Should I Buy a New iPod or an Old One?

It's that time of year. Just in time for the holiday season, Apple has released new iPods. A new iPod Touch, iPod Nano and even a new iPod Shuffle have been announced, so inevitably the question comes up: Should I buy a new iPod or and older one? It honestly depends on several factors, but the main points we'll be looking at are changes, availability and price.

The new iPod family (from left to right) the Shuffle, Nano and Touch. Shiny, aren't they?

First of all, changes. Are the changes they've made really that big? For the Shuffle, no, but the Shuffle is so wonderfully simple that drastic changes to it are rare. For the Nano, yes, there are some major differences. For one thing, it's only 5.4 mm thick (or "5.4 mm thin" as Apple says) which is about .2 of an inch. That in addition to a larger touch screen and new colors make it a notable upgrade, but one I'd place in the "if you were already looking for a new MP3 player category." (Click here if you're not familiar with the difference between an MP3 player and an iPod.) Lastly, the new iPod Touch. Larger touch screen, colors, better camera and larger capacity make this a very tempting product indeed. As usual, the iPod Touch is Apple's "iPhone without the phone" and so it follows in the footsteps of the new iPhone 5 fairly closely.

Availability. Around the holidays many people consider getting MP3 players for their friends and family, and iPods are the most popular kind to get. That being said, Apple's timing for iPod releases is ingenious in that the new iPods will have high demand when they're released (as of today the Apple online store is estimating a 2 week waiting period) and once the new product rush is over the holiday rush begins. Unfortunately for us, that means that getting a new iPod in the color and capacity you want may be a bit challenging, especially if you pick a common combination like the 32GB silver iPod Touch. (If "32 GB" and "capacity" are confusing you, read this short article for a quick primer.) On the other hand, there are lots of people who have the previous version of the iPod who are itching to have the latest-and-greatest and so auction and sales websites like eBay and Craigslist will be flooded with iPods that are less than a year old and only one version behind.

The other nice thing about buying the previous generation iPod is that the price is much lower. Apple traditionally sells its older iPods online for a discount, but if you don't have your heart set on a brand-new device, buying a used one from the aforementioned sites can prove even cheaper and is a popular place to get an iPod for as little money as possible. (Buyer beware as always though when purchasing used electronics, especially from online sources.) Currently, Apple is advertising a $50 difference between two iPod Touches of the same capacity. That means that Apple thinks its upgrades are worth about $50. Do you agree? Have you ever purchased a previous generation iPod? Let me know in the comments section below what your experiences have been and if you plan on getting or skipping these new iPods.

(Don't forget to check us out on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/TechKNOWLEDGEyToday and Twitter at http://twitter.com/techKnowToday )