I finally got around to downloading iTunes 10 (free download) onto the iMac which serves as my main media computer for my home office. Weighing in at 80MB+, this update seemed significant, and when I launched the new iTunes application, I immediately noticed some design changes.
The iTunes interface has been tweaked a bit to feel a bit more like the Apple’s latest iMovie and Aperture interfaces. Even the default application icon has finally been updated, and the outmoded compact disk image removed.
The interface is now a lot cleaner, and while I didn’t run any real benchmark tests, the app load time seemed quite a bit faster than iTunes 9 was.
All sorts of little things have been redesigned, from the library column:
to things like status bars:
but what really impressed me was the hybrid view which now fits album covers into the main library window:
It seems as though there are some changes under the hood as well. This new album cover-list-view inspired me to send iTunes out looking for more album artwork, a search I’d not run in a few months. It went out and retrieved over 8,000 (!!) album covers that had not come up in any prior searches. Pretty cool.
I then synced up my iPhone and iPad, and luckily, I had about 300 new photos in my Aperture library which needed to be synced to my mobile devices. I was very impressed with how quickly these devices synced.
I must mention that I am an iTunes power-user, and employ iTunes in professional situations, not just personal ones. I have more than 40,000 songs and 200+ playlists that I manage on a monthly basis. I also spend between $100 and $300 per month on new music. I’ve been waiting for some iTunes performance boosts for quite a long time, and with Apple has finally delivered with iTunes 10.
To Ping or not to Ping
If you were wondering what I think of the new Ping music social network that Steve Jobs is so excited about, I think it’s one of the stupidest ideas I’ve seen in a long time. I’ve put my thoughts into another article, which you can read HERE, if you want. Be warned, it’s a bit of a rant.
You can also read this great article on Macworld by Kirk McElhearn entitled Hands On: iTunes 10′s Ping feature.
Thanks for reading!
~ Chris
{ 3 comments }
First Apple product in a long time that makes very little sense to me. Also, the inability to share and discuss your entire library, not just your iTunes purchases, makes Ping exactly what a social network’s primary purpose shouldn’t be (at least not up front, anyway): a way to sell more products.
Have you poked around in there yet? It’s TERRIBLE! I wonder if the design team spends any time in Social Media.
I want nothing to do with it. Not even interesting. Pretty sad, as I usually love everything Apple.
But I just don’t get it.