[Dork.]

As nice as having a pocket-sized WiFi computer is, I can't really see a need to have one. Unless it can replace the Palm Tungsten that I currently keep all my contacts and my schedule in. (I'm quite happy with my current cell phone and see no need to replace it right now.)

Can the iPod Touch sync with Outlook? (And a one-way sync, please, I don't want all my personal stuff on my company's calendar.) How easy is to type contact information or notes into it? I'm kind of used to Grafitti, but the iPod Touch has no stylus. I assume there's a built-in keyboard you use to type information into?

(I assume all these questions apply equally to the iPhone as well.)

What would be really sweet is if someone would make a Palm-OS emulator for the two or three apps that I've bought for the Palm and would like to take with me. I can even copy the ROM file from my current Tungsten if that would make things easier. But I'm not holding my breath.

Any thoughts? Can an iPod Touch function like a PDA?

Thanks!

[mutelight]

To be honest if you want a PDA replacement the iPhone would be the way to go. I have had multiple PDAs (including PDA phones) in the past and they don't even hold a candle to the iPhone in terms of easy of use and speed.

[Dork.]

I'm assuming that the iPod Touch will do everything an iPhone will do, except make phone calls, take pictures, and use BlueTooth.

That's exactly what I want! (Well, I want Bluetooth also, but other than that it's what I want.)

[mitchell_pgh]

IMHO, Apple purposefully excluded some functionality in the iPod touch. Mail.app, google maps, etc. makes me cringe. I'm sure it could be hacked, but who wants to do that...

[mutelight]

You cannot edit calendar events on the iPod touch.

[James L]

Originally Posted by mutelight 

You cannot edit calendar events on the iPod touch.

Link?

[mutelight]

http://forums.macnn.com/103/ipod-iph...or-ipod-touch/

Scroll down to the images.

[amazing]

It's really too early to tell what the Touch will or won't do. Or, in the end, what it can be hacked to do.

For example, can the iPhone email app be ported? Is there a microphone that can be activated? What can be edited and what can't, like calendars, on the SHIPPING version. Or what Apple will add in the first major update?

[besson3c]

The reason why you can't edit calendar events is a protocol limitation which should be fixed with Leopard and CalDAV savvy clients. The specific limitation is that you can't edit a calendar which you have subscribed to, and you can't publish to the same calendar from multiple clients or else this data will not stay in sync.



Edit: this should not be a problem with calendars that are not published to a server though.

[ajprice]

(stupid noob question) So how come an iPhone can edit calendars? (/stupid)

[besson3c]

Originally Posted by ajprice 

(stupid noob question) So how come an iPhone can edit calendars? (/stupid)

If your post is based on what I just wrote, I realize that it wasn't clear. What I wrote only applies to calendars that have been published to a server. Standalone personal calendars should, in theory, work on both.

[ajprice]

So that applies to iPhone and touch?

[besson3c]

Originally Posted by ajprice 

So that applies to iPhone and touch?

There are no editing abilities on other iPods because there is no keyboard.

[ajprice]

I know. I was talking about the difference between an iPhone and iPod touch.

[besson3c]

Originally Posted by ajprice 

I know. I was talking about the difference between an iPhone and iPod touch.

Like I said before, standalone unpublished calendars should, in theory, work on both unless intentionally crippled. I'll let somebody else verify this since I own neither.

[Dork.]

Originally Posted by mutelight 

http://forums.macnn.com/103/ipod-iph...or-ipod-touch/

Scroll down to the images.

Interesting. If you can edit contacts, you ought to be able to edit calendar entries, too. I guess I'll just have to wait and get my hands on one and try it out.

The lack of a mail client doesn't bother me much, however. My goal is to replace my Palm, and I currently don't use its' E-mail features. Any e-mail I can do from it is a bonus, and I have Gmail so I can always use that via Safari.

I'm not above applying software hacks to get the functionality I want, especially the Palm OS emulator....

[mutelight]

Originally Posted by besson3c 

There are no editing abilities on other iPods because there is no keyboard.

There is a keyboard for the Safari web browser.

[besson3c]

Originally Posted by mutelight 

There is a keyboard for the Safari web browser.

The other iPods, meaning not the iPod touch or iPhone.

Oh wait, the Nano offers Wifi and Safari now, right?

[mutelight]

I misread your post. But hey would you mind checking them for me over there in smart ass land?

[besson3c]

Originally Posted by mutelight 

I misread your post. But hey would you mind checking them for me over there in smart ass land?

Sorry, I didn't mean it to sound smart assy at all... I guess while the Nano offers the new interface it doesn't offer Safari since it still uses the clickwheel. My mistake, I wasn't thinking it through carefully, honestly no smart asseyness intended, but I do apologize nonetheless...

[mutelight]

Originally Posted by besson3c 

Sorry, I didn't mean it to sound smart assy at all... I guess while the Nano offers the new interface it doesn't offer Safari since it still uses the clickwheel. My mistake, I wasn't thinking it through carefully, honestly no smart asseyness intended, but I do apologize nonetheless...

I apologize as well, suppose I jumped to a conclusion.

Nonetheless, I think Apple hit a home run with this new line of iPods.

[Dork.]

I took a look at a iPhone today at an AT&T store, and I think the keyboard is something I can live with. I found it very thumb-friendly, and I could type well enough by holding the iPhone in one hand. I can only assume the iTouch is similar.

But the Contacts list is integrated with the phone part of the iPhone, so it will be interesting to see how the contacts are organized in the iPod Touch.

(Our local Apple Store is closed for renovations, so I'll have to wait until the resellers get theirs before I can look at any of the new iPods.)

And you can call besson3c a smart-ass. You have my permission.

[thedavide]

iPod Touch > Multi-touch > bottom of first paragraph says "And iPod touch features a touchscreen QWERTY keyboard perfect for browsing the web in Safari, searching for videos on YouTube, finding music on the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store, entering calendar events, or adding new contacts.

Since I have don't have a USB 2.0 on my eMac or iBook, does this mean iPod Touch is out of the question for me?

Thanks

[Dork.]

Good catch! I guess I'll just have to test-drive one in person. Something else to spend money on!

Regarding the USB2.0: It will probably work, Apple has been saying that their devices are not compatible with computers that don't support USB 2.0, where in reality they will work, just slowly, in USB 1.1 mode. Not sure about the iPod Touch in particular, but all the older Nanos are like this.

[zerock]

well thanks to the iPhone. I'm considering selling my macbook, and just getting a iMac for home.

[Gamoe]

The Touch is close but frustratingly just short of being the Apple PDA I've been waiting for since the Newton. My issues are with the following.

Writing

Apple needs to allow USB and/or Bluetooth (the former being preferable for lower power usage and security) support for attaching a keyboard or other input device to the Touch. Unfortunately, virtual on-screen keyboards are no where near as efficient for writing, and this is important one of your primary usages is writing (like it is for me). No need to carry around a $1K+ laptop just for the keyboard when the Touch is just as capable of word processing.

Apple needs to include a basic word processing app. I can't believe they actually took out Notes, the closest thing to a word processor on the Touch!

Storage

Flash is great, but it's not ready for mass storage just yet. That's still a few years away. The Touch needs a small hard drive in there to match its processing power. I don't think an added inch would be a great sacrifice for 80 or 120 GB of storage.

Applications

Apple needs to include more apps-- How about an iPaint (ala MacPaint) or an audio recording and editing app (I realize that the iTouch probably doesn't have a microphone, though), in addition to a word processing app? And, what Apple doesn't do third parties can pick up on-- when Apple opens up iTouch/iPhone development!

Camera

Am I the only one who wants a decent camera/PDA without a phone?

Thing is, I want the iTouch to be a PDA, but Apple hasn't claimed it is, and while it more than satisfies as a next-gen iPod, I think its meant for more, and I hope Apple will eventually get over its aversion to PDAs and finally grant the iPod full PDA+ capabilities.

[OAW]

Well it's official. You can add/edit Contacts on the iPod Touch ... but Calendar events are read-only. Unbelievably lame and quite inexplicable.

http://manuals.info.apple.com/en/iPo...ures_Guide.pdf

(see page 49)

OAW

[forkies]

yeah, i noticed that too. totally lame, i don't want to have to add events on my phone, then be forced to enter them on my mac so that they show up on my ipod touch. ner!

[analogika]

Originally Posted by OAW 

Well it's official. You can add/edit Contacts on the iPod Touch ... but Calendar events are read-only. Unbelievably lame and quite inexplicable.

What do you mean "inexplicable"?

There's a completely obvious explanation.

iPods don't do calendar editing. You want a PDA - buy the iPhone.

Product differentiation has been an industry fundamental since its inception.

Which part are you not getting?

[Dork.]

Well, if Apple wants me to buy an iPhone to have all the nifty PDA features, then I guess I'll be keeping my Palm a little while longer, and that's one less sale they'll be getting.

[OAW]

Originally Posted by analogika 

What do you mean "inexplicable"?

There's a completely obvious explanation.

iPods don't do calendar editing. You want a PDA - buy the iPhone.

Product differentiation has been an industry fundamental since its inception.

Which part are you not getting?

See my reply in the other thread ....

http://forums.macnn.com/103/ipod-iph...-touch-16gb/3/

OAW

[jbleisure]

Originally Posted by OAW
Well it's official. You can add/edit Contacts on the iPod Touch ... but Calendar events are read-only. Unbelievably lame and quite inexplicable.
What do you mean "inexplicable"?

There's a completely obvious explanation.

iPods don't do calendar editing. You want a PDA - buy the iPhone.

Product differentiation has been an industry fundamental since its inception.

Which part are you not getting?

The bit which explains how adding contacts on an ipod touch seems to be part of what you would expect a PDA type device to do, yet adding an event isn't in Apple's view - doesn't make any sense to me.

[Kerrigan]

In addition to product differentiation, Apple may be trying to avoid the Curse of the PDA, by which I mean the apathy or even aversion that consumers have towards PDAs which has caused numerous PDA models to be discontinued.

[Gamoe]

Originally Posted by Kerrigan 

In addition to product differentiation, Apple may be trying to avoid the Curse of the PDA, by which I mean the apathy or even aversion that consumers have towards PDAs which has caused numerous PDA models to be discontinued.

Isn't it the other way around? I love computers and little gadgets, but even after wanting to like PDAs and owning a few throughout the years, I've basically given up on them until someone capable comes along and makes the PDA I've been waiting for. I don't think Apple has anything to fear. In fact, they can just avoid the PDA name entirely is they wish, but please Apple, don't start crippling this magnificent portable Mac OS X device some silly stigma (for the true PDA has arrived!)

[analogika]

Originally Posted by jbleisure 

The bit which explains how adding contacts on an ipod touch seems to be part of what you would expect a PDA type device to do, yet adding an event isn't in Apple's view - doesn't make any sense to me.

Again: "If you want full PDA functionality, buy an iPhone."

There's not much to not understand, really.

The iPod touch may gain functionality as the iPhone matures and in turn gains additional functionality to set it apart from the touch, but until then, that's the way it is.

Apple will be selling more than enough of both to willingly suffer the odd customer who'd rather wait.

[Gamoe]

Originally Posted by analogika 

Again: "If you want full PDA functionality, buy an iPhone."

There's not much to not understand, really.

Apple doesn't tout the iPhone as a PDA either. The say it is a phone + iPod.

I think those of us looking forward to a full "PDA" Touch realize Apple's not yet prepared to give it all of the iPhone's non-Phone features, perhaps in an attempt to differentiate them or for some other reason (added complexity, Apple wants more time to add something else to the Touch, etc.), but that doesn't make it any less logical for the Touch to gain these capabilities and more, particularly considering that a lot of people choose to have a separate PDA and cell phone, and it does not make it any less desirable or frustrating for those of us who do wish it.

[PhotoBug]

stupid question but what do the contacts and calendar sections look like on an iphone or touch? Pictures anyone?

[PhotoBug]

never mind. i found some.