Photo: apple.com/za

Apple iPod just got its first major update in nearly four years

It’s the first update to Apple’s iPod product since the sixth-generation iPod Touch was released in July 2015.

by Cheryl Kahla

29-05-2019 18:36

in Mobile

Photo: apple.com/za

Apple decided to give its iPod Touch an update. The iPod Touch is the last of the media player range that first helped to catapult Apple into the mobile space and started their rise to smartphone dominance.

The last update to the Touch happened in July 2015, when the sixth generation Touch was released. The update to generation seven might leave customers slightly underwhelmed.

Apple left the aesthetics of the iPod Touch alone. The iPod Touch will still sport the same bezel 4-inch display home button and cameras. So what are apple changing?

iPod Touch’s new features

They’ll be upgrading the iPod Touch processor to an A10 fusion chip, and they’ll be making 256GB version of the media player available.

The A10 fusion chip, which is going into the iPod Touch, is the same processor in the iPhone 7, the least powerful iPhone still sold by Apple. Vice president of Product Marketing Greg Joswiak explains:

“We’re making the most affordable iOS device even better with performance that is twice as fast as before, Group FaceTime and augmented reality. The ultra-thin and lightweight design of iPod touch has always made it ideal for enjoying games, music and so much more wherever you go.”

Faster, stronger, slightly better

So, if you’re one of the die-hard fans of the Touch who was waiting for an update that brought it in line with ‘latest gen’ hardware, you’re bound to be a little disappointed.

Still, the hardware update will mean that the iPod touch will be able to handle iOS updates into the future.

With the Apple boasting that the new chip will double CPU performance, the Touch will now be able to handle Group Facetime and Apple’s augmented reality apps, both of which were unavailable on the previous hardware.

The updated iPod Touch starts at $199 for the 32GB model, $299 (around R4 420) for 128GB of storage, and $399 (R5 902) for the new 256GB option.