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iPods Buying Guide
The Apple iPod has become the world's most popular digital music player, tallying well over 200 million sales since the player was launched in 2001. Coupled with iTunes
Which iPod is right for you?
- Apple produces a number of different iPods to meet the needs of different users. Consider where you want to use your iPod. Do you want to listen to music on your morning commute, watch a movie when travelling, or keep yourself entertained out on a run? There are accessories that can help you bring your iPod anywhere, like armbands
- Think about size. While all iPods are very slender, not much thicker than a centimetre at most, their height and width vary wildly between models, making some more easily pocketable than others. For example, if you also carry a mobile phone, you might not want two large devices in the same pocket.
- The models have varying battery lives. How much you use an iPod (and how you use it) determine exactly how long it will last between charges, but in general, the batteries on the larger, more expensive models hold more charge.
- You have many choices for price. There are vastly different price points for the different members of the iPod family. The multi-functional iPhone is going to be much more expensive than its brethren, whilst the simpler iPod Shuffle
Feature Breakdown
All iPods can playback audio, but there are a great number of additional features to consider, depending on what model you choose.
- Photo and Video: Colour photo and video display has become a standard feature on all iPods with the exception of the iPod Shuffle, which has no screen. While the other iPods are all able to play movies and images, remember that the larger iPods have larger and higher quality screens. The iPod Nano
- Scroll Wheel vs. Touchscreen: All iPod models use the traditional scroll wheel with the exception of the iPod Touch and iPhone, which use a touchscreen interface, and the iPod Shuffle, which has a unique set of controls.
- Games: With the lone exception of the iPod Shuffle, which lacks a screen, all iPods can play some form of games. Some iPods can only play simple games like Solitaire using the scroll wheel, whilst the touchscreen iPods can play much more advanced games.
- Storage: Most iPods use flash media storage, with the lone exception being the iPod Classic, which uses a hard drive. Flash media is smaller and lighter than hard drive storage, but hard drives have much greater storage capacity than flash drives. If you need more than 100GB of storage space, you'll want an iPod Classic with its hard drive, but if you don't need as much room for your music and movies, you have more options with the other models. Also note that iPods can serve as external storage
- Internet: Only available on the iPod Touch and iPhone. These iPods use the Safari web browser and can access full versions of websites. They also have remote access to Apple's online App Store and the iTunes Store. The iPhone is carried with data access plans for Telstra
, Optus, Vodafone, Virgin Mobile, and 3 Mobile. Both models utilise Wi-Fi and have Bluetooth connectivity. - Applications: The iPod Touch and iPhone have access to PDA-like calendar and organiser features, as well as stocks information and many other standard apps. Through the App Store, you can download many other applications.
- Speaker: The iPod Touch and iPhone have small speakers that allow sound to be played back without the use of headphones. When playing music out loud, however, the quality is lower than when played back through headphones.
- Phone and Camera: Only the iPhone, which is a full-featured smartphone, has phone functionality. It also contains a camera. The first and second versions, the iPhone and iPhone 3G, had 2.0-megapixel cameras, whilst the third version, the iPhone 3GS, contains a 3.0-megapixel camera that can also shoot video.
Quick Picks
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The smallest and simplest iPod is the least expensive, and is a great gift or starting point for those new to the world of MP3 players. 4GB of storage. |
The iPod Nano maintains a small size whilst offering photo and video playback. 8GB and 16GB storage options. |
The iPod Classic has a larger screen than the Nano whilst having the greatest data capacity of any iPod. 120GB of storage. |
The iPod Touch packs in most of the advanced features of the iPhone, but without the phone functionality and with a lower price tag. 8GB, 16GB, and 32GB storage options. |
The most advanced iPod serves as an all-in-one electronic device, with functionality as a smartphone and digital camera. 8GB and 16GB storage options. |
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