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By Chris Meadows

I know, it’s only rock and roll but I like it.

The Apple event is over, and I am going to focus briefly on the part most interesting to e-book readers: the new iPod Touches.

There isn’t as much new this year as there was last year. Faster processor, OpenGL on the higher-end models, and price points of $199/$299/$399 for 8, 32, and 64GB models. The 16 gig is nowhere to be found; presumably Apple would have made the $199 one 16-gig and dropped the 8, but they wanted to hit that magic $199 price point with their lowest-end model—down $20 from last year’s 8-gig.

As for refurbs, the Apple store currently lists refurbished 8-gig 2nd-gen iPod Touches (the ones with the speaker) for $149, and 16-gig 2nd-gens for $199. (To note, which refurbished Touch models the store lists changes with availability. Sometimes they may have 32-gig models as well.)

I don’t know whether Apple will still stock refurbished 1st-gen Touches at this point, but if they did I expect the prices would be even lower. If you’re looking for a good budget e-book device, and don’t have the need to play much music, this might just be the way to go. (I’ll bet next year will see the 8-gig refurb drop below the $100 level.)

 
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