# Should I Buy and iPod? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 24, 2017, 9:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896 "2017-03-24T09:22:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 9:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/1 "2017-03-24T09:22:15Z")
Well, I cannot take my Kindle on my transatlantic commute. In addition, my dialectal camera just started acting up. How about buying an iPod for about US$200? I do not need an iPhone as I am happy with my Nokia. How long will I be able to read on the plane with the iPod battery? (Of course an external battery will be required, right?) Is the iPod camera good enough to be my snapshot camera? What are your thoughts? ==eta== I am going to lie and blame the spell-checker for the title. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 10:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/2 "2017-03-24T10:23:03Z")
> [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](#): > > I am going to lie and blame the spell-checker for the title. While you are at it, you should also blame it for “dialectal camera.” Why can’t you just read books on the Nokia? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/3 "2017-03-24T10:41:25Z")
[External batteries on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/external-cell-phone-batteries/b?ie=UTF8&node=7073960011) (power banks) Anker has a terrific reputation. Curious: Why can’t you take the Kindle? ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/4 "2017-03-24T10:49:38Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > Curious: Why can’t you take the Kindle? The [new electronics ban](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dr-gridlock/wp/2017/03/23/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-airline-electronics-ban/?utm_term=.f8c0d14c1818) include Qutar. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 11:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/5 "2017-03-24T11:06:02Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > The [new electronics ban](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dr-gridlock/wp/2017/03/23/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-airline-electronics-ban/?utm_term=.f8c0d14c1818) include Qutar. Thanks. I’d forgotten about that. > [@](#): > > What devices need to be in checked luggage? > > TSA said any electronic device larger than a cellphone will not be allowed on carry-on luggage. These include: laptops, tablets, e-readers, cameras, DVD players, electronic game units larger than a smartphone, printers and scanners. Good move. Put the potential bomb in the cargo hold. And the cellphone can set it off. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 11:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/6 "2017-03-24T11:08:25Z")
I noted with some amusement that the airline code for Hamad International Airport is DOH. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/7 "2017-03-24T12:25:04Z")
A good selection of English books is not available here (in Saudi Arabia). So how much reading time will I get with the iPod? ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/8 "2017-03-24T12:34:28Z")
> [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](#): > > So how much reading time will I get with the iPod? I’ll ask again, is there any reason that you can’t read books on your Nokia? If it is an Android-based smartphone that supports Android apps and not something ancient and proprietary, you can install one of multiple EPUB readers and read directly from your phone instead of needing to buy a new device. [Aldiko](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.aldiko.android&hl=en) is a good choice. Now, Amazon chooses to be assholes and not support EPUBs on the Kindle line, but you can convert the files using [Calibre](https://calibre-ebook.com/). ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/9 "2017-03-24T13:10:41Z")
I have the cheapest Nokia phone in the Kingdom. I am not supposed to have a camera at the office. It is not appropriate for reading anything more complex than an SMS. ---
**Author:** ![MikeS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MikeS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeS)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/10 "2017-03-24T13:24:30Z")
On Apple’s website, they claim that the iPod Touch has enough battery for 8 hours of “video playback” or 40 hours of “audio playback”. I would expect that the battery lifetime for simply reading an e-book on the phone would be somewhat above the end of that range, since displaying text is less processor-intensive than displaying video. However, a lot of the battery drain is from having the backlight constantly on; you can extend the lifetime by dimming the display, but it makes it harder to read. If I had to guess, I would say you might be able to squeeze 10 hours of reading out of a full charge. As far as the camera goes: the general consensus online seems to be that the camera in the current iPod Touch is about as good as the camera in the iPhone 5S, but not as good as the camera on the newer iPhones (6, 6S, 7, SE). You can see some comparisons between the various iPhone cameras [here](http://snapsnapsnap.photos/iphone-6s-camera-comparison/); unfortunately they don’t directly compare the iPod touch cameras on that page, but I would expect that the 5 or the 5S would be the closest to the iPod touch camera-wise. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/11 "2017-03-24T13:24:59Z")
> [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](#): > > I have the cheapest Nokia phone in the Kingdom. I am not supposed to have a camera at the office. It is not appropriate for reading anything more complex than an SMS. Ah. Well, I’ve always actively avoided Apple products for ideological reasons so I have no personal experience, but [here](http://www.ebay.com/gds/What-is-The-Average-iPod-Battery-Life-/10000000177630862/g.html) is a table. I’d say the ebook reading time would be higher than the video playback time but lower than the music playback time (and closer to video than to music.) ---
**Author:** ![mikecurtis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mikecurtis/32/3284_2.png) [@mikecurtis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mikecurtis)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/12 "2017-03-24T13:25:23Z")
i just bought my niece’s old iphone 5, and didnt buy a wireless pkg for it so its essentially an ipod. and its great! reading a book on a screen that small takes some getting used to but its doable. and i recently flew to korea on an air canada 787 and each seat had a usb port so battery life was not a concern. most of the older planes have taditional power outlets scattered throughout the cabin so you can try to get a seat near one of them. [https://www.seatguru.com/articles/in-seat\_laptop\_power.php](https://www.seatguru.com/articles/in-seat_laptop_power.php) mc ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/13 "2017-03-24T13:53:58Z")
Thank you all. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/14 "2017-03-24T14:12:03Z")
We used to manage without electronic devices. The in-flight movie is a fairly recent development for air travellers. Some authors depended on long haul flyers to buy their fat books. Jeffrey Archer for one. You could try here [http://www.jarir.com/sa-en/english-books.html](http://www.jarir.com/sa-en/english-books.html) ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/15 "2017-03-24T14:55:01Z")
OP looking for opinions. Moved to IMHO. **samclem** , moderator. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/16 "2017-03-24T15:07:14Z")
I think the iPod Touch would be fine for this purpose. But the 4" screen is rather small for reading books. If I were you, I’d get a \>5.5" Android phone with a high-resolution screen. If you don’t install a SIM card, it’ll still work fine as a WiFi mini-tablet. [Here is](http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/test-centre/mobile-phone/best-big-phones-for-2017-3494881/) one list of large phones, though older models would work well enough for your purposes. If portable USB batteries (power banks) are allowed on those flights, that’s the way to go to extend battery life. Also, many airlines offer USB power outlets, some even have AC outlets. So be sure to pack a charger and cable. ---
**Author:** ![Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/channing_idaho_banks/32/250_2.png) [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Channing_Idaho_Banks)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2017, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-buy-and-ipod/782896/17 "2017-03-24T15:30:43Z")
What does nothing bigger than a smartphone I mean? How big is a smartphone?