iPod touch iPod touch: Dead or Alive

[Yebubbleman]

A lot of those features require an internet connection so unless each retailer offering Apple Pay also has free-wifi it won't happen, plus the iPods are directed more at children who obviously don't need Apple Pay.

Passbook on an iPod touch doesn't require Internet access. It only requires internet access to obtain certain passes and then keep them in sync with iCloud. Similarly, it's not like ApplePay uses the iPhone's cellular capability to transmit the transaction back to the credit card company. It is assumed that role is still handled by the POS equipment of the merchant. Long story short, there's no reason why an otherwise capable iPod touch shouldn't have ApplePay support. Hell, given that I take my Android phone and at least one iPod touch with me wherever I go, this would be extremely convenient to have.

Yep. I know of several people who have said if Apple doesn't refresh the IPT this year they will buy an iPhone instead. This is why the iPod Touch must die.

That sentiment makes no sense at all. If the iPod touch isn't refreshed, then yes, I too, will probably buy an iPhone out of contract to use as an iPod touch. But that's not to say that Apple needs to discontinue the iPod touch because so many people would be willing to do that. Obviously, paying $300 for a capable (i.e. with modern innards) 64GB iPod touch is much preferred to paying $750 for a 64GB iPhone 6 out of contract or $850 for a 64GB iPhone 6 Plus out of contract, especially if these devices are to be used without plans.

Oh dear God, please no. Some of us like our iPods along while working out/running and have hands smaller than glove size 12, thus easy one-handed access to the entire display without any shifting the device in the hand or precision thumb-stretching is a sacred icon of functionality.

A 4.7" iPod touch wouldn't ruin that functionality, even with small hands. (And really, if that's what you're most worried about, then you probably more just want a bigger iPod nano.) The iPhone 6 Plus is a different story, and given that and its iPad-like software enhancements, I'm thinking that Apple won't make a contract-less version of this device and put it under the "iPod" banner.

I would love the faster processors though. I've stayed with iOS 6 on my iPod Touch 5 all this time because iOS 7 was a dog in comparison. Higher capacity would be nice too. If SanDisk can get 128GB on a microSD, you can't tell me there's not enough room in an iPod for at least that much.

I empathize with the decision to keep iOS 6 on your fifth generation iPod touch; one of my iPod touches still has iOS 6 on it as well. That said, if you were to do a DFU restore to iOS 7 (as opposed to an upgrade), you'd find that, while there is a speed difference, it's relatively minimal. That said, it's sort of a moot point because iOS 7 is about to become as useless for current versions of apps as iOS 6 has been and iOS 8 runs like crap on the fifth generation iPod touch.

There's been enough room to get 128GB in the iPod touch since Apple first had a 64GB iPhone. Traditionally, the highest capacity iPhone used to have half the amount of flash storage that the highest capacity iPod touch had as that space is usually reserved for the cellular antennas and such. That tradition seems to have died right around the time the iPod touch's refresh frequency decreased.

Unfortunately I'm in the same boat. I'm a big iPod Touch fan and really, really would like an updated one, but I have a feeling it's not going to happen.

Sadly, I concur.

I don't believe its just us here on this board who think a 5.5" iPod touch or at least an updated iPod touch is a good idea. I truly believe Apple does too. There is a huge market for a 4.7" or 5.5" iPod touch. Kids & teens for one. It'd be a great gaming machine. Much better than carrying an ipad around. And for adults too. There are many tech savy people who realize you DONT need a phone to make & receive calls. I make & receive calls on my iPod 5G & iPad mini all the time. In fact, I did away with my smartphone years ago, and haven't looked back. Just as people are cutting the cable tv cord, more & more people are realizing you do not need to be a prisoner of expensive contracts via the greedy telecom companies. There ARE alternatives.

Kids and teens are given iPhones now where they were previously given iPod touches. It makes sense; why give a kid a dumb phone and an iPod touch...might as well give them one device that does both. That logic carries over to adults too.

I am a fan of multiple hand-held computers and I like having SOMETHING for when my Smartphone dies as I find that sort of thing useful. However, I think we're in the minority and I think Apple sees that.

 

[6r4ff3r]

I have little hands for a adult male, and iPhone 6 fits very well. 6+ is painful to use it for me...

 

[cocky jeremy]

I don't see how or why they'd kill it off. It's a great entry level device to get people hooked on iOS. I got my two nieces (8 and 4) iPod Touches last year for Christmas, and they both already want (Obviously not getting yet) iPhones. If nothing else, they should keep it for that purpose. Now, the Nano or Shuffle, I'd see a reason to kill. One of, not both. Probably the Shuffle.

 

[dotme]

I don't see how or why they'd kill it off. It's a great entry level device to get people hooked on iOS. I got my two nieces (8 and 4) iPod Touches last year for Christmas, and they both already want (Obviously not getting yet) iPhones. If nothing else, they should keep it for that purpose. Now, the Nano or Shuffle, I'd see a reason to kill. One of, not both. Probably the Shuffle.

Quite agree. I have bought the last 5 iterations of iPhone, but the iPod touch 1st gen is what got me hooked. Bought it for fun and developed a love of iOS because of it. My touch purchase led to my 3GS purchase a few months later and since then, two MacBooks, a Mini, three iPads...

I also think the touch is a great gift for younguns who are not yet ready for a smartphone. I hope Apple continues to update the touch.

 

[loon3y]

i dont see it dying,


So its going to force business to buy off-contract phones? i assume there would be some sort of deal.

but thats going to lead to fake business that'll try to scalp them.


much easier to just keep the iTouch line.

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

5. A bit less telling, but the icon at store.apple.com for "Shop iPod" pictures the iPod shuffle and iPod nano, but not the iPod touch.

At one point, didn't it show all three?

 

[Yebubbleman]

At one point, didn't it show all three?

Yup. It did before the redesign of the store that occurred following the iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, and Apple Watch announcement.

I have little hands for a adult male, and iPhone 6 fits very well. 6+ is painful to use it for me...

Again, it'd be unlikely for a 5.5" contract-less cellular-free iPhone to be called an "iPod". 4.7" would more likely be the de facto size.

i dont see it dying,


So its going to force business to buy off-contract phones? i assume there would be some sort of deal.

but thats going to lead to fake business that'll try to scalp them.


much easier to just keep the iTouch line.

Businesses usually have no problems buying up iPhones in bulk. I've never worked in a corporate environment that had iOS devices and didn't solely have iPhones and iPads.

 

[loon3y]

Yup. It did before the redesign of the store that occurred following the iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, and Apple Watch announcement.



Again, it'd be unlikely for a 5.5" contract-less cellular-free iPhone to be called an "iPod". 4.7" would more likely be the de facto size.



Businesses usually have no problems buying up iPhones in bulk. I've never worked in a corporate environment that had iOS devices and didn't solely have iPhones and iPads.

when theres a cheaper iTouch option?

yeah one my retail customers bought iPhones instead of iTouches for the RAM, and because hes a TECHIE.

he spent about a grand or two when he could of just gotten it ouches for cheaper.

other owners aren't going to be that flexible with money, especially if they're not techies.


like i said. look at those numbers, if you're not going to be somewhat of a traveling salesmen that needs a data plan.

whats the use?

why didnt lowes get 1000s of iPhones? they got iTouch 4TH GEN iNSTEAD. not even the 5th.

you dont run businesses and just spend dramatically, you try to cut unnecessary expenses as much as you can.

you think my retail customer would of gotten all iPhones if he was purchasing 100?

No, thats just way out of his budget, he can afford it but at what cost? when an iTouch can run it perfectly.


We're not talking about iPads. they dont perform the same duties in retail/tradeshows/warehousing/inventory/logistics as iphones/itouches do.

 

[na1577]

I think once Apple kills off the A5 devices (either with iOS 9 or later), the iPod touch will be discontinued completely. In my mind, it's already dead and on life support the way the iPod classic was for its last few years. With iPad sales stagnating, Apple will likely encourage potential iPod touch customers to consider the iPad instead because it has better margins than the touch. I don't think Apple can sell the product it wants at $199.

It's also possible that it may simply be consolidated into the iPad line with a 5.5" option, but I think that's less likely because they wouldn't run the same apps.

At one point, didn't it show all three?

I feel like this is the most obvious hint. It's like Apple's way of saying "Buy them now before they go extinct"

 

[Yebubbleman]

when theres a cheaper iTouch option?

yeah one my retail customers bought iPhones instead of iTouches for the RAM, and because hes a TECHIE.

he spent about a grand or two when he could of just gotten it ouches for cheaper.

other owners aren't going to be that flexible with money, especially if they're not techies.


like i said. look at those numbers, if you're not going to be somewhat of a traveling salesmen that needs a data plan.

whats the use?

why didnt lowes get 1000s of iPhones? they got iTouch 4TH GEN iNSTEAD. not even the 5th.

you dont run businesses and just spend dramatically, you try to cut unnecessary expenses as much as you can.

you think my retail customer would of gotten all iPhones if he was purchasing 100?

No, thats just way out of his budget, he can afford it but at what cost? when an iTouch can run it perfectly.


We're not talking about iPads. they dont perform the same duties in retail/tradeshows/warehousing/inventory/logistics as iphones/itouches do.

While I agree with you, that's just not how large companies roll. They don't see a need to buy iPod touches and instead buy iPhones whether or not the phone component is necessary (though, to be fair, it usually is).

 

[yesilyurt01]

Some people says 'it's been way too long' ment to be ipod touch. Makes sense.

 

[Nyguy76]

I hope it's not dead it's a great device. The problem I think is its marketed wrong. Most people who don't read sites like this probably assume it some glorified iPod when it's really a phone less iphone or super small ipad.

I still think the is a market for it if was maketed correctly. If.it was up to me I would change the name. I would love Newton but that probably will never happen. Put 5s internals inside, Touch ID. And possibly Nfc. To keep costs down, use the polycarbonate from the 5c. Put the 5.5 inch 6 plus screen and I think that would sell well if it was around 3-400

 

[Yebubbleman]

Well, the October 16th Keynote came and went and with no update to the iPod touch, or any other iPod for that matter at all. Things are looking pretty grim for our music playing friends. What say you guys?

In the meantime, while only slightly off-topic, the iPad mini appeared to get a non-update today. Only being given TouchID and a gold color option, WHILE RETAINING THE SAME CPU AS BEFORE...almost sounds like the iPad mini might be falling out of favor too.

 

[sracer]

Well, the October 16th Keynote came and went and with no update to the iPod touch, or any other iPod for that matter at all. Things are looking pretty grim for our music playing friends. What say you guys?

In the meantime, while only slightly off-topic, the iPad mini appeared to get a non-update today. Only being given TouchID and a gold color option, WHILE RETAINING THE SAME CPU AS BEFORE...almost sounds like the iPad mini might be falling out of favor too.

I don't think that the iPad mini is "falling out of favor" but Apple recalibrating their product cycle to reflect consumer purchase cycle. It's been shown that an overwhelming majority of people don't upgrade their tablets annually.

 

[yesilyurt01]

I am disappointed. Where I live teachers earn 1800 per mounth police officers earn 2000tl per mounth and iphone 6 cost by 2600tl up to 3400tl, iphone 5s 2000tl. There is no way I am paying that much for a smartphone. Ipods are more reasonable for countries which doesn't have strong economy like us(india,maeysia,some asian countries) to take advantage of ios. So its not the smartest thing apple done !

 

[Yebubbleman]

I don't think that the iPad mini is "falling out of favor" but Apple recalibrating their product cycle to reflect consumer purchase cycle. It's been shown that an overwhelming majority of people don't upgrade their tablets annually.

It's one thing to account for people not buying a tablet every year (though, one would think that if this were the case, the iPad Air this year would have an A7X and not an A8-based A8X), but it's another to simply flake out on dropping in a faster CPU when the physical means of doing so exists. They only changed two elements of the form factor, the camera (which is only cosmetic) and TouchID (which should've been present on the last iPad mini when IT launched). Frankly, you give that thing a faster CPU and that's all most need.

I don't upgrade my tablets every year either. But I drank the kool-aid for the original iPad mini. Sadly that was one generation behind in under-the-hood hardware out of the gate. So when it came time for the second generation iPad mini to come out, I was wowed enough by the A7 to think that whatever generation came out afterwards would be the one that I upgraded my A5-based iPad mini, given that, in theory, that'd be a jump from A5 to A8 which would be significant. Nope. Now, I'm left feeling stupid for hopping on the iPad mini bandwagon at the wrong time and wondering if they'll ever keep it current again, or if Apple will start to do with it what it did with the iPod touch.

I am disappointed. Where I live teachers earn 1800 per mounth police officers earn 2000tl per mounth and iphone 6 cost by 2600tl up to 3400tl, iphone 5s 2000tl. There is no way I am paying that much for a smartphone. Ipods are more reasonable for countries which doesn't have strong economy like us(india,maeysia,some asian countries) to take advantage of ios. So its not the smartest thing apple done !

I would imagine that they're now positioning the iPad mini to be more within your range. The 16GB First Generation iPad mini is being positioned to be $50 more than the 16GB Fifth Generation iPod touch. While the conversion rate of that difference might be larger for you than it is for us, I'd imagine that the idea is to eventually have the iPad being accessible to everyone that the iPod touch is. The only lame thing is that, like the fifth generation iPod touch, the first generation iPad mini is slow. And if they're going to make a habit of selling three generations of iPad at once, that lowest end model will always be, at best, two generations of processing hardware behind and, at worst, three, making the experience of using iOS in said countries not enjoyable. Total shame.

 

[sracer]

It's one thing to account for people not buying a tablet every year (though, one would think that if this were the case, the iPad Air this year would have an A7X and not an A8-based A8X), but it's another to simply flake out on dropping in a faster CPU when the physical means of doing so exists. They only changed two elements of the form factor, the camera (which is only cosmetic) and TouchID (which should've been present on the last iPad mini when IT launched). Frankly, you give that thing a faster CPU and that's all most need.

I don't upgrade my tablets every year either. But I drank the kool-aid for the original iPad mini. Sadly that was one generation behind in under-the-hood hardware out of the gate. So when it came time for the second generation iPad mini to come out, I was wowed enough by the A7 to think that whatever generation came out afterwards would be the one that I upgraded my A5-based iPad mini, given that, in theory, that'd be a jump from A5 to A8 which would be significant. Nope. Now, I'm left feeling stupid for hopping on the iPad mini bandwagon at the wrong time and wondering if they'll ever keep it current again, or if Apple will start to do with it what it did with the iPod touch.

I have no clue as to why you would feel stupid buying the 1st gen iPad Mini. If you bought it when it was first released, then you've had at least a year of usage out of it. The fact that the mini 3 received no CPU bump means that your 1st gen mini hasn't lost any ground. Developers will still need to code to the lowest common denominator or feel the wrath of customers in their reviews and ratings.

The ones who should feel bad (if anyone should) are those who purchased the retina Mini over the last 6 months... their device just dropped $100 (at least) which in turn affects the used market.

NOT dropping in a new processor was the greatest thing that Apple could do to protect the investment people made in their iPads.

 

[Yebubbleman]

I have no clue as to why you would feel stupid buying the 1st gen iPad Mini. If you bought it when it was first released, then you've had at least a year of usage out of it. The fact that the mini 3 received no CPU bump means that your 1st gen mini hasn't lost any ground.

First off, if I had bought the second generation iPad mini, I would've bought an iPad mini with a current processor. In buying the first generation iPad mini, I bought an iPad mini with a processor that is a year old out of the gate. In buying the third generation iPad mini, I would also be buying an iPad mini with a processor that is a year old out of the gate.

That said:

(a) The first generation mini lost ground because the A5 processor lost ground. Each time they update iOS, the A5 loses more ground as do the devices that run it.

(b) The iPad mini seemed to be a product line that would be given the current CPU when updated after last year's iPad launch. When the first generation launched, it seemed as though there were several reasons why it wasn't done that way. This time, there seems to be no good reason why it was done that way save for the following possibilities:

- The iPad mini is being positioned to not conflict with or cannibalize sales of the iPhone 6 Plus

- Apple has market research that shows that the 7.0"-8.4" tablet market is on the decline (given Wednesday's discontinuation of the Asus/Google Nexus 7, which had long been the iPad mini's most prominent competitor product) and is winding down development on that product

- They think people won't care

- They wish to position attention on the iPad Air 2 and away from the iPad mini

Developers will still need to code to the lowest common denominator or feel the wrath of customers in their reviews and ratings.

While true, that's only true to a point. Apple is always going to make new versions of iOS each year and with each of these new versions, the pre-existing hardware being updated to them is performing gradually worse. This continues until the hardware is so intolerably slow that users discard their devices in favor of new ones and then the cycle continues. Apple supports the first generation iPad mini now, but only to a point. It doesn't support newer frameworks like Metal, and eventually (if not with iOS 9), it will be left out of the latest version of iOS and then, sooner rather than later, they will not be able to run modern versions of apps.

The ones who should feel bad (if anyone should) are those who purchased the retina Mini over the last 6 months... their device just dropped $100 (at least) which in turn affects the used market.

Well, it's a one-year refresh cycle (third generation iPad completely aside) and right now, it seems to be updated in October. So yeah, buying in six months into the cycle doesn't maximize your time with the device given that the device doesn't start aging until the next OS comes out.

That being said, if I had bought an "iPad mini with Retina Display" or "iPad mini 2" this past year, I'd have bought an iPad mini that won't age any less gracefully than the iPad Air it came out alongside with (or at least any less gracefully than the 100MHz difference between it and the original iPad Air). Given that it's the processor and the OS it runs that determines how these things age, then no, I think the $100 premium for that extra time would've made sense.

Also, as an aside, it's worth noting that the current decision between buying an "iPad mini 2" and an iPad mini 3 is only an issue if one is deciding between 16GB models as the former is the only one to have a 32GB capacity and the latter is the only one to have 64GB and 128GB capacities.

NOT dropping in a new processor was the greatest thing that Apple could do to protect the investment people made in their iPads.

Nope. From a standpoint of devaluation, the first and second generation iPad minis will still devalue at the same rate, marketed processor bump or not because that's how the used market works. And they'll still age as the A7 will still age because iOS 8 is not its original OS and time is still marching forward. It will run iOS 9 slightly slower than it does iOS 8, and by the time iOS 10 is out, it will start to be slow enough to warrant upgrading. That's how it goes.

Bringing the conversation back to the iPod touch, much like the first generation iPad mini, iOS 8 runs very slowly and odds are, given the age of the A5 processor, it won't be let in to run iOS 9.

 

[Paddle1]

Passbook on an iPod touch doesn't require Internet access. It only requires internet access to obtain certain passes and then keep them in sync with iCloud. Similarly, it's not like ApplePay uses the iPhone's cellular capability to transmit the transaction back to the credit card company. It is assumed that role is still handled by the POS equipment of the merchant. Long story short, there's no reason why an otherwise capable iPod touch shouldn't have ApplePay support. Hell, given that I take my Android phone and at least one iPod touch with me wherever I go, this would be extremely convenient to have.



That sentiment makes no sense at all. If the iPod touch isn't refreshed, then yes, I too, will probably buy an iPhone out of contract to use as an iPod touch. But that's not to say that Apple needs to discontinue the iPod touch because so many people would be willing to do that. Obviously, paying $300 for a capable (i.e. with modern innards) 64GB iPod touch is much preferred to paying $750 for a 64GB iPhone 6 out of contract or $850 for a 64GB iPhone 6 Plus out of contract, especially if these devices are to be used without plans.



A 4.7" iPod touch wouldn't ruin that functionality, even with small hands. (And really, if that's what you're most worried about, then you probably more just want a bigger iPod nano.) The iPhone 6 Plus is a different story, and given that and its iPad-like software enhancements, I'm thinking that Apple won't make a contract-less version of this device and put it under the "iPod" banner.



I empathize with the decision to keep iOS 6 on your fifth generation iPod touch; one of my iPod touches still has iOS 6 on it as well. That said, if you were to do a DFU restore to iOS 7 (as opposed to an upgrade), you'd find that, while there is a speed difference, it's relatively minimal. That said, it's sort of a moot point because iOS 7 is about to become as useless for current versions of apps as iOS 6 has been and iOS 8 runs like crap on the fifth generation iPod touch.

There's been enough room to get 128GB in the iPod touch since Apple first had a 64GB iPhone. Traditionally, the highest capacity iPhone used to have half the amount of flash storage that the highest capacity iPod touch had as that space is usually reserved for the cellular antennas and such. That tradition seems to have died right around the time the iPod touch's refresh frequency decreased.



Sadly, I concur.



Kids and teens are given iPhones now where they were previously given iPod touches. It makes sense; why give a kid a dumb phone and an iPod touch...might as well give them one device that does both. That logic carries over to adults too.

I am a fan of multiple hand-held computers and I like having SOMETHING for when my Smartphone dies as I find that sort of thing useful. However, I think we're in the minority and I think Apple sees that.

iOS 8 seems faster on the iPod than 4S for some reason. Also you can't install iOS 7 only 8.

 

[Yebubbleman]

iOS 8 seems faster on the iPod than 4S for some reason.

I've helped my mother do a few tasks with her iPhone 4S running 8.0.2. The performance seems totally on par with my fifth generation iPod touch.

Also you can't install iOS 7 only 8.

I was referring to back a year ago when iOS 7 was brand new; on the same 16GB Black and Silver (rear-camera-less) iPod touch, I did an upgrade from 6.1.3 to 7, benchmarked it with Geekbench, and then did a DFU restore to 7 and then benchmarked that with Geekbench and compared the results. It did make a difference.

 

[Guacamole]

Why do you need an iPod touch if you have an iPhone?

in my case the iPod Touch has all my music collection, I got rid of all my cds, I no longer have a cd player. How would I play my music at home if the iPod one day disappears?

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

in my case the iPod Touch has all my music collection, I got rid of all my cds, I no longer have a cd player. How would I play my music at home if the iPod one day disappears?

On a 128GB iPhone?

Apple needs to come out with one last iPod with high quarter to half terabyte capacity. Just my opinion...

 

[617aircav]

in my case the iPod Touch has all my music collection, I got rid of all my cds, I no longer have a cd player. How would I play my music at home if the iPod one day disappears?

On something else.

 

[iPadCary]

I think there'll be an iPod Touch 6 with an A7x/A8 CPU.
But like others have said here, I'd much rather it be 5.5" and
marketed as an "iPad Nano" rather than as a "iPod Touch [6 Gen.]/"iPod Touch+".

A 5.5" "iPad Nano" would be the perfect non-phone pocket device and
would fly off the shelves. I know I'd get one.

 

[MacDarcy]

I think there'll be an iPod Touch 6 with an A7x/A8 CPU.
But like others have said here, I'd much rather it be 5.5" and
marketed as an "iPad Nano" rather than as a "iPod Touch [6 Gen.]/"iPod Touch+".

A 5.5" "iPad Nano" would be the perfect non-phone pocket device and
would fly off the shelves. I know I'd get one.

Me too. And I was really bummed Apple did not announce one along with the new iPads on the 16th. Personally, I think they blew a great opportunity to sell a bunch of these for the holiday season. But I guess Apple has other plans. Seems they also shafted the iPad mini 3 in order to upsell people to the new iPad Air 2.

I can't imagine Apple not updating the iPod touch with a 5.5" screen and calling it an ipad nano. But now I think it may be awhile until they do. Definitely not this year. Most likely next year when they release ios9. The A5 in the iPod touch probably won't be able to run ios9. I think that is when we will find out what Apple plans to do with the iPod touch. They will be forced to show their hand.