Excuse me, but...
USD$ £199?
I'm confused. Did the US invade the UK yesterday?
Persistent rumours that Apple is planning a cheap version of the iPhone have a little more substance today, after Apple quietly slipped a new bare-bones model of the iPod touch out the door. The “iPod Touch 16GB” didn't even rate a press release and name and comes in just two colours: black and white. The rear-facing iSight …
Here in Hong Kong the cost of a refurbished 32G 5th generation iTouch is US$25.00 more than the new stripped down iTouch, i.e., for a 13% increase in cost price you get the rear camera and 16G additional storage - 32G being the minimum requirement in my book.
Obviously, the cost of Apple products in HK is among the lowest globally and the cost in the UK with 20% VAT is horrific to say the least - indeed at these prices I'd recommend punters hold off until the new Nexus 7 is launched and spend their money on that - greater value, larger high quality screen and same 32G storage capability.
Although, I must admit I've admired the iTouch since it was launched in 2007 and have purchased 4 to-date, including the latest generation for my daughter - tempted by the Nexus 7 next though as good compromise in screen size and portability.
It depends who the device is for and what its main priority use is - evidently you do not have children or else you'd not post such a flippant remark.
For music, I suppose the original iPod is far superior than a iTouch, i.e., in terms of storage capabilities.
Kids love the iTouch for gaming, taking photo's and watching some TV/Movies - all areas the next Nexus 7 will cover and at a cheaper price-point than a iTouch.
"Nexus 7 is an MP3 player? that'll look good strapped to your arm while you're jogging."
yeah, cause a f*ckwitPod makes you look right breast!
While you think your tech gives you a status boost (clearly needed), normal people see it realise how stupid you are!
I have a 2nd Gen iPod Touch whose last installable IOS is 4.2.1
It would have gong on being a perfectly acceptable bedside companion for BBC iPlayer (especially radio for me) EXCEPT...
The BBC has chosen to cooperate with Apple and refuses to make the iPlayer - TV or radio - work, even using web apps/web browser of any flavour, on any IOS higher than 4.2.1.
I guess it's to do with codecs or protocols with a topping of rights management paranoia.
The Beeb/Apple collusion is particularly galling as my family has spend a small fortune on both Apple gear and BBC license fees over the years.
I am pretty sure that had the same obsolescence happened on an Android device, there would have been a decent hack already noted how upgradeable Android 2.3 was on my last Android phone.
Looks like the biggest hands that feed us need to be given a good bite.
"The BBC has chosen to cooperate with Apple and refuses to make the iPlayer - TV or radio - work, even using web apps/web browser of any flavour, on any IOS higher than 4.2.1."
iOS EARLIER or LOWER than 4.2.1, you mean
But yes, I also have a 2nd gen iPod Touch, one that hasn't seen updates in months because clearly the new baseline version number standard for apps is either 4.3.x or 5.x. Gutting.
I worked out a long time ago that if you pay apple any money at all, you'll get the device in question, which will work well for a year, and then they lose all interest in you whatsoever. I remember being treated incredibly rudely in an apple store after a faulty iOS update bricked my device, due to a dent being present in the casing (which obviously was absolutely nothing to do with the problem - I managed to solve it myself in the end.)
Android at least has ways and means of keeping old devices working, and paid-for apps tend to work on most available flavours. seems iOS apps just stop working every time an update to iOS happens, and sod you if your device is deemed by apple to not support the update. That's not to mention the fact that they "decide" what is good for you and what you can and can't do with what belongs to you.
I am not prepared to put up with that attitude, so I exercise the only right I have - to vote with my wallet.
A used or refurb of any older iPod Touch model that still uses the non-lightening socket makes most sense.
More than iPhones, iPods and iPod Touches are likely to be used with the myriad docks we have around the home or see in hotels around the world. Apple broke this well and good, and I have yet to see one doc adapter that looks as though it supports the weight of an iPhone or Touch in a sensible way.
is one of the big reasons that i am considering moving away from Apple when my 4s gives up.
my iPod classic will still work in my various docks, but if a new iPhone won't, maybe it's time to look somewhere else for a non-music centric device.
Yeah, i could use a connector, but then i can think of at least one device i own that the taller phone wouldn't fit into, even without another inch of what plastic stuck in the bottom of it, so that's not always an option.
"Well it is always an option as they do various connectors - one is a lightning to dock cable (rather than just a connector) - so yes it would not sit on the dock but it would still 'work'."
Yes! But the mugs have been sucked in on the "look how fancy this is!" by the marketeers!
iSheeple can't have it both ways!
"A new iPhone at a ten dollar premium over last year's model from Samsung sounds like a decent deal."
If your blind deaf and dumb, Yes!
Mind you, you'd have to be blind deaf and dumb to think this is good value, never mind a phone with 2010 features!
Surely paying $10 less for an SIII with more advanced feature sets makes more sense?
Apple taxes the idiots!
I grab my iPods off of eBay for about a 75% discount. They're a couple of gens back, they don't have seamless operation with Farcebook and Twit(er), but they handle my audio book and music collections just fine. The most important bonus is if they're trampled or snaffled, I'm not out a paycheck amount of cash.
Just pop over to my home town of Anchorage, there is no sales tax so the price listed is the price you pay. Other sales-tax free zones may exist in the US, but most have a figure of around 8% or so.
Of course you'll have to factor in a small 700-800 quid airfare, hotel costs and so on, but you'll get the added benefits of 1/being allowed to drive on the wrong side of the road, 2/driving in snow in a fun vehicle if you go during winter 3/frostbite if you go during winter without the appropriate common sense to not stand outside in shorts because you're "on holiday" 4/see cool wildlife then get eaten by it 5/meet people who are actually pretty friendly in a foreign place for a change. Also the food is good.
/advertisement over.