Recently I got hold of an iPod touch, and if the iPhone (to be launched in India this Friday) is anything like it, I would blindly suggest that you do get one. The iPod touch uses software and hardware similar to those in the iPhone, only lacking the facility to make phone calls.

Data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy reveals that the rate of growth in sale of mobile handsets has dropped. Nokia, the leader with 68 per cent of the market share in 2006-2007, dipped to 59.5 per cent in June this year. Sony Ericsson, the number two, dropped from 12.8 per cent in 2007-08 to around 8.1 per cent in June. Clearly, this has happened because of the release of the iPhone in the US market.

India’s 286.86 million cell phone subscribers are agog with anticipation for the iPhone. The cloak of secrecy surrounding its launch makes it the most sought after gadget. This is classic Apple marketing for a classic product.

Apple said that it would sell 10 million phones by 2009. But analysts predict that it will sell 12.8 million sets this year alone, reaching 45 million units by 2009. This would give Apple 17 per cent of the world market share, second only to Nokia’s 40 per cent.

If you are among those who waited for the iPhone 3G and did not buy an unlocked version of iPhone 1.0, you will be rewarded. I was amazed by the audio quality of the iPod touch. What impressed me most, however, was the ease in use. You have a Cover Flow view of albums. A feather touch on the screen and you flip through albums just like the pages of a book. A gentle tap on an album will show you the list of songs. Select the song you want, again, by just tapping on it. Another gentle tap on the screen shows you the lyrics! However, the ear buds that come with the iPod touch suck. I wish Apple would provide ear plugs that wouldn’t keep falling off my ears!

With its gorgeous screen display — that is nearly 9cm wide, iPod touch is well-suited for watching movies and TV shows as well as viewing photos and album art. At just 8mm thinness, it fits easily into your hand and slips right into your pocket — and can go everywhere with you.

At the top of the iPod touch are the Sleep/Wake button and the WiFi antenna. At the bottom are the dock connector and headset jack. At any time, press the Home button to return to the Home screen. Tap any button to get started.

The multi-touch display surface of iPod touch is covered by optical quality glass to prevent scratches and provide visual clarity. So you don’t have to worry about smudgy fingers spoiling the touch screen.

The accelerometer in the iPod touch detects rotation of the device from portrait to landscape. You can see the entire width of a web page, and just by pinching your fingers can zoom in on the part of the web page that you want to see more clearly. An ambient light sensor automatically adjusts the display's brightness for the current ambient light, enhancing your viewing experience.

The iPod touch supports email from Gmail, Yahoo and AOL, and also has Microsoft Exchange to help business users read their office email. I found Google Maps of tremendous use. I could clearly locate my house!

I loved the keyboard that comes with the iPod touch. It automatically adds punctuation marks like apostrophes to words while you are typing, and it gets ready for new sentences by inserting a full stop and space when you double-tap the spacebar. The keyboard is contextual. If you have to type in something on a web page, it shows up on the screen.

The iPod touch gives you access to third party applications like games and utilities through the App store — you have to buy them through a credit card.

Like I said, the iPod touch is the iPhone without features like calling facility and sending SMSes. The iPhone we’ll get in India will have 3G capabilities, but sadly India is yet to allow 3G services. For the time being, we will have to manage with WiFi and EDGE.

Pre-booking of the iPhone has already begun at Imagine, Apple’s Premium Reseller at City Centre, Calcutta. They are accepting bookings for Rs 10,000. You can pre-book your phone with Airtel and Vodafone, too.

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