Energy Saver vs. Backlight
Small but confusing issue with my first iPod purchase (nano 4G).
Page 19 of the User Guide tells me that... "+Energy Saver can extend the time between battery charges by turning off the iPod nano screen when you aren’t using the controls+".
Page 12 describes a different setting: "+You can set the backlight to turn on and illuminate the screen for a certain amount of time when you press a button or use the Click Wheel+".
Could someone tell me how these settings differ and how they relate to each other?
I have not yet worked out what the "Energy Saver" setting does, as the screen goes off according to the "Backlight" setting, regardless of whether Energy Saver is on or off.
I thought at first that perhaps the subtle difference was that the "Backlight" setting was not turning the screen OFF, but just its light (which is what the setting name implies). When the timeout kicks in the screen APPEARS to turn off, however these ageing eyes now realize that it remains (barely) visible, if one stares hard enough and at the right angle. However a short while later, it turns off completely.
Aha! thought I. It must be the backlight setting that is "dimming the lights", and later the "Energy Saver" that is bringing on total darkness! I thought I had my answer, until I realized that the above two-step behavior occurs in exactly the same way when the Energy Saver is OFF!
That leaves me in the dark (pun intended), and raises a separate question: Is there a difference between the state of the nano when it is turned OFF by the user (by holding down Play/Pause), and when it goes into "total darkness" (after the Backlight times out)?
If there is NO difference (I.e. if the second blackout stage is actually turning the nano off), then why does the documentation tell us that these are SCREEN settings? But if there IS a difference (E.g. if the auto-darkness is leaving the nano ON, but with the screen off), is it not making it too easy for users to unintentionally leave the device on for extended periods of time?
I can't yet work out if all this is a flaw in the product's design, in its documentation, or in this user's comprehension.
Wait - it gets worse. At this point I browsed the discussion group before posting. New questions now overlay the previous ones. "Off" vs. "Sleep"? What does "turning off the nano" really mean? Does the "Hold" switch play any role in all of this?
I bought this as a present for a (much) younger family member, fully expecting that I would have to learn its proper usage so that I could teach her "the basics". But after hours of downloading and reading manuals, surfing the site, experimenting, and wasting half an hour trying to get an answer to just the first question above from Apple Support (the guy just did not know, and became even more confused when I tried to go further), I am having trouble grasping those "basics".
I have read here many reports about nano 4G battery life concerns. The iPod owner-to-be does not have her own computer (for charging, until we purchase a charger that we did not know would be needed as a separate purchase, and that I have only now discovered must be specifically nano 4G compatible as most existing ones won't work). So knowing the best way to conserve battery (while retaining reasonable function) is important. I'm hoping for a simple explanation that ties all the loose bits together.
.
Page 19 of the User Guide tells me that... "+Energy Saver can extend the time between battery charges by turning off the iPod nano screen when you aren’t using the controls+".
Page 12 describes a different setting: "+You can set the backlight to turn on and illuminate the screen for a certain amount of time when you press a button or use the Click Wheel+".
Could someone tell me how these settings differ and how they relate to each other?
I have not yet worked out what the "Energy Saver" setting does, as the screen goes off according to the "Backlight" setting, regardless of whether Energy Saver is on or off.
I thought at first that perhaps the subtle difference was that the "Backlight" setting was not turning the screen OFF, but just its light (which is what the setting name implies). When the timeout kicks in the screen APPEARS to turn off, however these ageing eyes now realize that it remains (barely) visible, if one stares hard enough and at the right angle. However a short while later, it turns off completely.
Aha! thought I. It must be the backlight setting that is "dimming the lights", and later the "Energy Saver" that is bringing on total darkness! I thought I had my answer, until I realized that the above two-step behavior occurs in exactly the same way when the Energy Saver is OFF!
That leaves me in the dark (pun intended), and raises a separate question: Is there a difference between the state of the nano when it is turned OFF by the user (by holding down Play/Pause), and when it goes into "total darkness" (after the Backlight times out)?
If there is NO difference (I.e. if the second blackout stage is actually turning the nano off), then why does the documentation tell us that these are SCREEN settings? But if there IS a difference (E.g. if the auto-darkness is leaving the nano ON, but with the screen off), is it not making it too easy for users to unintentionally leave the device on for extended periods of time?
I can't yet work out if all this is a flaw in the product's design, in its documentation, or in this user's comprehension.
Wait - it gets worse. At this point I browsed the discussion group before posting. New questions now overlay the previous ones. "Off" vs. "Sleep"? What does "turning off the nano" really mean? Does the "Hold" switch play any role in all of this?
I bought this as a present for a (much) younger family member, fully expecting that I would have to learn its proper usage so that I could teach her "the basics". But after hours of downloading and reading manuals, surfing the site, experimenting, and wasting half an hour trying to get an answer to just the first question above from Apple Support (the guy just did not know, and became even more confused when I tried to go further), I am having trouble grasping those "basics".
I have read here many reports about nano 4G battery life concerns. The iPod owner-to-be does not have her own computer (for charging, until we purchase a charger that we did not know would be needed as a separate purchase, and that I have only now discovered must be specifically nano 4G compatible as most existing ones won't work). So knowing the best way to conserve battery (while retaining reasonable function) is important. I'm hoping for a simple explanation that ties all the loose bits together.
.
Various PCs, Windows Vista
