# Review: iPod



## dlookus (Apr 2, 2002)

Model: iPod 5GB
Purchased: December 2001
Usage: Heavy

The iPod is by far the best MP3 Player I've ever used. It has some flaws but for the most part it's hard to complain about it. 

I'll just outline the major aspects of this device with some explaination of my exerience using it.

*Capacity ***** 
5 gigabytes is not nearly enough to fit your entire music collection but is more than sufficient for my needs. Currently my music collection is around 14 GB, but I've found that transferring to the iPod is so fast that I can move huge amounts of music on and off of it without feeling like it's a waste of my time.

*Firewire ****** 
This is my favorite aspect of the iPod. Before I got it, I owned a Nomad IIc. Not only was the capacity terrible, but it took 10 minutes to fill up the measly 92 MB capacity. The iPod fills up in nearly the same amount of time. I haven't actually timed it but on my G4 450 DP it seems like it takes less than a second to transfer each song through iTunes in OSX. This to me is huge. I don't think Apple pushes this aspect of the iPod enough.

*Battery ****** 
This is also very good. I charge the iPod very casually. I typically use the firewire port on the G4 to charge it, and I don't always remember to attach it. It ran out of juice once. It seems as though it can easily go 8 hours without any charging in that time.

*Interface **** 
Apple really builds up the interface on the iPod, but it's far from perfect. many of the things that you're expected to do seem counterintuitive. I still find myself forgetting I'm supposed to push the middle button to make it do something. Also, the menu structure moves from left to right, but you have to push the "Menu" button which is on the top to go to the left.
You can change settings while music is still playing, which is nice, but when it goes back to the current song, hitting "Menu" will cause it to go back to the settings menu where you made the last change. I would prefer if it would go back to the list of the album or playlist you're listening to (This may have changed in the 1.1 update, but I'm not sure)
The scroll wheel works very well, very nice for adjusting volume and moving to a different point in the song (new in 1.1.)

*Sound ***** 
The sound on the iPod is very good. I would prefer a little more bass, but things sound very clear. The ear bud headphones are excellent. They fell out of my ears constantly when I first got it, but doesn't seem to happen anymore(?).

*Case **** 
The iPod is a very nice size. I would keep it in my pants pocket and it was fine. The only problem is that it scratches so easily. The metal scratches the easiest and I think you're being optimistic if you expect to keep yours scratch free. the front also scratches but is not nearly as bad as the back. I find it a bit strange that the firewire port is so exposed, but I haven't had any roblems with it.

*Stability ***** 
I haven't had any crashes since the 1.1 update but it has crashed 3 or 4 times since I had it. The first time it did, I didn't know what to do and I couldn't turn it off. Once I got to a computer that was connected to the web I found out how to reset it (press "Menu" and the Play/Pause button simultaneously for 10 seconds.) This reset seems to be no big deal. None of the files are effected ad the iPod is essentially still the way it was. I'm never happy when it crashes, but it's really no big incovenience.

*Integration with iTunes ***** 
For the most part it works pretty flawlessly with iTunes. Transferring from iTunes to the iPod is simple enough. Playlists tranfer easily as well. The only problem I've run into is that the iPod seems to take over the interface when it connects. I don't use sync my music files on the iPod since my collection is much larger than the iPods capacity. There have been times when I've spent several minutes setting the track numbers for a couple albums only to realize I'm doing this on the iPod and I can't replace the files on the drive with the ones that I've changed. This is very frustrating.

Overall the iPod is still the best. Most MP3 Players are seriously flawwed. At $399 for the 5 GB and $499 for the 10GB it's not for everyone, but for those who commute on mass transit or are frequent flyers, you will never know how you lived without it.


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