Ipod Touch - Need Advice on buying one

[EllenFrasier]

My son is interested in buying an Apple Ipod Touch. He was looking at on Ebay, 4th generation but only 8gb for about $145. The Apple Store has other Ipod Touch's on there website, but it says "previous generation" - what does that mean? Is there a big difference between the 4th generation Ipod Touch and the previous generation - like something that it won't do that they improved on? He wants to be able to access Itunes on it and the internet - will they both do that?
Thanks! I don't know too much about Ipods or MP3's in general. Any helpful tips are appreciated.

 

[ChrisinNJ]

My son is interested in buying an Apple Ipod Touch. He was looking at on Ebay, 4th generation but only 8gb for about $145. The Apple Store has other Ipod Touch's on there website, but it says "previous generation" - what does that mean? Is there a big difference between the 4th generation Ipod Touch and the previous generation - like something that it won't do that they improved on? He wants to be able to access Itunes on it and the internet - will they both do that?
Thanks! I don't know too much about Ipods or MP3's in general. Any helpful tips are appreciated.

We have 3rd generation ipod touch refurbs from the Apple site. They don't have the camera. They do go online, though I haven't, and you can access the itunes store, but I haven't done that either, since I haven't gone online. For ma it is fine. If the camera is a dealbreaker, then he needs the current generation ipod touch.

 

[Gillennj]

If it were me, I would skip the iPod Touch, and get something like a Nook Color ($249) and root it to Android 2.2, or buy a smart phone like the Optimus V ($175-$200) and use that for everything the iPod does, but with a camera (maybe not the Nook) and expandable memory via a micro SD card.

Then, if you want, you can use the Optimus V as a phone, also and have unlimited data, text and e-mail for $25/mo. The iPod Touch is great, but there are a lot of devices that have caught up and can be had for much cheaper.

 

[zoemurr]

are the same except the 4th has a camera and takes video where you can video chat. The camera is pretty bad, but we have had a lot of fun w/some of the cool camera apps.

What else does he want it for? The 8gb isn't very big and will fill up quickly if he wants to put movies on it.

Not sure I would buy something like this from ebay, but I wouldn't hesitate to get a refurb from Apple.

 

[mountdew1]

One possible issue tradeoff with previous generations of anything Apple, is that they will stop accepting software upgrades sooner. This was never a huge issue with a regular iPad as you still had all the major functionality, but with iPhones, iPads and iPod Touches is that many apps will end up requiring OS upgrades to function. They still function perfectly well with the existing apps, but newer ones may not be compatible. For an example of this, see http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4205 That will show you some upgrades that don't work on older models, and also specifies that that OS upgrade won't work on 1st Gen Touches. Not a huge deal if he will mostly be using it as an iPod that has a touch screen, but if he wants to play all sorts of games and stuff on it he may run into issues down the road. Figure on losing 1 year of compatibility for each previous generation model.

Beyond that, there is no issues with buying a refurb model. Apple has them at a bit of a markdown, and sites like Woot.com will occasionally sell them cheaper than that. eBay would be hit or miss. There are legitimate companies that get refurbed model and sell them on eBay. They can get them from people selling old hardware to buy upgrades, and get them fully refurbed. But others are ones that people are just selling themselves. And some of those will be fine, and others may have problems. If you check their selling history, you should be able to see if they have a history of selling good refurbed hardware.

 

[JayT]

I can't say enough good things about my iTouch!

To the PP who mentioned the Nook - remember you can download the Nook and the Kindle app for free from the Appstore. I have both on mine that let me read Nook and Kindle books.

I love taking pictures and video with my iTouch. It's so easy to just email pics or post to Youtube or Facebook. It's definitely a big bonus for me. I haven't used my 'real' camera since I got my iTouch

 

[lucigo]

My son is interested in buying an Apple Ipod Touch. He was looking at on Ebay, 4th generation but only 8gb for about $145. The Apple Store has other Ipod Touch's on there website, but it says "previous generation" - what does that mean? Is there a big difference between the 4th generation Ipod Touch and the previous generation - like something that it won't do that they improved on? He wants to be able to access Itunes on it and the internet - will they both do that?
Thanks! I don't know too much about Ipods or MP3's in general. Any helpful tips are appreciated.

I would go for the 4th gen. I bought my 7-yo a 3rd gen and now I'm upgrading for his birthday to the 4th because he is constantly taking my phone to make videos! With the 4th he will be able to do that AND facetime with his sister who is away at college.

I went ahead and bought one at Target ($205 and then 5% off of that) instead of taking my chances on ebay.