Ipod Vs. Mp3

I have all mostly boys that age...and they don't like either of those...we are a Zune family! Zune is Microsofts version of the iPod...

Ipod touch is an amazing gift. They are about $50 more than the nanos and with wifi it is a little computer, it is also a game systems, educational tools, dvd players, and mp3 player. The zunes are very good products and are very similar in price to the ipod. Zunes and I pods are easy to read and use. If you wish to get her a $15 mg3 play it wouldn't be her 1 big gift, just a filler gift and not what she wants. Most people have Ipods because they are the best and easy to use. Not because they are the most expensive and the right name brand. If it is in your budget and what she wants get the i pod.

We are mostly anti-mac (I-anything) around here. As the other poster put..it the name brand and we refuse to feed the machine!

We have the Microsoft version, however..a Zune. For Christmas last year, dd (15 then), my hubby and I all got them as our "big gifts". Daughter did have an iPod Nano previously...a gift from other family members and she was on her own with it...I didn't know how it worked or whatever.

But we LOVE our Zunes because for $15 a month (for all 3 machines) we have a subscription for music. We can access as much as we want from their library and onto our machines. Plus we share 10 downloads a month to keep forever (like an iTune dealy-o). The other subscription ones we keep as long as we maintain the $15 a month deal.

All of the CD's we own are on there for us to keep obviously (we had generic MP3's before), plus all of the subscription songs. Personally I just download entire albums. Anything. Today was old Buddy Holly..along with a Green Day and Maroon 5 cd's! I have a wide taste selection!

I borrow CD's from everyone I know! I go to my nieces house (she buys alot of CD's..childrens and adults)...I always bring my laptop...so I can peruse her newest ones and copy them. She does the same with me (I still buy some occasionally..and own ALOT of kids ones as I have done home childcare for 13 years..and parents give them to me to copy as well..and she just now has a child..so she borrows from my library...it works as a balance for us both!).

So..for me..I dislike that iPod is so prevalent (actually the Android network is now bigger...apps need to catch up!)..so I would never buy an iPhone or iPod...just me! I gotta push against the stream!

Good Luck..and Happy teenage years!

Ipod is an mp3 player, it is just the Gucci of mp3 players ... be aware of the pros and cons of buying a Gucci bag vs a simmilar Nine West bag for a fraction of the cost.

My 13 and 14 year old have the ipod touch. They love it. I love it too! I borrow it while i am in bed and read mamsource :) I hear the new one takes pictures.

It kind of comes down to how your 13 year old is. Ipods are mp3 players just a brand and has tons of extras. There are hundreds of mp3 players that will do the same thing or more that an ipod does (an probably cheaper) BUT what makes most kids love them is the fact that they're "ipods" and name brand. If your daughter isn't really picky it might not matter if you dont get her the actual ipod but if she is consider if she'll be upset if you don't get her the exact thing. Hope it works out!

Why not ask her? Does she want an MP3 player or does she want an iPod? if there are specific reason she wants an iPod -like playing monopoly with friends- then that's what you buy. If she just wants something to play music, then consider a nano or other MP3 player.

Most kids today prefer the itouch. It is an imbellished mp3 player, easy to use, and lots of free apps to use on it. My kids (ages 12 &14) don't spend a lot of money downloading music, but music is easily shared between devices. The apps are fabulous and many, many, many are free or just $1. Really worth the extra money to upgrade from a mp3 player to an itouch.

Zunes suck so don't get those. I love my ipod. It is more of a status thing to have an ipod, but they are really nice too, so for me it would be a no brainer and just get the ipod. More things are out there for ipod and I think that they are just easier to use. I've had a couple mp3 players and i hated them all.

Ipods are the more socially cool little gadgets BUT they seem to break easily. My sister in law and I got ours at the exact same time. Mine stopped working about a year and a half later and hers stopped about 2 1/2 yrs later. I got another one that was used from craigslist about 2 years ago. Sometimes the click-wheel will not respond or it won't start... To me, they cost too much money to have such short lives...On the other hand, I've got a cheap mp3 player that has been working since my first ipod broke.

Bottom line--ipods are neat but be prepared to buy more than one...

I have a Zune and both my hubby and son have Ipods, for a 13 yo. I would recommend the ipod, they have a great variety of apps she can get for free, and I personally like the ipod more than the zune. My son & hubby won't even look at my zune jajajaja, but it also has good things.
I think you should ask her what she wants and why and get what she wants. If you can afford it, right away you can always put it on layaway and give her a coupon for it. Good Luck!

If you were going for a device that strictly plays music then get a non-apple product. I would look for one that has a mini USB port to USB type connection or any other type universal connection cable, only because cables tend to get lost and in a pinch you probably have that sort of cable already. There is also the ease of use when it comes to loading your music onto a non-apple MP3 player. I'm not a fan of Itunes for many reasons but mainly because I prefer to drag and drop my music from it's location on my computer's hard drive onto my player.

Now the Ipod touch serves double duty which is the only Apple product I would suggest. This device is a player and gaming system all in one and the best thing is there are no cartridges/chips to store or keep up with. There are tons of apps available and if you are tech savvy jailbreaking the device opens the possibilities even wider. (Jailbreaking is not illegal... yet)

That's my $0.02 hope you found it helpful.

My husband has an iPod and I have an mp3 and there is so much mre you can do with the iPod - depending on the model. Hope that helps a little : )
~M.
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IPod most likely. That is the kids preference, usually. If you order it online you can get it engraved. (Theft deterrant as well as a nice touch.) the iTouch is fabulous-Music PLUS internet wherever there is WiFi. Apple is fabulous about standing behind their products- although we have gotten and used the extended warranties. All three of my kids have iTouches- ages 12, 15 and 18. So does my husband. I have the iPad. LOVE IT! My daughter lost her iTouch for a while and bought herself a Zune -there was a deal on an open box one. As soon as her iTouch showed up again, that Zune got stuck in a drawer. It also helps that with everyone on iTunes buying music-the kids share. It was a pain for her to put her iTunes music onto the Zune. So it is good as a family to stick with one format.
Good luck and happy birthday to your daughter.

I like the other response you recieved - it's a good one. My husband & I both have mp3 players. Less bells & whistles but they store tons of music (mine even has video) and are small & portable. My husband has a SanDisc SansaClip & I have a Sony Walkman. Both were less than $100. BestBuy has good deals and you should be able to find something there.