Apple Announces New iPod Touch: A10 SoC Inside
by Andrei Frumusanu on May 28, 2019 5:00 PM EST
It’s been 4 years since Apple last updated the iPod lineup with the 6th generation iPod Touch in 2015. Today Apple did the unexpected and released a hardware refresh of the dedicated media player.
In an age where everybody uses their phones as music and media players, I think it’s fair to say that the market for dedicated devices such as iPods has shrunk quite a lot. Nevertheless, Apple wants to cover this niche with the new iPod Touch and advertises it as the cheapest iOS device one can get.
The new iPod touch is now powered by Apple’s A10 chipset and features the same 4” 1136 x 640 pixel display as its predecessor, promising a relatively meagre 800:1 contrast ratio and a 500cd/m² maximum brightness.
One great benefit of going for an iPod Touch is the fact that it’s almost half the weight of modern smartphones. At 88g it’s a relatively featherweight device.
Other than the SoC, the only other apparent upgrade to the hardware is the addition of 802.11ac WiFi, although Bluetooth remains at version 4.1.
Apple has also upgraded the storage option, but disappointingly the smallest model is still only 32GB and comes at a price point of $199. Upsell variants at 128GB and 256GB come at $299 and $399.
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zodiacfml - Wednesday, May 29, 2019 - link
Would love to have a cheap IOS device but an A10 for $200?! I can get an Android phone with similar performance for $100.mfaisalkemal - Wednesday, May 29, 2019 - link
Please show me your statement proof. At least android device with Snapdragon 712 can compete sustained performance of A10.s.yu - Friday, May 31, 2019 - link
I think a10's actually on 730's level. Single core 40% faster while multicore ~15% slower. Don't know about the graphics though.mfaisalkemal - Wednesday, May 29, 2019 - link
Hi Andrei Frumusanu, do you have die size of Adreno 640? I curious how good Adreno 640 when compared with A12 GPU in term of area because A12 GPU is better than Adreno 640 in terms of performance and power on your S10 review.s.yu - Wednesday, May 29, 2019 - link
Overwhelmingly powerful chipset (on par with this year's Android flagships?) with underpowered everything else, indeed a kid's gaming system, and not entirely unsuitable.mofongo7481 - Wednesday, May 29, 2019 - link
32GB base model is a joke. I could see getting this for a child that you don't want having a phone, but at $199 this should have 64GB at minimum. $299 for 128GB is equally a joke.GC2:CS - Thursday, May 30, 2019 - link
I would be interested in thermals and sustained perf.This iPod was launched with 32nm version of A5 which had quite low power consumption.
Then A8 was more power demanding at peak - it was dowclocked from 1,4GHz in iPhone 6 to 1,1.
A10 is huge, is built with pretty much the same density as A8 and it supposedly cannot sustain peak GPU perf in the 2018 iPad.
Clock had to go down, there is literally no heft to dissipate heat and that 4 Wh battery won’t last long under load and possibly as an component as well.
If this device is not dead, the iPad mini which launched with similar setup and got tons of upgrades since is definitely living on too.