Been a few weeks since I first posted re: the iPod Touch. You'd think that with all the use I've been getting out of the thing, I would've had something to say by now.


Specifically, I'd like to address the new apps that Apple made available for the Touch in January plus the 1.1.3 firmware update. Together, these two features made the Touch almost the ideal PDA. Apple's decision to release the new apps as a paid upgrade (but free for new buyers) has been a bit of the proverbial thorn in many sides, but ultimately $20 was well worth it to me.

The addition of Mail in particular meant I dropped any interest in jailbreaking the Touch. The coming-soon-iPhone-SDK should cinch that. With Mail I am able to stay on top of multiple email accounts wherever I can find a wifi hotspot. With wifi becoming increasingly ubiquitous, it's almost never a problem when I'm on the move. The Notes app has also been useful and I'm becoming faster at using the Touch keyboard on a daily basis.

The 1.1.3 firmware update also improved two-way syncing between iCal and Address Book on my Mac and on the Touch. As such, this slick little device is fast becoming an excellent PDA. Hopefully, the SDK will pave the way for the ability to transfer, store, and read file formats on the Touch.