iPod Touch queries

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floydbloke

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#92926 9-Nov-2011 08:25

I’m a bit out of touch (pun intended) when it comes to shopping for iPod’s.

The young fullah wants one for Xmas and has specified it has to be version (or is that generation ) 4. Assuming this is the current, is it also safe to assume that when I walk into a retail store this is the one that is on the shelves? Anything specific I need to look for?

The 8GB is probably closest fit to being within the budget but is it enough? He likes to listen to a bit of music, might want to watch the odd video clip as well but he can delete that when he’s done. He’ll want to buy the odd game too, are they very hungry? If he were to delete the game from the iPod to free up some space I assume it can be reinstalled from his (yet to be established) iTunes account without having to pay for it again. Is this correct?

Sometimes I use big words I don't always fully understand in an effort to make myself sound more photosynthesis.

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#542936 9-Nov-2011 08:40

You're on the right track. The Gen4 is the last model, Gen5 I think has just been released but not sure if it is in the stores in NZ just yet (I may stand corrected)...so be careful you may be buying the 'older' model. Not exactly sure what changed. I recall seeing the posters asking for 'pre-orders' of the new model.

Son has the 8G model and for a young fella its not to bad. He had a few hundred songs, dozens and dozens of (mostly free) apps (games mostly) and probably 3 or 4 movies on it without any problems. You can manage what's on the device at any time by adding or removing items using iTunes. Yes everything stays in iTunes and you can swap things in and out as you wish.

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floydbloke

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#542942 9-Nov-2011 08:50

Thank you. Sounds like the 8G will be sufficient. Seems pretty good value for money for around $260, probably no need to spend an extra $140 for the 32GB.

Got a Wellington-Gisborne and return drive coming up this summer, maybe we should get his sister one as well.

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Nety

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#542960 9-Nov-2011 09:21

There is no gen5 touch. This year then have added a white option that is it. Hardware is the same.

I have the 8Gig and it is fine space wise. If you had a large music collection it would cause size issues but for a pre-teen/teen it should be more then enough.
Applications are mostly small with the odd exception (Infinity blade).
Gaming wise I find it interesting that our PSP which is a dedicated gaming device hardly sees the light of day where as the touch is used far more often. Put it down to the games available.

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clicknz

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#542966 9-Nov-2011 09:29

Hi - yep, great device for the youth of today... gateway drug to the iPhone (true, but not meant in a bad way). I would suggest getting a 16GB model if it's within budget. The latest model is in fact the fifth gen, but as far I can tell there was no hardware change - just available in white and with an oleophobic coating on the glass (resists fingerprints).
Some of the games can be up to a couple of hundred MB's - very high quality graphics. Yes they can be swapped out via iTunes, but usually the appeal is having 'everything' with you at one time.
Altho' it doesn't have a GPS chip on it, you can enable 'Find my iPhone' and it'll help locate the device if there is a fixed wifi point nearby (has been useful for our teenage boy). Skype/Facetime/iMessage are all useful communication apps, too.

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jonherries

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#542971 9-Nov-2011 09:34

We have the same Wellington - Gisborne drive after Christmas, and will be loading up the ipad 2.

Have a look on the apple website, you can often pick up refurbed models with an as new warranty at a discounted price. Obviously this depends on returns.

Jon

scuwp

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#542976 9-Nov-2011 09:39

Make sure you get a USB charger for the car. Gaming can chew up the batteries, and the last thing you want is for it to go flat 1/2 way through your trip! They are around $10 from the usual electronic retailers. I would recommend a case as well. We just used one of the generic 'Golla' bags from the house of leemings, holds the headphones as well so they don't get lost or wrecked :-)

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Nety

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#542988 9-Nov-2011 09:55

clicknz: Hi - yep, great device for the youth of today... gateway drug to the iPhone (true, but not meant in a bad way). I would suggest getting a 16GB model if it's within budget. The latest model is in fact the fifth gen, but as far I can tell there was no hardware change - just available in white and with an oleophobic coating on the glass (resists fingerprints).

Can you please link to where it is referred to as a 5th gen? I have looked and cannot find any reference (other then future gazing before the announcements).
Also there is no 16GB model. Never has been. 8,32 or 64 only.

clicknz

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#543011 9-Nov-2011 10:54

Hi Nety - yeah, the whole 'gen' thing is often subjective and may just be a change of internal part supplier or a security change rather than an actual spec change.... but a lot of punters called it a 'new' iPod Touch when it was announced at Apple's recent iPhone event... eg. Arstechnica - http://tinyurl.com/6fddaew
But you're right - it's not a true 5th gen and of course you're also correct that there isn't a 16GB available - I've been locked in iPhone mode for a while where they do make a 16GB. Thanks for keeping things straight - altho' just to confirm they DID actually make the iPod Touch available in 16GB a while back.
To OP - as with all tech tho' faster and bigger is generally better.

Cheers,
Mike

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floydbloke

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#543019 9-Nov-2011 11:03

Good info and advice in this thread. Thanks all.

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dclegg

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#543037 9-Nov-2011 11:36

In addition to all the excellent advice already given, you may also want to consider ordering from the Apple store. Price is pretty competitive, and you get the option to have free engraving on the back. Delivery time is excellent (I purchased black and white 8GB ones for my girls), and was approximately a week for each (they ship from China). If you order nowish, you will have it here in plenty of time for Christmas.

I also recommend getting the largest model you can afford. I'm a little concerned that 8GB may be a little small for my oldest daughter (her 4GB Nano is already chockers with music), but alas thats all we can afford right now. If money is a concern, then you can certainly swap content out as you see fit. Its just a little annoying to do that. Although with the new wifi sync features, its a lot easier than it used to be. All you have to do now is make the required change in iTunes and initiate the sync. As long as the iPod is connected via wifi, the changes will be pushed out automatically. Prior to this, you had to actually connect the device to iTunes first via its USB cable.

Linuxluver

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#543048 9-Nov-2011 11:58

floydbloke: I’m a bit out of touch (pun intended) when it comes to shopping for iPod’s.

The young fullah wants one for Xmas and has specified it has to be version (or is that generation ) 4. Assuming this is the current, is it also safe to assume that when I walk into a retail store this is the one that is on the shelves? Anything specific I need to look for?

The 8GB is probably closest fit to being within the budget but is it enough? He likes to listen to a bit of music, might want to watch the odd video clip as well but he can delete that when he’s done. He’ll want to buy the odd game too, are they very hungry? If he were to delete the game from the iPod to free up some space I assume it can be reinstalled from his (yet to be established) iTunes account without having to pay for it again. Is this correct?

I have an 8GB iPod Touch and only very rarely has it been more than half full.

I can happy hold several hours of music on it and a couple of movies and loads of apps and still be about the 5GB mark.

But these days I just use my smart phone. It does all the same things...and more.

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dclegg

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#543053 9-Nov-2011 12:11

Linuxluver:
I have an 8GB iPod Touch and only very rarely has it been more than half full.

I can happy hold several hours of music on it and a couple of movies and loads of apps and still be about the 5GB mark.

But these days I just use my smart phone. It does all the same things...and more.

Yeah, it all depends on how it will be used. I'm a strong advocate of never underestimating how much space you'll need though.

I use my smartphone as my portable music player too, and that function gets used a lot! I've got a 32 GB iPhone, and that currently only has about 2.5GB spare. 21.1GB of the space is taken up with music (3798 songs), 3.1GB of apps (82 installed), 1.8GB of photos & videos (although I should probably archive these off to my computer), 0.04GB of books (15), and 0.71GB of Other (OS etc).

crackrdbycracku

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#545180 14-Nov-2011 14:44

One way to get the most out of the storage of 8GB is podcasts.

There are some really great ones in the iTunes store, New Music Matters (formally, Best of Myspace), Bands Under the Radar, and Iso Radio are my favorites. True audiophiles would probably turn their nose up at the audio quality but over headphones in a car or walking around they are fine. Because of the 'low' quality you get a lot more music for the 'space'.

There are also plenty of amazing audiobooks available as podcasts, one note of caution is that not all are child-appropriate, just like all books in the library aren't. These would completely have kept me busy as a kid/ teen on long car journeys.

Oh, and one more thing... they are free.

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mattwnz

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#545184 14-Nov-2011 14:51

Nety:
clicknz: Hi - yep, great device for the youth of today... gateway drug to the iPhone (true, but not meant in a bad way). I would suggest getting a 16GB model if it's within budget. The latest model is in fact the fifth gen, but as far I can tell there was no hardware change - just available in white and with an oleophobic coating on the glass (resists fingerprints).

Can you please link to where it is?referred?to as a 5th gen? I have looked and cannot find any reference (other then future gazing before the?announcements).
Also there is no 16GB model. Never has been. 8,32 or 64 only.

There has been a 16GB one, as I have one, but is 2nd gen. 8GB is too small in my opinion, as the apps are getting bigger, and if you are playing lots of games on it, or videos, 8GB won't go very far. You will constantly be choosing what you want to keep and remove from it. The OS itself probably uses a GB of that and the ios software is only getting larger, so the total available space maybe closer to 6 or 7GB.
To future proof it, I would suggest 32 GB or more. As flash memory is so cheap, I am not sure why they are so stingy with their diskspace these days. I would expect there to be a 128GB one by now. I was disappointed not to see a new ipod with specs (dual core processor) match the new iphone, but I guess they want people buying the iphone at the moment.

Dunnersfella

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#545213 14-Nov-2011 15:39

If it was for someone older, a 32GB iPod Touch would be ideal.
But if they're young, an 8GB device will allow them to keep almost everything they want, as well as the valuable lesson re: managing their data.

And re: buying on Apple's store...
I wouldn't buy new, as the 8GB is a loss-leader in most retail stores (JB's / Warehouse / Hardly Normal).
32GB / 64GB isn't picked on much in comparison... and engraving would be cool I suppose?

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