OT: iThings

cjcp

I'm considering buying my first ever iPod. They're a lot more expensive than walkmans, aren't they?

The Nano looks about right for the job of sitting on the turbo or riding around RP. But...

how long do these things last? Will this gadget give up the ghost after a year? And do they stop working in the winter because it's a bit chilly?

dcurzon

i received an ipod touch as a leaving gift from work recently. Its cool. has WiFi so can surf web, check emails etc etc etc.

I'm probs going to sell it soon to fund something else tho

MonkeyMonster

if you can, source a 3rd generation nano - 8gb and very small. Battery life is good tbh. Half the size of the latest gen

http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1353#ipodnano3

you can use winamp to sync it and not need itunes at all.

Gussio

I have an iPod classic with more space on it than I will ever need. Doesn't get used much, other than for travelling. Also have an iPod shuffle which cost around £50 and has 4Gb of space. Weighs about as much as a 50p piece and gets used much more regularly.

Craggers

I tried out a nano and a sony walkman in the shop....went for the walkman as the sound quality was noticeably better, plus it has FM radio and is 16gb compared to the 8gb nano which was more expensive. The walkman's earphones are good quality and have even withstood a drop in the bath! Had it a year now and never missed a beat.

lost_in_thought

MonkeyMonster wrote:

if you can, source a 3rd generation nano - 8gb and very small. Battery life is good tbh. Half the size of the latest gen

http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1353#ipodnano3

you can use winamp to sync it and not need itunes at all.

+1 for the 3rd generation nano.

I waited ages before buying an ipod as I didn't want some whacking great thing to carry around, and suspected the screens would improve. I got the 3rd gen nano and love it, it's brilliant. I have a fair bit of video on it - all of Smack The Pony for example - and while I'll admit that it's lucky I'm blessed with excellent eyesight, I can happily watch it on the little widescreen screen.

It's lasted me a couple of years thus far. Metal case, so pretty hardwearing.

EDIT: 2nd generation shuffle is also a good bet. On the 3rd generation one they took it upon themselves to move the controls to the headphone cable, which is damn irritating!

Clever Pun

yeah, from my experience a nano will sort you out perfectly, last for ages and good battery life

8-16gb will get you all the music you want on it. stick with itunes it's much easier, ignore the mask breather

I've got a classic with 120gb and it's nearly full...

_Brun_

iRack

georgee

Check what your phone can do first of all, might not be the fashionable option but my work Blackberry works well as an ipod.

lost_in_thought

georgee wrote:

Check what your phone can do first of all, might not be the fashionable option but my work Blackberry works well as an ipod.

True, however a lot of the time this can have a very detrimental effect on battery life.

cee

might I suggest a sony product rather than the apple one...

http://www.sony.co.uk/product/nws-s-series/nwz-s639f

much better sound quality than the apple offerings, much better headphones in the box, nice and small, but plenty of storage space for choons and video if you fancy.

best of all....you don't need to use itunes....just drag and drop the files on and it analyses everything and sorts it out for you.

Also, the shuffle channels are really good. really really good!

lost_in_thought

I don't think you always need to use itunes with an ipod... I know I don't!

However, itunes is a very easy to use and well-thought-out tool for managing mp3s. Just remember you don't have to buy stuff from the itunes shop, which is a) a rip-off and b) DRM-tastic.

Gussio

lost_in_thought wrote:

EDIT: 2nd generation shuffle is also a good bet. On the 3rd generation one they took it upon themselves to move the controls to the headphone cable, which is damn irritating!

Agreed - the headphone control thing is annoying because it means you can't replace the crappy apple phones with something better.

Dog Breath

Why become an iPod fashion victim. There's plenty of good stuff out there that gets consistently better reviews than iPods.

Have a look at Creative Zen.

DB

cjcp

cee wrote:

might I suggest a sony product rather than the apple one...

http://www.sony.co.uk/product/nws-s-series/nwz-s639f

much better sound quality than the apple offerings, much better headphones in the box, nice and small, but plenty of storage space for choons and video if you fancy.

best of all....you don't need to use itunes....just drag and drop the files on and it analyses everything and sorts it out for you.

Also, the shuffle channels are really good. really really good!

Thanks, all.

@cee - the Sony looks good. Where do you drag and drop from? Your PC? :oops:

@Georgee - I used my BB a couple of years ago, but it would just freeze for some reason. I also need something called Roxxio :?: to transfer music. It was a right balls-ache.

@DB - will check that range out. Cheers.

prawny

If you're only after 8gb there's tons of choice, take your time and enjoy being a tech nerd

I've got an iPod classic but that's mainly because there's not much choice over 80gb. If I was buying a smaller one now I'd get a Creative Zen with wifi, just because it's handy.

waddlie

I have had a 2nd Gen Ipod Nano for 3 1/2 years now and it's still going strong. It took a shitload of abuse when I commuted on the tube for 2 years without ever giving me grief.

Before that I had a Creative Zen Micro. The headphone jack broke after 4 months. They sent me another one. The jack broke on that too. Put me off Creative products for ever...

Fireblade96

My slightly different suggestion - for something to use on the turbo
Samsung U5
http://reviews.cnet.com/mp3-players/samsung-u5/4505-6490_7-33659633.html?tag=mncol;lst

Small, cheap, charges and synchs over USB so no charger/dock required.
I got the GF one and she loves it.

I've got a 2G iPod and it's still going strong, so no plans to upgrade until it breaks.

nicklouse

i had a look at lots of music players, but then decided that i did not want to carry one and a phone.

yep got a iPhone, does all i need and many things i dont. still finding things it can do 2 years later.

soundninjauk

lost_in_thought wrote:

I don't think you always need to use itunes with an ipod... I know I don't!

However, itunes is a very easy to use and well-thought-out tool for managing mp3s. Just remember you don't have to buy stuff from the itunes shop, which is a) a rip-off and b) DRM-tastic.

Another vote for the iPod Nano. I had (have) a 2nd gen version since 2006ish and that thing was indestructible.

iTunes is also pretty good I find, and I'm actually quite a big fan of the store when it comes to buying singles I've heard off the radio and rare things when the physical disc can be hard to find. It is now also DRM free, so long as you have software capable of playing AAC files.

I recently acquired an iPhone however, so that's what I'm using these days (Runkeeper and no music on the bike, Runkeeper with music when I'm running).

SimonAH

+1 on gen3 nano.

I've also gone up to iPhone recently, just bought B.iCycle cycle computer ap to run on it - bloody brilliant at a fiver.

All I've got to do now is source a good handlebar mount (and not do any more crashing :oops: )

pangolin

Sandisk do some good music players, I had the previous version of the Sansa that lasted me over 2 years with no issues.

http://www.sandisk.com/consumer-products/music-player

antikythera

Still have my 1st generation nano and its going strong. Although its been relegated to gym bag duties because its only got 4GB. But after 4 four years not so much as a blip.

If you are after hi fidelity then it wouldn't be a first choice, but your talking about a trainer or on the road (HHhmmm... :roll:). So unless you intend to use it in a way/place that means you can tell the difference... Meh.

Comes down to other priorities and reliabilty is a good start and the iPood has a good record

outofbreath2

Dog Breath wrote:

Why become an iPod fashion victim. There's plenty of good stuff out there that gets consistently better reviews than iPods.

Have a look at Creative Zen.

DB

+1

More memory, less money if I recall rightly.

Boy Lard

mmm, I have a problem with anything marked with an apple these days. I think there are better products in nearly every line of what they make. Apple just have an extremely good marketing department, and they impress people who are more bothered with form rather than function. You pay over the odds for "ok-ish" products. iTunes is bloody aweful. I have banned my wife from plugging her i(diot)Phone into my pc. GGGrrrrrrr.

(I do however work on a very nice G5, which I have to admit is pretty damn nice)

There are lots of different brands of mp3/mp4/wav/wma players, I'd have a look around. Personally I am quite liking the Archos products atm.

http://www.archos.com/home.html?country=gb&lang=en

cee

lost_in_thought wrote:

I don't think you always need to use itunes with an ipod... I know I don't!

However, itunes is a very easy to use and well-thought-out tool for managing mp3s. Just remember you don't have to buy stuff from the itunes shop, which is a) a rip-off and b) DRM-tastic.

Nup...I am pretty sure that without rockboxing your ipod....you need to use itnues to put the music on the player.

OK, there are some other linuxy solutions, but the iplayers all need the database file imported to the player so it knows what its playing.

iTunes is a hideous piece of software on a pc. It is much better on a Mac though...

cee

cjcp wrote:

@cee - the Sony looks good. Where do you drag and drop from? Your PC? :oops:

yip....plug it into a usb port....it appears in your "My Computer" window. Open it....open the folder called "Music", then just drag any mp3's from your computer into that folder.

Once you disconnect the device...it takes a minute or three to look at what is on it...and then you are away.

greg66_tri_v2.0

For purely music, second gen Nano is a neat piece of kit (wiki explain s the versions).

But why not just get an iPhone? Music, video, phone, email, Internet, diary, exchange server compatible....

Biggest pita about making the I- transition is putting your CDs on iTunes.

cjcp

cee wrote:

cjcp wrote:

@cee - the Sony looks good. Where do you drag and drop from? Your PC? :oops:

yip....plug it into a usb port....it appears in your "My Computer" window. Open it....open the folder called "Music", then just drag any mp3's from your computer into that folder.

Once you disconnect the device...it takes a minute or three to look at what is on it...and then you are away.

Got it. Cheers. There is no "spanner" emoticon, is there?

@Greg - have been thinking about that, but I can't get used to that dragging/expanding/turning the screen thing that using an iPhone involves. As you can imagine, I have the p!ss taken out of me by my colleagues at work.

MonkeyMonster

as I said before - you can use winamp to load tunes onto ipods...

cjcp

MonkeyMonster wrote:

as I said before - you can use winamp to load tunes onto ipods...

I have no idea what that is.