I finally installed the Apple iPod Touch 3.0 software update and, to my surprise, my iPod has been greatly improved. I chose the word surprise because Apple has disappointed me (and the rest of the world) twice in the past, and I made the assumption they would disappoint again.
You see, the iPod Touch is a nice little computer, disguised as a music player, with WiFi built-in. You would certainly expect it to be able to:
- Sync music with no wires
- Download audio and video podcasts from the internet (again, no wires)
- Subscribe to internet calendars (again, no wires)
- Sync contacts, email, calendars, etc. with the internet (no wires)
Unfortunately, since the day I purchased this device I have been plugging it into my computer and painfully watching my CPU usage pegged at 100% as iTunes eventually manages to start up and draw a ridiculously poor-performing UI on the screen while my processor fan switches to high speed. Ugh.
What good is an IP address if you’re not going to use it!
Original Firmware (1.0)
On the original iPod touch, firmware 1.0, you could sync with Microsoft Outlook’s calendars and contacts. The inconvenience of getting Outlook involved aside, this feature is of no use to me (despite the fact that I use Outlook daily) since my calendar information in Outlook is pulled from various internet “iCalendar” feeds (as well as a local intranet iCalendar feed, i.e., “the family calendar”). The iPod Touch would not sync with most of that information, even when it was present/pulled into Outlook. The iPod could only sync with Outlook’s “main” calendar (which is blank, in my case). Nice try.
Update Firmware (2.0)
Firmware update 2.0 provided some relief for contacts/mail and also vaguely promised improved calendar sync support – multiple Outlook calendars was even mentioned as a new feature. It also came with a charge – yep, Apple actually wanted money for the firmware update (reminds me why I stopped buying Macs some years back – tired of being nickel and dimed). I installed it on my iPod Touch. The new firmware did work with multiple Outlook calendars, however, it only worked with Outlook’s built-in calendars (or Exchange calendars, I assume) – not with Outlook’s calendar subscriptions and not with feeds from internet sources. I was out of luck again of the calendar front. And still physically plugging the darn iPod into the computer every day.
All the while I’m wondering why Apple would have a device with built-in WI-FI sync with a program like Outlook, anyway. We should be able to sync with internet calendars (iCalendar, Caldav, Google Calendar, etc.), and other internet data.
What good is an IP address if you’re not going to use it!
Latest Firmware (3.0)
In comes the latest software (along with the obligatory nickels and dimes), which promised better calendar support. This time Apple was not so vague, promising things like Caldav and iCalendar subscription support. Accordingly (and to my surprise), this little device with built-in Wi-Fi can finally subscribe to calendar data from one or more URLs, and update the calendar data just by accessing the internet.
It’s about time.
Note: Now, if I can just get our school district to publish an iCalendar based feed of school and sports events instead of being so proud of their new PDF-based calendar generator… but that’s another story.
iTunes Software
I still cannot sync music without physically plugging in the unit and painfully watching the iTunes Software Monster take over my machine, but I no longer have to do this every day! In fact, I only have to do this when there’s a change to my music library. Not so often. That’s probably the best part of the firmware upgrade. Maybe that will make up for one of those nickels (or dimes).