iPods

bigmat

So my wife wants a new MP3 to store her music collection on. She has done a bit of research and apparently Apple have cornered the market. She reckons she needs at least 16GB although I reckon 32GB would be better? Any recommendations on which device I need, where the best deals are available, whether there are any decent alternatives that I am currently overlooking?

Cheers

Mat

rolf_f

BigMat wrote:

She has done a bit of research and apparently Apple have cornered the market.

Research isn't looking at the Apple website!

spasypaddy

it depends, best and cheapest bet is a sandisk sansa clip with a 64gb sd card

pitchshifter

Has she got an ipod already? iTunes kind of locks you in. You can't go wrong with an ipod touch or the classic if you're not fussed about the apps.

rubertoe

I'm not convinced you need anything more than 8gb for an ipod/mp3 - that is more than enough music to be getting on with.

Average album 45 minutes - 12ish tracks, my 8gig holds 800 tracks - that is a a lot of music.

bigmat

She has, but it broke (and the one before also broke). And her iPhone also broke. I'm not an Apple fan. She is on Android now so not tied to the brand. All her stuff is saved in iTunes but could easily be obtained elsewhere I think, if there is a realistic alternative. It needs to be non-techy though - I like the waty I can just download, drag and drop with my Android phone. Is that how a Sandisk thing would work?

rubertoe

BigMat wrote:

She has, but it broke (and the one before also broke). And her iPhone also broke. I'm not an Apple fan. She is on Android now so not tied to the brand. All her stuff is saved in iTunes but could easily be obtained elsewhere I think, if there is a realistic alternative. It needs to be non-techy though - I like the waty I can just download, drag and drop with my Android phone. Is that how a Sandisk thing would work?

why cant she just use her phone?

Most phones connect to PC's and you should be able to convert all your music files to whatever the phone software is...

vermin

BigMat wrote:

Is that how a Sandisk thing would work?

Yes, it is. Drag and drop. Nice little gadget - looks decidedly non-flashy and dated (probably won't go 'missing'), but works really well and produces a surprisingly half-decent sound. Has a radio too, which is nice to have.

If she doesn't want to use her phone then have you considered one of the android-based players (Sammy do some and there are other alternatives)? With one of those, she could use a Google Music account to have access to all her music whilst in wifi zones (and easy local caching for when outside wifi). It's easy and super-flexible.

notsoblue

I had to check the date on the post, I figure everyone just uses their phone these days?

If she has an Android phone then she should definitely check out Google Music. It allows you to upload any MP3 music via the website (https://play.google.com/music/) and then you just need to choose what you want kept on your Android phone via the app.

It looks like they're trying to move Google Music into the Spotify direction, but for the moment you can upload whatever you want (limit of 20,000 songs I think) and it works really smoothly.

Much easier than faffing about with cables and stuff for uploading music.

spasypaddy

however you need a good connection and unlimited data...

however what it does allow is you to pin tracks to your phone so it constantly allows you to refresh your playlist

CiB

Neither a big fan or an anti Apple type but it does make me smile whenever someone asks this sort of question just how many responses instantly say 'no get something else instead'. iPods are good, they work, they tie in nicely with a vast music store + library and can do other things, in fact everything that a phone can do except be a phone. That works for a lot of people - I have to cart a works phone around so don't need another (got one anyway for Strava ).

Anyway. there's no need to put every song you own on it; a lot of my albums are good with added dross that can be ignored. Drop your favourites on it, create new lists, swap them about and from time, do what you will. The current gen iPod is v good and certainly keeps CiB Jr entertained with his music, Youtube, internet, games etc. If you're in the Channel Islands pick one up there where the tax is a bit lower.

meanredspider

I'm beginning to think "owning" music is a bit of a dated concept. I'm a Spotify convert. The off-line capability means you can use the music when you want. My favourite game is putting a common word (you, name, tomorrow etc) into the search feature of Spotify and then playing all the songs I like that the search returns - you get a pretty eclectic mix

MickTup

sandisk sansa clip absolute pants sound quality is dire

itboffin

download google music manager for windows or apple upload all her music to google music for free then play it from anywhere pretty much anytime on just about anything, you'll need an internet connection or cache your fav's but given google free space and 20,000 tracks it should work for most people.

FREE man FREE ie more money to spend on bike stuff

roger_merriman

Re the cloud based stuff, do people really never go places with no/poor Internet connections?

In terms of media devices the iPods are lovely, though personally I use the iPhone no need for the latest. But as a standalone player iPod touch is hard to beat.

prawny

I've got a sansaclip+ and it's great, but a right faff for navigating a lot of music. I just use my phone now, playerpro on android is my preferred player. I like ipods, but now phones are so good and so big, I don't want to carry two whopping devices, especially as my ipad goes everywhere now as well.

prawny

roger merriman wrote:

Re the cloud based stuff, do people really never go places with no/poor Internet connections?

In terms of media devices the iPods are lovely, though personally I use the iPhone no need for the latest. But as a standalone player iPod touch is hard to beat.

These city folk have no idea, I can't get a signal at the inlaws house. I wouldn't want to rely on streaming, there's one or two dead spots on my train ride into the city as well.

bigmat

More to the point, what about the car / out and about? A guess a good phone with a decent memory card plus Google music would cover all bases, but she's in a fixed contract for another few months and I need to get her a birthday present like now...

prawny

BigMat wrote:

More to the point, what about the car / out and about? A guess a good phone with a decent memory card plus Google music would cover all bases, but she's in a fixed contract for another few months and I need to get her a birthday present like now...

Ahh, birthday present. Yeah, an engraved pink nano would do the job nicely.

MickTup

prawny wrote:

I've got a sansaclip+ and it's great. What for?

Volume is diabolical if it's windy while walking i can't hear an audio book. Mind ipods volumes not that great. Sony Walkman s are much better if you like your music loud and with bass.

bails87

I use an iPod classic, I like the tactile (is that the right word) feedback from it, e.g. I push a button and feel a click, so I know I've done it right. Useful if it's in a pocket or I'm driving, I certainly wouldn't want to use my phone for music in the car as I'd have to press one button to get the phone out of standby, then look at the screen to put in my unlock code, then look at the phone again to see which bit of the screen has the 'next' button on it. Whereas with the classic it just sits next to the handbrake so I can change the song in half a second without taking my eyes off the road.

I should add that I'm not a huge Apple fan, iTunes in particular is just a hateful bit of software, but the iPod itself does it's job well. The Creative Zen I had beforehand was much better for building a playlist on the go (one button set up to add the current song/album/artist to the now playing list, that's much more faff on an iPod) and putting music on it was a case of drag-and-drop.

ddraver

The only concession to the Apple Machine I have is an ipod classic (and it makes me feel very unclean), Like her when I was researching I could nt find anything that was anything close to as good.

bigmat

Think I might buy her an iPod Nano (not pink) then just get myself a massive memorycard for my phone so at least I can continue to stay well clear of Apple!

meanredspider

I do like Apple hardware. I'm surprised Apple haven't done something with iTunes because it's opus diaboli - just terrible. That's kinda odd given that iPod is now synonymous with a portable music player.

prawny

MickTup wrote:

prawny wrote:

I've got a sansaclip+ and it's great. What for?

Volume is diabolical if it's windy while walking i can't hear an audio book. Mind ipods volumes not that great. Sony Walkman s are much better if you like your music loud and with bass.

Hmm, mine is louder than my iPods. Have you tried setting your location as somewhere non European? I've had mine a bit but I seem to remember you had to do this to avoid the stupid EU volume restrictions. I have to have mine below half volume with my share earphones or it gives me a headache.

MickTup

prawny wrote:

MickTup wrote:

prawny wrote:

I've got a sansaclip+ and it's great. What for?

Volume is diabolical if it's windy while walking i can't hear an audio book. Mind ipods volumes not that great. Sony Walkman s are much better if you like your music loud and with bass.

Hmm, mine is louder than my iPods. Have you tried setting your location as somewhere non European? I've had mine a bit but I seem to remember you had to do this to avoid the stupid EU volume restrictions. I have to have mine below half volume with my share earphones or it gives me a headache.

Will check this when I get home and report back

Ian.B

You can adjust the volume limit in settings, on my current generation nano anyway. IIRC the default setting when new was something less than maximum.

Mikey23

iPod 8 gig with spotify and a pair of sennheiser ear buds...excellent combination

prawny

MickTup wrote:

prawny wrote:

MickTup wrote:

prawny wrote:

I've got a sansaclip+ and it's great. What for?

Volume is diabolical if it's windy while walking i can't hear an audio book. Mind ipods volumes not that great. Sony Walkman s are much better if you like your music loud and with bass.

Hmm, mine is louder than my iPods. Have you tried setting your location as somewhere non European? I've had mine a bit but I seem to remember you had to do this to avoid the stupid EU volume restrictions. I have to have mine below half volume with my share earphones or it gives me a headache.

Will check this when I get home and report back

Just did a quick google, you need to change your region to 'rest of the world'