Angus , there are many pros and cons between the original ipods and these nano-clones.
There is an excellent eBay guide by one of this forum's member michiganjfrog on the differences between the ipod and nano-clone.
http://reviews.ebay.com/The-Official...00000002660651
However, you'll need to note that if you buy another nano-clone, you might end up with hacked memory again. So if you want to buy, you'll need to get them from reputable sources like houseofdap.com or uxcell.com.