Farewell to the iPod and a question

[Will S]

Apple have announced today the death of the iPod - no great surprise. I don't believe they have updated the latest Touch for about three years.  But still the end of an era.  I have owned a number over the years, and my 160GB Classic is still my main music player other than listening to stuff on my computer through iTunes.  CDs get ripped to iTunes as they arrive and then most are stored in the attic.

But a recent change in circumstances, meaning that we are likely to buy a new (to us) main car sometime soon, means I have been reflecting on this, as it seems that most cars produced in the last few years don't have aux connections, or like our current cars, USB connections that recognise the iPod.  It seems that newer cars assume you'll be streaming stuff through your phone via Bluetooth.  The Classic iPod of course has no internet connectivity.

So what music players do you use for listening to music in-car?  Should I buy an iPod Touch while they are still in stock?  Or are there better options, that will tie in with iTunes, given that that is where everything is stored currently?

[Andy]

An iPhone?

[ColinB]

Our new car has a habit of automatically playing whatever I was last listening to on my phone. But it doesn't do it all the time. These machines are getting too clever for their own good!

And I have an iPod Nano somewhere. Trouble with them was they were so small it was easy to lose them.  

[Will S]

An iPhone?

I don't suppose they have the storage capacity, do they?  My 160GB iPod Classic is about full as it is.

[Nick Reg]

I have an i pod touch that I havent updated for years . We use it through speakers in the caravan. Will I be able to update the music in future via i tunes or other methods and will i lose what is there if I connect to i tunes?

[Jules Gray]

I never got around to buying one and now I appear to have left it too late.  

Jules

[Jim G]

I don't know , what ever next , they will be phasing out 78 rpm records!

I am not sure how I would get through life without my iPod Classic. My original 2008 one is still working fine and is used virtually everyday .  When Apple announced the demise of the Classic iPod I rushed out and bought what must have been the last ever iPod classic sold by Argos. The next day they disappeared from their stores.

As (what is now becoming, an ever more difficult lifestyle choice) I do not own a mobile phone so don't really want to have to buy an iPhone to safeguard the hours of painstaking ripping of all my CDs and recreating all those playlists!

They still have iPod Touch advertised on the Apple site for sale.

[Lubiloo (Lorna)]

I never got around to buying one and now I appear to have left it too late.  

Jules

I was about to say the same  

[Dan O.]

I use an mp3 player in the car connected to an FM transmitter I got from Halfords. Player goes into transmitter which is plugged into cigarette lighter, mutually acceptable blank FM frequency found on car radio, radio volume and tone controls adjusted for hours of happy listening.

The main drawback to this plan is the lack of cigarette lighters in newer cars.

The player is a lipstick sized 4GB Sony Walkman which plays mp3, wav and wma files. 4GB isn't a lot, but it forces me to choose a selection of up to around 500 songs that I'd actually want to listen to behind the wheel - an "all killer no filler" driving compilation. If I had more music to choose from on a bigger player I'd probably end up hitting the skip button more often in order to find something I actually want to hear.

[Glen S]

I never got around to buying one and now I appear to have left it too late.  

Jules

Same! I am still happily playing CDs in my 15 year old car...Not sure for how much longer though!

[Andy]

An iPhone?

I don't suppose they have the storage capacity, do they?  My 160GB iPod Classic is about full as it is.

Four storage capacities are available for the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max, I believe - 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB.

[GubGub (Al)]

I'm surprised to hear that cars come without USB sockets. I have a brand new Kia and that has USB which I use with a memory stick to listen to music, though I can also listen via Bluetooth from my phone. Any bluetooth equipped player should work with most car stereos. I don't stream. Music is stored on an SD card on the phone.

[Shane (Skirky)]

I'm surprised to hear that cars come without USB sockets. I have a brand new Kia and that has USB which I use with a memory stick to listen to music, though I can also listen via Bluetooth from my phone. Any bluetooth equipped player should work with most car stereos. I don't stream. Music is stored on an SD card on the phone.

They do indeed - my latest has been ‘upgraded’ with USC sockets and an integrated software system which is incapable of simply resuming from where it left off the last time. Add in the keyless start, the nagging eco tips and a reminder to make sure I’ve got everyone out of the car every time I turn it off and you have the perfect antidote to making sure you have the latest model. If our trade-in’s still there in three years I’m going to get it back.