5 Reasons Not to Buy an iPod 887
TommyH1000 writes "CNet has posted an article with five reasons not to buy an iPod. " The article really just shows the major shortcomings with the iPod (Battery, Cost, Moving Parts etc) and gives several alternatives. A great summary of the major things going on in the portable MP3 player market.
Here's my low tech solution. (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Here's my low tech solution. (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Here's my low tech solution. (Score:5, Funny)
-1 wrong. (Score:5, Insightful)
If it was buy one song at a time, I might go for it, but I pay enough monthly subscriptions between dish, cell, dsl and netflix.
Their webpage hawks the free trial at you like crazy and hides the real price but it starts at $9.99/month for 40 downloads per month.
I'm trying to be satisfied with stuff I found through Links to Tens of Thousands of Legal Music Downloads [goingware.com] and avoid supporting the dinosaurs [downhillbattle.org] completely. GarageBand looks promising- I can listen to RealAudio songs & "radio" at work, add the ones I like to my playlist & download 'em to my iPod at home.
Looks like they really had to stretch (Score:5, Informative)
The skipping while playing is pretty iffy, because they are suggesting that the flash buffer is completely empty before the HD spins up to refill it, which is completely untrue. It spins up long before it's empty to fill up the buffer. A lot like the way burning a cd works (only different
Re:Looks like they really had to stretch (Score:3, Informative)
I actually researched this a while ago because I wanted music while in the gym and while jogging.
It's widely known (and this was on Apple's own message boards) that the only iPods that are reliable and usable while jogging are the original 5GB models, the newer 10/15/20 GB models are not capable of playing without skips when you a
Re:Looks like they really had to stretch (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Looks like they really had to stretch (Score:3, Insightful)
Now you *know* that they aren't going to say anything critical about any of those machines, so they say 'yeah, look, it has these new cool features.'
That's how it works. That's how it always worked. But in this case, either the
Re:Here's my low tech solution. (Score:3, Insightful)
Which is discussed more completly in the article that you obviously didn't read.
Re:Here's my low tech solution. (Score:5, Insightful)
Disadvantages: no playlists, so you end up swapping CDRs quite often. It's also a major pain to organize your CDRs: if you've ripped 12 CDs in one CDR it's already hard to list them all on the disk, but if you have to burn hundreds of individual songs (from the ol'napster days) on one CDR, you gotta keep some sort of separate catalog to be able to find what you want to listen.
I eventually got an 40gig IPod and I'm saving at least 30 min a day from not having to manipulate CDRs and I now enjoy my library much more (takes only a few seconds to switch album or playlist and therefore keep me in the zone more easily by selecting the right music to match my mood).
Re:Quality loss (Score:4, Informative)
1/ I know a few people with iPods that do plug them into their stereo, where you can hear that those things are not hi-fi.
2/ It's nice to not have to convert your music to lo-fi to put it on your portable music player.
That said, I wrote a script that converts my hi-fi MP3s (that I'm too lazy to re-encode) and OGGs to lo-fi MP3s as it transfers them to my flash MP3 player... But I paid $35 for it, which is a bit less than my SO paid for her iPod... I expect more from the iPod.
Stereophile Review (Score:5, Informative)
*At home I have my iPod dock in the living room hooked to a mid-range NAD receiver and some Gekko speakers. It just sounds amazing.
let me spoil the article for you.... (Score:5, Funny)
"We love it, but it doesn't blah blah blah blah...."
"But it's still the best"
Thanks for nothing....
Re:let me spoil the article for you.... (Score:3, Interesting)
The iPod is the best all-round mp3 player today. Many would say it is perfect. CNET doesn't agree: they point out the areas where it could be improved (and list alternatives if that specific feature is important to you). The point is to show what mp3 players in general need to work on. The iPod is just an example.
Re:let me spoil the article for you.... (Score:5, Insightful)
Of course, in those films, all the protagonist has to do is step outside of that area of expertise and he easily kicks their asses. Which I think is exactly what the iPod does overall, kicks ass.
Aw, brave iPod. How easily you have destroyed the warriors of the C-net. The spirit of the Wu-tang Clan flows within you -- in fact, the complete DISCOGRAPHY of the Wu-tang Clan flows within you.
Re:let me spoil the article for you.... (Score:5, Informative)
- First off, it comes with a small memory card and optional 20GB HD attachment, so you can go light when you are jogging and attach HD for long road trips;
- Speaking of road trips, it has an FM transmitter that lets it play any audio on any FM radio without extra connections;
- It has FM radio, and is able to record directly from FM radio to MP3 format;
- It has a microphone and a voice recorder;
- It has full Linux support;
- It has Vorbis support;
- The whole package - the unit itself, software, USB cable, earphones, 20GB HD attachment, regular charger, car charger = $230.
That would be less than half the price of iPod. I would like to see some reviews of this baby.
Re:let me spoil the article for you.... (Score:4, Informative)
128 meg Neuros: $230
2.5" x 4.3" x 1.3" x 5.9 oz
Res: 128x128
Input: USB 1.1 max 12 Mb/s
Time to full charge: 8 hours
The backpack adds a further 7.6 oz to a pleasant 13.5 oz, or 3/4 of a pound en total. And the unit size becomes 3.1"x5.3x1.3"
20 GB iPod: $399
2.4" x 4.1" x.62" x 5.1 oz
Res: 160x128
Input: USB 2.0 / Firewire, max 400+ Mb/s
Time to full charge: 3 hours (at 80% after an hour and 20 minutes on the charger is usually enough for my hour and a half workout)
So what you have here is a unit which is, i admit, check full of neat ideas and features for $170 less. But it also takes twice as long to charge, up to 40 times as long to copy files (USB 1.1 is absolutely unacceptable for a hard drive and you KNOW this), is nearly three times heavier, twice as thick, an inch taller, has 20% fewer pixels, the headphone jack is on the bottom (which is just wierd)...the buttons aren't inlaid, the hand interface just looks unwieldy (with buttons on either side of the face, how do you GRAB it without pushing them in all the time? Even with a lock they'll jam up pretty quick).
All in all, it looks like an iPod knock off that tried really hard and nearly succeeded in being a better unit. You're right, integrated FM and microphone are neato...and these are two features Belkin and others are trying their damnedest to shove into the iPod...but they're also features most people will never use.
There's a design rule I like to follow, one that I think always makes devices easier to use: make common things simple, and complex things possible. I think Apple has done that -- common things, like selecting songs, copying songs, and walking around with the thing -- are easier. I think the Neuros has taken the opposite approach...laden the device with features, tried to keep it smallish (and yeah, 13 oz is still pretty small, smaller than those 2 lb Archos machines) and succeeded in making a device that I would probably buy if the iPod hadn't been invented.
How do you define 'few files'? (Score:3, Insightful)
On a USB 1.1 interface that would become... 75 to 450 seconds later... or something like 1 to 7 minutes later...
Then lets say I want to back up my home directory once a week. All 300mb! Only a minute on the iPod (plus synching music, all at 16mb/s) vs 15 to 20 minutes on your Neuros...
So in the end, the qu
They complain it's hard drive based (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:They complain it's hard drive based (Score:5, Insightful)
Which is essentially what the article says--far from being about iPod "defects," it merely points out there are certain people and uses for which these trade-offs favor another type of player, despite the acknowledged virtues of the iPod.
Re:They complain it's hard drive based (Score:3, Informative)
Also, if you want longer battery life, Belkin offers a cheap add-on pack that extends it considerably.
Re:They complain it's hard drive based (Score:5, Insightful)
The fact is that the iPod does a pretty good job at filling all these roles, but it can be beat by a specialized player in a particular function. If you want an overall good player then the iPod is a great choice.
All of the reasons are pretty flimsy or can be overcome easily, such as the battery life/airplane flight reason. 6 hours is plenty for most flights that people take and if you are going on a longer one then you can get a power adapter that works on planes. As for jogging, the iPod has an extremely long buffer so it has little chance of getting hurt by vibration. Price, yeah it's on the expensive side but you have to pay for quality and solid features.
High-quality digital recordings on a MP3 player? You have to be kidding, you will probably use a feature like that maybe once or twice in your life unless you are a professional and then you will probably have dedicated equipment that is way better than any MP3 player.
Choice in online stores? Well given that the iTunes music store has about the same prices as everyone else, and the choice is similar to everyone else, and that it has had 80% of online sales of music, don't you think that just having the iTunes Music Store is enough? I mean what is the point of being able to purchase the same music for the same price at 4 or 5 different stores? Aren't you only going to purchase from 1 anyways?
I also love how they bracket the entire article with "it's still hands down the best-designed MP3 player in the world." Ok so you think it's the best and yet you decided to write an article about how all these other players are better. Talk about hedging your bets, I'm guessing that they got paid for every mention of a MP3 player or music service in the article. They probably just needed a reason to mention as many as possible in order to make the maximum amount of cash.
Re:They complain it's hard drive based (Score:3, Informative)
Re:They complain it's hard drive based (Score:3, Insightful)
Why did Palm kill Newton? Newton was (is) technologically superior by far, Palm wasn't substantially cheaper at the outset... but a Palm fit in your pocket.
When did cell phones become ubiquitous? When they got small enough to fit in your pocket.
Why is Gameboy Advance SP the top-selling gaming platform
Re:They complain it's hard drive based (Score:4, Interesting)
But what about the millions of amateur musicians out there? I would LOVE to have a device that I can take to an informal gig or jam session and make a decent-sounding recording, and then transfer it to my computer later. Right now I use a Sony Minidisc recorder, but you're limited to just a couple hours per disc if you want any sort of quality, and then you have to do an analog transfer of the audio to your computer later! Almost defeats the purpose of recording it digitally in the first place.
I was really hoping that the new iPods would record 44 KHz 16-bit audio from any line in, but alas, it looks like it's just voice quality. Quite a bummer. I'm definitely looking into some of those other devices.
I disagree with the article (Score:5, Insightful)
the end of the article says it all: Of course, if you don't care about low battery life, aren't fond of jogging, have ample disposable income, don't need to record/encode music portably, and want to purchase music downloads only from the iTunes Music Store, then the iPod is the best the way to go. While not ideal for some niche activities, it's still hands down the best-designed MP3 player in the world.
Re:I disagree with the article (Score:3, Informative)
The article discusses several of these situations and suggest alternatives. If you do care about low battery life or do want to jog with your player, perhaps you may wish to consider one of these alternative.
Comment removed (Score:5, Informative)
Re:The Non-replacable battery is a showstopper (Score:5, Informative)
actually, I didn't even know about this till I saw it in someone's earlier post in this story.
Replacement batteries for iPod higher capacity too (Score:5, Informative)
Re:The Non-replacable battery is a showstopper (Score:5, Insightful)
Instead one has to throw away the ipod and buy a new one...
Holy crap, I thought this was Slashdot! You're afraid that you might someday need to open an old out-of-warranty MP3 player to replace a battery!? What the hell kind of hacker are you, anyway?
Slashdot's stated purpose is "news for nerds." Go read CNN.com or Drudge Report or something if that doesn't apply to you.
Most of these objections are invalid (Score:3, Insightful)
However, I'm concerned about the non-replaceable battery point he raises. I've already had to buy a $300 replacement lithium-ion battery for my two-year-old Vaio. Is it actually true that the IPod's battery can't be replaced, even by sending it back to Apple? If so, that's the mother of all deal-breakers for me. Modern technology is great and all that, but batteries still suck hard, and I certainly wouldn't want to give up the ability to replace them as needed.
Re:Most of these objections are invalid (Score:5, Informative)
Go here: http://www.ipodbattery.com/
Re:Most of these objections are invalid (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Most of these objections are invalid (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Most of these objections are invalid (Score:4, Informative)
There are third-party battery replacements available [google.com], and they're under $100.
Re:Most of these objections are invalid (Score:3, Informative)
I run Marathons and 6 extra ounces means a lot.
Plus i still don't like the idea of shaking a HD whilst I'm running.
No thanks. I'll stick with a flash based MP3 player. They're smaller, lighter, you can shake them as violently as you want without breaking them and if you get hit by a flash thunder storm which soaks you, then you don't have to pay big bucks to get your MP3 player replaced.
More like 3 Reasons. (Score:5, Interesting)
2. Jogging with an iPod could be bad, ok fine.
3. iPod is expensive, duh.
4. Voice recording is an add-on. Find a better one.
5. Since when is the online store a part of having a portable mp3 player? Alsoi, "Microsoft's secure WMA files" made me laugh.
All-in-all, seems like weak reasoning. Yes, its expensive, but I think its high quality.
Re:More like 3 Reasons. (Score:3, Funny)
and buy what? (Score:3, Interesting)
Confused (Score:4, Insightful)
Well, I routinely get 5 to 6 hours on my iPod and that is plenty for me. I have never had to have more battery life even on cross country plane flights or drives. I jog routinely with the iPod and have never had a problem and I tried the other music outlets for downloadable music. The iTMS is simply the best there is so.....What is his point?
And then at the bottom of this rant, the author saysWhile not ideal for some niche activities, it's still hands down the best-designed MP3 player in the world.
What gives? Is this guy totally out to lunch?
Re:Confused (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Confused (Score:5, Insightful)
I get the impression it's an article simply meant to point out some of the flaws of a very good product, especially since the iPod and iTunes have been the centers of some major love-fests, especially in the press. I don't think it hurts to acknowledge that a good product may have some negatives. It's something that future versions of the product could try to improve upon.
If something only has positive attributes, then that make my BS detector go off. Once in a while, you'll find that rare gem which really is all positive. But I think being able to consider a product's drawbacks gives a more accurate impression of it, and can in the long run give a better perception of the product.
Anyway, would you rather see another "me too" article about how great iTunes and iPod are, or a slightly different take on all of the buzz around them (although I'm sure C|NET probably has plenty of "me too" articles, as well)?
Re:Confused (Score:4, Insightful)
Then spend a couple bucks and get the damn Belkin battery add-in. You'll get 6 hours plus another 18 hours.
The Belkin add-on is great because (a) it's cheap, (b) it adds *INSANE* amounts of time to the iPod, and (c) is there only when you need it. When you don't want the added weight, you simply unsuck from the back of the iPod and stash it away. Then the iPod is sleek and lovely and thin (because if it wasn't sleek and lovely and thin, these insane "Why I Don't Like the iPod" articles from (airquote) Professional (airquote) reviewers would complain about it being not sleek and not lovely and not thin.
Don't buy a Ferrari or a Mercedes..... (Score:4, Funny)
Way to state the obvious (Score:3, Insightful)
2,3,4,5)Because it doesn't do something it's not designed to do.
Btw: If you won't buy an iPod because it's expensive, you obvious aren't in the target market for the device. It's actually reasonably priced in it's segment.
It's like saying 5 reasons not to buy a house:
1)It's expensive
2)You can't take it to the grocery store... etc.
Re:Way to state the obvious (Score:3, Insightful)
What if you don't know anything about mp3 players, have $200 to spend, but are interested in getting one? Would article be useful for you? YES. Are there people in that situation? YES. A lot.
I'm going to forward articl
5 reasons to agree with this story... (Score:5, Funny)
2- the author's expectations for battery life versus product size exceed that of most major military technologies.
3- I, like the author, need a bigger paycheck so I don't have to buy cheap, lower quality music devices all the time.
4- Making high quality digital recordings is something I should be able to do from a $500 device that fits in my pocket.
5- The picture of the author inspires me to buy a new pair of headphones.
AAC != MP3 != WMA != OGG (Score:3, Interesting)
This was written for Joe Sixpack, who doesn't want the burden of actually having to understand 'all that technical stuff'.
The iPod Is Not Perfect (Score:5, Insightful)
The battery life really is not great, and it continues to suck power even when you don't have it on so you have to recharge the thing constantly. The other issues like weight, and expense are valid too, I also dislike the the touch-sensitive buttons, no manual EQ settings, no line-in.
Apple zealots don't do Apple any favors as they set themselves up so high on the pedestal, that they're bound to get knocked down a peg. The iPod really isn't THAT much better overall nowadays.
Don't get me wrong, I still like the iPod, but it's not so clear-cut nowadays with all the new competitors. Hopefully, Apple will address these issues in the next revision to stay ahead of the pack.
Re:The iPod Is Not Perfect (Score:3, Informative)
You may have to upgrade your firmware. There were a few bugs in the earlier versions of firmware that made use more juice than it should have. My iPod will play for 9-10 hours on a single charge. I recharge it about once a week (I use it a little more than an hour per day on average).
The other issues like weight, and expense are valid too, I also dislike the t
Re:The iPod Is Not Perfect (Score:3, Informative)
Sony D-NE1 ATRAC3/MP3 CD Walkman. 5 3/8" x 5 3/8" x 5/8", 6.25 ounces, 90-150 hours on a charged set of batteries. [2 NH14WM(a) Rechargeable batteries for the player and 2 "AA" Batteries for the Backlight Remote] The NH-14MW are 1.2v 1350maH batteries.
Sony D-NE1 [sonystyle.com]
Apple iPod (40 GB Model)
4.1 x 2.4 x 0.62, 6.2 ounces. 630mah LiON Battery, 8 hours on a charge (Apple Literature)
Wah Wah (Score:3, Funny)
I don't give a rat's ass how many years some recording engineer spends learning how to properly EQ something. What I do care about is that the music sounding good to me. What is more reasonable--adjusting my EQ so that I like the sound or going out and spending money on "good,good speakers or headphones" in the hopes that I will like the result?
Maybe the average person doesnt under
Jogging (Score:5, Interesting)
It should not be difficult, however, to refute their claim. Considering the accelerations present when jogging with it, compared to the internal velocities of the hard drive, it really seems inconsequential. Though don't take my word for it.
Lack of radio (Score:5, Insightful)
Apple could open up a bit more in terms of media formats, but then again, so could the online stores. AAC is far more open that WMA is at the moment. Heck AAC, is even part of the MPEG4 standard.
Re:Lack of radio (Score:5, Informative)
It isn't an issue for me, and only 1 out of 5 iPod owners I know wanted radio. For that 1 person, it was simple to buy a tiny inline receiver [griffintechnology.com] that works with the iPod.
5 real reasons (Score:3, Insightful)
2. Were Apple to increase in marketshare as a result of 1)the #1 portable music device and 2)the #1 online music store, we'd have to have people cover it more, potentially resulting in less coverage of Microsoft-based products.
3. Anyone can find something wrong with anything, and I have, and since I work at CNet and you don't, you have to listen to me.
4. Microsoft creates standards, not Apple. If Apple creates standards, or supports ones not approved by billg, we'll be back in the chaos of the 80's and early 90's. I can't go back to installing WinSock! I can't!! Buy WMA devices, please!
5. Ha ha, sucker, thanks for the ad impressions. Coming up next: 5 reasons why you shouldn't use Linux, Mac OS X, and/or Mozilla!
Solution to Battery Life (Score:4, Informative)
http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatProductPage.proces
If you need to listen to music for more than 10 hours having an optional battery pack is a must, and it uses AA's so I just swap those for more power.
I don't see one offered for the Dell or Samsung player.
Klutz Proof--IdJit Proof (Score:4, Interesting)
I have one of the first generation iPods. One of the first things I did with my new player was slam it in the car door. HARD!! It didn't seem to mind a bit.
I read a few months ago about a fellow who slammed his iPod in the hood of the car--kept opening and shutting the hood on the sturdy little iPod with no damage at least to the iPod.
As long as Mom and Dad keep makin' IdJits glad that Apple is makin' iPods ;)
"Experts say...but I'm a frigging moron, so I'm.." (Score:5, Insightful)
Yeah, because he knows way more than any expert. He even figured out that you have to wait until the buffer is completely empty before you refill it.
And I'm sure he pored over the specs for the hard drive and saw that the G's he would put on the iPod while jogging would exceed the specs for the drive.
Basically, despite the line at the end calling the iPod the best designed player (added by an editor perhaps?), it's just an anti-iPod rant.
Go Minidisc (Score:3)
iPod Battery Replacements. (Score:3, Informative)
-hero.
6. You don't want to use 3rd party software... (Score:4, Informative)
Although it has major other faults, the Archos jukebox [archos.com] has one selling point - No third-party software is necessary to upload and download files. It's just a hard drive that plays mp3s (and other stuff in later models). You can load and unload mp3s from it using Explorer, or mount it in Linux. Copy your mp3s just like any other files and play them. There is no necessary uploading software and no download controls. It's fully linux-compatible.
When I was researching MP3 players last May, this was a big selling point of the Archos.
Boy, Bill's getting desperate (Score:5, Funny)
Pull up the article, and check out the picture of the author, "Eliot Van Buskirk". Yeah, look real close. Look familiar? Tried the old Superman/Clark Kent trick of taking off his glasses. Threw on some headphones just to be extra careful.
Well nice try Bill, but we're on to you. Your FUD isn't going to work this time!
Archos Multimedia Jukebox (Score:4, Informative)
Additionally, it has compact flash and SD adaptors, so you can download the pictures from your camera to the device. This is handy when travelling: you can empty your CF cards and browse photos on the Archos whenever you feel like.
Best of all, it's easy hackable so you can stick a 60gig drive in there.
Revolutionary? Hardly. I've had mine more than 1 year. Currently, there's bigger and better Archos players out there, and doing more for less. Compared to Ipod hype and price, Archos stuff is a steal.
Witold
www.witold.org
Cheap ploy to attract readers. (Score:3, Interesting)
Of course, if you don't care about low battery life, aren't fond of jogging, have ample disposable income, don't need to record/encode music portably, and want to purchase music downloads only from the iTunes Music Store, then the iPod is the best the way to go. While not ideal for some niche activities, it's still hands down the best-designed MP3 player in the world.
battery life: If, after listening to your iPod for 6+ hours straight, you cannot stand to be without your music for a short while, I think you should be concerned about your own life, and not your battery life.
price: Price is always an issue, but you get what you pay for. If you have modest needs and not much money, go elsewhere. But if you want a good value, the iPod's not a bad bet.
jogging: I suppose this could be a problem, but that's true for any disk-based player. Apple's current TV ads show dancers boogying like crazy while holding an iPod in hand or clipped to a belt, and I don't recall that the iPod comes with any particular warnings about motion.
recording: Possible with iPod (plus add-on), but quality probably not great. However, if you want great quality, you probably want to record raw data and not compress it until after production. And you want a decent mic, and mixing, and and and... I don't think there are any tiny, battery powered, highly portable devices that would do the job. Get a PowerBook, a good mic, and an amp instead.
iTunes Music Store only: Fair enough, but you've got to pick your poison. You can be tied to Apple and AAC, which at least has reasonable DRM and improved sound quality, or you can be tied to Microsoft and WMA, which has no quality improvement over mp3 and shitty track record for any sort of reasonableness.
still hands down the best-designed MP3 player in the world: In other words, the author already knows all of the above, and is just looking to raise people's hackles for a cheap spike in readership and maybe a mention on Slashdot. I guess he knows what he's doing, but I think it points to a lack of integrity.
It should be Blatantly Obvious To The Most Casual Observer that the iPod is not the perfect player for all consumers, just as a BMW 325i is not the perfect car for all drivers. But it's a pretty nice player, and it offers a lot of features that others do not.
Why people buy an iPod (Score:5, Insightful)
The reason other manufacturers of HD based players don't get it is because they think they can compete and win on price and features. Which is true, they can do pretty well - but in their desire to push the price down lower than an iPod they end up using cheaper materials which means that what they end up with:
- Looks cheap and nasty
- Feels cheap and nasty
When a HD based MP3 player hits the market which looks and feels good (and i'm sorry to say it but this [iriveramerica.com] is butt ugly and this [creative.com] looks only marginally better but still feels cheap and nasty) then they'll be onto a winner. Even if it has the same or less features.For many people, if you're going to pony up several hunded quid for a HD based MP3 player - it better not look like something made by Fischer Price [fisher-price.com].
However, there is light at the end of the tunnel, Toshiba [mweb.co.th] might come up with the goods (and also Panasonic, but I can't find the product I was thinking of) ...
But iRiver plays OGG (Score:3, Insightful)
But it plays Ogg and I'd buy it for that over an iPod any day.
But, but, but... (Score:3, Funny)
I get his intent, but he's stretching a bit (Score:5, Insightful)
The main problem with the article is that it's the iPod versus the world, and not one particular other device.
Note that each of the 5 has a separate list of alternative players that the iPod beats head to head.
For example, in one point he crows that one alternative has no moving parts and weighs less than the iPod, but in another point, he presents a solution involving an MP3 CD player (moving parts) that is also saddled with a case of CDs (total is far heavier and more unweildy than the iPod).
So it seems if I follow the advice of this article, I need to buy about 3 to 5 different players to beat the functionality of my iPod.
Obligatory car analogy: It's like saying, if you want a sports car, you should not buy Corvette because it's more expensive than a Mustang, might break more easily than a Lexus GS300, hauls less than a Chevy full size pickup, has a smaller fuel tank than a Hummer and is not as "cool" as an Aston Martin.
How resiliant are those hard drives really? (Score:3, Interesting)
Can these drives really handle jogging? Anyone have URLs with real-world tests?
I would love to be able to not worry about it, but just assumed it came with the teritory of hard-drive based mp3 players.
--Darren
My list (Score:3, Informative)
I own a "docking" IPod. This is my 3rd mp3 player and the best one.However, there are some things I don't like about it:
1 "Touchpad-like" controls- you touch it in a pocket, and it skips a song or does something else
2 Sometimes those buttons don't respond- have to touch up to ten times (not sure if I got a bad unit, or this is typical)
3 Can't "drug and drop" mp3 files on iPod- must use a software
4 Doesn't understand file names or directories- identifies fiels only by ID3 tags
5 Battery life- have to charge it as often as analog cell phone. Forget about overnight trips without a charger
6 Forgets the last played track after being connected to a PC, sometimes does it for no reason at all. Very annoying to audiobook listeners.
7 Clip on the remote is designed in such a way that the controls face outside only when clipped to a shirt with buttons on the left- ladies style.Does it confirm a popular Slashdot opinion that Apple is for gays?
Re:My list (Score:3, Informative)
There's a switch on top of the thing that turns off the touchpad buttons. Flip the switch before you slip it in your pocket, and flip it back when you slip it out to mess with it. Problem solved.
2 Sometimes those buttons don't respond- have to touch up to ten times (not sure if I got a bad unit, or this is typical)
If it makes a click noise, but doesn't do anything, then it's just lagging. I've noticed that
iPod "shortcomings"? Demystifying crack smokers (Score:5, Interesting)
1. The battery is a major shortcoming? The thing plays for hours and hours. It's not a shortcoming, just because the newly released Dell player does 20 hours.
2. The moving parts (hard drive) are a major shortcoming? I've jogged with my iPod hundreds of times. You set a playlist for the duration of your jog, press play the iPod fills up the memory cache with tunes, you jog. I maybe get one or two skips. Hard drive still not dead in my unit.
Indeed, not only "some experts", but even Apple says jogging with the iPod is okay, according to their official iPod FAQ:
Question 9: Can I use iPod while running, or doing other activities? Will my music skip?
Answer: iPod was designed for people with an active lifestyle. It is compact and lightweight enough to take with you wherever you go. It was designed to fit comfortably in the palm of your hand or to be slipped into a pocket or purse for easy transport. iPod offers up to 20 minutes of skip protection - twice that of other hard drive-based MP3 players on the market - so you can enjoy outdoor athletic activities without missing a beat.
3. The iPod is expensive. It is pretty expensive, but it's also very high quality. I've dropped the thing on hard ground a few times now, and it still works like a champ. It is well-designed, and it integrates with iTunes seamlessly.
The author suggests MP3 CD players as an alternative, but doesn't this violate his point #2? Yes. It does, you think jogging with an iPod is bad, but jogging with a cheaply manufactured MP3 CD player is better? These units probably have some skip protection, and probably almost no shock absorbtion (walking, driving).
4. You want to make high quality recordings. This is true, rumors are Apple is working on this, who knows.
5. You want a choice in online music stores. Well, I do have a choice in online music stores. I download AACs from iTunes Music Store, and I download MP3s from emusic.com and import them into iTunes.
I heard people bitch for years about how horrible and flakey MusicMatch and others were. Why would I want to go use them? iTunes Music Store is superb, and far exceeds the other choices out there.
Sure the iPod doesn't support "secure" (read: DRM-laden) WMA files, but I don't want to buy those, because they strip me of choice. I want unladen MP3s and perhaps minimally-DRM'd AAC files that are flexible, not draconian "secured" WMA files (which I HAVE experienced, thank you).
This article is just full of bullshit, and I wouldn't be surprised if it was shadow authored by John Dvorak or some MS PR drone*, with the stereotypical bone to pick with Apple.
* Note: I am not a Linux zealot.
5 Reasons to not read CNET (Score:3, Funny)
Compared a sample web page from CNET to Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment and found the Dostoevsky's single book to provide far more content that CNET single web page.
2. Switching screens while viewing CNET is not cool
Compared switching between CNET web site screens and found it was no where near the fun of pushing buttons to switch screens on our new 42" Pioneer Plasma TV.
3. CNET is slow
Compared the load times of cnet.com and found the page load times to be significantly slower than localhost.com. What gives CNET? can we have a little optimization?
4. CNET does not allow to make high quality margaritas
Once again CNET faltered when compared to our new KitchenAid blender when it came to making margaritas. We were not even able to find any third party accessories to add this functionality to our CNET homepage.
5. You want a choice in online advertising
You would think that with an article on the Ipod you would atleast be able to check prices on it as they provide for most of the other players.
iHP-120 (Score:4, Insightful)
I just got my iRiver iHP-120 last week, and I'm extremely impressed.
I'm very happy with Ogg Vorbis, and I wanted to buy the first good quality player that supported it. Well, iRiver, I must say you have outdone yourself. The iHP-120 is simply amazing:
I could go on and on, but I think you get the picture. Sorry, but the iPod doesn't even come close...
iRiver & OGG (Score:3, Interesting)
Check out this link [iriver.com]for more info.
I don't *UNDERSTAND* you people! (Score:3, Insightful)
I love the iPod. It's nice. But god, it's not the be-all and end-all. The article says 'if you're really concerned about battery life, then don't get the iPod.' IF this is the major factor for you, THEN this is a reason not to get the iPod! Get it?
I mean, it's like we've got this really nice four-door car, plenty of trunk space, really reliable, really pretty, good gas milage, good power, etc. And they wrote an article called 'Five reasons not to buy this vehicle'.
1) You need a car that gets 50 miles to the gallon
2) You haul furnature for a living
3) You need to drive through the outback 40 miles each way every day
4) You can't afford it
5) You were actually looking for a boat
Get OVER it, it's a perfectly valid article! There are people for whom that car ISN'T the best vehicle; there are people for whom the iPod isn't the best portable media device! And THEY SHOULDN'T BUY ONE. Maybe that's only 10% of customers, but believe it or not, THEY NEED REVIEWS TOO!
Goddamn. Makes me embarrassed to be an Apple enthusiast, with people around who can't understand stuff like this. I mean, MacUser ran an article 10 years or so ago called 'Top Ten Reasons Not To Buy A Mac'. You guys would have flayed and roasted them, instead of taking it as constructive criticism, and useful information.
Sad.
-fred
Re:Flamebait? (Score:5, Insightful)
Don't get me wrong; it's still our favorite overall MP3 player. Although everyone can think of reasons why they want an iPod, I've decided to use this column to list a few reasons why not to buy one.
Before you send me rants for putting down the iPod, please read the list, realize that we still love the iPod, and take a deep breath.
If CNET ran an article with the title "5 Reasons Not to Buy a Windows XP PC", would that also be flamebait or would you consider it an alternative view? Follow the advice of the article: take a deep breath.
Re:Flamebait? (Score:3, Funny)
Sure, they're "fair and balanced", I saw them give something a 7 once.
Re:Flamebait? (Score:5, Insightful)
1. You are an idiot.
Just because I put the disclaimer up, does not mean that this isn't flamebait. Likewise with the CNet article. They are trying to provoke a reaction, and probably a negative one given how popular the iPod is.
It is one thing to post a review of one of the best products and still point out its flaws. It is another to post an article that is structured in an entirely negative way, despite the fact that they admit it is great. This is simply a case of beating up on the popular guy, just to provoke a reaction (and draw hits to their site so they can sell ads).
Re:Flamebait and FUD. (Score:3, Informative)
For that $299 you could also get a player from a different company that hold more music. Expensive is a realative term
And the suggestion here: CD-MP3 pla
Re:there are no moving parts (Score:4, Informative)
Re:6. No Ogg Vorbis! (Score:5, Insightful)
What would also be nice is support for some sort of compressed lossless codec rather than using huge AIFF or WAV files.
pain? (Score:3, Flamebait)
Sure it pains you, but so must research of any kind. If you don't bother to read anything, I'm sure it really pains you to write.
Would you mind telling me how WMA is better for "the masses" or anyone than ogg? WMA is one of the lowest quality formats out there, ogg kicks it's ass in every way. Because ogg is patent and royalty free, there's no reason for it not to be adopted by everyone and be everywhere.
Zealotry, Ogg, and WMA (Score:5, Insightful)
It doesn't matter if, on some ideological (or even technical) level Ogg is "better" (why do I get the image of that guy from SG1? Kom-chy-a!) most people do not use it. Full stop, end of story.
If I produce a word processor and I had a limited number of file formats I could support it would behoove me to select Word over OpenOffice. Why? Because more people use Word than OpenOffice and if I want to appeal to more people that is the way to go.
There is also the point that no one is selling DRM-wrapped Ogg files (not that this is not possible). They
>Because ogg is patent and royalty free, there's no reason
>for it not to be adopted by everyone and be everywhere.
There
AAC is a given, the Apple Music Store distributes in it and its what's used in mpeg4 files.
MP3 is a given.
AIFF/WAV are givens.
I want to see support for (smaller) lossless formats before I see Ogg support.
For me as an end user, I never (directly) see the license fees paid by Apple for mp3 or AAC support (if they even have to pay the latter). iTunes is distributed to me for free and it does not support ripping to ogg and my iPod won't play ogg, why should I bother with it?
Re:anti-ogg zealotry (Score:3, Insightful)
>lot more often than they legally share music files. Unless
>you are somehow actively advocating the illegal sharing of
>music files, I don't see why popularity base has anything
>to do with your choice of music format.
The analogy is good, your understanding is flawed. People don't share music legally very often, but that's not particularly relevant.
Popularity has everything to do with why Apple would select mp3 over Ogg and AAC over
Re:6. No Ogg Vorbis! (Score:3, Insightful)
Screaming "Ogg! Ogg!" is almost seen as a joke now. I know I'm laughing at you.
Re:6. No Ogg Vorbis! (Score:3, Funny)
Re:6. No Ogg Vorbis! (Score:3, Funny)
Sorry.... had to be done.
I was thinking the opposit, actually... (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Ogg Vorbis sucks (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Ogg Vorbis sucks (Score:3, Interesting)
also bitrate peeling and EQs are not the same (Score:4, Informative)
Or fit a lower-bitrate playlist (longer play) onto space-constrained solid state players from a high quality archive without re-encoding.
Heh.
Re:6. No Ogg Vorbis! (Score:5, Informative)
Re:6. No Ogg Vorbis! (Score:4, Informative)
Hope that helps.
Sedan vs Truck (Score:5, Insightful)
iPod is a great product. Period. My friend had one, and he just loved it. I couldn't figure out what was about it, and, having my own MP3 plays, I used to think 'it's about the same, i guess'. Then, I borrow my friends iPod for a few hours. I was convinced, sold my mp3 player, and bought an iPod. Then, a second friend saw me with the iPod, and asked me about it. He borrowed it for 3 hours, and that weekend, he was buying one. Have you ever heard of anything like this with any other consumer electronics? It is a quality product, I haven't been so satisfied with a consumer electronic products in a looong time.
Re:Five Rebuttals (You'll hafta RTFA) (Score:5, Insightful)
You're ignoring his other points. There's probably a large percentage of users who have vinyl and cassets who would want to make backups of their media. Also, as consumer become more empowered with technology, they generally start do do more things with them. Go beyond the average consumer and you have audio engineers, producers, and DJ's as well. There's multiple markets to target with such a feature - why do you think even low end portable cassette players have audio inputs?
Re:Great troll (Score:5, Insightful)
This is what I was looking for someone to point out. After each point, a player was shown that was better at that point. I didn't see two pictures of the same player. Does this suggest that no player is even good at two of them?
Re:Yup. (Score:4, Informative)
http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatProductPage.proc
But the time I get now is more than enough for me.