The Apple iPod touch is a shining example of what a true portable media player should be like. It earns a Best Buy from us, despite being somewhat expensive, for its touchscreen interface as well as the audio and video playback quality.

The iPod touch is based upon the design of Apple's iPhone. It's a thin, stylish portable media player in an all black color with silver sides and backing. The true centerpiece of this player is the 3.5-inch widescreen touch display, which acts as the primary control for all features. Other controls include a power switch and a "home" button for returning to the touch's main screen.

The touchscreen of this iPod, as mentioned, is the way you control this player. The user interface, with its graphical icons and easy-to-read text, is very intuitive to use after a slight learning curve. Your must also learn to use your fingers to tap, double tap, pinch and flick on-screen images to get what you want done. It's a new way for using an iPod but, like the click wheel, it is easy to understand.

The touch is a flash memory-based media player, with either 8GB or a maximum 16GB capacity. This holds roughly up to 3,500 songs or 20,000 digital photos. Lacking the current iPod Classic's larger hard drive prevents you from carrying your entire digital music collection if you have lots and lots of CDs, which is one notable drawback of the touch given the price point it sports.

Music transfer time of 14 albums (828MB) of MP3 files through iTunes over a USB 2.0 connection was speedy. Audio playback time, estimated at 22 hours, easily hit that mark while sounding great. Video playback, likewise reported at five hours, was on the mark. Video is displayed in widescreen mode and looks very crisp. The same can be said for the quality of digital pictures viewed on-screen.

The other touted touch feature, wireless Internet, worked very well. We quickly connected to a local hot spot and were able to browse the Web via a smart built-in browser. We were also easily able to purchase and download music to the touch through the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store.

There was very little we found problematic with the iPod touch. We would highly recommend this player to anyone looking for a unique device to turn heads.


Pros: Beautiful design, great audio/video quality, touchscreen interface
Cons: Screen smudges, pricey, slight learning curve

Warranty
1 year, limited