How do I decide which iPod model will be best for me?

Most people make the decision based on two major factors:

1. The amount of music they want to load onto their iPods in addition to the bird songs and photos, and,
2. The size of the screen that will work best for them.

If you are never going to load music (the human-produced kind!) or only want a few songs, the new 4GB Nano is more than sufficient for birdJam songs and photos.

The new model Nano and Classic iPods both have large enough screens to view the photographs adequately. However, the photos cannot be enlarged to full screen. So, on the Nano, the bird photos are pretty small.

Also, if you are concerned about eye strain, the Nano screen, being the smallest, is probably one to avoid. It works great for most people, but if you are worried about the screen text size, you might want to look at a Nano before buying one.

The iPod Touch and the iPhone have large screens and larger text and the photos take up the entire screen. If you really want nice photos, you'll want to consider the iPod Touch or iPhone.

The iPhone also has the benefit of built-in speakers. All the iPods come with earbuds, but the iPhone is the only model to include tiny speakers on the bottom of the unit. The speakers are not loud enough to call in owls, for example, but they work for species with high voices such as most warblers. (Note: Please see our recommendations for ethical use of bird songs in the field.)

If you are interested in an iPod Touch or iPhone, we recommend that you visit an Apple store to check them out. If you want an iPhone, you'll need to buy that from Apple or from an AT&T store. You cannot purchase an iPhone from us.

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