Apple launches new iPod touch, but should you buy it?

Apple's new iPod touch will disappoint you if you look at the 'upgrade' quotient. It has the same old 4-inch display with thick bezels and a Touch ID button. While A10 Fusion chip is a better chip than what ran on iPod touch 2015 model, the fact is the chipset is at least two year old. A10 Fusion chipset originally launched with iPhone 7 series in 2017. In comparison, Apple's iPhone XS series runs on A12 chipset.

Apart from design and an old chip, Apple's new iPod touch doesn't even improve in the camera department. Interestingly enough, camera specifications are same as the 2015 model -- 8-megapixel rear camera and a 1.2-megapixel FaceTime camera up front. The latest model also misses out on popular features such as portrait mode or studio lighting.

What's actually new?

Apple's new iPod touch does have a few things to offer - It now supports Group FaceTime. It also comes with ARKit support which enables Augmented Reality-based applications ranging from games to educational apps. Another big feature is the availability of 256GB storage (in the top-end model, of course).

iPod touch vs smartphones

When iPod and iPod touch were popular, users didn't really have a lot of options for on-the-go music devices. Since 2105, smartphones have become smarter and more importantly cheaper. Leave alone on-board storage, customers now have better, faster and cheaper internet connectivity and more choices for music streaming platforms. Even Apple Music is available on Android. Also, most of the Android phones offer expandable storage, ranging from 128GB to 512GB.

Price vs storage vs phones

Priced at ₹18,900, the base model of iPod touch offers 32GB storage. Other two variants with 128GB and 256GB storage are priced at ₹28,900 and ₹38,900 respectively. At this price you can buy any Android smartphone with higher storage, even with storage expansion support. Even Apple's iPhone SE 128GB is available online in India at a lower price than the top-end model of iPod touch.

You can still buy it

Apple's new iPod touch seems more of a novelty device at the moment. You can buy it as a secondary device at home for music or video streaming. There's still the 3.5mm headphone jack so it will work with a wider range of audio devices. No cellular connectivity also means lesser distractions while gaming or reading something on the device.

If you don't, you're not missing much

When the iPod touch first launched in 2008 it made total sense but a product like this in 2019 doesn't, especially for a market like India. At a time when phones costing half the price can do pretty much the same thing and even more, it would seem questionable. Also, users have multiple options to stream music from different services and at affordable prices.