Rating: 
Summary: Simply AWESOME!
Review: This is great. Now I have two of them. I bought one of the original 5 GB models and thought at that time they were expensive, but soon found out that even the smaller model would keep as many songs as I would ever want for a business flight. I realized the iPod was so much more when I had disk problems on my Macintosh. Luckily I had a backup copy of my OS on it and used it to boot my machine. I was back in the saddle in a minute, and in fact, I accidentally continued to use the iPod as the startup disk for that whole session while working on huge graphics files! The iPod can be used to transfer files from work to home and vice versa. Contacts and calenders make it easy to keep track of things without a PDA (even though you can't add anything without using a PC/Mac). I have used both iPods with an old Pentium III PC and the music transfer is smooth as silk. I did a lot of shopping this time around and the other players out there just don't have what it takes. Either the controls are in goofy places or the software isn't intuitive. While you CAN learn to use anything, why should it be a pain? I now have one of the 20 GB models and can store large presentations on it when I travel, and since they usually have a PC at the other end, I can leave my laptop at home and am much happier not having to lug that around. PC and Mac users will benefit from this device, especially if you are innovative, or you happen to find innovative software which is widely available and cheap or free. One example is: Before my flight, I can download newsbites and sports scores and quickly transfer it to the iPod for a diversion at the airport or on the flight. For the person visiting family, you can bring along the latest digital pics, long lost recipes, etc. and transfer/print them when you get there. (My parents don't do email that well) While the iPod isn't a PDA, it has many of those functions and is a lot more fun. Most importantly, the iPod is an AWESOME and versatile music player.
Rating:
Summary: Awesome.
Review: In what has to be the slickest execution of a new piece of hardware yet, this Apple-linked but PC-compatible product will make all portable music players obsolete in no time flat. I have been following trends in this area for a long time, and my last big MP3 player investment was in a SONICblue Jukebox. Wow, how fast things evolve! That machine, cutting edge 2 years ago, had a 6 gig hard drive and allowed only for rather slow uploading of music through its balky software interface via a USB 1.0. In addition, its organizational abilities were limited.
The iPod is about 1/10 the size of the old Jukebox, absolutely ultra high tech looking, with backlighting that awes and controls that work intuitively, and it uploads easily through a firewire or a USB 2.0 (optional) connection.
Music can be categorized and recalled quickly, with the scroll control making it all simple to access.
Sound quality is awesome, its earbuds light years ahead of anything similar. Capacity is incredible in the 20 gig model, holding 5,000 songs!(the 40 gig unit will hold 10,00 songs!) Where to get that much music? Well, the iTunes webpage will be available to you everytime you synch your iPod, and it offers thousands of CDs for download and archiving (so even were you to lose your iPod, you wouldn't lose access to your music), at an average cost of 99 cents per song. (It would seem the day of napster, et. al. is coming to an end, replaced not by the courts but by better technology. It takes only a few seconds to download a song from iTunes, and the quality is always perfect.) Battery life with the iPod (6 hours when fully charged) is just fine. The (optional only in the 10 gig model, included with the others) cradle will recharge and synch the unit to your PC, but I bought the optional car charger for longer road trips. I also bought the FM transmitter that attaches neatly to the unit and allows you to play the iPod through your stereo sans wires, though the cassette adapter works better for that purpose. A word about Apple's customer service: WOW! I ordered my unit on a Sunday, with the additional $19 for custom engraving on its silver back. In an hour I got an email that my order was being processed, and in 6 hours I got an email that it had shipped! The email included a tracking link, and I watched it move from Taiwan across the world in 2 days. I got it on Tuesday evening (!) and it was factory sealed/shrink wrapped and in fine condition. When I opened it (even the packaging is high tech) and took it out of its protective inner wrapper, I was delighted to find the engraving was there and was done just perfectly.
If delivering a great product and offering perfect service is to be lauded, Apple must be given the highest kudos possible.
Rating:
Summary: Works great with windows
Review: Easy to use interface. Great sound (better than my old portable cd player). I can carry around an enormous amount of music with me in a small device - this has made it a life changer for me. Good battery life (I get 8-10 hours from mine) and it charges quickly. PC owners should know a couple of things about the iPod. First, although you can connect to your PC via USB 2.0, the iPod doesn't charge when connected this way. If you hook up via firewire, it does charge the iPod. This was a good enough reason for me to add a cheap firewire card to my computer. Secondly, forget the MusicMatch software that the iPod ships with. Go to the apple website and download iTunes instead. It's slick and easy to use, and is great for more than the iPod (making playlists to play from your computer, burning mix cd's, ripping cd's, moving between different audio formats).
Rating:
Summary: The Best Out There
Review: the Apple iPod is simply the best MP3 jukebox on the market, combined with the fact that iTumes is available in both Mac and PC, it makes it ridiculously easy to use your iPod. I highly recommend the 20GB model over the others because 1, it comes with all the accessories you are going to want that you don't get with the 10GB model and 2, you will never use 40GB of space. That's just a ridiculous amount of space. my only complaint is that the iPod didn't come with the cable for BOTH firewire and USB. at $400, why not I have to wonder. Even worse, salesmen in stores don't seem to know this either so you buy it, spend a few hours trying to figure out why you can't get your PC to recognize it, only to figure out that you need another $20 cable (PC users anyway). the instruction book doesn't really make that point as clear as it should either. SO... if you are getting this for someone as a gift... be sure to get the extra cable. all in all, Apple again has proven to be innovative and ahead of its time. along with the new G5 computers available with 23" flat panel screens, it's hard to ignore this company.
Rating: 
Summary: Looks great, small size, great sound
Review: The iPod, like all Apple products deserves awards for its designs. The player is the sleekest and most compact hard drive based players on the market. It holds about 5,000 songs that you can organize into different folders and playlists. The sound of the player is great, even with the headphones that it comes with. The bad: The battery life is absolutely horrible. If you're going to spend $400+ on an MP3 player, you would expect more than 4-5 hours of playing time. Using the equalizer and the apple iTrip drops that playing time even further to only 2 hours! The software is generally pretty easy to use, but I would prefer that the iPod be recognized as a portable storage device. Overall: Best looking player on the market and it has quality earphones out of the box. If you're looking for a player to take with you on the go, this is the player for you, but if you want to listen to your MP3s with an FM modulator on the way to work, I suggest you find a player with better battery life such as the Dell Jukebox.
Rating: 
Summary: Just what I needed
Review: I went to a store that had about 10 portable audio players on display. I was immediately sold on the iPod for it's ease of use and functionality. Pros
The dial is awesome - easy to select items.
Selecting music is easy - Accelerated jog is nice.
Sound is very decent - Earbuds are more than adequate with clean sound.
Compact size - Great portability. I even stick it in my short pocket.
Customizable Main Menu - I don't buy individual songs so I have only Albums and playlists displayed. Contacts and Calendar - I use this daily. Alarm and clock are handy for me.
Wired Remote Control - I leave this hooked up to my car stereo.
Games - Solitare is nice when I'm waiting around and there's nothing to look at.
Case with clip - very sturdy Cons
Battery - Drains quickly when downloading songs since the Firewire connnection does not recharge on a PC. Battery life is about 8 hours.
Doesn't play wma files.
iTunes -
1. Auto mode requires you to keep songs on computer, so I use manual mode.
2. Most new music is not worth listening to anyway.
3. Also it would be handy to view what's on my ipod and what I want to add in same window.
4. Can't upload from ipod to compter. You need anapod for that. Overall I find this to be a great solid device with the limited PDA being a good feature. If battery life was around 12 hours it would get 5 stars.
Rating:
Summary: Not Perfect, But Best in its Class
Review: Compare the iPod to any other portable mp3 player in its class (meaning the price and storage capacity). The iPod beats them all in the areas of:
1 Durability (hard drive harder to ruin than on other players)
2 Ease-of-use (intuitive interface)
3 Aesthetic appeal
4 Highest quality audio output (great equalizers)
5 High Quality backlight
6 Useful palm-like organizer (but could be better)
7 Built-in compatibility with iTunes, audible.com, and other audio services Unfortunately, the battery life could be better. I also have a complaint about the syncability of the iPod with multiple computers. The ease-of-use is also a downside, as the iPod does so much for you, if you do something unexpected, like sync with two computers, the results can tend to be unpredictable. Nevertheless, the quality of the sound (it seems like you can get a louder output on the iPod than other players, which may contribute to the shorter, but acceptable, battery life) is better than other players. The size and ergonomics are the best. The price is a little higher, but justifiable considering the benefits. Finally, my recommendation is to understand the player's downfalls before you purchase. Realize that this is a hard drive and even though it is better at standing up to a beating than others do not shake it vigorously, throw it, drop it, or put it in water. Just like any piece of electronics, especially those with precisely moving parts, it will break. I do not normally advocate buying a warranty, but in this case BUY THE LONGEST WARRANTY YOU CAN. If you use your iPod or any other similar player, the chances of you dropping it or it breaking from normal wear-and-tear are high. The warranty will be cheaper than replacing the unit. With all of those warnings etched upon your mind, go ahead and make the purchase. It will drastically increase the personal value of your music collection by making it more useful than ever to you. You will not regret this purchase.
Rating:
Summary: iPods: It's Plusses and Minuses
Review: Here are the reasons why you should buy an iPod:
1. It is compact, you can take your ENTIRE CD collection with you. The iPod slips very easily in your pocket and is pretty light.
2. It is extremely easy to use. Plug it in and it automaticcally all the songs from your computer (iTunes) to your iPod. Very very fast connection and updating. It only takes about 4 seconds to update an average sized album. Amazing huh?
3. It's very very convenient. One thing I really about the iPod is that you can create playlists so your songs can play in a particular order. You can make as many playlists as you like and it'll take like 10 seconds. If you want to burn the songs into a portable CD player, it'll take a good 20 minutes, AND you get worse music quality. You can change your playlists as many times and you want.
4. It's got a lot of other features on it. The games are really fun. You can also put notes, calendar, and contacts on it.
5. The sound is really good. You get equalizer and you can adjust to maximize the quality of music depending on the genre.
6. The design ROCKS!
Some not so great points about the iPod:
1. It scratches very easily and unless you don't mind that, you're gonna have to buy some kind of case for it, which will make it slightly bigger (but some will make it more fashionable).
2. The battery really doesn't last that well compared to some other mp3 players out there. To get the most out of your iPod battery, do not fully discharge it before you recharge it. (There's no memory effect.)Supposedly it lasts 18 months if you listen to 6 hours of music a day. (Still not that bad!)
3. The price is pretty up there... But say, you use it everyday for the next 1.5 years, the iPod costs 75 cents a day. (Referring to the 20GB version). And chances are you ARE gonna use it for more that 1.5 years. Some final words:
Go for it, you really won't regret the purchase. The iPod is a timeless thing. The iPod really opened my eyes to music. I now listen to a wider variety of music. With iTunes, purchasing songs you like can never be easier. Once again, GO FOR IT!! NO REGRETS!!
Rating:
Summary: I love my iPod!!!
Review: I got my Ipod as a sort of anniversary gift. It is the 5th mp3 player that has been in our home. My husband and daughter each have one for their music but I was trying to find one with lots of memory for my audio books and different magazines that I listen to. First my husband bought me a RIO Nitrus 1.5gb. I returned that and told him I would wait for something better. Then he surprised me with a Napster Samsung for my anniversary. It did not support files from Audible.com and was big and bulky. I exchanged it for my iPod and it is the best decision I ever made. It is very simple to use. I really like the i tunes software also. The 20 gb ipod is the best choice I think because it comes with many things that in my opinion you are going to end up bying at some point. I use my ipod in the car mostly so I looked into an fm transmitted and bought one that gave me nothing but trouble. IT was very difficult to use and sounded horrible. I found on the Apple web site the iTrip fm transmitter and it was the best purchase. Now weather at the gym or in my car or even cooking dinner, ear buds and remote or iTrip, I have it all. It is well worth the mony paid for it. When this one dies I will definately get another.
Rating:
Summary: Love it, love it, love it!
Review: My PC only has 10 gig of hardspace and most of that is used by other programs. I was concerned that that would be a problem. Some reviews said that you had to keep everything that's on the iPod in iTunes, meaning I needed 20 gig of disk space on my PC for 20 gigs of space on my iPod. This isn't true at all. You can set up the sync option so that you do it manually. That way you can import songs into iTunes, transfer them to the iPod, then delete them from iTunes. Also, there are replacement batteries. www.pdasmart.com sells them for $55. I love being able to leave all of my CDs behind and just carry my iPod with me everywhere I go. It's a brilliant invention and the best one out there!
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