to do a better job of serving as the gatekeeper for these developers. 

In the end, I found the iPod Touch, despite some of its flaws, to be a fantastic device.  Unlike some people, I do not plan to drop Windows Mobile entirely.  There were too many rookie errors and untended details for me to make this my primary and sole device.  However, I do think it will make a nice compliment to any Windows Mobile phone I purchase (HTC Diamond).  And I expect to see considerable improvements coming in the future as Apple learns from its mistakes and continues to improve upon the operating system, interface, and App Store.

Other articles in this series:

Part 1: Unboxing, Hardware and Controls

Part 2: Its a Portable Media Player

Still to Come:

Part 4: The Internet

Part 5: iTunes, Memory, Battery, and other Miscellaneous Issues

Part 6: Wrap Up

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