Even though Apple Computer discontinued the Mini in September and replaced it with the Nano, these folks have been reluctant to take the Mini off their gift lists--and they're willing to pay top dollar to nab one.
Patrick McHenry of Eerie, Pa., for example, just bought a pink 4GB Mini, which holds 1,000 songs, on eBay for $275. That's $76 over the original $199 price tag. But it's also less than McHenry would have paid at Compu-America--one of the few electronics retailers with the Mini in stock. The store is selling the same model for $349. And sellers on Amazon are listing prices for the 4GB Mini at more than $400.
So why would anyone pay so much for a Mini when they could buy the smaller and (some say) technologically superior 4GB Nano for $249, or even the new 30GB video iPod, which holds 7,500 songs, for $299?
In McHenry's case, it was to fulfill the Christmas wish of his friend's girlfriend. "She had her heart set on an iPod Mini mainly because they are discontinued, so not many people would have them," he said.
His friend's girlfriend appears to be just one of many fans of the Mini, which, unlike the Nano, comes in a 6GB version, and in a vibrant rainbow of colors: pink, blue, green, silver and gold.
In the past three months, about 36,000 Minis have sold on eBay, with the pace of sales picking up in the past couple of weeks, eBay spokesman Dean Jutilla said. As of Friday afternoon, 2,200 Mini auctions were under way on the site, he said.
I'm not completely surprised by this trend. I would have thought that Apple would continue to see the Mini, and not replace it completely with the Nano. Maybe they'll see this as a trend, and make a new Mini. An iPod with an 8 to 10 GB capacity would be a nice seller. And keep the colors.
From CNET.
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