So what's the status or fate of the iPod touch?

[sekker]

Running ios6 might be a nice bonus on those older iPods...

[silvarios]

GGD wrote:
[quote=decay]
I see that - two years old (2012 release).

A bit misleading, the 4th gen came out in 2010, but in 2012 they introduced the White version of it. The 4th gen is limited to iOS 6.
Yeah, that thing is old and is two OS revisions behind, which does matter on iOS because of app compatibility. Some apps have last compatible versions, but not all. Buyer beware.

[silvarios]

sekker wrote:
[quote=decay]
starting at $109 - is this new?

http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/sp...ipod_touch

News to me. That's a great price. If they hit $99, would be an easy stocking stuffer for a lot of people.

I think the current iPod touch was the first of the current design language in the Apple lineup. So in many ways, it's still current.

All they would need to do is update the cpu and camera to be refreshed.

I would expect that next year.
As mentioned, bad deal. Likely get a used iPhone 4S for not much more.

[silvarios]

pinkoos wrote:
Price parity or disparity aside between the touch and the price-dropped minis, the mini is just not as portable for a young kid as the touch is.

My kids can easily take their touches with them, either putting them in their pants pockets or letting my wife carry them in her purse.

A mini, though a much better and immersive experience, won't fit in their pockets and my wife would be more hesitant to lug those around for them.

I would love to see a 4.7" iPod touch upgrade.

I agree. Have you checked into used iPhone 5 pricing? Might be getting down to these refurb iPod touch prices. Like $200-$250ish. Amazon has "like new" unlocked iPhone 5 models for $350ish and carrier locked models for $288. If you are willing to get a less perfect condition model or buy from an owner, you might get the price down even less.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B...ed?ie=UTF8&condition=used&m=A2L77EE7U53NWQ
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B...ed?ie=UTF8&condition=used&m=A2L77EE7U53NWQ

There are many more options. iPhone 4S seem to be under $200.

[silvarios]

decay wrote:
The entry-level iPad Mini is just $50 more than the cheapest iPod Touch.

Yep.

[silvarios]

MGS_forgot_password wrote:
No competition in the iPod space leads to a stagnant market. Apple has no need to upgrade when it can still charge premium prices for 2012 hardware.

There is innumerable competition. From small tablets, to inexpensive phones, to the 3DS, etc. The device simply is not competitive with Apple's other products, let alone the competitors on the market. The best bang for your buck is an inexpensive unactivated cell phone. No plan to worry about and the phone otherwise works the same as an iPod touch. $60 Boost Moto G is hard to beat, even with no SD card slot and only 8GB internal. One of the other newer models would be even better. Sharp Aquos Crystal is a heck of a device with killer looks and costs $150 on Boost. Very mid range of course, not a flagship device. Since many games/apps are cross platform, the iPod touch does need a revamp or price cut or might end up a dead end product.

All of which saddens me because I was a big iPod touch booster back in the day. I once called it the "iPhone done right" as the specs were so similar in the first two or three revisions and it was so much cheaper than the iPhone.

[pinkoos]

silvarios wrote:
[quote=pinkoos]
Price parity or disparity aside between the touch and the price-dropped minis, the mini is just not as portable for a young kid as the touch is.

My kids can easily take their touches with them, either putting them in their pants pockets or letting my wife carry them in her purse.

A mini, though a much better and immersive experience, won't fit in their pockets and my wife would be more hesitant to lug those around for them.

I would love to see a 4.7" iPod touch upgrade.

I agree. Have you checked into used iPhone 5 pricing? Might be getting down to these refurb iPod touch prices. Like $200-$250ish. Amazon has "like new" unlocked iPhone 5 models for $350ish and carrier locked models for $288. If you are willing to get a less perfect condition model or buy from an owner, you might get the price down even less.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B...ed?ie=UTF8&condition=used&m=A2L77EE7U53NWQ
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B...ed?ie=UTF8&condition=used&m=A2L77EE7U53NWQ

There are many more options. iPhone 4S seem to be under $200.
iPhone 5 is the same screen size as their current touch (ie, 4 inches).

[silvarios]

pinkoos wrote:
iPhone 5 is the same screen size as their current touch (ie, 4 inches).

Sure, but a heck of a lot faster with nice cameras. The touch 5th gen is like buying an iPhone 4S with worse cameras. It's a terrible buy compared to pretty much every recent iPhone or iPad.

[pinkoos]

They already have the 5th gen touches (for 2 years now), so it's not something we would buy now.

I think now when they upgrade, I'm going to upgrade to a bigger screen device. Hopefully this will be a 4.7" touch. I'll wait til early next year to see if Apple comes out with it, otherwise I'll start looking into a mini for them.

[silvarios]

pinkoos wrote:
They already have the 5th gen touches (for 2 years now), so it's not something we would buy now.

I think now when they upgrade, I'm going to upgrade to a bigger screen device. Hopefully this will be a 4.7" touch. I'll wait til early next year to see if Apple comes out with it, otherwise I'll start looking into a mini for them.

There isn't a 4.7" mini. You'll have to get an iPhone 6 or start looking for non iOS devices. If you are compromising already, why not at least explore all options?