It was either Uncle Ben Parker from the Spider-Man movies or Steve Jobs who once said, “With great iPods, comes great responsibility.” And with the testing of two new fourth-generation iPods underway for the last few days, I’ve sure felt that way. The initial period after any new iPod’s release is the same way: spend several days doing hard core testing and barely enjoy using our new toys, and then, when the reviews are all done, settle back in a chair, relax, and just listen. For fun, even.
There’s a temptation to slack on the reviews – or even not write two versions, because it takes so much more time – but I’m not going to do that. So the first of the two reviews will be up within the next few hours, and the second will follow thereafter. Thanks for all your comments and requests on what should be covered; I’ve been reading them all.
I’m glad the new iPods didn’t come out in August, as some were predicting. They turned out to be a nice early birthday present, if not quite the Swiss Army Knife Pods that would have dropped jaws worldwide. And they’re just in time for print magazines’ Holiday Buyers Guides, which are probably being written… well, this past Monday, knowing how slow the print world is.