Well the price of the ipod mini 4GB has reduced drastically since they introduced the 6GB (which is also the exact moment after I bought the 4GB one grrrrr)...I bought the 4GB for Dhs 999 but the 6 GB costs about that much now....I think the 4 GB is around the Dhs 700-800 mark ...you have the more compact ipod shuffle as well now...512 MB/1GB...One retailer had an awesome offer for an iPod 40GB with the iTrip for just Dhs 1499...don't know if thats still on...but I would have gone for that meself had I not already bought the mini
Much better to buy in a real shop in my opinion....I think a good place to get it cheap is Jacky's Electronics (in city center)...or Jumbo Electronics...browse around a bit though am sure you'll find the best deal...not sure if its available in Carrefour, which is this major hypermarket that has a lot of stuff at the best prices including electronics
Oh and the iTrip is very much available here...I can't live without it

Though sometimes the sound quality can be compromised obviously since its a radio frequency...Its 175-200 bucks ....highly recommend getting the car charger as well coz the iTrip is extremely heavy on the battery...I think they have a car travel kit that has both (though its not the Griffin iTrip but another brand...not sure how good it is though) for about 250-300Dhs
Not sure if the info is spot on...but should give you a ballpark idea
Oh and choc, that's pretty disturbin news about the battery! 2 years is not enough after having spent a decent amount of coin on it
Take care,
Nik