iPod touch iPod touch versus PAYG iPhone

[Harry Houdini]

Hi,
Long time reader, first time poster. I, like the vast majority of people on this forum, was somewhat disappointed by the recent Mac Event’s failure to unveil an iPod touch with more than 32GB.

Accordingly, I have now decided to wait for a larger model but wondered - why not just get a Pay As You Go (PAYG) iPhone? In England, an iPod touch32GB reatils at £289(rrp) and a 16GB iPhone costs £399.99 (rrp). I know this is £110 more for substantially less memory but you are effectively getting a phone for free. I am now waiting to see which arrives first - the 64GB iPod touch or the 32GB iPhone. Which ever arrives first I will buy.

My question, therefore, is have I missed something? Are there enough differences between an iPhone and iPod touch to ever justify getting the latter (accepting the price difference)? I know this topic has been broached before but, as I understand it, not with respect to a PAYG iPhone. I would welcome your advice and expertise on this matter.

Thank you for your help!
HH

 

[sananda]

the 16GB touch is £219 whereas the 16GB iphone is £399.00 but this include £120 worth of service so the iphone is really £279. so the phone part cost £60 more over a touch. if you are an infrequent mobile phone user so that pay and go is a viable option, iphone seems a reasonable proposition in the circumstances.

 

[a456]

I am now waiting to see which arrives first - the 64GB iPod touch or the 32GB iPhone. Which ever arrives first I will buy.

Sounds like a delay tactic. With every size increase, there are more and more Apps, files, and things that you want to store. An iPod drive is never going to be large enough to hold all of your data, and even if it was you would still need to back it up on a desktop/notebook and probably on an external drive as well. Modern drive sizes are making us lazy, we are storing everything - just in case. I am as much to blame as others - but this wastes not only time (even with Spotlight and Coverflow) it also wastes money on buying the more expensive larger drive options.

 

[Harry Houdini]

Sounds like a delay tactic. With every size increase, there are more and more Apps, files, and things that you want to store. An iPod drive is never going to be large enough to hold all of your data, and even if it was you would still need to back it up on a desktop/notebook and probably on an external drive as well. Modern drive sizes are making us lazy, we are storing everything - just in case. I am as much to blame as others - but this wastes not only time (even with Spotlight and Coverflow) it also wastes money on buying the more expensive larger drive options.

Sananda, thank you for your help.

a456, thank you for your response. I am somewhat unsure as to your use of the term 'delay tactic'. My apologies if my first post failed to make this point explicitly clear but I am indeed delaying my next purchase. I certainly will, however, be buying a replacement as soon as either of the aforementioned options become available.

It would also appear that you are conflating laziness with reliance. One can only presume that you are still using a 5gig iPod and updating your iTunes playlists everyday? Moreover, my present iPod does remain large enough to hold all of my data. I was hoping to buy a larger model in order to ‘grow into it’ thereby increasing the time until my next purchase. It seems odd to me that I should want to purchase an iPod touch with less capacity than my current model, given my present needs. Indeed, I am away from my computer for weeks at a time and think it is reasonable to have access to all of my music as and when it is needed.

I would welcome your thoughts as to the argument(s) for purchasing an iPod touch over an iPhone PAYG, if indeed there are any (bar price and size difference).

HH

 

[MillieWales]

It would also appear that you are conflating laziness with reliance. One can only presume that you are still using a 5gig iPod and updating your iTunes playlists everyday? Moreover, my present iPod does remain large enough to hold all of my data. I was hoping to buy a larger model in order to ‘grow into it’ thereby increasing the time until my next purchase. It seems odd to me that I should want to purchase an iPod touch with less capacity than my current model, given my present needs. Indeed, I am away from my computer for weeks at a time and think it is reasonable to have access to all of my music as and when it is needed.

Nobody implied laziness, its the simple silly thing that people do, they always wait for the next model and actually never get round to buying anything. I replace my phone every year, my computer every 2 years, as I always buy Applecare when i sell my 2 year old laptops they have a years warranty on, I therefore get well in excess of 50% of my purchase price back, therefore I'm paying a lot less for my new machine. Other people won't buy for season after season, waiting for the bigger and better product, which is fine, but you will of course wait forever.

If you have a 5gig iPod you don't need to change your playlists daily, 5 gig is around 1000 tracks, if you have put on music you actually like thats about 3 days of solid music playing without hearing the same track twice. I listen to music every day but probably only a few hundred tracks over a course of a couple of months, and I will then add some in and take some out, I have many many more on my iPhone and my laptop that I don't listen to even though I put them in the playlist.

Whats interesting is that you said you would buy a 32gig iPhone but not a 32gig iPod touch, if the iPhone is big enough then the iPod Touch will be too.

You can of course do as you please, but when someone replies to your questions its their opinion, in the same way that this is my opinion.

 

[Harry Houdini]

Whats interesting is that you said you would buy a 32gig iPhone but not a 32gig iPod touch, if the iPhone is big enough then the iPod Touch will be too ... You can of course do as you please, but when someone replies to your questions its their opinion, in the same way that this is my opinion.

MillieWales, thank you for your response. You are quite correct. Indeed, either would be large enough for my present needs. As I don't need either until next year, however, I suggest to you that the options I will be presented with at the time of purchase are a 32GB iPhone or a 64GB iPod touch. Size is, I stress, only one amongst many other considerations. Accordingly, you have ignored my central question and thus the purpose of this post:

Could you clarify the argument(s) for purchasing an iPod touch over an iPhone PAYG, if indeed there are any (bar price and size difference)?

I am trying to discern the difference between the two. Once an iPhone reaches 32GB it appears to offer significantly more value and would fulfill all of my present iPod needs.

I would never begrudge anyone their opinion but I would more readily welcome replies to the questions I have posed.

HH

 

[yorkshire]

I'd say if you can afford it, go for the iPhone. But you need to remember that after 12 months, when the free data is gone, the iPhone will start to cost you more and more, and when you take topping up into account, it may cost you a fair bit more.

The touch is an excellent device, better looking than the iPhone IMO, so if you don't want to spend too much money, go for the touch. I have the new one, and it's brilliant.

 

[yorkshire]

Also, you say you are waiting to see which comes first- 32gig iPhone or 64gig touch. I think it's likely they'll come at the same time, possibly at MWSF '09, or sometime soon thereafter.

 

[Harry Houdini]

Great, thanks for your help yorkshire. Very much appreciated.
Cheers,
HH

 

[geordietravllr]

Actually Harry, I think you raise a good point. I've just returned my g2 touch 32 Gb because it kept resetting and chose to have it replaced rather than get a refund but I must admit to being tempted to just get the payg iPhone instead.

What stopped me was that my music barely fits into 32Gb and that my current phone has a 5Mp camera.

Now when they release an iPhone with 64Gb and a decent camera .....;-)

Si