amper's Journal: The Right Price.

OK, my friend Doug over at Polar Microsystems just let me know about the new Apple news. I haven't really been paying attention this week, because I've been doing other more importnat stuff.

First of all, I was already considering buying a refurb iPhone. I bought a refurb iPod nano 2GB (1st gen) right after the 2G nano was announced, and the experience I've had with it was perfect, so I have no problem buying a refurb iPhone. Second, the remaining stock of 4GB iPhones is selling at $299. Since I really don't forsee using the iPhone as a primary music player, I don't have much problem with a non-upgradeable 4GB of memory, especially since Apple *still* hasn't released an SDK. Besides, at $299, I won't care so much about upgrading in the future. $299 and $399 are the right prices for this phone, considering the lack of insurance available. $599 was just silly, given the problems with the iPhone.

I'm *still* waiting for significant software upgrades, though.

The iPod touch is nice, but with Bluetooth and email, it doesn't make sense for me. The camera I can live without, although it would have been nice.

The iPod classic is something I didn't see coming. I rather thought that Apple would go with an iPod touch with a HDD.

The new iPod nano is cool, but I don't really have any desire to watch video on such a small screen. The only reason I bought the nano in the first place was just to show off pictures and have an auxiliary player for buying adding media while on the road without my primary iTunes library. Plus, at $99 for my refurb, it entirely replaced my 1G iPod shuffle for that purpose.

So, my new lineup will probably be either a 4GB iPhone or 8GB refurb (currently $349), and an 80GB iPod classic, once the refurbs start coming out. My 4G 40GB iPod will be handed off to a family member, and my 1G 2GB nano will remain in service. My 1G 1GB shuffle will be reduced to USB drive status.