When I was making a living as a musician, I sometimes felt a bit misunderstood. Because I worked very hard to master several styles of music that I loved, I was always getting categorized by one faction or the other.

For example, if I were playing in a country band, someone might say that my style was too rock 'n' roll. Likewise, if I was in a rock band, I often got accused of being too country.

Strangely enough, I find myself in a similar position when it comes to computers. Because I use and enjoy both the PC and the Mac, brand zealots think I'm a bit twisted or misinformed. In fact, I had a conversation recently with an individual who had a bad experience with Apple Macs several years ago, and he informed me of how misguided I was to say I liked them.

In my defense I could only say that I feel very strongly both ways.

Apple has always excelled at making music players. The MP3 player concept had been around for years when Apple released its first iPod, but Apple practically owns the market for these now. This is mainly due to beautiful design and the close integration of its players to the Mac and iTunes software.

I mentioned last week that Apple recently showcased its new lineup of iPods. While online reviewers mostly agree that the recent Apple show didn't blow any doors off with its announcements, several writers agree with me that one product -- the new iPod Nano -- deserves a closer look.

The Nano is more or less in the middle of the iPod line and has been a tremendous success. The new iPod Nano, for the first time, combines a group of features that together make it a very useful tool and a great value.

First of all, it is priced starting at $149, with another model with more storage available at $179. The most notable addition to this device is a video camera. As most readers know, video camcorders in the $100 to $200 range are quite popular now and sell out quickly online when they are on sale or aggressively priced. Some of these even shoot high-definition video, an amazing feat.

The iPod Nano does not aim to compete with the high-end video features of these models. It shoots reasonably clear and sharp video at a resolution crisp enough for use on YouTube or as a casual family camcorder, but it suffers when put to task for low-light or extreme-motion subjects. It is even a bit more than adequate for capturing a subject while in simple motion, although there are better choices at this price point for such work.

Its sound-capture quality appears to be very good, based on videos I've seen online that used the device to capture footage. While most people don't think much about sound quality when it comes to video, it is a make-or-break feature for anyone who is serious about it even for casual use.

The Nano has one feature that many have asked for but thought they would never see, an FM radio. Typical for Apple, when they add a feature to a device, they almost always exceed your expectations. The radio has a live pause feature similar to what you find on TiVos and other digital video recorders, known as PVRs or DVRs. You can pause live playback of a song when needed, continuing play at your leisure including a fast-forwarding feature. Very cool.

The Nano has more features than I have space to describe, but I can sum up by saying this: This is the first iPod I've seen that I would buy if I were looking for such a device. Its combination of features and price makes it the Swiss Army knife of MP3 players. Versatility, thy name is Nano.