Whuffo's Journal: iPod Touch acquired using intelligence

After chasing around Apple stores and various electronics retailers it was becoming clear that this item was not in stock and wouldn't be for two weeks or more.

At this point the wise shopper visits Apple's web site and checks their handy list of retailers; this is only somewhat hidden and only takes a few minutes to find. Also, check Epinions and look at the price comparison list - Apple stuff is price controlled so there's no deals, but you can get an idea of who is selling it this way.

Among the usual suspects on the list I found Target. Not the kind of place I'd think of for finding the latest high-tech gadget - and I suspect that not many others have considered this source. So I checked their website, looked up the product and tried their "find it in a store" function. Wow - it indicated that the three closest Target stores all had it in stock! But hold on a moment - computerized inventory systems are notorious for showing stock when there is none so this might not work out either.

Drove over to the closest Target and looked on their "MP3 Player" aisle. One side has dusty Zunes, the other side has iPod displays from a generation or two back. But in the locked glass cabinet under the display they had a LOT of iPod Touch boxes; both 8 and 16 GB units.

After the 30 or 45 minutes it took to find a Target employee who could actually open the cabinet I was on my way home with my new toy. How do I like it so far? Wow. None of the screen issues that have been discussed, works perfectly. I'm still blown away by the UI in this thing; sure, that "cover flow" effect is nice - but these "covers" are doing their thing above a reflective black surface and you can see their reflections in the surface. The graphics and the way they're animated (and the reflections) show that some obsessive people worked very hard on getting this "right". You won't see this technology in a Zune any time in the foreseeable future.