bought a new nano

No, you'd have to return it because there is no way to get iTunes under those circumstances. However, you should consider upgrading Windows (or buying a Mac) because the version you have is very old, and other software isn't likely to work with it, either.

iPod nanos will work with any (recent) version of iTunes. The current release (12.2) requires Windows 7 or later, but you should be able to install the immediately preceding version (12.1.2) - direct links to the installers as follows:

• iTunes 12.1.2.27 (for Windows XP SP3 or Windows Vista 32-bit) - iTunesSetup.exe
• iTunes 12.1.2.27 (for Windows Vista 64-bit) - iTunes6464Setup.exe
• iTunes 12.1.2.27 (for Windows Vista 64-bit "for older video cards") - itunes64setup.exe

The third of these - which is actually the 32-bit application with a 64-bit installer - should be used if you get a warning about video card incompatibility when you install the standard 64-bit version, but also may resolve issues with playback, QuickTime compatibility, and problems with some third-party applications (including Outlook).

Unless you're anxious to make use of the new Apple Music service (which requires 12.2 but doesn't support the nano for offline playback) 12.1.2 is functionally equivalent and more stable.

You don't say which edition of Windows you are using, but you should note that:

• Windows XP is no longer supported by Microsoft - no security patches have been released for over a year and it is increasingly vulnerable to viruses and other malware
• Although Windows Vista is still supported, that will end in less than two years' time. Also, there is a long-standing issue regarding compatibility of iTunes with Vista - it installs and runs OK, but generates errors on exit.

In either case you should investigate updating your computer to a more recent edition of Windows, or replacing it with one running Windows 8.1 or (within the next few days) Windows 10.

hhgttg27 wrote:

iPod nanos will work with any (recent) version of iTunes.

http://apple.com/ipod-nano/specs

System Requirements

Mac: USB 2 or 3 port, OS X v10.7.5 or later, and iTunes 12.2 or later5

PC: USB 2 port, Windows 7 or later, and iTunes 12.2 or later

Sorry, but you're wrong. Are you suggesting that all iPod nanos have stopped working with versions of iTunes prior to 12.2? Users who are still running Windows XP SP3 or Vista can use iTunes 12.1.2 (links above); many people using Vista are still running 11.1.5, that being the last version of iTunes not to cause DEP errors on exit.

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lopeadope, you will have to decide whether to listen to Apple, based on the link I provided, or to listen to the contrary advice you have been given.

Apple have effectively abandoned Windows XP and Vista users - not only by dropping support in iTunes 12.2 without either advance notification or explanation, but also by failing to provide links to the installers for the last iTunes version that does support the "legacy" Windows editions. A statement that iTunes 12.2 is "required" to use an iPod nano is simply a symptom of this failure.

There have only been very minor updates to the firmware of the iPod nano 7g since its release in 2012, the most recent being 1.0.3 released early this year, and none of these have a dependency on running the latest/greatest version of iTunes. Support for the 7g nano was added in iTunes 10.7 and any version later than that should be compatible, pending any further updates to the firmware.

Fascinating debate. On the one hand, installing 12.1.2 to see if it can sync with the Nano wouldn't cost anything except your time. I'm a Vista user, and can vouch for the BEX problem reports and DEP notifications that you would probably get - however XP SP3 users never reported that issue. Oh, if you happen to be running XP SP2, then you would actually need to install 11.1.5, which was also the last version that ran perfectly on Vista. Unfortunately that 14-month-old version lacks quite a few security patches. All things considered, your household probably needs a new computer more than a Nano. Windows 10 is coming July 29...

"Windows 10 is coming July 29 ..."

Well, maybe ... recent email from Microsoft states that "After July 29, when Windows 10 is ready for your device, ..." so I'm not sure that there's a realistic expectation that it'll be available on the 29th.

Well the Best Buy ad in today's paper wants me to go there on Wednesday, but personally I'm waiting for SP1 (or 10.1, whatever).