I bought the iPod Nano the first day it was released to the Apple Store. To my surprise, on its initial launch they seemed to have a decent supply. I did not have to be put in a waiting list like some of the Apple products I had purchased in the past. I picked up the black 4GB model and even at the time of purchase seemed to be the most popular model of the four. After using it for a few months now, there are some things I really like about the product and other things that I don’t seem to care for too much.

As far as my purchasing choices, I tend to lean toward the latest and greatest and sometimes the product that gets the most hype at the time. Apple tends to hype its products up upon release. That said it has all the features of my previous iPods in the size only a little bit larger than the Shuffle. With the size of the Shuffle, it adds the usual user interface of the larger iPods with the color screen and photo capabilities. The new black color is a nice touch to the unit and with it being so small I carry it around in my shirt pocket and can barely notice that it is there. I didn’t notice any difference in sound quality compared to the other iPods. It is a pretty clean but the product did not go without its flaws.

As everyone else that has reviewed the product, the unit picks up scratches. All of my iPods in the past did as well, but I think the black color makes it easier to see. At the time of purchase there were no cases for the unit so I was pretty much out of luck. There is really no point in purchasing a case for it now. The screen is a bit small but still usable. One thing that seemed to bother me was the headphone port on the bottom. It isn’t a big deal and I figure they really had no other place to put it considering the size of the unit, but for some reason something about it does not seem right to me.

Overall, I would recommend purchasing the iPod Nano with a case. I think the units shipping now even come with a sleeve. If you need the capacity of a product that fits between the normal size iPod and a Shuffle the price point is adjusted accordingly. It is very convenient to travel with and for the most part has the features of its larger brother (with the exception of the new video functionality). The price to me seems pretty reasonable at $199 for the 2GB and $249 for the 4GB. I would always recommend the larger capacity model, but I guess it all depends on the size of the music collection you want to carry with you. It comes with the usual iPod ear buds and I would recommend purchasing better quality and more comfortable units.