When Apple first released the iPod, things were very easy. You bought an iPod and it let you listen to music. That was it! You could load music into your iPod either from your own CD collection or by purchasing songs from the iTunes store. The cool thing about the iPod when it first came out was that it had a hard disk, so it could store thousands of songs.

Things aren't quite so easy any more — now there are at least six different iPods that you can find at stores like Amazon. Apple only manufactures three different models today — the other three are older models still in warehouses.

In this guide, we will help you understand the differnce between all the different models so that you can buy exactly the iPod that is right for you. Let's get started...





Features:

• Original Price: $399
• Capacity: 5GB (1.8-inch hard drive)
• Display: Monochrome 160 x 128 LCD
• Other: 32MB of RAM, 32MB ROM
• Mechanical scroll wheel
• Firewire-only
• Later models had 10 GB of storage
• Discontinued in July of 2002

Apple took the original iPod and did three things with it:

Apple made the hard disk bigger and bigger so the original iPod could hold lots more songs.

Apple made a new smaller version called the Mini. It was easier to carry around.

Apple made a version with a color screen so it could display photos. It was called the iPod Photo.
What's funny is that none of those models exists any more. Today you can still buy the "original iPod" with the black and white LCD screen, and the iPod Mini and the iPod Photo, but they are all "old news". If you want to be current, you need to buy one of Apple's latest and greatest iPods...





Features of the old Mini:

• Original Price: $249
• Capacity: 4GB to 6GB (1 inch hard drive)
• Display: Monochrome 160 x 128 LCD
• All aluminum exterior
• Came in difference colors
• Discontinued February 2005

Today, if you want to buy a "regular iPod", what you are going to buy is the iPod Video. It has a large hard disk that can hold up to 60 GB. It can hold songs, photos or videos. It has a color screen so you can look at your photos and videos.

If that is more than you need, go to the next page...





Features:

• Original Price: $299 - $399
• Capacity: 30GB, 60GB
• Display: 2.5 inch color
• Up to 20 hours of battery life
• Plays videos
• Can output to TV (with optional A/V cables)

The iPod Nano is able to play music and display photos on its color screen. The big difference is that it has no hard disk. Instead of a hard disk it uses Flash memory, which makes it very thin and light. It has about as much storage space as the very first iPod.





Features:

• Original Price: $199 - $249
• Capacity: 2GB to 4GB
• Display: 1.5 inch color
• Up to 14 hours of battery life
• Store thousands of photos

The smallest iPod is the iPod Shuffle. All it does is play music, and it has no screen at all. It also has a lot less storage space. But, if all you want is music and you want something very small and simple, this iPod is for you!

What about used iPods? It may be a way to save some money. If you're buying used, something to consider is battery life. The original iPod's were known to have limited battery life. So, if you're buying one used, be sure to ask the seller about the battery. It is possible to buy a new battery and battery replacement kits online, so that might be an option if a used iPod has battery issues but you can get it cheap.





Features:

• Original Price: $99 - $129
• Capacity: 512MB to 1GB
• Display: None
• No moving parts
• Up to 12 hours of battery life
• USB 2.0