Nano or Mini?
Hello all,
I'm contemplating getting either a Nano or Mini? Any recommendations.
Are the Nanos really that fragile or is it just that they scratch easily? Scratches don't bother me because I can get a case.
The nano is small - I like.
The Mini is durable - I like.
Any other major deciding factors for a first time iPod buyer?
[380 byte] By [
shlo] at [2007-11-10 21:33:46]
# 1 Re: Nano or Mini?
You might not be able to get hold of a Mini soon, as they have been discontinued.
iMacc at 2007-11-15 14:29:06 >
# 2 Re: Nano or Mini?
Originally posted by iMacc
You might not be able to get hold of a Mini soon, as they have been discontinued.
I know. But there's still plenty of places that still have them.
shlo at 2007-11-15 14:30:07 >
# 3 Re: Nano or Mini?
i think you will regret buying a mini. ive never much cared for them to be honest, go nano
# 4 Re: Nano or Mini?
Big bonus of the nano is the flash memory. But it's all personal preference.
BIGGY at 2007-11-15 14:32:11 >
# 5 Re: Nano or Mini?
The Mini is a tank
The Nano is sleek and refined
The Mini is B&W
The Nano is color
Comes down to what fits your personal lifestyle
# 6 Re: Nano or Mini?
Mini uses a hard drive which is bad. Stops and skips.
Nano is flash based memory. And the Sound is better.
Get the Nano.
# 7 Re: Nano or Mini?
Do not get the nano for looks. It only looks good if you keep it under museum glass like that guy kept his Six Million Dollar Man doll collection in 40 Year Old Virgin. The nano's "beauty" is either hidden in a case or marred by scratches and fingerprints.
Do not get the mini if you can't handle carrying something that's about 9 X 5 X 1.3 cm and weighs about 100 g. Converted into real units that Americans use, this is HUGE! You need to be a body builder to carry something this big.
The color screen on the nano is beautiful. Just make sure you always keep it protected. The mini screen is not as pretty but you can wipe your fingerprints off it with your shirt without scratching it.
I've had my mini for over a year and I work out with it all the time. (As I said, you must work out to carry something this big.) It has never skipped.
The sound on the nano may very well be better but I can't tell the difference. You've got to go with your gut decision because it's too subjective. I think the fact that you're even asking about a product that's discontinued means that deep down inside you like the mini better and are looking for validation. I like the mini better too. I think the nano is cheap looking.
Ileen at 2007-11-15 14:35:13 >
# 8 Re: Nano or Mini?
Originally posted by Ileen
Do not get the nano for looks. It only looks good if you keep it under museum glass like that guy kept his Six Million Dollar Man doll collection in 40 Year Old Virgin. The nano's "beauty" is either hidden in a case or marred by scratches and fingerprints.
Do not get the mini if you can't handle carrying something that's about 9 X 5 X 1.3 cm and weighs about 100 g. Converted into real units that Americans use, this is HUGE! You need to be a body builder to carry something this big.
The color screen on the nano is beautiful. Just make sure you always keep it protected. The mini screen is not as pretty but you can wipe your fingerprints off it with your shirt without scratching it.
I've had my mini for over a year and I work out with it all the time. (As I said, you must work out to carry something this big.) It has never skipped.
The sound on the nano may very well be better but I can't tell the difference. You've got to go with your gut decision because it's too subjective. I think the fact that you're even asking about a product that's discontinued means that deep down inside you like the mini better and are looking for validation. I like the mini better too. I think the nano is cheap looking.
I went to the Apple store today and held the Nano in hand. The clerk actually said it is MORE durable than the Mini. I have my doubts. They're not selling the Mini anymore so they want to move the Nanos.
I certainly like the looks of the Mini more, but I like the small size of the Nano because I plan on shoving it in my pocket (w/ some sort of protective case).
My wife and I are both getting iPods for the first time. I think we'll get one NANO and one MINI.
shlo at 2007-11-15 14:36:14 >
# 9 Re: Nano or Mini?
^^ The clerk was right, the nano is much more durable than the mini. This is due to nano being flash based, while the mini has a hard drive inside of it. The only thing that could break easily on the nano in the screen, which is why you simply keep it in a case. Also, the screens are not nearly as fragile as made out to be.
Gurpy at 2007-11-15 14:37:12 >
# 10 Re: Nano or Mini?
I just got my Nano today. Thing is tiny. Friend at work has the 1g Mini. The size difference is amazing.
ncvaco at 2007-11-15 14:38:13 >
# 11 Re: Nano or Mini?
Originally posted by Gurpy
^^ The clerk was right, the nano is much more durable than the mini. This is due to nano being flash based, while the mini has a hard drive inside of it. The only thing that could break easily on the nano in the screen, which is why you simply keep it in a case. Also, the screens are not nearly as fragile as made out to be.
Gurpy, it depends on how you define durable. Yes, you can drop a nano more than a mini and it should be OK. But the mini's enclosure is far more durable than the nano. You can put it in your pocket and not worry about scuffing up the screen so badly that it's distorted. And *that* is the real problem with the screens, not screen cracking which was limited to a small percentage. The problem isn't even with the screen, it's with the whole plastic front -- which scratches very, very easily. The only reason people squawk about the screen is because they want to be able to *read* it. The rest of the face can have scratches galore but the unit still functions.
And getting back to dropping, you can drop a nano more often than a mini and you probably will. Every time I take my husband's nano out of the case I made for him I have to be careful not to accidentally fling it across the room. It's so small and slippery it's hard to hold on to! The mini just "fits" in your hand so nicely with it's rounded sides.
Shlo, I have a mini (1st gen, 13 months old) and my husband has the nano. We're both very happy. Get what "sings" to you, you won't regret it. Of course the salesperson is going to promote what they are actually selling.
Ileen at 2007-11-15 14:39:12 >
# 12 Re: Nano or Mini?
Thanks for all the feedback. I found a great review of the Nano that put it through a stress test and showed how amazingly durable it is. (I'd post it here, but this site won't let me post a link because I'm new. You can find it by typing "iPod durability" in google.).
I'm not so concerned about scratches. I can buy a case for that. I want something very small because I live in the city and don't want to be bothered by something protruding from my pockets.
After the review I read, I think the Nano is right for me.
shlo at 2007-11-15 14:40:21 >
# 13 Re: Nano or Mini?
good for you, shlo. Enjoy it!
Ileen at 2007-11-15 14:41:20 >
# 14 Re: Nano or Mini?
ive dropped my nano plenty of times and no skipping ordelay at all works like new only has a few dings from the drops so i dont know why you say the HD is so sensitive
# 15 Re: Nano or Mini?
and if you havent noticed the nano is prone to LCD breaks
# 16 Re: Nano or Mini?
Originally posted by theoutsidr
and if you havent noticed the nano is prone to LCD breaks
and other ipods arent? The nano has as much chance as the lcd breaking on a regular ipod or a mini.
# 17 Re: Nano or Mini?
I've had two minis, both of which were lemons and I hate them. First one got the crackling sound problem, second one has no battery life and has to be run on attached power constantly. I dropped it and the corner bent and made it look ugly. Based on my experience with the mini, my vote would be for a nano.
# 18 Re: Nano or Mini?
I'd wait. Get a nano and a nice case, your best bet being the new iSkin coming out, and/or an invisible shield. If you properly protect the nano, its without a doubt better than the mini. Believe me, I've owned both.
Phreno at 2007-11-15 14:46:25 >
# 19 Re: Nano or Mini?
The only reason to get a mini right now would be price. I was seeing lightly used minis going for almost $100 flat on ebay when the nano was announced. Paying anywhere near full price for a mini would be pretty dumb IMO.
# 20 Re: Nano or Mini?
Originally posted by justblaize
and other ipods arent? The nano has as much chance as the lcd breaking on a regular ipod or a mini.
Not so. A good few (100s) iPod nanos have been sold with a screen defect.
But, that doesn't mean the iPod Minis LCD screen can't break, it's just less likely. :)
# 21 Re: Nano or Mini?
Originally posted by theoutsidr
and if you havent noticed the nano is prone to LCD breaks
If you beak the LCD screen on a $250 piece of music equipiment, you really don't deserve to own one...
# 22 Re: Nano or Mini?
Originally posted by morning_glory
If you beak the LCD screen on a $250 piece of music equipiment, you really don't deserve to own one...
So you didn't see the gajillion news articles about apple admitting there's an lcd probelm on some units and THEY BREAK FOR NO REASON?? Thats the whole point, not misuse, but failing for no reason.
# 23 Re: Nano or Mini?
Nano. Period. But thats only if size matters, other wise the g5 ipods are MUCH better
# 24 Re: Nano or Mini?
Originally posted by theoutsidr
ive dropped my nano plenty of times and no skipping ordelay at all works like new only has a few dings from the drops so i dont know why you say the HD is so sensitive
You know what I have been thinking, maybe the iPod Nano is a lot less prone to skipping when it is dropped because it is SO light. I mean, that is a lot less weight to fall through the air, and a lot less mass to hit the ground.
That's just the way that I would look at it though. I have held both the Mini and the Nano, and the Nano is SO light, compared to the Mini.
Pghmyn at 2007-11-15 14:52:28 >
# 25 Re: Nano or Mini?
The nano is not going to skip because it is flash memory as opposed to a hard drive like the mini.
I've had my mini for over a year dropped it only once. And I didn't actually drop it, I just didn't clip it on my pants securely enough and it ended up getting loose and falling down. Made a tiny ding on the corner, no skipping, no big deal.
Am I the only one who finds the nano far more difficult to hold onto than the mini? Because it's so small and thin, I tend to hold it just at the skinny little edges so that my fingers aren't covering the screen or inadvertently moving the clickwheel. When holding it like this it always feels like it's going to fall right out of my grip.
In other words, all this talk about which one you *can* drop more often is ironic because the nano is the one you most likely *will* drop more often!
Ileen at 2007-11-15 14:53:33 >
# 26 Re: Nano or Mini?
I don't know about you guys but one thing I always liked about both my previous flash players and my nano is that they never hit the ground.
Whenever I was listening to them and they would drop they stay connected to the headphone jack anyway and the earphones would be in my ears holding up their light weight. So they would never hit the ground.
# 27 Re: Nano or Mini?
I dunno, I haven't dropped my nano yet, but my impression is that the headphone jack positioned at the lower right corner of the nano when holding it towards you has a "lock" feeling when you plug headphones into it. I know from experience that there are times, my headphones would disconnect from my iPod mini 2G accidentally when I try to reach into my pocket to grab stuff such as keys (Yes, I do protect with an iSkin Mini, so scratches I don't worry about), for the nano, it seems to be a tighter fit for the headphones when plugged to the device. It "may" (let me stress on that word) not unclip itself from your headphones as easily as my iPod Mini may, that is if you drop it low enough from the headphones.
# 28 Re: Nano or Mini?
I've had a mini for about a year and a half and it really hasn't given me any problems, I've loved it.
You can still get them new in box from stores that still have stock and ebay. and the 2nd gen ones also come in 6gb.
I don't know why you're saying it's huge, It's prety small. Much smaller and ligther than the regular ipods.
# 29 Re: Nano or Mini?
I'd go with the nano. I like the way it looks a lot better than the mini (the aluminum exterior always threw me off). The size is incredible too; pictures don't do the size of the nano justice. And I'm surprised at the clarity of the screen, even when it's only like 1".
It sounds just about as good as my 30GB photo also.
# 30 Re: Nano or Mini?
If the nano sounds as good as a 30gb photo ipod as stated by scoot241, how does it compare to a mini? Imo, it sounds like it has a deeper, stronger sound (sharper, clearer, heavier bass? Still using stock headphones on both).
