Originally Posted by IslandNiles:
“Whenever I see posts like this, I wonder if they're really necessary. The OP asked whether Apple do trade-ins, not for a rant about your opinion of their business practices.
Also, do you really think this is unique to Apple? Is there any company that wouldn't love you to replace your existing product with their new product on release?”
I suppose I was a bit reactionary, but then again the fact that it is not just their yearly replacement cycle, but their at most 3-year support length for iOS devices which gets me.
My 2nd gen iPod touch is now officially no longer supported, as the soon to be released iOS 4.3 will not be available for it. That's a roughly two and a half year period from when it was first introduced in Sep 2008. The people who bought the 8GB "3rd gen" (actually 2nd gen) iPod touches on sale until Sep 2010 as a new version are those I really feel sorry for, as they've effectively been dropped just six months after still being sold to unsuspecting customers.
I know that no new updates won't stop it from working, but Apple's policy of only 3 years at most for iOS devices and then you either replace it with a new model, or hope there are no serious security flaws found in what you are left with, is not good.
Having said that, if the 5th gen iTouch is a sufficient improvement on my 2nd gen, I may well go for it, as currently Android and Windows Phone 7 devices are all phones, and I'm more after a PDA, with any phone functionality as an afterthought if it has it at all.