iPod 4G ipod better than video?

[student_trap]

OK so I'm about to buy my first ipod. But which one is better?

I could get the 20gig photo for £180, with its AC adaptor and FW support, or the 30gig video for £220 with a better screen and apparent scratching problems. If you were in my position, what would you do?

I am currently leaning towards the 4th gen version, a big factor being that when i played with the new ones in my local apple store, I found the click wheels did not scroll as well as the old ones (i don't mean the surface of them was weird, but that when scrolling through a lot of music it seemed to jump more than one artist/song at a time as opposed to scrolling smoothly through lists, also the generall smoothness of the screens moving from one to the other was jumpy). I do have 17gigs of music already though, so a 4th gen would not last as long.

Also, am I the only one to think the old one is more asthetically pleasing?

Cheers in advance guys

 

[Santeh]

Hello!

For what it is worth, I also felt I needed to decide between the new video iPod and the older 4G. Since the new video iPods apparently have had screen problems (I have even heard of problems with batteries and video playback) and do not come with firewire support, the dock, nor the wall charger I decided to go with a 4G system as it has all of these "extras" and apparently no issues with the screen and battery. While an older unit, I simply felt the 4G was a better use of my money. And, plus, the little things like firewire support goes a long way for me as I have already maxed out my USB ports and may need to buy a USB hub.

Regretfully, though, I personally do not know where I could get a new 4G iPod, thus you may have to get a used unit which, as always, when buying something used, may be problematic as the unit may have issues the seller does not disclose or know about. As such try and find one that is still under warranty if you can.

Good luck!

 

[davefan6435]

I just thought I'd like to point out how much smaller the 5th gen is compared to the 4th. The difference is rather large. It feels like your going from a first gen to a 4th gen, size wise. I don't think I could go back to the bigger one any more. Plus there's always the bigger screen and better battery life.

 

[MmmPancakes]

I say go with the older, more established 4g photo. Search e-bay with the following keywords: ipod color sealed

you can find a factory sealed model there for around $240.

The 5G will be good after another rev or two.

 

[MacTruck]

This is simple to decide. If you absolutely will never watch videos on it get the 4G unit.

I have both a 5g 60gb video and a 4g 60gb photo. Here are my observations.

The 4G is more rugged. I am not worried about dropping my 4g or throwing it into the car. It scratches less and has firewire. The scroll wheel is more precise. Its the perfect Mp3 player.

Now the 5g is like a piece of glass. I feel I have to carry it around on a wedding ring pilow. It has better battery life and is thinner and looks nicer and plays videos and all that jaz. I feel like the 5g wheel keeps moving past everything that I want to get to, its not very precise, not as much as the 4g. Also, the 5gs OS is slow. For instance when its on shuffle songs and I am clicking next to find a song I want when I look down at it it will show the last song I heard, it takes a second to display. The 4g never did this.

If I had to choose I would keep the 5G only because I watch videos on this baby and so do my kids. Thing is filled with Blues Clues.

So the 4g is the ultimate MP3 player and the 5g is the ultimate all in one player. If you don't need video get the 4g, its a better faster unit.

 

[TiMacLover]

Experience with 4Gs is horrible, I still think the 3G is the best, I have never heard of many problems with em.

But do what I'm doing, wait for Apple to update the 5G at MacWorld. The first of anything is going to of course have flaws and I'm positive they'll be fixing a lot of flaws with the next update.

 

[aricher]

I loved my 3G until I had an auto accident and it slammed into the dashboard (dead HD) - my wife still has her though and loves the backlit button layout more that the 4 G keep debating on whether or not to get the 5G or wait until MacWorld in January. My wife wants to buy me one for my birthday at the end of November. My guess is that they'll update them to an 80 GB Toshiba drive and iron out some glitches by that release. Thoughts?

 

[voiceofreason]

I have the same questions on 4G vs. 5G. I really don't understand why they skipped firewire on 5G. I think the Apple.com Store still has 4G refurbs.

Content is the other question. It seems so limited right now. Where are you getting Blues Clues? My kids would love that.

 

[freeny]

I have the same questions on 4G vs. 5G. I really don't understand why they skipped firewire on 5G. I think the Apple.com Store still has 4G refurbs.

Content is the other question. It seems so limited right now. Where are you getting Blues Clues? My kids would love that.

I know Im not the one who posted the blues clues statement but, buy some blues clues dvds, rip them with handbrake. I do the same for my kid with the old muppet shows.

 

[Loge]

The 5G is lighter, has better battery life (60GB model at least), and has better sound quality according to iLounge (and in my experience too FWIW). Agree lack of firewire is a negative.

 

[deanwaterman]

How did you get Blues Clues on it?

This is simple to decide. If you absolutely will never watch videos on it get the 4G unit.

I have both a 5g 60gb video and a 4g 60gb photo. Here are my observations.

The 4G is more rugged. I am not worried about dropping my 4g or throwing it into the car. It scratches less and has firewire. The scroll wheel is more precise. Its the perfect Mp3 player.

Now the 5g is like a piece of glass. I feel I have to carry it around on a wedding ring pilow. It has better battery life and is thinner and looks nicer and plays videos and all that jaz. I feel like the 5g wheel keeps moving past everything that I want to get to, its not very precise, not as much as the 4g. Also, the 5gs OS is slow. For instance when its on shuffle songs and I am clicking next to find a song I want when I look down at it it will show the last song I heard, it takes a second to display. The 4g never did this.

If I had to choose I would keep the 5G only because I watch videos on this baby and so do my kids. Thing is filled with Blues Clues.

So the 4g is the ultimate MP3 player and the 5g is the ultimate all in one player. If you don't need video get the 4g, its a better faster unit.

How did you get the Blues Clue on it? I want to transfer DVD / Video onto my iPod and don't know how without Podner or something else. ANy info would be great.

 

[deanwaterman]

Firewire, What's up with 2.0

The 5G is lighter, has better battery life (60GB model at least), and has better sound quality according to iLounge (and in my experience too FWIW). Agree lack of firewire is a negative.

480mbps via 400 mbps... I would take the 2.0 gladly. I have not found a situtation yet where I have regretted my 5G iPod because it didn't have the firewire. I transfer awfully fast with the 2.0 USB. Faster than my 4G firewire.

Also, after holding the 5G in your hand, the 4G iPod seems small, and clunky. Small screen and bulky shape. I keep the 5G in a case, and I love it.

 

[kainjow]

The 5G's bigger screen is not only helpful for videos. It's easier to read and you don't have to squint at it. Being thinner is very nice too, especially when you keep your iPod in your pocket. I'd go with the 5G. It's got a few more software features also, such as lyrics.

 

[camomac]

negatives of 5g for me:
lack of firewire
lack of wall recharger
easy to scratch

positves of the 5g for me:
large screen
thinner
longer battery life

as the owner of only a 4g i can say that i am not in a hurry to upgrade
to the next gen. i will eventually, but think that i will wait until they
get some of the kinks worked out... probably in a couple of revisions.

 

[MacTruck]

How did you get the Blues Clue on it? I want to transfer DVD / Video onto my iPod and don't know how without Podner or something else. ANy info would be great.

Eyetv has an export for PSP, that works for ipod as well. Real easy.

 

[Nickygoat]

480mbps via 400 mbps... I would take the 2.0 gladly. I have not found a situtation yet where I have regretted my 5G iPod because it didn't have the firewire. I transfer awfully fast with the 2.0 USB

480 is peak. USB runs off the main proc. FireWire runs at constant 400. If you're not running any other processes then USB 2.0 is faster. Do something else though and....
Let me look for the link........
EDIT: For Win98, a bit more, and some history

 

[thedude110]

I can't tell you how much I love my 4g 20 gig. I've had it a year with no stability issues (except when I run it out of juice!). It's a rugged, world tested pod.

I mean, if you want the videos, fine. Go with the 5G. But God. I still don't get why people would want to watch video on their iPod!

 

[wwooden]

I bought a reburb 4g 40gig Photo from apple.com about a week after the introduced the videos. I told myself before that that I would wait for the videos to come out, but once I saw them they didn't really appeal to me and were not exactly what I wanted in a video iPod. I also noticed they didn't have the remote port on top and a lot of the accesories I bought would be useless. So I bough the 4g and am very happy. It's definitely not as cool as the video but I don't worry about taking it anywhere or giving it a little more abuse. I also realized I never commute anywhere that I am not driving, so it was pointless for me to have the video option and I saved a ton of money as well. I also have a PSP if i ever want to watch videos, and I can watch them in wide screen too.

 

[Loge]

480mbps via 400 mbps... I would take the 2.0 gladly. I have not found a situtation yet where I have regretted my 5G iPod because it didn't have the firewire. I transfer awfully fast with the 2.0 USB. Faster than my 4G firewire.

It is not the speed. Actually I do find USB 2.0 marginally faster than firewire (on the 4G) on my Powerbook but it makes no odds. One advantage is the versatility - being able to make better use of the different ports without needing annoying hubs. The other advantage is that firewire will charge the iPod while the Powerbook is sleeping, USB will not. Now you can still do this with the 5G but it means using one cable for charging and the other for syncing.

 

[student_trap]

Just thought that i'd let you guys know that I picked up a brand new, factory sealed (with warrenty) 4th Gen 20gig photo today for £180. Am over the moon with it, so thanks for all of your imput, it was all very useful!

PS. I still think that the old design is much better than the new one

 

[deanwaterman]

The Polar Express on iPod Video

Just thought that i'd let you guys know that I picked up a brand new, factory sealed (with warrenty) 4th Gen 20gig photo today for £180. Am over the moon with it, so thanks for all of your imput, it was all very useful!

PS. I still think that the old design is much better than the new one

I would have agreed with you until I transferred The Polar Express with Handbrake and watched it on my iPod video just a few minutes ago. I would never look back.... It was AWESOME

 

[deanwaterman]

Try It, You'll Like It

I can't tell you how much I love my 4g 20 gig. I've had it a year with no stability issues (except when I run it out of juice!). It's a rugged, world tested pod.

I mean, if you want the videos, fine. Go with the 5G. But God. I still don't get why people would want to watch video on their iPod!

I thought the same thing you did... But it is AWESOME!

 

[ArchiMark]

Am I Nuts to Consider Getting 4G 60GB Photo iPod Now?

Greetings,

Found what looks like good deal on a factory refurb 60GB 4G iPod Photo...

Given that there's the new 5.5G iPods out now, does it make any sense anymore to get a 4G model...understand the obvious differences in thickness, FW connection, photo vs video capability issues....

Would everyone spend a few more bucks and just go for the newer models or would you consider saving some $$ and getting a 4G?

Thanks for any thoughts...

Mark