Rating: 
Summary: Great little gadget!
Review: I bought the 5Gb iPod about 6 months ago (when the price dropped upon introduction of the 10 and 20 Gb versions). I can't believe I waited so long! It's changed the way I listen to music: 1. My original intention was to take it walking and running with earphones. For this it works great. Very small and light; no skipping; simple controls that can be handled without any fuss; and the playlists make it easy to adapt to any mood. 2. At home, I plug it into my stereo to play at high volume. I've found that I never even use the CD player anymore! Again, the flexibility of the playlists are perfect for any situation in which you don't just want to listen to an album straight through -- e.g. hours and hours of party music without changing CD. 3. In the car, I use the iPod with an iRock FM transmitter. It's a little kludgy, but I don't have a cassette so that option is out. Anyhow, the hours and hours of music is much better than my 6-CD changer for any distance driving. I use a Mac at home and work, so I often update the music through the iTunes software, which works seamlessly and intuitively. My only regret now is that I think I need more storage space! So I'll probably upgrading to the 20 Gb version in a year or so...
Rating:
Summary: Great little gadget!
Review: I bought the 5Gb iPod about 6 months ago (when the price dropped upon introduction of the 10 and 20 Gb versions). I can't believe I waited so long! It's changed the way I listen to music: 1. My original intention was to take it walking and running with earphones. For this it works great. Very small and light; no skipping; simple controls that can be handled without any fuss; and the playlists make it easy to adapt to any mood. 2. At home, I plug it into my stereo to play at high volume. I've found that I never even use the CD player anymore! Again, the flexibility of the playlists are perfect for any situation in which you don't just want to listen to an album straight through -- e.g. hours and hours of party music without changing CD. 3. In the car, I use the iPod with an iRock FM transmitter. It's a little kludgy, but I don't have a cassette so that option is out. Anyhow, the hours and hours of music is much better than my 6-CD changer for any distance driving. I use a Mac at home and work, so I often update the music through the iTunes software, which works seamlessly and intuitively. My only regret now is that I think I need more storage space! So I'll probably upgrading to the 20 Gb version in a year or so...
Rating: 
Summary: Put some style into your pocket
Review: I put off buying an iPod on grounds of cost, until recent price cuts tempted me again: now I wonder if I should have waited. The iPod is just wonderful! My little iPod has at least four advantages over most other MP3 audio players. First, it's cool - Apple know design, and the iPod just drips with style. Understated classic white and chrome casing, large screen, easy to use controls, minimalist UI. It's a gadget for grown-ups. Secondly, it's big - in storage terms, that is. While some players boast 64Mb of memory, this player has 5Gb. I was able to put the bulk of my CD collection on it. Imagine, no more trying to pick the tunes you need, and deleting old ones. Simply load it up, and carry your collection with you. The 20Gb device would be too large for me: I just don't have that many CDs! Third, it's small. It's tiny in fact, and that means it's easy to carry around with you. Make sure you get a case though - you won't want to drop it, and you also won't want fingerprints from admiring office-mates all over the lovely shiny metal and lucite case. Fourth, it's flexible. It connects to your computer via Firewire, rather than the more common USB connection. That means it's really fast at transferring songs, and it also charges its internal battery at the same time. When it's hooked up to your computer, it's also acting as a miniature hard drive - ideal for quickly taking files from home to work. The iPod also can display the time, a calendar and contacts, so it does the work of a PDA as well. So, yes, it's a pricey little device. Sometimes quality just costs that much more. In the case of the iPod, it's worth paying for (just remember to get that case).
Rating:
Summary: Apple iPod works great!
Review: I read all the reviews on the iPod, from Amazon, CNet, Mac World, etc, prior to buying my iPod. I was particularly concerned with the criticism and problems attributed to the iPod. However, my personal experience with my 5GB iPod, has thus far, proven very positive. I have not experienced any of the problems that the other reviewers cited. It is easy to set-up and use. The sound quality is okay, though this can easily be improved by upgrading the earphones. My only negative comment is that the unit takes too long to charge up (4 hrs).
Rating:
Summary: Excellent +++
Review: My Husband gave me a christmas gift, I love it, its stores around 1000 songs but for me 100 songs are more than enough. Sound quality and overall features are excellent, the only bad part is I still didn't found a good case for IPOD I looked everywhere from Apple store to EBAY but they were not good, but other than that I had no problems till now.I hope this review is helpful.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent +++
Review: My Husband gave me a christmas gift, I love it, its stores around 1000 songs but for me 100 songs are more than enough. Sound quality and overall features are excellent, the only bad part is I still didn't found a good case for IPOD I looked everywhere from Apple store to EBAY but they were not good, but other than that I had no problems till now.I hope this review is helpful.
Rating:
Summary: Great!
Review: The wife got me one of these for Christmas and you can't go wrong. Great interface, simple intuitive controls. If you have a huge music collection or plan on using it as an external hard drive go for the 10 or 20 GB model but I am not even close to filling this 5 GB up. Address Book and iCal updates work great with iSync. It even has a breakout game.
Rating:
Summary: Apple Sets the Gold Standard for MP3 Devices
Review: This particular Apple iPod was one of the first models to come out. Like most techo-gadgets, once you buy them - something better is going to come along within a few months. That is just the way of the world. The nice thing about this gadget is - it still does the job very well for me 1 1/2 years after I purchased it. This is the 5GB iPod. They have discontinued this model in favor of some iPods that hold larger capacity (i.e. 10 GB, 15 GB, 20 GB, and 40 GB) as well as the smaller sized iPod mini (a 4 GB device). I'm hear to say that the 5 GB still does the job and if this is how Apple is going to produce an mp3 device, this is going to set the gold standard. I run my iPod on a Windows XP based PC. At the time, I had to buy a IEEE 1394 FireWard card for my machine. I was more than glad to add this functionality to my PC because now I can hook up other FireWire devices. At this time the Software used to organize music on the iPod is Musicmatch and not iTunes. Again Musicmatch does a great job for me and I continue to use it. There is no synchronization device with this iPod. Just connect it to your Firewire Cable and the PC and Musicmatch software will recognize it. If your Firewire Card supplies power, you will be able to recharge the iPod as it is connected to your PC. This thing is as Apple advertises. Apple Advertised getting about 1000 songs on it. I have ripped most of my CDs in 128 kbps format and have about 600+ songs on it so far. With still about 2GB of free space, I should just reach the 1000 song plateau. If I went to 160 kbps format for all of my songs, I would probably see a substantial reduction in the amount of songs I would be able to store. The 128 kbps format should be just fine. This device never skips. I take it in my car and to the gym and it never skips. I advise buying a car adapter for about $20 that goes into your cassette deck (the one that portable CD players use works just fine) and then you can have your iPOd in the car. The device itself is a nice looking one. There is a jog dial used to navigate the menus. There are plenty of organizations by playlist, album, song, genre, and artist (much of this is configured on the Musicmatch software automatically when you rip your CDs to mp3). It also contains 'extras' for Calandar, Contact, Clock, and a game. The game is actually a version of the old 'Breakout' game. The menus are in standard LCD gray and there is a backlight that can be turned on to see the menu better if needed. A great set of headphones comes with the iPod. It is the type of headphones you right on the outside of the ear and what is nice is they don't fall out of your ear - plus they sound great. You also get a portable charger that only requires the firewire cable. As for the firewire cable, it comes with one as well as an adapter for 4 pin and 6 pin ports. There are three drawbacks I must point out. The first is the back of the player - it scratches very easily. The back is made of shiny metal and you are going to need to get a a case for it otherwise you will get tons of scratches on that surface. This leads into the second drawback - accessories. No case is going to come with it and of course, like with any accessory - you're going to overpay for them. Be careful when shopping for a case, some of them are cheap leather slipcases and you may overpay. Recently I tried to get a car charger and found one at an Apple Retail Store for $13.00, but remember seeing them in CompUSA for $40. The newer iPods are architected very differently and as a result those accessories won't fit this model of the iPod. I still also advise spending the money for a car adapter (mentioned above) that plugs into your cassette deck. The third drawback is the battery. The battery will give you 10 hours continuous play when you first get it. Slowly but surely, you will see that erode over time. I'd say I'm down to 5 hours right now. Although I said the iPod does the job well, this is the one major drawback I've seen over the life of the device. To replace the battery - it is $99.00 from Apple and this is a job you are going to need them to do. With some of the newer iPod models, I know by next year I am going to face a tough decision on whether or not to replace the battery or upgrade my iPod. Another note on the battery is that if your iPod is idle and uncharged for a few days, the battery will lose some of its charge. The plusses clearly outweigh the minuses here. I would give this 5 stars, but the drawbacks make this more of a 4 1/2 star effort. Don't let the drawbacks deter you, but be aware of them - especially the battery issue if you are buying a used one. If you do get this device, you'll be very happy with it.
Rating:
Summary: Apple Sets the Gold Standard for MP3 Devices
Review: This particular Apple iPod was one of the first models to come out. Like most techo-gadgets, once you buy them - something better is going to come along within a few months. That is just the way of the world. The nice thing about this gadget is - it still does the job very well for me 1 1/2 years after I purchased it. This is the 5GB iPod. They have discontinued this model in favor of some iPods that hold larger capacity (i.e. 10 GB, 15 GB, 20 GB, and 40 GB) as well as the smaller sized iPod mini (a 4 GB device). I'm hear to say that the 5 GB still does the job and if this is how Apple is going to produce an mp3 device, this is going to set the gold standard. I run my iPod on a Windows XP based PC. At the time, I had to buy a IEEE 1394 FireWard card for my machine. I was more than glad to add this functionality to my PC because now I can hook up other FireWire devices. At this time the Software used to organize music on the iPod is Musicmatch and not iTunes. Again Musicmatch does a great job for me and I continue to use it. There is no synchronization device with this iPod. Just connect it to your Firewire Cable and the PC and Musicmatch software will recognize it. If your Firewire Card supplies power, you will be able to recharge the iPod as it is connected to your PC. This thing is as Apple advertises. Apple Advertised getting about 1000 songs on it. I have ripped most of my CDs in 128 kbps format and have about 600+ songs on it so far. With still about 2GB of free space, I should just reach the 1000 song plateau. If I went to 160 kbps format for all of my songs, I would probably see a substantial reduction in the amount of songs I would be able to store. The 128 kbps format should be just fine. This device never skips. I take it in my car and to the gym and it never skips. I advise buying a car adapter for about $20 that goes into your cassette deck (the one that portable CD players use works just fine) and then you can have your iPOd in the car. The device itself is a nice looking one. There is a jog dial used to navigate the menus. There are plenty of organizations by playlist, album, song, genre, and artist (much of this is configured on the Musicmatch software automatically when you rip your CDs to mp3). It also contains 'extras' for Calandar, Contact, Clock, and a game. The game is actually a version of the old 'Breakout' game. The menus are in standard LCD gray and there is a backlight that can be turned on to see the menu better if needed. A great set of headphones comes with the iPod. It is the type of headphones you right on the outside of the ear and what is nice is they don't fall out of your ear - plus they sound great. You also get a portable charger that only requires the firewire cable. As for the firewire cable, it comes with one as well as an adapter for 4 pin and 6 pin ports. There are three drawbacks I must point out. The first is the back of the player - it scratches very easily. The back is made of shiny metal and you are going to need to get a a case for it otherwise you will get tons of scratches on that surface. This leads into the second drawback - accessories. No case is going to come with it and of course, like with any accessory - you're going to overpay for them. Be careful when shopping for a case, some of them are cheap leather slipcases and you may overpay. Recently I tried to get a car charger and found one at an Apple Retail Store for $13.00, but remember seeing them in CompUSA for $40. The newer iPods are architected very differently and as a result those accessories won't fit this model of the iPod. I still also advise spending the money for a car adapter (mentioned above) that plugs into your cassette deck. The third drawback is the battery. The battery will give you 10 hours continuous play when you first get it. Slowly but surely, you will see that erode over time. I'd say I'm down to 5 hours right now. Although I said the iPod does the job well, this is the one major drawback I've seen over the life of the device. To replace the battery - it is $99.00 from Apple and this is a job you are going to need them to do. With some of the newer iPod models, I know by next year I am going to face a tough decision on whether or not to replace the battery or upgrade my iPod. Another note on the battery is that if your iPod is idle and uncharged for a few days, the battery will lose some of its charge. The plusses clearly outweigh the minuses here. I would give this 5 stars, but the drawbacks make this more of a 4 1/2 star effort. Don't let the drawbacks deter you, but be aware of them - especially the battery issue if you are buying a used one. If you do get this device, you'll be very happy with it.
Rating:
Summary: An Apple a day - Keeps boredom away!
Review: What an exciting way to listen to music! Is there any other player that makes it this easy to get all your songs on it?
Wouldn't trade it for the world, unless it was to get a 10 or 20 gig one!
| 
