Should I get an iPod Classic over a Touch? Worried about breaking hard drive.

I’ve dropped my iPod Classic several times, and it’s still ok. Maybe I’ve just been lucky, though. Like you, I need much more space than the Touch can offer, and this seems to be the only Apple product that fits the bill.

Yeah I would definitely get a case for it and be careful.

Another plus is that by going with an iPod Classic from an iPod Touch (because I have such a new iPod Touch), I’ll actually be getting a bigger iPod and MORE money in the long run, since the iPod Touch is more expensive.

I say definitely go for the iPod Classic, I sold my 8GB iPod Touch 2G to a friend and bought the Classic and this case as careful as I am I’ve still dropped it a couple of times and it still works perfectly.

Yes, go with the iPod classic. I’ve had it for a long time and treated it pretty well. It works just how I want it to work, and I haven’t had any issues with it thus far. I’ve had it for at least 4 years now.

Thanks for the help, guys. I’ll either be getting a new or used iPod Classic, 6th or 7th gen. I can get more storage and make like 100+ dollars by selling my old iTouch!

Modern hard drives are surprisingly robust, especially the smaller ones, so you don’t have to worry about them nearly as much as you would have, say, ten years ago. They can safely handle some pretty hefty G-forces like those from being dropped. There are a few reasons for that, but the TL;DR version is that smaller things are proportionally stronger,and that we have pretty much perfected impact sensors and head parking. I had an old Phillips with an 8GB hard drive and it survived some nasty stuff.

Since apps and ‘net access are not issues for you, I concur; a Classic makes far more sense in your case.

I’ve only owned three iPods so far: first a 2nd gen. nano, then a 2nd gen. shuffle as a backup (rarely used) and now a 3rd gen. touch (32GB, bought refurbished). I’ve taken comfort from them all being flash rather than HD-based. I came late to the party and still remember 8-track tapes so I suppose I tolerate the notion of not having everything at hand all the time better than “younger folk”. ;)

I was moved to purchase the touch after my nano got so beat up that the top end cap and hold button came off. It was still working well though! I am much more careful about how I handle the touch though and I don’t drop it nearly as often as I did the nano.

Although I opted for the touch, I think the argument to go for a classic in your case is pretty strong.

The reason behind the surprising durability of small things: surface effects become more important than mass or inertia. (Waves at @jerv.)

Wow, that is really helpful. I read some reviews on iPods and it seems like the newer ones really are more durable.

I don’t do very much with my iPod. I run some with it (but it’s secured) and then it’s in my car, hooked up to my stereo with an iPod connection. I don’t drop it a whole lot. I’m hoping that it will be good for my light usage.

thanks again for the advice!

Keep in mind that the iPod Classics have a very large RAM cache. It will load the next hour of music into RAM and park the hard drive. It is barely ever spinning if you just are listening to music.

Edit :: I used to have iPod Classic. I skateboarded with it and never had any problems.

Just an update:

In the past, I used to own a 5th gen (or more accurately, 5.5gen) iPod Video. I had it for years, and sold it when I got my iPod Touch as a present. Mistake! Now my musical tastes have expanded and 32 GB is just not enough.

I found a new 5.5gen 80GB iPod Video from a good seller and ordered it. I know it’s a few years old but my reasoning is, it’s much more “mod-able” than the newer iPod Classics. If the screen breaks, port breaks, motherboard breaks battery dies, or HDD breaks, I can get cheap repair kits from online and just do the work myself….I’m pretty comfortable with that. I think it will work out to be cheaper for me in the end.

In turn, I’ll be selling the iPod Touch so I will actually MAKE money on this change, in addition to getting more space.

Thanks for the help.