Apple's Two New Bites

Some of the Touch's applications have also been cut down. You can edit or delete entries in its address book, but you can't do the same with appointments in the calendar. (Like other iPods, the Touch synchronizes with a Mac's Address Book and iCal programs or a Windows PC's copy of Outlook or Outlook Express.)

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Worse, the Touch lacks something built into every other iPod ever made: physical volume controls. Instead of pressing buttons or spinning a click wheel, you have to tap the screen to bring up a slider control which you then adjust with a fingertip.

That's not all the Touch misses. Its screen looks notably darker than the iPhone's, and unlike other iPods, it can't double as add-on storage for your computer.

The one thing the Touch does do better than any other iPod -- the iPhone included -- is browse the Web over WiFi. It worked with both encrypted and unencrypted WiFi signals, including a local university's network requiring a log-in. The Touch's Safari browser, like the iPhone's, clearly displayed full-sized pages and allowed me to zoom in with simple two-finger gestures on the screen.

Beyond browsing, the Touch connects to a music-only version of the iTunes Store. It's dangerously easy to spend money this way. I bought, downloaded and began listening to a song in less than three minutes. A quick sync with a Mac's copy of iTunes put a copy of that song on that Mac's hard drive.

The Touch's WiFi set back its battery life a bit, limiting it to about 19 hours when playing music and 6 when playing video.

Like the new Nano, the Touch's shiny metal back doubles as a fingerprint and scratch magnet.

Were there no such thing as an iPhone, the iPod Touch would look much more attractive. But how many people will want this cut-down serving instead of getting the whole meal with an iPhone?

The Nano is an easier sell, not least to owners of older Nano models (like, say, me) who may find their own player looks instantly obsolete. But hold off on trading up. In another nine months or a year, the Nano will probably include twice as much storage -- if it's still shipping in the current size and shape at all.

Living with technology, or trying to? E-mail Rob Pegoraro atrobp@washpost.com. Read more athttp://blog.washingtonpost.com/fasterforward/