Sunday 19 December 2010

Choosing an iPod

     Looking for an MP3 player? Trying to find what you need at the best value? So you looked at user reviews of the MP3 players out there. And you decide you'll go with an apple device. Now what?
    Apple makes 4 iPod devices. The iPod Classic, iPod Nano, iPod Shuffle, and the iPod Touch.
iPod Classic
    The iPod Classic will set you back $249, but gives you 160GB of storage. It does music, videos, and podcasts, along with games. It also includes a clock and some other basic features.
iPod Nano
    The Nano costs $149 for 8GB, or you can double the storage for an added $30. It, unlike its predecessor, only does music, podcasts, and radio (a feature not available on any other models). Its small touchscreen display  might be a little too small for one's fingers. For video recording and playback, you might want to check out the earlier edition (5th generation), but get it while you can.
iPod Shuffle
     The Shuffle is available at an inexpensive $45. For that you get 2GB of storage. The Shuffle was once available in 4GB, but it seems that currently only a 2GB version is available. The Shuffle can only do music and audio podcasts. It has no screen, so you have to organize your music in the right order on iTunes.
iPod Touch
     The iPod Touch is my recommendation. It is available in 8GB, 32GB, and 64GB, at prices of $229, $299, and $399, respectively. For only $80 more than the Nano, you get video recording and playback, two cameras, the ability to run apps, a web browser, and more. Pretty much everything you can do on an iPhone 4 you can also do on an iPod Touch.
     So if all you need is the ability to listen to some music, the Shuffle should be fine. For more features, get either the current Nano, or, I would recommend the previous one. For a lot of storage, and most of what the Nano can do, go with the Classic. But if you want a very useful, fun device that can do almost everything the above devices can do and more, choose the iPod Touch.

Below is a short video advertisement for the Apple iPod.