iPod touch Couple questions before buying ipod touch!

[bjelder]

Hey guys,

Just wanted to say great forum, I've been reading through a lot and did some searching, but still have a few questions.

I'm considering buying an ipod touch (just the 8GB, $229) pretty soon here. I've wanted one forever, just never really got around to researching it and dropping the cash.

My first question is, I've been an ipod customer for a long long time. I've had the 2nd gen, 5th gen, and 2 nanos over the last few years since around 2003.

I'm usually kind of hard on things, a lot of the times things just happen to break around me So thank god I got the warranty on my 2nd gen, I had to replace it twice. Nothing stupid like breaking it or anything, it just stopped working several times and I had to send it in. Same with my 5th gen. A lot of the times I fall asleep listening to it (set it on the 15 minute timer) and maybe that causes some damage (Laying on it accidentally)

How well are the ipod touches built? Would an extra warranty be wise for me? I know that apple has a 1 year warranty, but should I buy an extra one from best buy/walmart/circuit city/wherever else I happen to buy it? Which retail store has the best warranty? Do the 2g's usually break on people?

My next question is this a good time to buy one? Might prices drop in the near future and I'll be kicking myself, or even worse a third generation?

Thanks everyone!

Cliffs:
-is a warranty worth it
-anything new coming in the next few months (for the holiday season)

 

[teflon]

I've never gotten an extra warranty on any of my 4 iPods, and they're all still alive and kicking. The only problem I ever had was a hard drive failure in my iPod mini, but that was within the 1 year period. However, the Best Buy in Canada have a warranty where you can trade the iPod in when the new ones come out, and you can use the original value of the iPod towards your new purchase. So say you spend $200 on a nano now, next year when the new ones come out you can trade it in for a $200 credit for a new iPod. Taxes that you paid will of course, not be included in the value. So if you like to always be on the forefront of technology, the warranty might be worth it even if the iPod doesn't break. However, there are probably some restrictions, so ask the salesmen about it. And I don't know if it'll be available in your country, but there will probably be something like it.

And no, there will be no new products for the holiday season. The iPods were just updated and following past patterns, will not have a major update until next September. There was a memory bump last spring, but the prices didn't really change. Apple just added a more expensive one on top of their offerings.

 

[Hawkeye411]

If you can't afford the extended warranty now, can't you wait and purchase it in 10 or 11 months before the original runs out when you will have some more money (I'm not positive).

Your gonna LOVE your new touch. I would recommend purchasing the 16GB if you can scrape together the money now.

Cheers.

 

[saberahul]

I know i bought mine from a third party vendor which has it's own warranty. It is much better than apple's in my view. Plus it gave me 4 years for only $40. I have already replaced my touch about 3 times now- it kept on getting scratched so i change it for a newer piece.

 

[vorkorsigan]

Hi,

I have had one for over a year, it gets thrown into a bag or a pocket and is used every day at least for a few hours. It travels all over the world with me (I live on planes!) and has been recharged on a daily basis for a year. I put it in a Speck case on day 1 and it is working fine. The case however is a mess and needs replacing, so you can guess the life it has. However everything is fine and working no scratches or damage.

Buy the touch and spend the extra money on a good Speck case.

As already said nothing new 'till next year so buy now if you have a good price.

 

[SnowLeopard2008]

iPod touches are built from solid materials. Buy a refurb to save some cash though. I still suggest maybe a plastic case, since you mentioned that you sleep listening to your iPod and may have lay on it. The Apple Store has the best warranty, and customer service/support.

 

[teflon]

If you can't afford the extended warranty now, can't you wait and purchase it in 10 or 11 months before the original runs out when you will have some more money (I'm not positive).

Yes you can buy the extended warranty from Apple anytime while you're still under the limited one year warranty, however 3rd party warranty from vendors such as Best Buy usually require you to buy it within 30 days of the purchase of your iPod.

 

[bjelder]

If you can't afford the extended warranty now, can't you wait and purchase it in 10 or 11 months before the original runs out when you will have some more money (I'm not positive).

Your gonna LOVE your new touch. I would recommend purchasing the 16GB if you can scrape together the money now.

Cheers.

Money isn't a big issue.. lets say I have 300 to spend.

Would it be better spent on an 8GB + Warranty, or a 16GB?

I dont have much music but plan on putting a lot of apps on it.

 

[wywern209]

well, i would suggest saving some cash and going for a 1st gen 16gb refurb. it only costs 10 bucks less than the current 2nd gen 8gb which is 229 bucks. the 1st gen 16gb is on refurb for about 220 bucks. and the 2g doesn't offer much over the first gen unless u like skype or other voip services or use nike+ipod alot or u have a big need for a bad external speaker.. either way, save some cash and get a 1st gen. nothin wrong with it!

 

[acedew]

Money isn't a big issue.. lets say I have 300 to spend.

Would it be better spent on an 8GB + Warranty, or a 16GB?

I dont have much music but plan on putting a lot of apps on it.

If you aren't going to put much music or videos on it, then go with the 8GB plus warranty. Apps, emails, photos, and things like won't take up much space. If you're into Podcasts, Audio Books, TV Shows, or Movies, then I think 8GB would be too small.

In general, my opinion is that you'll know you have a lemon well before Apple's year warranty is up. If you suspect that something might not be right with your purchase but can't necessarily prove it (short battery life, random crashes or reboots, or any other quirky behavior), then I would go out and buy the extended warranty before your year is up. If you don't want to buy Apple's warranty and would rather go through a 3rd party when you purchase it, then I guess only you can decide what the odds of yours breaking might be, because I think you would have to buy the warranty at the time of purchase.

 

[bjelder]

Thanks for the opinions guys!

I went with the 8GB + Warranty + Case. Got it at target and it came with a 25 dollar gift card!

Seeing how I only have 200 songs, I don't think storage will be much of an issue