Just last month, Apple brought in its 5th generation iPod Nano in to the spot light and since then portable music players will never be the same again. We have witnessed iPod’s evolution through the years. Having gone through numerous “make-overs”, each did not fail to wow us even more. It may not look much different from its predecessor, but once you take a closer look, you’ll see the astonishing difference from its design down to its numerous distinguishing features. With the new Nano, you would definitely be overwhelmed!

The new iPod Nano comes in a rectangular shape, but not in the usual flat design with dimensions of 3.6 x 1.5 x 0.24 inches only. Because it is curved or it tapers at its sides, it seems to be a bit slimmer. It comes in a glossy aluminum finish that makes it brighter and shinier compared to the old matte finish.

One distinguishing feature is its slightly larger screen now at 2.2 inches. The resolution is likewise enhanced from 240 x 320 to 240 x 376. The inch wide click wheel remains the same. Same with the old one, I still sometimes encounter moments the click wheel being less responsive than it should be. The hold switch is still on top but interestingly the dock and headphone ports have switched position. The dock port is now moved to the right. Just don’t know if it’ll be an issue with some other docks. Nevertheless, a white plastic universal dock that fits perfectly with the new Nano is provided when you purchase one.

All features seen in the older version that we so dearly love are still with the new Nano; music, video, podcast playback, photos, stopwatch, etc. But even with all these, Apple still saw the need to pack in more features.

Video camera

The 5th generation iPod Nano boasts of having its very own video camera. When viewed from the back, the lens is placed on its lower left hand side. At first I found this location inconvenient because I was holding the Nano in its usual upright position with my thumb on the click wheel for controls and my 4 remaining fingers placed on the back. Naturally, all 4 fingers got in the way obstructing the lens. Hence, I needed to turn the Nano to its side (with the screen on the left and wheel on the right) for better hand placement. The accelerometer will then adjust allowing you to position the camera in the most comfortable way you can.

With its incredibly svelte, small size and VGA resolution of only 640 x 480 at 30 fps, do not expect videos of HD quality. However, you can get clear, vibrant and impressive 16 hours of recorded video with its 8GB storage. Of course, total length of recorded video still depends on the remaining memory in the Nano. Unfortunately, even with its remarkable feat of incorporating a stealthy video camera into the Nano, it could have been much better if it can take still photos.

FM Radio

At last, iPod has its very own FM radio with pre-set stations and manual/automatic station scanning. For supported radio stations, it’ll show you the names of artists and songs that you can tag for later purchase in iTunes. With the use of your headphones as the antenna, the FM radio gets excellent reception.

A cool feature of the FM radio is the “Live Pause”. You can literally pause a program that goes to memory for up to 15 minutes. With just a click you go back to the program without actually missing a beat. You can likewise click fast forward if you want to catch up with the live broadcast.

Genius Mixes

Apple has found another way of customizing your set of songs. By syncing your iPod Nano to iTunes, Genius will automatically search your library for songs that would sound great together. It can create up to 12 Genius mixes. A great way to re-discover forgotten songs that you already have or haven’t listened to for a long time.