Rating: 
Summary: Turns heads while pleasing your own
Review: Sometimes, when I'm walking around and I see people with CD players, I just have to wonder how they manage. The most amazing thing about this device is the size. Not just the size of the iPod itself, which is a lot less than half the size of other MP3 players that hold the same amount, but the amount of space it saves you in terms of CDs. Have you ever seen one of those CD towers with around 60-70 CDs in them? You know, the ones that are as tall as a bookshelf? How would you like to carry that around in your backpack at school or in your pocket on the street? I think carrying this thing around, which happens to be the size of a deck of cards and holds even more than those CD towers, is slightly preferrable. The next best thing about the iPod is the batteries. This thing goes for 8-10 hours without quitting. That is the same amount of time as a CD player, and twice as long as other multi-GB mp3 players. In addition to that, you never need to buy batteries again. Just plug the iPod into the wall at night and you've got another 10 hours of music when you wake up. That'll work even if you only sleep for 3 hours a night like me! So this thing is saving both space and money (batteries)! The third thing about this is how well it turns heads. Sometimes I try to hide this thing when I take it out, because strangers will literally come up to me and ask me "is that an iPod?" and want to play with the buttons and stuff. Sometimes, it gets a little annoying. In these cases, the size comes in handy because its very easy to hide while you are using it. But if your in the mood to turn some heads, just put this thing on your lap and play. There are tons of other great things about this. The interface is beautiful... sometimes, I just stare at the screen while a song is playing, or turn on the backlight for fun. It takes 10 minutes to fill the entire thing, meaning that if you ever get tired of the songs you put on it, you can have them replaced in the snap of a finger. But it all comes down to this; when you buy this, you will never need another music player again. If you have a Mac, go buy this. The money you save on batteries and future music players will more than make up for the ... price tag.
Rating: 
Summary: A breakthrough product, but we want more!
Review: The iPod is hands-down the best portable music player ever made. With a few tweaks by Apple, however, it could be the best gadget ever made (Read on). First, the original iPod is a breakthrough, not because it plays MP3s, not because of its long-lasting rechargeable battery, not because it holds 1,000 songs or 5 MBs of data. It's because it's all of these things in a 6.5-ounce package (lighter than my cell phone) with ULTRA-fast FIREWIRE. Try loading 1,000 songs onto a USB device and your computer will be whirring away all night. The iPod does it in 10 minutes. That's 100 CDs, man. (Or, with the new 10MB iPod, 2,000 songs or 200 CDs). The iPod also has a brilliantly simple and elegant scrolling wheel that is as intuitive as a squirt gun. Pull the trigger, press a button, you're listening to Pearl Jam. Now, despite the fact that this is undeniably the biggest breakthrough in portable music since the original Walkman, the iPod misses a couple of opportunities to MULTIPLY its value with a few small tweaks. For starters, the iPod's value would increase dramatically if it could RECORD. I would ditch my Minidisc recorder that I use for my dayjob as a reporter in an instant if I could record to the iPod instead (MP3 encoding would be sweet, too..can you imagine what folks would pay for a 6.5 ounce gadget that could record 100 hours of digital audio?). I sincerely hope Apple is already working on the recording feature. Next, and perhaps even more important, would be a camera-docking feature. How many times have you been on a vacation to Europe or somesuch with your digital camera, and shelled out a small fortune for measly 64 MB or 128 MB flash cards? How much do you think professional digital photographers would pay for a 5GB or 10GB flash card?... You don't think they'd snatch up a fleet of iPods for docking their cameras if they could? You're darn right they would. (And professional digital photography, especially at newspapers, is one area where Apple is a clear leader). Hopefully Apple is talking to the Canon folks who make the superior digital ELPH as we speak. This feature would be a perfect fit with iPhoto, just as the iPod is a perfect fit now with iTunes. Can you just imagine, instant Firewire syncing of all your images? It would be nice also if they added a color TFT screen option to view the photos, but perhaps that's just wishful thinking. And, speaking of wishful thinking, how about a video-docking feature? 5GB is about the same as one DVD (4.7GB), so why not have an iPod docking feature for digital video cameras? Get easy syncing with iMovie and burn it with iDVD. Lots of folks also see potential for the iPod to morph into a PDA. Already, Apple has added a software patch that allows you to download Palm or Outlook contacts. I personally don't see a need for taking that too far. The iPod is the best music player ever. With a few tweaks, it has the potential to be the best audio recorder ever and the best camera docking solution ever. It will never be the best PDA ever, so why try? Once again, kudos to Apple, but I only give this four stars because the iPod can be so much more, if only the folks at Cupertino don't blow it. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Wow
Review: Thats about all I can say. This iPod is beyond awesome. It is expensive, but its build quality, features, and performance are at the pinnacle of the mp3 player market. Helps to make those waits in line a little easier. Spent 1 hour and 20 minutes at the post office standing in line yesterday and listening to the tunes in my pocket made the wait a lot easier. Apple's claim of 10 hour charge, means just that.. 10 hours of use. I can listen to it all day (or most of the day) and still have battery life remaining when I get home. Recharges to 75% power in an hour, 100% in three hours. I highly, highly recommend this product. My only regret is that I didn't wait until Christmas and asked for this as a gift. If you have a firewire mac i would buy this. If you are considering a mac vs PC computer purchase in the coming weeks - I'd go mac just for this player.
Rating:
Summary: iPod vs Creative Labs
Review: I own both the 20 Gig Creative Labs and the Apple iPod. The iPod is vastly superior. A few points of comparison 1) Data I/O: iPod Fire Wire vs Creative Labs USB 2) Battery: iPod 10 hours vs Creative Labs 1.5 hours 3) User Interface: iPod - wins hands down 4) Speed: Time from power up to music. iPod wins. With the Creative Labs you have to create a "play list" in order to listen to music. The process is cumbersome, time consuming and non-intuitive. 5) Bundled software: iTunes is very slick, easy to use and is constantly being upgraded. The version of software which came with my Creative Labs player is adequate and works well enough. I attempted to register the software and was pointed to a web link which suggested that the software is no longer supported. 6) Form Factor: iPod is considerably smaller, lighter and easier to use with one hand. 7) Display: iPod display contains considerably more information than the Creative Labs. 8) Storage Capacity: The Creative Labs has the edge here with 20 Gigabytes vs the 10 Gigs available with the new iPod. I found though that the USB input was so slow that it was a serious impediment to the value of the additional storage capacity. Bottom Line: I have not used my Creative Labs player since I got the iPod. Michael H.
Rating:
Summary: You get what you pay for, it's amazing!
Review: The iPod is the single best MP3 player on earth, for that matter it is the best music player on earth. You can store well over 1,000 songs at CD quality, I have about 1,200 songs on mine. It is also useful to computer people, it has a 5 gigabyte hard drive on it, and can transfer one gigabyte in about 10 minutes or either songs or data. Now what really amazed me was how small it is, now I was aware that it was small, but it is amazingly small (2.43x4.02x0.78) and it weighs only 6.5 ounces about as much as a banana. It is lightning fast, and is easy to read and use. The nice thing is that you can import your iTunes playlists so you can have specific songs for certain times. The songs are organized either by artist, album or song title, which makes it a walk in the park to find the perfect song for the moment. It is wonderful to have a Firewire port because it transfers over 50 times faster then USB, so you can pick up and go in a matter of seconds. The other amazing factor is its battery which is recharged every time you plug it into your computer, and it lasts for an amazingly long time, it took me three days to wear down the battery (I listened to it nonstop). I have to say that one of the best features are the firmware updates, so it can fix any bugs or add new features, with out having to pay for a new iPod. My only small complaint is that the back picks up the finger prints of everyone who touches it, and the front gets small hairline scratches, you can buy a leather cover for the iPod...It blows the competition out of the water!
Rating:
Summary: All Macintosh Owners Must Get One Of These!
Review: So, I pre-ordered my iPod the day this puppy was announced and I am happy I did. I am at 887 songs right now and only 2/3 of the way through my memory, so this stores way more than the 1,000 songs advertised. The ease of use was also a factor in my decision to purchase this - you simply plug it into the Firewire Port and you are ready to roll. This unit comes with the latest iTunes software, which will update your current iTunes playlists and transfer them directly to iPod. The price is sort of steep, but when you consider that you will have over 66 hours of music at your disposal in your car (plug it into a car adaptor used with your car stereo), your office (plug into portable speakers) or using the earphones provided, it's pretty decent value. Once again Apple has come up with an indispensable product that is not only stylish but truly functional.
Rating:
Summary: The best MP3 player out there
Review: Apple has put together the best MP3 player available today. I just received one as a gift and I love this thing. The quality and features are outstanding. I have the 5 gig version which is more than plenty of space for everday MP3 use and file storage.
The IPOD user interface is well thought out and very easy to use. The way IPOD integrates with ITunes is amazing. You can enjoy spending time listing to your music rather than time trying to get the hardware and software working. You simply just plug it in and the IPOD moves over all the music in your library to the player, it's that easy. The only thing I wish was made easier is the ability to remove certain music from Itunes without removing it from Ipod. I read of ways to do that but it should be easier for the every day user. My only other negative is the headphones that come with the unit. For a player that cost as much as the Ipod, the quality and fit of the headphones should be better. Of course, you can always upgrade the headphones but after spending for what the Ipod costs who wants to lay out more money. Other than those two small complaints, this is a increadible piece of equipment. To have a rechargable battery that lasts 10 hours is amazing as well.
Rating:
Summary: Legendary Apple support and product
Review: When I first got this iPod, I accidentally dropped it from about five feet off the ground onto hardwood floors. I was horrified. It was completely intact, but when I walked with it attached to the belt clip, the volume went down on its own. I had broken it. I immediately went to the local Apple Store, explained what happened, and was immediately given a new iPod. No questions asked. Didn't even ask to see a receipt. It was the most pleasant retail experience I have ever had returning a product, almost akin to refund nirvana. Why do I mention this story? Apple's legendary support and service. Plus a [great] MP3 player that will leave your friends drooling and bring you hours of happiness every day. Then I went online to Apple's website and registered it and was given a complimentary one-year subscription to MacWorld. Things just got even better. One of the best purchases I have ever made.
Rating: 
Summary: Not as good as I thought
Review: Okay, I'll admit that apple's iPod is a very nice MP3 player for us mac users...but it had one tremendous flaw. The iPod is terribly fragile, which is not very desirable in a product that's meant for use during activity. My second iPod just broke after falling off my bed and hitting the carpet. The first one broke after falling about [a few] feet from my pocket to the kitchen floor. It would seem to me if one was going to design a sleek product meant for active use, one might want to make it durabe enough to survive the inevitable accidents that will occur. Sure apple will replace it, but how many times would you want to return your iPod for a new one? So yes, its a great MP3 player,...
Rating:
Summary: Best Mother's Day Present Ever!
Review: There are two kinds of people in the world: Those who have an iPod and those who don't know what they're missing. It's small, it;s light, it's very easy to use, and the sound is incredible. I did order a leather case (online) which protects it and has belt clip, etc. You can even use it in a car with a tape player and an adapter (about $20) for a cd player. The battery holds a charge a long time.
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