The newest iPod models are video capable. Talk about never leaving a good thing alone. Apple decided to add video to the device’s many features. You can now watch your favorite movie on your iPod video. However, you’ll have to convert it to a form your iPod can understand. This is called encoding. This may not sound strange to those of you who have a PSP. This is because it uses the MPEG 4 format for its video files. There is nothing difficult about encoding. I’ll walk you through the process so you can start watching those videos wherever you want.

You’ll need QuickTime Pro 7 or a later version. With it you can encode your video to the MPEG 4 format that your iPod will understand and play. It is a pretty straightforward process. Download it if you don’t have it or if you have a version older than 7. Once you’re through with the installation, open it and click on File and Choose Open File. Export the video after you have selected the movie, home video or whichever video recording you intend to watch on your ipod. Now make sure you choose the 320 x 240 resolution. That’s the resolution that your iPod can handle. The next step now is for you to simply click Save. You’ll see how the encoding is going from a bar that comes on once you save.

Once the process is completed, you’ll see the movie on your desktop or anywhere else you specified. You now need iTunes not older than version 6 to load it onto your iPod. All you have to do then is to make sure your iTune synchronizes with your computer. You can then play the movies of your choice with ease.

Take note of this: your encoding time will depend on the length of your video. Longer videos will take longer while shorter videos will take less time. The configuration of your computer will also determine the time this process takes. You don’t expect a 1 gigabyte processor with a 256MB RAM to do the job as fast as your friend’s 3 gigabyte duo processor with 2GB RAM.

You can take the whole iPod video thing to another level by watching it on your standard TV. For this you’ll need an AV cable, then go to your iPod video’s options screen from Video then Video Settings and choose how you want your iPod to play back your movies. You have several options: TV out, TV signal and Wide screen. Choose the TV out option and select Yes. If you choose otherwise you won’t be able to watch the movie on your TV.

Now your movies can go with you wherever you go. Have a nice time but, please, never turn on the iPod video while driving for your safety and others.

Small is in when it is only 1.62 inches long and weighs only half an ounce – and lets face it – “small is in”. With the whole purpose being to easily load it with an assortment of songs, it then plays them in a random order. The first iPod to use flash memory, the iPod shuffle weighs only 22 grams, or .78 ounces, while holding 240 songs in the 1GB version, or four minutes per song, with listening power of 12 continuous hours. Apple claims its iPod shuffle is “the biggest thing in small”, available in 512 MB or 1 GB. The iPod shuffle is made to clip onto just about anything: coin pockets, purses, bags, or hats. In the world of digital electronics, it is the small size that matters the most anymore. And the iPod has the small market cornered in the mainstream market – more than any previous iPods.

The opposite side of the iPod shuffle is that it has several less features than the iPod – the trademark, scroll wheel, playlist management features, games, address book, calendar, notes capability of earlier iPods, the iPod shuffle cannot be used with iSync, its incapable of playing Apple Lossless and AIFF audio files. But it has a better bass sound quality than the larger pods. The iTune allows an iPod shuffle playlist to be viewed and changed while the unit is not connected, and when the unit is connected the next time, it can be updated with the changed playlist.

The question then becomes, why buy the shuffle with its limited disk space? The complaint against other iPod systems is the lack of durability, so you couldn’t take it to the gym regularly and keep it for long, yet the consumers interested in the shuffle are those same type of people. Its advantage is its low price. The target for the iPod shuffle and the iPod mini was the lower-end market. Eventually, any heavy physical activity would decrease its usage, yet the price was low enough that a person could actually purchase another one if needed.

As the name suggests, the benefit of the shuffle is that every time you listen to it the songs you downloaded are played in a different order. There are ways to get around this if it is not a benefit you are excited about. For instance, you can set the play list on your computer before sending it to the iPod, but you cannot control the songs being played from the shuffle itself. Arguments against the shuffle stem from the “shuffle” feature itself, the fact that you cannot control the play list from the device itself like other iPod systems. However, the price and durability appear to be above average for “flash drive” players.

Shuffle seems to be a good fit for fast paced individuals who are on the move, and are physically active while listening to music on the go. With this sort of clientele, accessories that are available to keep the iPod shuffle on the go with its user is a case that protects it from the weather and elements, a shuffle dock that allows it to connect easier to the computer, decorative and protective sleeves, belt clips, AC and DC power plugs, earphones, and FM transmitters. The battery takes about 1 1/2 hours to charge 80%, while a full charge will take about 3 hours.

As always, in the age of “consumer first” economics, Apple leads the way. The iPod nano is following along behind the footsteps of the original iPod, as Apple’s fourth digital player. The iPod nano came out the same day the iPod mini was discontinued – September 7, 2005 – but is known for having combined features of the iPod shuffle and the original iPod in its new development. It only took nine months for the design development of the iPod nano to become effective, even though most media were aware it was coming. What they did not know was the iPod mini was being discontinued on that same day.

Where the iPod Photo and Video versions capture the deeper pockets, and iPod Shuffle takes in the shallow pockets, iPod Nano catches those who find themselves in the middle. Although its disk size isn’t comparable to that of the iPod Photo or iPod Video, the iPod Nano does bring the tremendous features that makes the Apple iPod the industry leader. Picking up where the iPod Shuffle leaves off, the iPod Nano has a hard drive of 2GB, 4GB, or 8GB flash drives which holds up to 500 to 2,000 songs in a 128-Kbps AAC format, up to 25,000 iPod nano-viewable photographs, and stores data via the USB flash drive.

The iPod shuffle brought a lower price with the ability to listen to favorite music, but was lacking in the user-friendly features. For instance, with the iPod shuffle there was no control over the song that is being played – it was completely random. With the iPod nano, there is all the control needed like the bigger iPod systems, but without the disk space. It is smaller in disk size than the larger versions, but the iPod nano brings a sleek look and fee, roughly as thick as an ink pen or pencil. It is still slim and manageable like the iPod shuffle, so you can take it running or to the gym. The important thing to remember is that a person DOES have control over what they are listening to. The disadvantage of the iPod nano is much the same as that of the larger versions of the iPods – its durability. It can be taken to the gym or to run more than say the iPod Video or Photo, but does seem to fade out a little quicker than the iPod Shuffle. This is a problem that all electronic devices seem to have, but the more expensive the device the less the consumers are willing to put up with faults and glitches.