New iPods Great, but Apple's 'Ping' Sucks

Apple’s new line of iPods is up to its usual high standards, but the Ping social networking service that comes along with it is “socially awkward,” writes Katherine Boehret of the Wall Street Journal. The new “remarkably thin” iPod Touch has nifty new features, like front- and back-facing cameras capable of taking “beautiful HD video,” while the revamped Nano gets a touch screen, while shrinking to half the size of the last model.

But Ping’s a bit of a mess, especially if you’re used to the slicker Facebook. Ping won’t import your contacts from other social networks, won’t notify you when someone comments on your posts, and doesn’t let you send messages to other users—privately or publicly. One last annoyance: It identifies all users by first-name only, “leaving me wondering if the John who bought ‘Walk Like An Egyptian’ was my ex-boyfriend or a co-worker,” Boehret complains. (More Apple Ping stories.)