Apple hand-held products

Okay, so I'm born a poor caveman in a 3rd world country. The best electronic product I've owned so far is a Nokia 1110i, picture for your lol pleasures:

 Spoiler

So, yes, let's say I don't know anything about iPods, iPhones and/or iTouches. I need help with a little bit of an insight into the American life and standard to make my choice between the new iPodTouch and the iPhone4. Basically, what each can and cannot do, substitutes, alternatives, and/or solutions to each drawback.
If you're too lazy to list everything, can you evaluate the comparison of these two combos:
The new iPodtouch + a regular phone vs. iPhone4

So far, differences I can think of:
- iPodtouch cannot be a phone: make calls, receive calls.
- iPodtouch used to not have a camera, now it has one that's on par with iPhone4's.
- iPhone's telephone contract/plan: something ridiculous like $100/month.

Half-arsed solutions on my part (for example):
- Buy a separate regular phone // register for Skype on an iPodTouch and make calls (drawbacks: cannot receive calls?)
- solved
- Cracking the iPhone's service somehow to avoid the ridiculous contract and use a more reasonable provider's service.

Halp please Southperry.

EDIT: Kay, I know a bit more now.

It really depends what you are after. Have you thought about Android phones?

ipodtouch camera is really crap compare to iphone4 + it has no flash.
itouch has half the ram.
the screen is not the same (it's not IPS)

Um... lets see...

An iPod touch is.. alright but personally, unless you REALLY want to use apps, its not really worth getting on its own. Mine is jailbroken and everything, but i find using my phone much better (moto droid) because i have internet EVERYWHERE. I dont have to fight wifi for its pomegranatety coverage.

Now, with an iPhone 4 you need to concider some options. You dont NEED to get an iPhone 4. You can get a 3g or 3gs and theyre just about the same thing. I think the 4 has more ram and a faster processor or something.... but if youre strapped for cash, i would wait it out/get a 3gs or something. Yes you can jailbreak/unlock the iphone 4's but you NEED TO BE CAREFUL! The current jailbreak/unlock only works on 4.1 and 4.2 iOS firmware? a 4.1 firmware seems to work better than 4.2, there are less bugs i think <<

Anyway, personally I would get the iPhone if I HAD to. I am not an apple fanboy..... my itouch is sitting in my car doing nothing until i can use it as a ps3 jailbreak whore.


@above, android phones are where its at! if youre going for apps and junk, there are more android phones than there are iphones ^^. meaning more apps soon!

I think both devices have the same CPU.

Turn your ipodtouch to a phone

http://micgadget.com/6942/white-apple-peel-520/

I think both devices have the same CPU.

Nah

iphone 4 is running the "Apple A4" processor
The 3gs is running an underclocked ARM Cortex-A8.

the A4 is still an ARM Cortex-A8 but it is more powerful than the previous one.

also,
iphone 4 has 512 ram, 3gs has 256

i meant itouch and iphone.

i meant itouch and iphone.

o.o itouch is even worse i believe...

The site below a very detailed comparison between itouch and ipone.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/3903/apple...s-iphone-4

The site below a very detailed comparison between itouch and ipone.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/3903/apple...s-iphone-4

lol >< i suppose i should do research on the new ipod before i talk about it. to be honest i didnt even know there was a newer gen out (or coming out). the whole camera thing you said earlier just ._. didnt matter to me so i didnt talk about it . I know that some gen of the nano has a camera? i think? iono...

they took the camera out in the latest nano

I'm currently interested in this piece of information:

http://www.everyipod.com/iphone-faq/ipho...phone.html

For those interested in buying an unlocked iPhone, it is strongly recommended that one buy from an authorized reseller outside of the US, preferably in person, to avoid potential issues in the future related to unofficial unlocking methods. Theoretically, unofficial "hack" methods could compromise data security and Apple or a carrier could remotely disable the device entirely as well.

Americans should note that the world is full of beautiful countries that do not lock the iPhone to a carrier from Belgium to the Czech Republic, Hong Kong to New Zealand, along with many others, so consider picking up an iPhone while on vacation. Naturally, be sure to verify that the iPhone 4 is for sale in the country of interest and has officially unlocked models in stock prior to departure. Bon voyage!

And I happened to check out this page: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1937
to see that my country, Vietnam, is on the list.

What exactly does this mean? If I buy one from over here, will it be legally unlocked by Apple itself to allow uses of local (Vietnamese) network providers? Will it be fully functional in American boundaries should I ship it over, using an American cellphone service provider such as T-Mobile?
I'll take care of small details such as national electricity voltage and such later, right now I'm focusing on avoiding AT&T contract.

Also, for clarity's sake:
- SIM unlocking = allowing use of different cellphone carriers
- Jailbreaking = allowing use of various applications

Yes/No?

Also, for clarity's sake:
- SIM unlocking = allowing use of different cellphone carriers
- Jailbreaking = allowing use of various applications

Yes/No?

In Australia, if an iphone is purchased from the Apple store, the owner is free to join any cellphone carriers.

Jailbreaking allows apps to be installed without going thru Apples (AppStore) which means more free apps to play with.

Ridiculous... I got my iPhone 4 32GB for €200 (€75 discount), and a €30 bill / month. Is telephony really that expensive in the US?

But yeah, I've had both the iTouch and the iPhone, and let me tell you: 3G makes a difference. A really big one. When you're at school or in public Transit without Wi-fi your iPod touch is basically useless aside from the iPod / Video feature, while on the iPhone, I can check how the weather is, read the latest tech / world news on the go. It's wonderful.

Non-important note: I'm simlocked to T-Mobile NL.

OP: You should buy it through VinaPhone since it looks like they're not locked if you get it from them. I imagine Apple wouldn't sell it carrier locked either since you have options for carriers. You honestly need to call or go to the store. ~_~

And yes, any unlocked phone will be available for use in the US if you have a SIM for one of our networks...

Ridiculous... I got my iPhone 4 32GB for €200 (€75 discount), and a €30 bill / month. Is telephony really that expensive in the US?

Yes, yes it is. I pay around $70 USD (50 Euros) a month, and that's pretty much the lowest you're going to find. Maybe a few people but hardly have lower than that (that's for an iPhone btw).

I bought my girlfriend the new iPod Touch and find it quite...useless outside of Wi-Fi. Like don't even want to get it out and attempt to do anything. :p

Off-topicish: Jailbreaking basically turns your iDevice into a free-for-all. You can do ANYTHING if you have the know-how. It really becomes a playground for customization to the furthest degree. I think someone on Twitter referenced as..."ordering a Big Mac and just eating the fries."