Suzy Perry, co-presenter of the Gadget Show, claims that Apple’s iPod MP3 player is the greatest gadget produced in the last decade. This is some accolade indeed for the iPod, although both presenters of the Gadget Show are big Apple fans.

Suzy says about the iPod:

The iPod because it’s a gadget that’s unisex, it’s beautifully styled and everyone still wants one. Apple’s idea and concept was extraordinary and so amazingly successful, I don’t think I know anyone who doesn’t have an iPod even though they aren’t the best players out there.

During the course of working on the Gadget Show Suzy has seen a host of weird and wonderful gadgets, but Apple’s are always at the top of her wish list, including the iPod, the iPhone and the Mac Book Air.

Of the oddest gadgets, one of the strangest was a ‘personal submarine’.

It was extraordinary to be under water without any tanks, to be bone dry and trundling around the bottom of the ocean, it really was amazing.

Apple this week announced they have released a series of updates for iTunes and Apple TV. The iTunes updates have been released to improve performance and stability on the MP3 download platform for iPods.

The new version of iTunes, iTunes 8.0.1, features improved stability and enhanced performance. The main fix is for the new ‘Genius’ feature which focuses around the creation of playlists. Previously iPod users would experience problems when they synced their Genius playlists to their iPod, the new fix has corrected these problems.

In addition to this fix, Apple have also fixed problems experienced when spoken menus were synced between iTunes and the iPod nano. Problems with deleting HDTV episodes have also been fixed.

Some users who have already downloaded the upgrade have reported that iTunes 8.0.1 now lists Hi-Def and standard TV shows as a single listing.

Any iPod users are advised to upgrade to the new version of iTunes to take advantage of the upgrades.

The theft of electronic gadgets from teenagers is constantly on the rise in the UK as teens represent a soft target for criminals, and gadgets such as handheld games consoles and MP3 players such as iPods are easy to sell on. They can also be sold for decent money, so they’re something that criminals look for when picking their targets.

A teenager in Dudley was mugged for his iPod on Friday, during the midday rush in the town centre. The nineteen-year-old was robbed by an Asian man, who demanded his iPod before feeling towards the town centre bus station. The teenager wasn’t harmed, and the police are appealing for anyone who witnessed the crime.

This is the latest in a long line of brazen attacks in the UK where teenagers have been robbed of their iPods and mobile phones. Police have warned teenagers to be careful when using their technology in public.

If you’re using an MP3 player or iPod, be careful not to flash it around in public, even when it’s the middle of the day.

Apple, in a bid to make their iPod and iTunes more accessible to more people, is making steps to open up their technology so that it’s accessible to the blind. Apple will be using the VoiceOver technology that was developed as part of the Mac OS X and using with their newest version of iTunes, iTunes 8, and also their iPod range so that the two can be used by the blind.

Apple has already tried hard to make its products usable by the blind with their VoiceOver and Braille applications on the Mac OS X. They also have closed captioning on the iPod and on Apple TV.

Not satisfied however, Apple are going even further with it.

In the new 4GB iPod nano, there is a spoken interface option that features audio navigation. Also, if you wondering what the shake to shuffle feature was all about, it’s been created as another aid for the blind!

Also Apple have created a new mic-integrated headphones set that receives vocal commands, so that you can control the iPod with your voice.

Finally Apple has stated that they’ll iTunes 8 and iTunes U accessible for the blind by 2009.

With Christmas approaching faster than Jeremy Clarkson on one of his pan European races, attention will be turning to what gadgets people want from Santa this year. Popular gadgets will include items like games consoles, handheld consoles and of course iPods and MP3 players.

But, an iPod is much better than a games console. It’s a fact, but why is this so? Let’s look at some ways that an iPod is better than a games console.

An iPod can be enjoyed alone and doesn’t need friends or family members.
If you want to get the most out of a games console, such as a Nintendo Wii, you’ll need friends or family members to make the experience complete. With an iPod, you just need yourself.

An iPod can be enjoyed anywhere, anytime.
You can’t exactly play on your Nintendo Wii while you ride the bus now can you? With an iPod you’re able to do this. Although yes, you could use a Nintendo DS or DS Lite on the bus, you can’t use them while riding a bike or jogging (unless you don’t mind crashing). With an iPod, you can use them anywhere.

Price!
This is what it always comes down to isn’t it? In these credit crunch times price is always a factor, and an iPod can be much cheaper than a DS Lite or a Nintendo Wii, which means you’re more likely to be able to get one for Christmas.

An iPod has many uses, from storing photos to playing games to listening to music (what it was originally invented for) but one use that many people wouldn’t have thought of for it is learning a new language. However that’s just what the iPod Touch is able to do, thanks to a new app that can be downloaded from the App Store, and costs $19.99 (approximately £10).

The developers, Codefromtokyo, have just announced the app ‘Japanese 1.0’ and have declared that it’s available for the iPhone and the iPod Touch.

The app is said to be a language aid for people already learning Japanese, and for people who need to speak the language. The app contains over 127,000 entries, housing a comprehensive vocabulary, and it all works offline. You’re able to browse through the list of words, or even search to find the word you’re looking for.

Japanese words are presented in their Japanese form, and are accompanied by an English style transcript for those who are just learning the language.

Did you think an iPod was just for playing music? It’s an educational aid as well!

Alva Academy school children are to trial a new concept in teaching, one which utilises MP3 players and MP3 downloads. The ‘virtual teachers’ is a new pilot scheme being trialled in Clackmannanshire, to help pupils with their homework.

The new scheme has been dubbed ‘vodcasting’. Teachers will be recording short video clips of themselves explaining different aspects of the schoolwork, and posting them on the school’s website. They will also be recording audio clips, which will be uploaded as MP3 files so that pupils can download them and play them on their MP3 players and computers.

The head teacher, Stuart Clyde, believes that the scheme will be popular because it enables pupils to use their favourite technology.

Children learn well when they have the best practice demonstrated to them; these videos do just that.

Alva Academy hopes to further engage parents in their children’s learning as the videos can act as a refresher-course for parents too, enabling them to help their children with homework.

Anyone that doesn’t have the Internet can still benefit by using the computers in the library. If the scheme proves successful, it will be rolled out to the entire school.

In South Korea, technology is very important to the population, and having the latest gadgets is a must. However it looks like video may have killed the audio star based on the latest figures. Whereas MP3 players used to be the must have gadgets for any gadget loving fan, the advent of video playing devices such as mobile phones, iPod Touches, iPhones and video playing games consoles, MP3 players are suffering.

It is believed in fact that MP3 players could become redundant as new technology offers more functionality.

The Korean Electronics Association has released sales figures that show sales of MP3 players in the country are expected to be 2.19 million, which is lower than the 2.27 million that sold in the country in 2007

This is smaller again than the 2.32 million that sold in 2006, showing that sales are declining year on year. Revenue has dropped as well, MP3 players generated 400 billion won in 2005, which dropped to 350.7 billion in 2007. Sales are predicted to fall as low as 257.5 billion in 2009.

The launch of digital video players has been hailed as partly responsible for the decline in sales of MP3 players, and any new MP3 player sales are for cheaper, disposable players.

With technology changing and advancing on a daily basis, and MP3 player technology being squeezed into so many different devices such as mobile phones and media players, you may wonder why MP3 players that only play MP3s still exist.

It’s a good question. The Apple iPod range plays videos, stores photos and allows you to transfer files. The iPhone even allows you to browse the Internet, keep contacts and occasionally make phone calls. Sony’s Erickson range merge their popular Walkman players with mobile phone technology too, so why are there still players that just play music?

Simply because music is the core function of an MP3 player, and an MP3 player that diversifies often does so to the detriment of the actual MP3 music playing functionality.

Firstly, the storage capacity of mobile phones that play music isn’t nearly as big as most standalone MP3 players, or even the old iPod Classic.

Another reason is that mobile phones have a limited battery life when used as MP3 players, when compared to standalone MP3 players.

Then there’s the usability aspect. Nothing beats the raw simplicity of the original iPod for accessing your music as quickly and easily as you can.

According to the website ‘Report Buyer’ the growth of electronics and gadgets is largely due to the success of MP3 players. MP3 players and iPods have led the way in developments and improved features, which has resulted in an increased amount of technology sales.

2007 was a bumper year for technology in the US, and the bulk of the sales were led by MP3 players, and were followed up by sales of portable games consoles such as the Nintendo DS and the PS3, plus laptop computers. Sales have been strong as a result of a combination of features, such as the falling prices, improved features of new technology and enhanced customer awareness of products.

The purpose of the report is to help investors and retailers gauge the future of technology so they can evaluate the potential for growth and future sales.

One interesting finding of the report is that the in car navigation sector, or satnav sector, is under-penetrated, meaning that MP3 players that poses satnav capabilities have a strong potential to capitalise.