Anyone who opens wrapping paper to find an iPod or iPhone this holiday season will be thrilled, but you can please your friends and family even more if you get just the right iOS device to match their lives and interests.
This guide to each iPhone and iPod--and what kind of person to buy it for--should go a long way to making your recipients happy.
1. iPod touch
People who will love the iPod touch include people who want:
- Their iPod to do a bit of everything. The touch stores up to 14,000 songs or 80 hours of video, its high-resolution 4-inch screen is great for video, and built-in Wi-Fi allows users to browse the web or check email.
- The million-plus games and apps at the App Store make the touch endlessly fun and useful.
- A PDA with a music player built-in. The touch includes a calendar, address book, and email program.
- Great battery life. The touch offers up to 40 hours battery life.
- To please their teenagers. With the multitude of features, teens love the touch.
- A sleek gadget. The touch weighs just 3.1 ounces and slips easily into a pocket.
2. iPod nano
The iPod nano occupies the middle of the iPod line--it's not too expensive, but doesn't have huge storage capacity. It has a lot of features, but doesn't support apps. The 7th gen. nano is a big improvement over the 6th, bringing back some old features that had been missing and adding some good new ones. The nano is very affordable: it costs just $149.
The iPod nano is great for:
- The music lover who wants to tote up to 4,000 songs.
- People who want to watch short videos, or look at their photos, on the go.
- Exercisers who use Nike+ to track their workouts (Nike+ is built into this nano).
- The first-time iPod owner. With terrific iPod features and style, the nano is a great step into the world of the iPod.
3. iPod Shuffle
One major thing sets the iPod Shuffle apart from all other iPods - it doesn't have a screen. Instead, the Shuffle is a tiny square with a few buttons on the front and a clip on the back. Despite lacking a screen, the Shuffle can be a great gift for people who:
- Exercise a lot. Because the Shuffle is almost ridiculously small and light (0.44 ounces), it's a great workout companion for joggers, bikers, or anyone else who liked music while exercising.
- Have a limited budget. Want to give an iPod, but short on funds? With a Shuffle, you can give the 2GB model for just $49 - at that price, it's practically a stocking stuffer!
4. iPhone 6 Plus
There used to be just one new iPhone model a year to choose from. Now, though, there are two new models and two old ones, and the people they're for are pretty different. The people who will most appreciate the iPhone 6 Plus are:
- Movie and game lovers. With the iPhone 6 Plus' huge 5.5-inch screen, movies and game have never looked this good on an iPhone or iPod.
- Photographers. While the 6 Plus and 6 have relatively similar cameras, the optical image stabilization built into the 6 Plus' camera ensures that it takes the best pictures of any iPhone, even if challenging environments.
- People Interested in What's Next. The 6 Plus supports both Apple Pay, Apple's new wireless payment system, and Apple Watch, the company's first wearable, set to debut in 2015. The owners of the 6 Plus are ready to take advantage of both products.
- People Who Want the Best Features. The 6 Plus packs the state-of-the-art 64-bit A8 processor, the M8 motion co-processor, and the Touch ID fingerprint scanner into its 6-ounce body.
5. iPhone 6
The iPhone 6 is virtually identical to the 6 Plus, with just a small difference in the camera and an obvious difference in the screen size. The people who prefer it over the 6 Plus are:
- People Who Value Portability. The 6, with its 4.7-inch screen, is small, lighter, and easy to hold and use than 6 Plus.
- People With Average Sized Hands. Most people can use most of the 6's features with one hand (a key test of the usability of smartphones for many people). The 6 Plus' screen is so big that that's impossible for unless you have very large hands.
- Those Who Want The Best. Like the 6 Plus, the iPhone 6 includes the A8 processor, the M7 co-processor, and Touch ID.
- Those Who Want the Future. Again, as with its bigger sibling, with 6 supports the Apple Watch and Apple Pay.
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6. iPhone 5S
Last year's top-of-the-line model can now be had for just $99. That's a tremendous value. The iPhone 5S will be most appreciated by:
- Power users. The iPhone 5S is packed with powerful, modern advanced features, including the 64-bit Apple A7 chip (the first 64-bit chip in a smartphone) and the M7 motion co-processor. If you've got a technophile on your list, they'll love to have these new features.
- Photographers. The iPhone 5S's camera is deceptive: it has the same megapixel specs as the 5C, but it takes much better pictures. This is due to dual-flash, larger pixels (which result in better photos), and other improvements. The 5S can even take up to 10 photos per second and slow motion video, something no other iOS device offers.
- People who want more security. The 5S has the Touch ID fingerprint scanner built into the Home button, which makes security tighter than with a standard passcode.
7. iPhone 5C
The iPhone 5C doesn't pack all of the advanced features of the 5S, but it's still a great phone—and it you can get it for free! Combine new looks with a solid product, and then add in its minuscule price, and the 5C will be a hit with:
- College students. If you've got a child in college, they've got a cell phone (which you're probably paying for) and might have/want an iPod. Why not combine the two?
- People on the go. With a phone, music player, and always-on Internet access, the iPhone is terrific for someone always out and about.
- Mobile video makers.
- Game lovers. With the App Store, the iPhone 5C has a library of terrific mobile games.
- Gadget lovers who want the most powerful smartphone around.