Planning to purchase an iPod but cannot decide among the various iPod models like Shuffle, Nano, Classic or the new iPod Touch ? The following iPod Buying guide compares all the new iPod models to help you pick the best iPod for your needs.

The very impressive Apple iPod lineup has dominated the digital music player market ever since the first iPod hit the streets in 2001. And that lead continues as Apple keeps on adding more impressive features and storage space to their iPod models while maintaining the thin and sleek look.

If you are planning to purchase a new iPod, you have at least four options to choose from – the inexpensive but screenless iPod shuffle, the new iPod Nano that also plays video, the iPod Classic that offers huge storage space or the latest iPod touch which is like the iPhone minus the phone and camera.

Music and video fans never had it so good but obviously, more choices can sometimes lead to confusion.

The iPod shuffle is ideal when you want to gift someone an iPod but do not have a big budget. The shuffle is small and wearable so you can easily clip it to your sleeve or the coin pocket of your trousers - a perfect choice for joggers or people who frequent the gym. With 1GB of storage, iPod shuffle weighs just around 15g.

The new iPod Nano, one of the best sellers, can now play video on their 2” colored screen in addition to photo slideshows and music. With the recent update, Nano models have become slightly shorter and wider.

The Cover Flow feature lets you flip through your music album covers visually through the Click Wheel. Nano is available in 4GB and 8GB models and weighs around 50g.

Next in line is the iPod Classic for power iPod users who own a big collection of music and video.

iPod Classic is much like the iPod Nano except for the storage size – Classic comes in 80GB and 160GB variants enough to store even your full length high resolution DVD movies. The screen size is slightly bigger at 2.5” but they weigh around 150g which is like 3x that of a Nano.

What could become the object of everyone’s envy is the new and very gorgeous iPod Touch. With a large 3.5” display and touch screen QWERTY keyboard, this is the most innovative iPod ever. The inbuilt Wi-Fi and Safari Browser in iPod Touch lets you surf the web in any hotspot.

Am not sure if Apple has officially introduced the iPod Touch in India but some online stores are accepting pre-order for shipping sometime in mid-October. And yes, you can still use the iPod Touch like any other iPod to play music, videos or photo slideshows. Weighing just 120g, iPod Touch is available in 8GB and 16GB variants.

With so many choices, which iPod would you now go for? If the budget is small, Shuffle seems like a good choice though you’ll miss the visual navigation. If you want to carry all your multimedia content wherever you go, Classic is recommended but for the rest of us, iPod Nano is close to perfect though I am not so big a fan of the new Nano shape.

Labels: Ipod

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