IPods

[ExpectDeath]

Well, Christmas is comin' up soon and I was going to ask my parents for a IPod. I was lookin' for some information of the different kinds of IPods (mainly Nano and Mini). I have heard that the Nano is very easily broken and the screens are screwed up. Any inputs you guys have would be great...

[Hellblazer]

Well, Christmas is comin' up soon and I was going to ask my parents for a IPod. I was lookin' for some information of the different kinds of IPods (mainly Nano and Mini). I have heard that the Nano is very easily broken and the screens are screwed up. Any inputs you guys have would be great...
Leave that to this site: iPod info (http://www.apple.com/itunes)

[~LUCK~]

Well, the Nano i find is to small, im scared to hold it unless it will break, and can be lost easily.
The mini is perfect, but i would get a case for it, if you drop it, it wound't break like mine :(

[Hellblazer]

Well, the Nano i find is to small, im scared to hold it unless it will break, and can be lost easily.
The mini is perfect, but i would get a case for it, if you drop it, it wound't break like mine :(
You can only get referbished minis now.

[Cosmo88]

My foreign Exchange student actually just bought this one iPod, it is a really good one too, you can play Movies, songs, and some other things. He is the wiz at that thing, but anyway I strongly suggest that to you, I'm not sure what it is called though...it is pretty small, but can hold so much, and it is black, I'll edit this post when he comes back from basketball.

[dirka dirka]

I hate ipods. That being said, I love music. My love for music over takes the hate for ipods.

[Hellblazer]

My foreign Exchange student actually just bought this one iPod, it is a really good one too, you can play Movies, songs, and some other things. He is the wiz at that thing, but anyway I strongly suggest that to you, I'm not sure what it is called though...it is pretty small, but can hold so much, and it is black, I'll edit this post when he comes back from basketball.
You mean the new Video iPod?
And dirk, how could you hate iPods?:confused: They're amazing!

[ExpectDeath]

Yeah, my friend has one of the Video IPods, but i think they are too big. But...he says that he can watch tv shows on it, that would be awsome.

[Cosmo88]

They're amazing!

Yet also frusterating to figure out how to work. You seriously have to be a wiz. And I just found out from him that it is NEW, but he said it is just called an iPod, it can play videos though.

[Hellblazer]

Yet also frusterating to figure out how to work. You seriously have to be a wiz. And I just found out from him that it is NEW, but he said it is just called an iPod, it can play videos though.
WHAT!? Seriously, you'd have to be pretty dumb to not be able to work an iPod.

[Cosmo88]

WHAT!? Seriously, you'd have to be pretty dumb to not be able to work an iPod.

Well, to each his own (I'm not sure if that is even the right expression).

[Hellblazer]

Well, to each his own (I'm not sure if that is even the right expression).
No, something more like "Well, I just don't take the time to figure things out or read instructions" would fit better.:p

[banditto]

Ipods are for nubs. Get a Zen Micro and save yourself the money without compomising the quality.

[Cosmo88]

Ipods are for nubs. Get a Zen Micro and save yourself the money without compomising the quality.

Yeah, that would be the better choice.

[Hellblazer]

Ipods are for nubs. Get a Zen Micro and save yourself the money without compomising the quality.
Or not, they suck. Nothing can really compare to the popularity or style of t3h P0ds!

[Ächilles]

I have a pink iPod Mini.

[Hellblazer]

I have a pink iPod Mini.
:cool:

[mantis33]

I have a Creative Zen Micro. And I honestly have to say that I love it. Perhaps Ipods may be overrated???

[Hellblazer]

I have a Creative Zen Micro. And I honestly have to say that I love it. Perhaps Ipods may be overrated???
Maybe, but it all comes down to opinion in some way or another.

[mantis33]

Maybe, but it all comes down to opinion in some way or another.
Definately. It's all about opinions.

[banditto]

Let me put it this way
Zen Micro > Ipod Mini
First off, price is the same for a Zen Micro 8 Gig Photo as a 5 gig Ipod Mini
Second off, Zen Micro 5 gig holds more than Ipod Mini 5 gig
Zen Micro has more color choices
Glows when it charges
Zen Micro scratches less
I > You
Zen Micro > Ipod Mini
Everyone has a Mini so get a Zen, be a rebel.
Plus Zen's just look cooler...

[Hellblazer]

Let me put it this way
Zen Micro > Ipod Mini
First off, price is the same for a Zen Micro 8 Gig Photo as a 5 gig Ipod Mini
Second off, Zen Micro 5 gig holds more than Ipod Mini 5 gig
Zen Micro has more color choices
Glows when it charges
Zen Micro scratches less
I > You
Zen Micro > Ipod Mini
Everyone has a Mini so get a Zen, be a rebel.
Plus Zen's just look cooler...
Most of that's all opinion. The last line I definitely have to disaprove of, though.

[ExpectDeath]

Which Creative Zen Micro are you talkin about Banditto, I mean like 5 gb, 6 gb...?

[banditto]

The 5 gig Zen I got, but if you get the 8gig photo its the same price as the 5 gig Mini.

And How can you say Micros don't look cooler? Just look at the colors?

[Hellblazer]

And How can you say Micros don't look cooler? Just look at the colors?
Yeah, but iPod minis have color variations and the newer generation of iPods come in black and white. They still have a better design with the click wheels, though.

[Megabyte]

My only grip with Ipods is that I must use iTunes.
Other than that, they're a great piece of technology.

I'll laugh at the "color" arguments later. Needless to say if you're into them for the color, you really shouldn't be making arguments on why they're great or not.

If people are lookin at it gift wise, go for it I say.

But if you're just eyeing em to buy it yourself, my suggestion is to wait till they come out with new models in the Spring. I'm not buying a new one till they have a 100gig video model (which won't even be out in the spring so I've been told).

[ryan56]

I think IPods are gettin rediculous. First it was the music IPods, that was ok. But then video...now you can actually watch TV on some of them. Next thing you know there gonna have a built in fridge and bed, to go along with the TV.

[Megabyte]

I think IPods are gettin rediculous. First it was the music IPods, that was ok. But then video...now you can actually watch TV on some of them. Next thing you know there gonna have a built in fridge and bed, to go along with the TV.

This is ridiculous how?

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna dl the most recent TWiT to my ipod ;)

[Hellblazer]

I think IPods are gettin rediculous. First it was the music IPods, that was ok. But then video...now you can actually watch TV on some of them. Next thing you know there gonna have a built in fridge and bed, to go along with the TV.
Um...no? So you can watch TWO shows on it, big deal. They still rock out loud and beat a DVD player's size by a mile.

[choplocker-17]

Well currently I have the mini and I love it. But I love all kinds of music and I am gonna fill soooo. Maybe get the 30 gig Ipod video. It holds 150 hours of videos, 7,500 songs and like 10,000 pictures. It cost 300 bucks but it sure is neat. Don't get a nano. There too small, they do break easily. If you have jeans on and you put the nano in your pocket, it can easily snap from pocket pressure. And the screen scrathces from overuse. So I would recommend the ipod mini or 30 gig video.

[Hellblazer]

ipod mini
Unfortunately, the fragile nano has replaced the mini.

[choplocker-17]

I'm not a fan of the nano's to small, easily broken and screen scratches. If you want one, you have to spend an extra 20 dollars on a case so it wont break.

[Hellblazer]

I'm not a fan of the nano's to small, easily broken and screen scratches. If you want one, you have to spend an extra 20 dollars on a case so it wont break.
True. They should have kept the mini's form, but upgraded it to a color screen and added new colors to the color range.

[ExpectDeath]

Yeah, thats what I am trying to decide between, The Nano's color and size, but sacrifice durability. Or the Mini's durabilty, and sacrifice color and some size.

[choplocker-17]

Just get the 30 gig video

[_Rogue_]

Forget the video, why shell out $300 when the 360 just came out for the same price?


Yeah, thats what I am trying to decide between, The Nano's color and size, but sacrifice durability. Or the Mini's durabilty, and sacrifice color and some size.

Durability all the way. As an added bonus you get double the memory and a slightly longer battery life for the same price. I have a Mini, my girlfriend has a Nano. My girlfriend is also borderline OCD about taking care of things(you should see our house, she litterly washes out the garbage cans weekly!), her Mini screen is so scratched up it's near useless. When people say "small problems with the screen scratching" they're Ipod fanboys and what they really mean is a speck of dust and strong breeze will cut a gash across the entire face.

[ExpectDeath]

Thanks Rogue, that post was alot of help man.

[banditto]

Zen Micro is more just as durable :p
Don't go to the dark side.

[mantis33]

I <3 my Zen Micro

[banditto]

Same here, used it every day for 2 years. I'm using it right now to listen to Ron White :)

Your mommas so fat she has to iron her pants on the driveway
Your mommas so fat when she goes to the movies she sits next to everyone
Your mommas so fat the national weather channel gives a name to each one of her farts.

Dane Cook
Alright Gramma, YOU WIN!

hehe...

[ExpectDeath]

Hahah Dane Cook=Tah Man!

[sooner4life]

I thought I heard somewhere that the first Zen's had five different viruses on them.

[Phate]

I have Have my regualr 20gig ipod for about a year Now, I bring it everywhere I go pretty much. Its a great piece of technology you can listen to all your favorite music at the touch of a click wheel. The innovative design of the ipod renders all of mp3 players obsolete. Why else would IPods be such a hit?

I have a friend who has the IPod nano and the battery life is quite good (around 14hours he said) maybe a little less, but it is still quite good. As for durability, take the word on what Choppy and Rogue said.

I am a slight fan of the ipod mini. I like that fact that its smaller, but I don't like the price so much. It was 250 last year and 299 for the 20 gig which holds 4 times the music, for less than 50 bucks, so naturally I chose the 20 gig.

As for the new ipod video, as choppy said, you get more for your money. 15 hours of video, 7,500 songs! and 10,000 photos. That is remarkable. No zen thinger can really compare in my opinion to the newst Ipod.

So If you really want to the most for your more, go with the 30gig IPod Video, it has more features and is worth every penny I am sure.

[Noda]

i got my ipod for my birthday on sept 7. i listened to it litterely every minute for about 2 and a half months(only took it out for showers and class) like it was rediculous.

but then after all that use it just like died...i was listening and it froze. so i reset it(it freezed often) but then id get a file disturbed sign and it would just sound like its rebooting over and over again.

never knew what happaned, getting a new one soon(warrinty) but man, withdrawl is rough

[sooner4life]

I'm poor so I got a Shuffle, it's good enough for me. I don't even think I know of 1,000 songs anyway so 120 is all I need.

[Phate]

i got my ipod for my birthday on sept 7. i listened to it litterely every minute for about 2 and a half months(only took it out for showers and class) like it was rediculous.

but then after all that use it just like died...i was listening and it froze. so i reset it(it freezed often) but then id get a file disturbed sign and it would just sound like its rebooting over and over again.

never knew what happaned, getting a new one soon(warrinty) but man, withdrawl is rough

LMAO

I know what you mean, my Ipod has started todo the same thing :-/

But It's all covered in warranty...are the zen micro ones under warranty? or do they have bad warranty policies

[Hellblazer]

I know what you mean, my Ipod has started todo the same thing :-/

Hm, that's interesting. I've never heard of such a thing. :confused: It's good to know about, though.

[Xenon]

iPods suck, I know from having one. The battery is rechargeable but they say it lasts for 12 hours and at least 8 hours playback time, after having it for about 3 months the playback time was about 2 hours, they do suck horribly. The headphones go all crackly after a while and the plastic bits rip off the wire, just messy.
Just get a 1gb mp3 player.

[Megabyte]

iPods suck, I know from having one. The battery is rechargeable but they say it lasts for 12 hours and at least 8 hours playback time, after having it for about 3 months the playback time was about 2 hours, they do suck horribly. The headphones go all crackly after a while and the plastic bits rip off the wire, just messy.
Just get a 1gb mp3 player.


Did you realize Apple made an announcement sometime ago that certain models of iPods had defective batteries? If you brought it into their store along with proof of buying it you'd get a new battery for it no charge ;)

Also, the battery life is along certain factors. Limited to no backlight usage, not playing around with the games when your listening, not switching through different playlists, etc.

Pls don't blame your ignorance on the product.

[Xenon]

I never did any of that while listening. Oh well it doesn't matter anymore I lost it :(

[Phate]

Also If you have a defective battery there was a law suit against apple and if you have a defective or a certian ipod made at one poitn in time you are elligible to recieve 50 dollars compensation...just good it, im sure you can find the atricle.

But xenon, you really have bad luck with ipods i guess, Because I love mine and everyone I know loves theirs. Its a qulatiy product,however the headphones are easy to brake, I suggest just buying your own pair if you are against the "look" of the ipod or if you just wnat qulaity headphones. Bose makes some real good headphones :)

Ipods are great, if they have something wrong with them, send them back, its all under warranty most of the time. Don't be ignorant about the product you ar elooking for though. DO your reasearch and from your research you can make the best judgement as to what kinda of mp3 player will suit your needs the best.

But I still suggest the awesomely over advertised Ipod, they are worth it :)

[Xenon]

I got some proper good Sony ones for my Mp3, they were £25. I have a 1GB Phillips mp3 player and only have 93 songs on it and apparently I could get a good 300 at least on it.

[Hellblazer]

Just get a 1gb mp3 player.
Yeah, if you want about 20 songs.:rolleyes:

[bobdagangsta]

I got an iPod and it works great, the only thing i dont really like about it is when it sits around it runs out of batteries.

[Xenon]

Yeah, if you want about 20 songs.:rolleyes:

20 songs? Lmao, that is as ignorant you can get. I have got over 100 now, mine is capable of about 300.

[bobdagangsta]

1gb is a good amount of songs like Xenon said.

[Xenon]

Exactly, I don't complain about 1GB, it's not like I should but an MP3 player for a few hundred quid and use about a quarter of its memory, whats the point?

[Hellblazer]

1gb is a good amount of songs like Xenon said.
Well, I don't have Gig storage amounts memorized, so I was just exagerating.

[allstarGL]

I was going to buy a nano but I don't think I am after reading this. I really just want a color screen mp3 player that can hold more songs then I need. What would be best for me? I want something durable.

[Hellblazer]

I was going to buy a nano but I don't think I am after reading this. I really just want a color screen mp3 player that can hold more songs then I need. What would be best for me? I want something durable.
The new video iPod. Either that, or the iPod (regular) model before the video one has a color screen.

[Xenon]

Or the 30Gb or 60Gb Ipod photo, a mate of mine has it and its pretty decent.

[Megabyte]

Also If you have a defective battery there was a law suit against apple and if you have a defective or a certian ipod made at one poitn in time you are elligible to recieve 50 dollars compensation...just good it, im sure you can find the atricle.

But xenon, you really have bad luck with ipods i guess, Because I love mine and everyone I know loves theirs. Its a qulatiy product,however the headphones are easy to brake, I suggest just buying your own pair if you are against the "look" of the ipod or if you just wnat qulaity headphones. Bose makes some real good headphones :)

Ipods are great, if they have something wrong with them, send them back, its all under warranty most of the time. Don't be ignorant about the product you ar elooking for though. DO your reasearch and from your research you can make the best judgement as to what kinda of mp3 player will suit your needs the best.

But I still suggest the awesomely over advertised Ipod, they are worth it :)

Over advertised? Hardly. Their advertisment reflects their success.

The lawsuit results are in relation to their announcement I mentioned earlier. The $50 thing is basically a battery cost. Early models (i.e. pre-4G models) were covered in the lawsuit, later ones by their announcement.

I sell iPods and am the "certified" expert for them at my store ;) here are my thoughts...
Apple warranties cost money, and generally are a pain. Unless you plan on breaking your iPod or have a habit of poor treatment on your technology, don't bother. They have a really good track record, and if you know how to maintain your iPod most of you little problems are self repairable (i.e. interface problems, screen scratches). The things are tough too if you get the right case. I reccomend a foam styled casing instead of plastic or those straight colored rubber ones people seem to love. Plastic/leather ones break too easily, and the rubber ones don't fully protect it. I was going through a case every month or two until I found this cheap little foam one with a belt clip for about $15. Going on a year with that one, with both it and my iPod holding up just fine.

DO NOT BUY THE HEADPHONES FOR THE LOOK. I hate posers.

Along with both of those points, I do suggest getting the $40 headphones Apple carries for the iPods seperately. I did some trials with expensive Bose and Sony headsets, and these sounded just as good to me. I'm pretty hard on my technology, so I like stuff to be sturdy, those headphones I bought have lasted about 2 years now of constant use/travel.

I reallllly don't reccomend the photo iPod, because I just can't see someone just loading photos in there. The video ones are a full multimedia system which is much more realistic to a person's needs/uses. It just comes down to what you want. Also encourage people to check out Ebay and alternative means to buy these things. They're great, but Apple is expensive. You can also sometimes goto places like BestBuy and find discontinued models for a cheap discount (iPods automatically lose $100 off the normal price when the model gets discontinued). However, if you insist on getting a brand new one fresh from the factory, goto an Apple store and not a 3'rd party retailer. There's a lot of hitches in returning these things and you want as few of hassles as possible.

Myself, I've gotten in the habit of listening/watching my podcasts during class (i.e. I luv my video iPod). I keep my old 10g model in my car and just load some songs on there for driving. Before I got my video one though, I literally had the 10g on my hip permanately. I actually kept a spare set of keys in the back of the case because I've locked my keys in my car, but never the iPod ;)

[Xenon]

Sounds like we have an iPod fanatic here. iPods have their pros and cons just like everything else. I myself, don't really like iPods because, I had one and it was a 20Gb version and I didn't really need it because I had a couple hundred tunes on there and they are also quite weighty objects. So I just bought this 1Gb MP3 which I currently have and it works fine for me.

[Megabyte]

Sounds like we have an iPod fanatic here. iPods has its pros and cons just like everything else. I myself, don't really like iPods because, I had one and it was a 20Gb version and I didn't really need it because I had a couple hundred tunes on there. So I just bought this 1Gb MP3 which I currently have and it works fine for me.

not a fanatic, just a retailer ;)
You'd be surprised how much of my time when I work there is taken up with stuff like this.
I'm simply positive about it because there really isn't a con for these things. Simply comes down to what people want.

And there is just no reason to ahve so few of songs Xenon :p
Plus, the price point for going from 1g to 10g is annoying. Much less from say 10g to 30g or to 60g. The number of $ you pay for each mb of memory drastically goes down the higher you get. Just the old "bulk is cheaper" mentality.

[ExpectDeath]

I am really getting sold to the Nano
-Color Screen
-Price
-Performance
-I have no need for the memory of the iPod Photo

As for the Cons
-Screen (plan to get screen covers)
-Scratches and Breaking (hard case)

[Phate]

Mega,

I have been wondering what pod casts are, what are they, and do they have a purpose? Mine is just full of nothing int eh podcast section... How do i fill it and whats the points of it?

Edit:

Expect Death, stay away from the nano, get a video ipod, its a better value, nona brake, I would imagin you would loose one quickly because its soo small. Go with the 30 gig video.

[Xenon]

I have about 1000 songs on my computer Meg, just I listen to about 400 of them, but I can't be bothered to put them on my MP3 and they won't all fit anyways. So I just my favourites of the favourites.
Yes I do notice the higher memory the less you pay per Mb, which isn't in fact a bad deal, but normally all you would need such a high memory object is if you are some one like a singer or in a band and need to put recordings and things like that on there, otherwise all that memory unused so it makes it a waste of 100-200 or so bucks and for what?

[ExpectDeath]

Phate...

PodCast=Radio


Info on PodCasts...
http://www.apple.com/itunes/podcasts/

[Megabyte]

Personally, I can see your mentality Xenon. My normal iPod which sits in my car is only about half full. I just don't need anything more on it. And really, a good number of people I help out with these things don't use much of the space. But when it comes down to paying $150 for a 1g setup, or $300 for a 30g...well, its just a numbers game. What they want over what they think is worth it. With the prolification of video now though, you'll start to see more of that memory taken up.

Again, jsut comes down to preference and need. If someone only enjoys a few songs and bands out there, they don't want a large variety or song base. Some people have more generalized tastes in music and want that variety. My sister has an ipod mini full of ONLY country music (gag me). I have mostly jazz, techno, and classical on my car one. My carry around one though has a full variety of just about everything (except country and rap ;))

Mega,

I have been wondering what pod casts are, what are they, and do they have a purpose? Mine is just full of nothing int eh podcast section... How do i fill it and whats the points of it?

Really, its just another type of media to dl onto your ipod/itunes instead of just music.

Podcasts are this year's add on to the iTunes setup. Originally is was just like having recorded radio shows and such that people could dl from iTunes online site and load onto their iPods.

Now with the prolification of the video iPods a lot of these casts have taken on a video format. So now its basically like dl'ng a TV show episode. The content levels are still pretty limited, but you can get most things that you want.

Right now I mostly follow 1up.com's ones, TWiT, and dl.tv all of which you can find on the iTunes site.

[Hellblazer]

I have about 1000 songs on my computer Meg, just I listen to about 400 of them, but I can't be bothered to put them on my MP3 and they won't all fit anyways. So I just my favourites of the favourites.
Yes I do notice the higher memory the less you pay per Mb, which isn't in fact a bad deal, but normally all you would need such a high memory object is if you are some one like a singer or in a band and need to put recordings and things like that on there, otherwise all that memory unused so it makes it a waste of 100-200 or so bucks and for what?
You have about 600 songs just sitting in your iTunes library? Can I have the metal ones?:p

[Xenon]

Yea, I have itunes and I use windows media for my mp3's
I have 1091 songs in my itunes library and I listen to about 400-450 of them. I have about 5 metal songs out of the lot.
It's mainly Rap, hip-hop, uk garage, bits of techno, R&B and drum n bass.

[Hellblazer]

Wow. I've never actually seen someone with that many songs, but they only listen to half of them. It's strange, but to each his own...

[Phate]

I listen to over 5,000 songs

There's a ton of music out there, its not all about the one song you liek by that one artist, I download every song I can byt he artist I like, and you'd be suprised how many more songs you would fall in love with :-)

Here's a lil fact from my iTunes. I uploaded my iPod today, and it tells you have many times a certain song has played, and for the past week I listened to one song over 200 times. It's a fabulous song and I love it. I would have never found it if I did not download all the songs by the artist.

So download as much as you can, before the government outlaws it completely!

[Hellblazer]

So download as much as you can, before the government outlaws it completely!I don't think they can outlaw iTunes downloads because you have to pay for them.

[Phate]

I download my music from Bearshare... and most peopel use kazaa or limewire (free downloading)

[Hellblazer]

I download my music from Bearshare... and most peopel use kazaa or limewire (free downloading)
That free stuff could definitely be outlawed.

[Jolly Rancher]

I've had a mini for about a year, and have about 200 songs just from cd's. I find these pretty handy, in school, they make the time go by nicely, theres nothing like listening to music while having to do school work ;)

[TheBlazedAce]

I agree their advertising is amazing and obviously points to their great success. But when a product is overpriced, that's that. I know that creative (zen) and iRiver both have mp3 players that work just as well, both come with carrying cases of their own and you can use any program to move files onto them. I don't know about the ipod, but you can put any file on them just as if they're a removable hardrive.

Biggest ownage that the zen has over ipod: 24 hour battery life. I can bring this thing into my work in the summer sometimes over 3 days in a row straight without recharging it again. Last time I checked the mini has what, 5 hours (I could definitly be wrong on this, someone else said 12 hours in the thread, I don't know, so don't get frustrated).

Zens are by far more durable. I don't know the last time I talked to someone who had a zen who complained about it. Their warranty policy is outstanding, as are most creative products (I hope you realize I like creative a lot by now). Yet I can't even count how many times I've heard of problems with apple. Yes, they have a warranty policy, so that every time it breaks for no apparent reason they'll replace it. Doesn't that get annoying? My sister bought an ipod mini that stopped working after 2 weeks. They went to the store and they obviously gave her a new one, but mentioned they're "surprised" there are no dents or scratch marks anywhere. Sorry for all you apple lovers out there, but personally, I hate apple.

I'm mostly just angry that people think the ipod is so amazing, when they have nothing better to offer over their competitors. They only market well, which is fine. I just hope people know that.

[Noda]

i wish i had a 60 gig ipod.

i really dont know how anyone can deal with a 1 gig'r i mena after a week my 20 was full, and i only had about half the songs that i wanted.

it fills up real fast, spec if u have live albus(i only had 3850 songs, but it filled with whole 20 gig)

[Megabyte]

I agree their advertising is amazing and obviously points to their great success. But when a product is overpriced, that's that. I know that creative (zen) and iRiver both have mp3 players that work just as well, both come with carrying cases of their own and you can use any program to move files onto them. I don't know about the ipod, but you can put any file on them just as if they're a removable hardrive.

Biggest ownage that the zen has over ipod: 24 hour battery life. I can bring this thing into my work in the summer sometimes over 3 days in a row straight without recharging it again. Last time I checked the mini has what, 5 hours (I could definitly be wrong on this, someone else said 12 hours in the thread, I don't know, so don't get frustrated).

Zens are by far more durable. I don't know the last time I talked to someone who had a zen who complained about it. Their warranty policy is outstanding, as are most creative products (I hope you realize I like creative a lot by now). Yet I can't even count how many times I've heard of problems with apple. Yes, they have a warranty policy, so that every time it breaks for no apparent reason they'll replace it. Doesn't that get annoying? My sister bought an ipod mini that stopped working after 2 weeks. They went to the store and they obviously gave her a new one, but mentioned they're "surprised" there are no dents or scratch marks anywhere. Sorry for all you apple lovers out there, but personally, I hate apple.

I'm mostly just angry that people think the ipod is so amazing, when they have nothing better to offer over their competitors. They only market well, which is fine. I just hope people know that.
Weee, I get to do more comparisons, because along with the iPods we do sell the Zen modls as well

Expensive, yes, overpriced, not really. Apple is a name brand, and just like anything else, you pay for the brand. Whether you decide its worth it or not is up to you.

Outside programs can make use of the iPods, you don't specifically need iTunes, so this isn't really a benefit for creative's setup over Apple's. Just about all your media devices function as portable harddrives as well, iPods included. I've actually used my iPod as a bootable hd for OSX :D

Battery life is changing, rapidly I might add. My old iPod (10gig 3g model) has about 8 hour battery life. My current carry 'round one, with some special adjustments I've learned, has about 30 hours (plus 18 more from a portable battery pack I keep in my laptop bag). Most of your modern models are about 12 hours though (havn't tested the Nano on this yet, so full size models only ). The big thing about iPod batteries as compared to Zen's are the life time of the battery. The model's we use in our store are basically charged up, used up, recharged, etc, nonstop 365 days a year. Our store Zen's have had to get sent back for new battery setups for them (about 8 months in) =/ the iPods are still on their original battery (18 months now). I've read that they can be used non-stop for 5 years, but I think that number is a bit exageratted (especially as they havn't even been around for 5 yrs ;)).

Durability...sorry, gonna chalk yours to personal experience. My baby has survived UPS wherehouse work, shipments, god knows how many drops and kicks. I'm very tough on my electronics. User errors DO happen (though almost eveyrone who brings either in claiming error it takes me about 5 minutes to figure out its just user stupidity). I'd say that both are about equal, as I can count on one hand the number of iPods and Zen's I've had come back from interface error. I WILL admit that the mini had some issues, however...they don't make the mini anymore so it's not really an applicable comparison.

You also forgot to mention ease of use :) iPods are basically idiot proof as they are set to automatically update themselves to exactly what your iTunes library is (obviously you can set it to manual updates as well). This is a key factor for many people, because quite honestly many people are stupid. I actually made decent money last year offering services of CD ripping to ipods. ppl brought me their MP3 players and what songs they wanted loaded (or laptop computer) and I loaded it up for them, charging based on the number of songs. Its such a simple system, yet people couldn't manage to do it in a surprising number of cases.

There are some GREAT alternatives out there. iPods are simply the most proliferic, and its not an undeserved record. Personal preference aside, I've yet to see a player that just had this massive advantage over any other. The biggest areas are just price, useage, options, and interface. You set which one is your highest priority and work from there.

[mantis33]

Does anyone have the new iPod Touch? I want it.

[Scorpionz]

I <3 it.

[Excaliber]

Two of my friends have them. They are pretty much in love with them...

[-57-]

My friend has an iPhone, has had it for a while..

And personally, if you're going to spend that much on an iPod, just get the iPhone... it's well, nothing short of amazing

[rainblade]

I'm getting the iPod touch for Christmas. I can't wait.

:)

[Ignition]

The gen. before this new gen.'s nano was the best.

The touch iPod is for people who cant afford an iPhone.

[rainblade]

The gen. before this new gen.'s nano was the best.

The touch iPod is for people who cant afford an iPhone.

That's a rather asinine assumption.

[Kyir]

The gen. before this new gen.'s nano was the best.

The touch iPod is for people who cant afford an iPhone.

Its for people who know that the iPhone is piece of crap and so are you.

[mantis33]

Its for people who know that the iPhone is piece of crap and so are you.

:)

What he said!

[_Darkness_]

I am getting an iPhone soon hopefully.

[rabbi]

I only have an IPod nano, 2 gig :( its soooooo damn small. Im selling it and putting the money i get from it towards an IPhone:P

[cs_zero]

zune > pod...
:ninja:

[Kyir]

I only have an IPod nano, 2 gig :( its soooooo damn small. Im selling it and putting the money i get from it towards an IPhone:P

Its for people who know that the iPhone is piece of crap and so are you.

I rest my case.

[Unforgottner]

I have an iPhone AND a hott russian babe. I text her on it while showing the Exorcist to my younger cousins.

[Kyir]

I have an iPhone AND a hott russian babe. I text her on it while showing the Exorcist to my younger cousins.

Too bad you can't use your 360 now :(