iPod touch iPod Touch current totally obsolete why do Apple still sell it?

[Scepticalscribe]

Disagree.
I use iPod touch as music player. Using google play music online service.
Any other iPod would not be able to use this service.

As do I.

You must have not had the (un)pleasant experience of iOS 4.2.1 on iPhone 3G, or iOS 7 on iPhone 4.

Anyway, let's face it. The iPod touch's main market originally was people who wanted a very nice, iPhone like experience without switching to AT&T and paying the high subsidized fee. Since its introduction however, the iPhone went from being on one carrier to being on all major 4 (here in the U.S.). It went from $500 on contract for 4GB of storage to $199 on contract with 16GB of storage. The iPod touch lost its target market and is hitting the market of entry level kid who want their first iOS device.

Thing is, if you take an old iPhone and a deactivated SIM card, you can basically turn and old iPhone into an iPod touch.

Really and truly, the iPod touch met its successor already: the iPad mini. It seems to me that Apple wants to push the iPad more then the touch. It's $50 more with a bigger screen. $100 more gets you 2 generations newer hardware with a Retina display.

This is how I see it happening; first the touch goes and its successor is the iPad mini. Nano is discontinued in favor of the Watch. Shuffle will see the end of this world without a successor.

Such is what happens when using an Apple Product that is on the road to complete discontinuation. It's truly sad as the iPod touch was one of the coolest gadgets that they've made in a long time.
……...

The iPod touch hasn't been succeeded by the iPad mini. It was succeeded by the iPhone. The iPad mini is well on its way to meeting the same fate; an update that only offers one feature over its predecessor that has nothing to do with additional processing power, RAM or the display.

The nano could be replaced by the watch, though it doesn't seem as though playing back music seems to be something the watch will be particularly good for, especially with no headphone jack,


Agreed, though, really, they're both dead.

Perhaps. However, I agree with you that the iPhone rather than the iPad mini was the successor to the iPod Touch.

Why do they sell it? KIDS

There's no way my daughter is getting an iPhone (if she had after school activities I might consider it) and my 8 year old isn't getting one either.

The mini? Really? For a dedicated music player, it's still too big.

Using an old unactivated iPhone is not a logical option as I want a NEW device with a warranty for the kids to use.

Just because you have no use for it doesn't mean that no one else does.

I agree with you that the iPad mini lacks the portability of the iPods, whether iPod classic or iPod Touch, and for that precise reason, they are a lot less desirable as a dedicated music carrier.

I know people in the military who use an iPod Touch.

In certain conditions they're not allowed anything with GPS which means that they can't use their phones, so they used ipts as an alternative.

Excellent post.

Many who have posted on this thread seem to have forgotten that for quite a number of people, the iPod Touch was primarily a device for listening to music, which could also do other things.

I have one (64GB) and have rarely used it for anything other than music. I most certainly don't watch movies or play games on it - the screen is too small - but it is an excellent device for listening to music. My only complaint is that at 64GB, it can no longer play host to my entire music library; if an iPod Touch with a memory of 128 GB or 256GB (both SSD) were to be made available, I'd buy one in a heartbeat.

 

[Outrun1986]

I have a 3ds and I am a huge fan of Nintendo games, what you do is buy the game when it's on sale, you have to follow sales closely for this. Then when you are done playing you resell it on eBay. You can get $35 for a game you paid $40 or less for if you bought it on sale. Most 3ds RPGS last 30-40 hours minimum some more. If you buy Pokemon you can literally play forever on one cartridge, there is so much to do in that game. Games like rune factory and harvest moon can also deliver on longevity in the hundreds of hours. Some games on the 3ds have DLC and bravely default has one item you can pay money for so that is worth noting. You can also play DS games on the 3ds giving more possibilities for long, cheap games but the online service for all DS games is gone now.

 

[ackmondual]

'Thing is, if you take an old iPhone and a deactivated SIM card, you can basically turn and old iPhone into an iPod touch.'

I see this a lot on these forums but the cheapest unlocked, contract-free iPhone on the Apple website now is an A6, 8Gb 5C for $450 but you can get a fifth generation A5, 32Gb iPod Touch on the refurbished store for $199 and it will be much thinner and lighter than the iPhone too.

I avoided iOS 8, my iPod Touch runs fine under iOS 7, and it's a lot more than just a music player; internet TV streams beautifully on it, downloaded TV shows look gorgeous and graphics-intensive games like Infinity Blade are fast and stutter-free. I would have liked to see a spec bump too but I think Apple have realised it's a very price-sensitive product; keep the price down and they still fly out the door but there's a limit to what anyone will pay so they won't invest more.

Why does it have to be unlocked if you're NOT going to bother with the cell data? If you buy a non-unlocked phone online or whatever, don't you end up getting what you want out of it (specifically, no contract)?

 

[s15119]

Have you read a single positive review of the iPad mini 3 that recommends the buyer to go out and buy it? Because I haven't. And I've read tons of reviews for both it and the iPad Air 2.
).

http://www.amazon.com/Apple-MGYE2LL...F8&qid=1421956894&sr=1-1&keywords=iPad+mini+3

98 5 star reviews, 4 1 star

 

[ackmondual]

'Thing is, if you take an old iPhone and a deactivated SIM card, you can basically turn and old iPhone into an iPod touch.'

I see this a lot on these forums but the cheapest unlocked, contract-free iPhone on the Apple website now is an A6, 8Gb 5C for $450 but you can get a fifth generation A5, 32Gb iPod Touch on the refurbished store for $199 and it will be much thinner and lighter than the iPhone too.

I avoided iOS 8, my iPod Touch runs fine under iOS 7, and it's a lot more than just a music player; internet TV streams beautifully on it, downloaded TV shows look gorgeous and graphics-intensive games like Infinity Blade are fast and stutter-free. I would have liked to see a spec bump too but I think Apple have realised it's a very price-sensitive product; keep the price down and they still fly out the door but there's a limit to what anyone will pay so they won't invest more.

http://www.amazon.com/Apple-MGYE2LL...F8&qid=1421956894&sr=1-1&keywords=iPad+mini+3

98 5 star reviews, 4 1 star

Don't you need to buy from Amazon to review on there? If so, the folks who are NOT fans of it are going to steer clear of it instead of buying one just to review it. If not, even though it may still counter the post you've replied to, it's still an overall poor value for the money compared to the Ipad Mini 2.

 

[iamMacPerson]

The iPod touch hasn't been succeeded by the iPad mini. It was succeeded by the iPhone. The iPad mini is well on its way to meeting the same fate; an update that only offers one feature over its predecessor that has nothing to do with additional processing power, RAM or the display.

The nano could be replaced by the watch, though it doesn't seem as though playing back music seems to be something the watch will be particularly good for, especially with no headphone jack,

Perhaps. However, I agree with you that the iPhone rather than the iPad mini was the successor to the iPod Touch.

Really it depends how you look at it. The way I look at it is the iPad mini in price is closer to the iPod touch then the iPhone. Even though the iPad mini sells more then the touch, it's still outsold by the iPhone. But there is no way a parents is going to buy their kid a $450+ iPhone. So I consider the mini the successor to the touch. Let's look at the pricing alone:

iPod touch (A5) 16GB: $200
iPad mini (Gen 1 A5) 16GB: $250
iPad mini (Gen 2 A7) 16GB: $300
iPhone 5c (A6) 8GB: $450
iPhone 5s (A7) 16GB: $550

On the Apple Watch taking over the iPod nano, yeah its kind of a crappy successor but I see Apple trying to get rid of the iPod line up altogether and thats just how its gonna end up unfortunately. Its sad really; the end of the iPod era altogether.

Well, those of us in the IpT camp still enjoy it because it enables us to avoid the high subsidized fees of not one, but now FOUR major carriers. And IIRC, isn't the Iph6 starting off its contracts at $250? For some of us, $350 since the 16 GB capacity isn't realistic.

Well, a used Iph now has potential issues with a run down battery and no warranty. Plus, some folks used their iDevices while on the toilet .

I was not saying buy a used iPhone, they can be handed down. I have seen this done, heck I even have family members and friends who have handed down iPad and iPhone to kids once they upgraded to a new device.

On contract an iPhone 6 starts at $200, iPhone 6 Plus at $300. Each capacity goes up $100 from there.

I also don't see what the big deal is if you were to buy a used device. In two years (unless you have an iPhone 5) the battery is usually still pretty healthy. I have a small collection of iPhones including the original one and all of them still have a fairly long battery life. If you are worried about germs, then clean the phone when you get it. There are many devices and cleaning agents that won't hurt the devices casing (just don't get liquid in the phone).

 

[Yebubbleman]

http://www.amazon.com/Apple-MGYE2LL...F8&qid=1421956894&sr=1-1&keywords=iPad+mini+3

98 5 star reviews, 4 1 star

I'm not counting customer reviews. You shouldn't either. It's not like someone buying the iPad mini 3 doesn't already know what they're getting themselves into (and therefore will be in for a shock when they discover that there's nothing different about it compared to the second generation). Few of those reviews will even be comparing it to the second generation model. This is in contrast to published reviews of magazines and websites that unanimously review it unfavorably.

Really it depends how you look at it. The way I look at it is the iPad mini in price is closer to the iPod touch then the iPhone. Even though the iPad mini sells more then the touch, it's still outsold by the iPhone. But there is no way a parents is going to buy their kid a $450+ iPhone. So I consider the mini the successor to the touch. Let's look at the pricing alone:

iPod touch (A5) 16GB: $200
iPad mini (Gen 1 A5) 16GB: $250
iPad mini (Gen 2 A7) 16GB: $300
iPhone 5c (A6) 8GB: $450
iPhone 5s (A7) 16GB: $550

On the Apple Watch taking over the iPod nano, yeah its kind of a crappy successor but I see Apple trying to get rid of the iPod line up altogether and thats just how its gonna end up unfortunately. Its sad really; the end of the iPod era altogether.

1. The iPad mini ONLY compares in terms of price. It may be stealing sales away from the iPod touch and that may make more sense for Apple. As for the device that is MARKETED to steal sales away from the iPod touch, that's most definitely the iPhone. VERY few would own both an iPhone and an iPod touch. I'm not saying it doesn't happen, nor that I wouldn't do it myself. But it's rare.

2. Parents are buying their kids smartphones. It's happening all the time. With them only having to pay the cost of tax for the cheapest iPhone (which currently is the 5c, the most durable iPhone in years), it's not all that unreasonable of an option, especially with parental controls enabled.

3. You're right, the iPod nano's successor isn't the Apple Watch. The damn thing doesn't even have a headphone jack (as Bluetooth headphones are nowhere near as prevalent as wired. But yes, it does look like the iPod line will quickly have no reason to exist in Apple's eyes. Terrible shame; there is truly something wonderful about them that hasn't ever existed before and hasn't since.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Well, again, it depends on what you want to do with it.

To be honest, the iPad mini is not as convenient to carry around as the iPod Touch. I can carry the former in a jacket pocket, and one of my iPods is a more or less permanent resident of my briefcase, where it weighs next to nothing and takes up hardly any space.

Anyway, as I pointed out earlier I use mine (and I am listening to it as I am writing this post, as it has a different collection of music on it to my iPod classic) as a glorified music player.

Indeed, the fact that - to all extents - it is an iPhone without the phone capabilities (but with the wifi capabilities) dies not really interest me. I recall trying to read the newspaper on it a few years ago, and finding the screen too small, and the experience far too frustrating to bother repeating, although I did delight in the fact that I can access wifi with it.

Seriously, if I want wifi, power, speed, and amazing portability, I have an excellent and extraordinarily powerful 11" CTO MBA (which comes with 8GB RRAM, 512 GB SSD and Core i7).

For what it is worth, I use my iPod Touch solely for music - a function at which it excels - and here, I will add that it has two things - as a music player - which the iPod classic (sadly) lacks. The first is a stable drive - the SSD is far more stable and far, far faster than the old HDD of the iPod classic ever was (which is about my only complaint about a device which I have long loved). And the second is that the actual quality of the audio is excellent - quite superb in fact - and again, better than the iPod classic.

 

[Outrun1986]

You can replace an iPhone battery very easily and cheaply, there are people on eBay doing it for like $15-20 and you could probably get s friend to do it for the cost of parts or get a local shop to do it. iPhones have screws that you remove to replace the battery they aren't glued together like the iPod touch is, almost no repair place will replace a touch's battery for this reason and even the Apple Store won't do it they just swap your device.

iPad mini is easily the touch's replacement, I see kids with them everywhere, they don't seem to mind the larger size of the device, they carry it under their arm.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

You can replace an iPhone battery very easily and cheaply, there are people on eBay doing it for like $15-20 and you could probably get s friend to do it for the cost of parts or get a local shop to do it. iPhones have screws that you remove to replace the battery they aren't glued together like the iPod touch is, almost no repair place will replace a touch's battery for this reason and even the Apple Store won't do it they just swap your device.

iPad mini is easily the touch's replacement, I see kids with them everywhere, they don't seem to mind the larger size of the device, they carry it under their arm.

Sure, I don't deny that, but the kids use these devices rather differently. In essence, both iPhones and iPads are used mainly for the consumption of content, rather than the creation of content.

For serious work, the sort of work that requires a fair bit of writing, a computer with a proper keyboard is still a necessity. Thus, for some from a somewhat more mature demographic, especially a music loving older demographic, the ideal combination is a computer - portable - and possibly an iPhone; and an iPod…...

 

[s15119]

I'm not counting customer reviews. You shouldn't either. .

Just going off what you said. Of course I should count customer reviews. It would be silly not to. Customers are the ones buying the product, potential buyers are looking at those reviews when making decisions.

 

[940272]

Apple should just get the iPhone 5C, rebrand it to iPod, change the chip to A6X and bam. An iPod Touch 6th Gen, taking minimal effort. To make it even better, call it the iPod Touch Nano, then release a normal iPod Touch. Give this iPod Touch specs like the iPhone 6 and bam (again).

Apple should hire me.

 

[ackmondual]

Apple should just get the iPhone 5C, rebrand it to iPod, change the chip to A6X and bam. An iPod Touch 6th Gen, taking minimal effort. To make it even better, call it the iPod Touch Nano, then release a normal iPod Touch. Give this iPod Touch specs like the iPhone 6 and bam (again).

Apple should hire me.

If it's not a 4.7" screen, then I'm getting off the IpT bandwagon, or whatever it's getting rebranded to here.

 

[Yebubbleman]

Just going off what you said. Of course I should count customer reviews. It would be silly not to. Customers are the ones buying the product, potential buyers are looking at those reviews when making decisions.

If you are a potential buyer, which review means more to you. I'd argue the publication reviews weigh more. But perhaps we ought to just agree to disagree. It's also beside the point. This is the first iPad product (let alone first iPad mini product) to receive universally negative critical reception.

 

[robertosh]

for earning money?

 

[617aircav]

In today's world the iPod touch has no place. Smartphones are so cheap now that parents will just buy their kids an android or windows phone. No point of an iPod touch and dumb phone.

 

[jedisaga]

In today's world the iPod touch has no place. Smartphones are so cheap now that parents will just buy their kids an android or windows phone. No point of an iPod touch and dumb phone.

I kinda agree. I'd love to hear about a new IPT coming out this year, but I'm afraid that it will only get a marginal upgrade to keep it current with technology at best if at all. Not holding my breath.

J

 

[moderately]

I kinda agree. I'd love to hear about a new IPT coming out this year, but I'm afraid that it will only get a marginal upgrade to keep it current with technology at best if at all. Not holding my breath.

J

If they gave us a new processor, and even more ram I could be confident it would handle iOS9. Buy it in a heartbeat.

 

[Plutonius]

No point of an iPod touch and dumb phone.

I have a dumb phone that cost me $100 for 1000 minutes along with an iPod Touch (I have WiFi most places I go). Let me know what you pay per year to use your smartphone ?

 

[ackmondual]

In today's world the iPod touch has no place. Smartphones are so cheap now that parents will just buy their kids an android or windows phone. No point of an iPod touch and dumb phone.

I kinda agree. I'd love to hear about a new IPT coming out this year, but I'm afraid that it will only get a marginal upgrade to keep it current with technology at best if at all. Not holding my breath.

J

If they give it a 4.7" screen, A7 (and yes, I do recall one post how if it gets an A7, it's going to be a 4" screen, but still not sure why they can't do both), and ensure it can run ios8 smoothly, as well as at least ios9, then it will be a worthy product. Whether or not it makes business sense to do so is another thing entirely. I know that I'd like to have a 4.7" device at half the up front cost without a contract. Otherwise, I'll wait 2 to 4 years for the iph6 to go on sale.

And usages vary... I'm not going to bother with using my gs4 or IpT5 as an mp3 player when I have an Ipod Classic (80GB) that does the job of listening to music and audio far superior then a "jack of all trades" type device.

 

[LauraJean]

I am not a kid and I like my iPOD Touch

I use my iPOD Touch, IOS 6 / 32GB, exclusively for taking pictures on nature hikes. It is light-weight, I have nature guide apps on it, and the image/video quality is good enough for me. The battery has that flakey problem but it is much improved since I turned WiFi off.

I have no desire for a smart phone and will never buy one just to get a camera.

If Apple offered a larger, iPOD Touch with 64 GB, I would buy one.

 

[ackmondual]

I use my iPOD Touch, IOS 6 / 32GB, exclusively for taking pictures on nature hikes. It is light-weight, I have nature guide apps on it, and the image/video quality is good enough for me. The battery has that flakey problem but it is much improved since I turned WiFi off.

I have no desire for a smart phone and will never buy one just to get a camera.

If Apple offered a larger, iPOD Touch with 64 GB, I would buy one.

As a bonus, you have the option to use the included, matching wrist strap

 

[Starfia]

Wow. I think my 5G iPod touch is still holding up perfectly well; I've had no "shocking" problems at all. Naturally some loading is sluggish compared with my iPad.

I'm hoping for a new model of iPod touch alongside the Apple Watch launch so that device can still be used by those without phone contracts. (I think that idea is compatible with all they've said on the matter so far; enough to hope.)

 

[jimmirehman]

I think there is still a market for it, if they bring the specs up to at least 5S level. Its a good entry level device for younger audiences, not everyone upgrades to a new iphone each year and can pass their old one down.

They could design a new model and call it an iPad Jr for targeting kids, but i know alot of businesses are moving over to the ipod Touch for handheld uses for employees. Its basic uses are redundant when you compare it to an iPhone but it has unlimited uses for custom applications, they just need to update the hardware.

 

[617aircav]

I have a dumb phone that cost me $100 for 1000 minutes along with an iPod Touch (I have WiFi most places I go). Let me know what you pay per year to use your smartphone ?

I pay $65 a month on with my 6+. Worth every penny being able to use LTE everywhere I go and not rely on wifi. I need my dat to follow me.