By Sina Mohammadi

Since its introduction in 2001, Apple's iPod media player has absolutely ruled the portable media player market. The iPod touch is the newest member of the iPod line, and gives fans an alternative to the increasingly dated-looking iPod classic. Riffing on its older sibling, the iPhone, the iPod touch is Apple's answer to those who want the iPhone's sleek design and cool features, without the phone and its contractual noose.

The iPod Touch preserves the clean uncluttered look of the iPhone, along with its touch screen, sans phone.

The iPod Touch puts Apple's futuristic "multi touch" user interface to work, enabling its users to navigate through their media with intuitive gestures on a scratch-resistant glass screen. Apple has also created a Wi-Fi version of the iTunes store, so that iPod touch users can access, purchase, and download music from any accessible Wi-Fi location.

Most of its features may be accessed via the touch screen, so that only two buttons appear on this unit: the Home button is on its face, and the power/sleep button is situated at the top left corner. Absent from this design are dedicated volume keys, which can cause difficulties for those who are not interested in interacting with the user interface to change the volume. At 4.3" x 2.4" x 0.31" (110 mm x 61.8 mm x 8 mm) and weighing in at 4.2 ounces (120 grams) the iPod Touch is thinner and a bit lighter than the iPod classic, and fits nicely inside any normal-sized pocket.

The iPod touch comes in two flavors: an 8 GB, $299 version, and a 16 GB version that goes for $399. With its limited capacity, the iPod touch might not appeal to users who like to take their entire media libraries with them on the go. However, those who want a cutting edge Wi-Fi enabled media player, and don't mind limited storage, the iPod touch is a compelling choice. It makes a simply stunning gift for anyone with mediaphilic tendencies.