Too much tech???

[November Days]

Over the years, I've accumulated what I consider to be just a little too many gadgets and tech. I want to downsize but I'm not sure what to upgrade or get rid of. Help? Or do you think what I currently own is fine?

I have:
- an old iPod Touch: for Instagram, Vine and Spotify over wi-fi and whatever music I already have on it. Useful at the gym or work.
- a first generation Kindle: for books and other cool apps. Used mostly when I don't want to carry my laptop around or when I'm at school.
-my smartphone: I have a Samsung Stratosphere. I want to get a different phone soon but when I upgrade I will still have this device. In fact, I still have my old smartphone just sitting in my room collecting dust. Ugh.
- my old laptop. I bought a new laptop over the summer so now I have an extra laptop. I've been using it mostly to manage my music on iTunes. I have considered selling it.
- my current laptop: Since I've had this laptop and had a chance to get acquainted with Windows 8, I really think a 2-in-1 would be better for use with it. And I actually like them, so now I'm considering switching to one of those instead.

[Ame Yuki Kaze]

No such thing as too much tech. If I could afford it, I'd have two laptops, two tablets, five smartphones and Google TV.

[MyNameIsKir]

The issue isn't quantity but use. If you don't use it, don't keep it. My recommendation is to deauthorize your old laptop from iTunes and use the new laptop. There's no reason to use the old laptop for that. Then go ahead and sell it or whatever you'd like. I personally made my old laptop into a file server. As for the smartphone, when you get the new one you can donate or sell it. As I said, it's really about use. Whatever you do don't trash it. At least recycle it.

You have a pretty normal amount of technology for a person living in a first world country. I wouldn't worry too much about it.

[November Days]

MyNameIsKir

The issue isn't quantity but use. If you don't use it, don't keep it. My recommendation is to deauthorize your old laptop from iTunes and use the new laptop. There's no reason to use the old laptop for that. Then go ahead and sell it or whatever you'd like. I personally made my old laptop into a file server. As for the smartphone, when you get the new one you can donate or sell it. As I said, it's really about use. Whatever you do don't trash it. At least recycle it.

You have a pretty normal amount of technology for a person living in a first world country. I wouldn't worry too much about it.

Ok, that makes sense. I'll have to figure out something with the laptop then, since that's really the only thing I don't use. Thanks for your help smile

[Sitwon]

It sounds like the functionality of your iPod touch is a subset of the functionality of your phone. So why hang on to both?

Unless you have a reason to hang on to them, I would suggest selling, donating, or otherwise getting rid of the iPod Touch, your old smartphones, and the old laptop. (Make sure you unregister your devices from iTunes and securely wipe the memory before you get rid of them.)

It sounds one smart phone, one laptop, and one e-reader or tablet are all you need for the things you have described. But I agree with MyNameIsKir, that's a pretty normal amount of tech stuff.

[November Days]

Sitwon

It sounds like the functionality of your iPod touch is a subset of the functionality of your phone. So why hang on to both?

Unless you have a reason to hang on to them, I would suggest selling, donating, or otherwise getting rid of the iPod Touch, your old smartphones, and the old laptop. (Make sure you unregister your devices from iTunes and securely wipe the memory before you get rid of them.)

It sounds one smart phone, one laptop, and one e-reader or tablet are all you need for the things you have described. But I agree with MyNameIsKir, that's a pretty normal amount of tech stuff.

The only reason I still have the iPod Touch is because I don't want to fall into the iPhone trap lol And I enjoy getting on the internet without running up my phone bill. But maybe it wouldn't hurt to try out an iPhone, idk. Do you own one?

edit:
I personally find iPhones to be a bit boring compared to Androids. But I've also never been able to find a music manager program that can match iTunes. So maybe that would be a reason to switch?

[psychic stalker]

November Days

The only reason I still have the iPod Touch is because I don't want to fall into the iPhone trap lol And I enjoy getting on the internet without running up my phone bill.

That's a needless concern. I don't know of a smartphone that exists that doesn't have Wi-fi. You can use it exactly as you would your iPod, provided there's a hotspot, and never use much of your data plan. That includes the iPhone and every Android device that exists.

[Sitwon]

Right, as psychic stalker says you could still use Wi-Fi on your smartphone and not run up your data bill.

As for iTunes... I don't use it so I can't really say. But I think you'd still be better off trading in the iPod Touch for a smaller, simpler iPod. You're basically carrying around a device that is just as big as a phone, and has all the same features as a phone, except for the actual phone part. So you're also carrying around a phone. That just seems redundant.

I'm not sure what it is that people "love" so much about iTunes, but I seem to recall that it works just fine with 3rd party mp3 players. Even if that's not the case, have you actually tried other music managers out there?

Here are a few free alternatives (in no particular order):
http://getnightingale.com/
http://www.mediamonkey.com/
http://amarok.kde.org/
http://www.tomahawk-player.org/
http://www.doubletwist.com/

[Autumn Opaline]

~*~

I probably would drop the iPod touch and the old laptop. Trust me, having your iTunes library integrated into your new laptop would be so much easier.

My iTunes library was originally maintained on my mother's laptop, but now that I have my own, I don't have to bother her about it.
It took a while to recollect my music ((being that the majority was on another computer's hard drive and on mother's laptop)), but it was worth it.

Take a day aside, and do some library renovation, if you haven't done so already.

~*~