Dii's own OT thread

[Minelle Tempest]

I'm thinking of getting an I-Pod. I've heard many good things about it, and only one bad thing; the non-user replaceable battery. Anyone have any other problems with them?

Ok, first off, I have read through the thread, but am so tired that I can't remember what anyone else has said on this topic. (Am also too tired to read through it all again...)

Anyway, I do not own an I-Pod, neither does anyone I know, but my boyfriend works in a store that sells them and this is his "professional" opinion of them:

Short summary (valid for both I-Pod and I-Pod mini, the main difference between them is that the Mini is smaller and has a smaller memory)

+ Great sound
+ Well-designed, easy-to-use
+ Fun and good (but expensive) accessories
+ Fairly cheap

- Low battery time
- The battery cannot be replaced by user
- Total "life expectancy" of the battery (~1-2 years)
(- No radio, no microphone)

Problems: Only on the rarest of occasions do people come in to the store with faulty I-Pods. In fact, out of all the I-Pods they have sold (in that store) only 2 have been returned (one just wouldn't start and the other had faulty earplugs, which were replaced in short order). In this context it might be worth mentioning that I-Pods don't stay on the shelf for long, meaning they sell quite well...

I hope this may have been helpful to you in some way, Diab.

[Kirsty]

What else? Listen to it!

Obviously, but 8 hours of music isn't even 1 gig and after that the batteries have run out or the day has passed. Having so much storage space seems a big waste to me.

[Phaeax]

I tend to use it for trips and vacations. Several days of different music to listen to and recharge while doing other things. I've also used it to connect to my stereo system with playlists for parties. It saves time from making up CD's and changing them as the party goes on. If you plan on casual use while working out or something, there are many more economical ways of doing so.

I originally had a plan to fit my car stereo's FM modulator input (what the use for trunk CD changers and the like) with a harness and modulator to use the unit in my vehicle. But I decided against the value of it and having to do any rewiring in the electronics harness already in it.

[Beowulf]

This whole battery thing scares me. A year or 2 at most with normal usage sounds pretty bad.

[Diab]

+ Fairly cheap

Fairly cheap, relative to what? $300, is not exactly cheap, imo. Thanks for the info though.

I think I'll have to reconsider getting one. Sure, they may be popular and all, but they're a little too expensive for casual use, like only on some weekends when I'm away from home. The non-user replaceable battery scares me too, especially with an extra hundred dollars when it dies. I'll look into some of those Creative players instead.

[Muff]

Hmm well it seems like that's the end of that problem, and in my opinion, I'd have picked the IPod mainly as I've got some spare cash to enjoy one now.

Anyway you might remeber awhile back, I was trying to get some feedback on what would make my profile more Aussie (besides the Avatar). I think Kristy was the last one to give some feedback (I think it was adding an emu and koala into it). In any case, post some ideas here on what can make my profile true blue :)

[Naliworld]

heh, i remember back when Nali had that druid-made avatar, and could not get rid of it until the OT reached like 100 pages (it was already in like the 60s ^.^) :P...i always liked the one he had before that though.

Ack, I'd hoped that people forgot about that little escapade by now. :lol:

Muff: A picture of Steve Irwin with that trademark grin as your profile picture. Sorry, couldn't resist. :p

Diab: Harddrive-based mp3 players are overkill, IMO. Unless you often go on extended trips away from your PC, a 512 MB/1 GB flash player should suffice. You can always use some kind of music file shuffler utility(iTunes maybe) to randomize out your tracks everytime you're on the computer(so pretty much the only reason you're paying more for a HD player is convenience).

Plus, no need to worry about annoying skips/etc. with a flash player, and there are a reasonable number of flash players that recharge via the USB port(Creative has one - though I think it needs an adapter. The iPod Shuffle does as well I think, but the lack of LCD hurts).

[Minelle Tempest]

Fairly cheap, relative to what? $300, is not exactly cheap, imo. Thanks for the info though.

I think I'll have to reconsider getting one. Sure, they may be popular and all, but they're a little too expensive for casual use, like only on some weekends when I'm away from home. The non-user replaceable battery scares me too, especially with an extra hundred dollars when it dies. I'll look into some of those Creative players instead.

I think he meant "fairly cheap" compared to what you get (memory size, sound etc...). Also, around here (in exchange rate as of Feb 28th) an I-Pod costs ~$427 (20GB) or ~$455 (40GB), and an I-Pod Mini costs ~$242. But everything's relative, I suppose... ;)

Still, the I-Pod's major drawback is the battery (in more ways than one), and in my opinion it's better if your mp3-player runs on regular batteries, *if* it runs out of batteries in the middle of nowhere.

As for other mp3-players, what kind were you interested in? (Must confess I know next to nothing about the differences between types... ) If you don't have any brand preferences or such, my boyfriend has an iAudio 5 (don't know the memory size) which he is quite happy with.

[Diab]

I'd be looking for something with a large amount of space, at least 10 gigs. The main reason I want a new player in the first place is so that I don't have to use my computer to transfer different music files over every time, so I want to keep all or most of my mp3 collection on there.

So, something with lots of space, cheaper than the I-Pod, with a regular, replaceable battery. I'll be looking into Creative players the most.

[Zero]

i know i keep going on about the zen touch....but i think it looks lie more value for money comapred to the i-pod. It's got replace-able batteries though they aren't normal ones, they're lithium (think its lithium) they're relatively cheap to buy and they're small. If you get the zen touch and an extra 24 hour battery i think you'd be set for a few weeks.
I'm getting a bigger mp3 cause i'm going to be driving back and forth to uni every day in afew months and i'd rather have something i like to listen to on the way and while around campus etc.

Raph/Zero