New iPod nano with Multitouch Hands-On: Minimalist to the Extreme

It kind of makes the shuffle look irrelevant, except for one small detail. The price. The new nano (8GB), which boasts a small but sweet capacitive display, starts at $149, compared to just $49 for the new Shuffle (2GB). The old nano right now can be had for as little as $110 on Amazon, so is this device splurge worthy? It depends on how you plan to use it, because Apple has stripped some stuff out compared to the last-gen model.

The new nano features a small but crisp 1.5-inch display with 240 x 240 resolution, and this device is really designed to be worn. Not only does the nano weigh just .74 ounces, it’s made of sturdy aluminum, making it an ideal exercise companion. Cleverly, Apple lets you rotate the display with a two-finger gesture so you’re always looking at menus and content the right way no matter how you attach it to your body. However, Apple has lopped a couple of big features off.For starters, the nano no longer captures video. For that capability you’ll have to step up to the $229 iPod touch. You also can’t play video on this device as you could with the last-gen nano. Then again, we don’t think anyone would want to watch movies or TV shows on this stamp-size screen.

During our brief hands-on time, navigating through menus was pretty seamless with a finger, and you get physcial volume buttons and a power button up top. To get back to the main screen at any time, you just press and hold the display. Other notable features include Genius playlists, and FM radio, and Nike + integration. The 24 hours of music playback on a charge isn’t shabby either.

So is the new nano really cool? Yes, it’s pretty amazing how much functionality Apple packed. Just keep in mind that it’s a music focused device, and that you’re paying a premium for multitouch.