Continuing the theme of updating products that it had neglected for years (like the MacBook Air and Mac mini) Apple has updated the iPod Touch for the first time since 2015.
The new iPod touch – the seventh generation iPod Touch in fact – gains the A10 Fusion chip shared by the iPhone 7, bringing augmented reality gaming and Group FaceTime to the iPod for the first time. There is also a new 256GB capacity option.
Apple hadn’t updated the iPod touch since July 2015 – that’s when the sixth-generation model came out. Since then, the company has discontinued all the other iPods – as of July 2017. So we had been expecting that the iPod touch would be next for the cull… at least we were until respected analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said to expect a new iPod touch.
Read our iPod buying guide for more information about the iPod.
Release date
The new iPod touch is available now from Apple.
Price
Prices are as follows: £199/$199 for the 32GB model, £299/$299 for the 128GB model and £399/$399 for the 256GB model.
- iPod touch (32GB): £199/$199
- iPod touch (128GB): £299/$299
- iPod touch (256GB): £399/$399
You can buy the new iPod touch here.
In July 2017 (when Apple discontinued the other iPods) the iPod touch’s price dropped slightly. Prior to the update the prices were as follows:
- iPod touch (32GB): £199/$199
- iPod touch (128GB): £299/$299
While the iPod touch won’t accept a SIM card, it can still join a Wi-Fi network which gives it much of the functionality of the iPhone, including Wi-Fi calling using FaceTime (and now Group Facetime). It seems like a long shot, but could an updated iPod touch be the low-cost iPhone we are all waiting for?
Design changes
The new iPod touch is identical to the previous generation. The 7th generation iPod touch comes in Pink, Silver, Space Gray, Gold, Blue and (Product)Red (if you choose that option you will be making a charitable donation to fight HIV and AIDS in Africa).
If you were hoping it would take on the home-button-lacking design of the 2018 iPhones you’ll be disappointed.
The 7th (like the 6th-generation model) measures 58.6mm by 123.4mm, similar to the now discontinued iPhone 6, 6s and iPhone SE.
Colour options
The seventh-gen iPod touch comes in pink, silver, Space Grey, gold, blue and (Product) Red.
Picture shows: 2015 iPod Touch: same colour scheme for 2019.
New features and tech specs
The iPod touch (7th generation) uses the A10 fusion chip found in the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus (which were introduced in September 2016.) It still has the same 8MB camera as its predecessor and offers just 802.11ac Wi-Fi support and Bluetooth 4.1.
The iPod touch (6th generation) used the A8 chip and M8 motion coprocessor found in the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. It had an 8Mp rear camera with slo-mo and burst mode. The top of the range model included 128GB storage.
The iPod touch doesn’t support NFC so you won’t be able to use it for Apple Pay.
Author: Karen Haslam, Editor
Macworld editor since 2008, Karen has worked on both sides of the Apple divide, clocking up a number of years at Apple's PR agency prior to joining Macworld two decades ago.
Karen's career highlights include interviewing Apple's Steve Wozniak and discussing Steve Jobs’ legacy on the BBC. Her focus is Mac, but she lives and breathes Apple.