Rating: 
Summary: Great product, many anoying problems
Review: Overall, I'm very happy that I bought the iPod. It's really light, it's nice looking, the interface is good and the sound is equivalent to or better than a CD player when using regular headphones. And I haven't had any insurmountable problems with MusicMatch or synchronization, although the version MusicMatch that came with my iPod has a bunch of really annoying bugs.The problems are: The thing crashes on me twice a day, and not just when connecting to the (Windows) computer as reported in other posts. Also, there are little pops and breaks between songs, which interrupt the flow of the music. They're not terrible, but definitely noticeable and definitely not there on CD or MD players. I think that for the price, they should eliminate these annoyances. Also, iPod doesn't support MP3PRO. I don't know the licensing costs to use MP3PRO, but it's more than a little suspicious that the best compression available for the iPod is Mac only and supprting MP3PRO would give equivalent compression on a PC. And finally, the play list support is pretty dumb. You can only create one play list on the iPod itself and it's erased every time you connect the iPod to the computer. So, you basically have to create all your play lists in MusicMatch. What's up with that??
Rating: 
Summary: frustrated
Review: Well I spent weeks researching and agonizing over which MP3 jukebox to purchase. I finally decided to go for the highest rated(read most expensive)over space(Nomad III 40GB) and got the IPOD 30GB. That was 10 days ago. I am returning it this morning. I have spent countless hours getting my PC to support and coordinate the SW between MMJ and IPOD. The problems were numerous but the two really stand out. I have a 128 RAM computer and to synch up just 10GB was taking over an hour. The fully charged battery on the IPOD would die before it finished. Without being able to find anywhere a powered firewire card(I have a laptop where I am driving this which does not power the card slots) I split the library into two pieces and tried to do it in batches. This worked great except in the process all of the songs had been duplicated on the hard drive. That took about another two hours to clean up. Then when I finally did get the first batch transferred it came without the artist or album tag and some of the key songs(no pattern) seemed to be missing - about 15%. After spending 80 hours ripping my CD collection - I had reached my limit. I am very disappointed - I read all the horror storied here and figured I could tough it out. Not worth it. The idea of a music server portable is fantastic - it is just not a proven product on the market that I can tell. Finally I want to point out that the Apple folks are not very helpful when it comes to Windows - someone said it here earlier. The IPOD is a Mac product re-engineered backwards by people that clearly never tested it on a average machine at all and for sure the technical support on the phone and in the stores do not know. Save your money and wait 6 months when these products will be better and cheaper and really designed to work in Windows.
Rating:
Summary: State of the Art - If they can get it to work with Windows
Review: First, I am a Windows user, and that I believe, as they say, makes all the difference. I had a 20GB IPOD that I purchased about 3 months ago. I was so enamored with it - it was just awesome (except for MusicMatch which is the worst piece of s/w I've ever worked with) that I purchased the new 30GB model as soon as it came out - and sold my 20GB version to a friend - which turned out to be a major mistake. The new model is nice, but both my wife and I happen to prefer the old design. We like the buttons around the wheel as opposed to above. The new version has some nice features - yes, the smaller size is a plus if you care about shaving a few ounces, but the new touch sensitive capability is a matter of opinion - we prefer the old style. More importantly, I have been working with the 30GB model for over a month and have not been able to get it to work reliably. I have reloaded the s/w, reset the device, and tried more combinations of USB 2.0 and Firewire cards than I can count. I have even exchanged the IPOD unit for a new one. I just can't get it to work reliably. I use very typical hardware with it - Dell Latitude 1GHZ, 1GB RAM and 30GB disk (with an external 40GB Maxtor drive). All quite current and common. I've been in the computer industry for 20 years, and have never seen any product that performs so poorly. Don't get me wrong... I loved the 20GB model and want more than anything to love the new 30GB model, I just can't get it to work reliably - and in the end, that's what its all about. Has anyone else had this problem? Is Apple listening? Apple -you need to get this thing to work reliably with Windows - and please, replace MusicMatch with your own software and support. There's is easily the worst piece of s/w I've ever worked with. I should rate this one star since I can't get it to work reliably, but I am still so enamored with the design - and loved the 20GB model - that I am giving Apple the benefit of the doubt. But please, get it to work.
Rating: 
Summary: Simply the Best
Review: No words... if you're looking for a way to organize and store your music on the go, that's your choice! It's super light and beautiful. An icon of the new digital era.
Rating: 
Summary: Best of Breed
Review: I had a 20GB RCA Lyra before this and there's no comparison, the Lyra was a joke. I had to get my money back for that crappy product. This IPOD is nice but not perfect. The only issues I have with it are the battery life (to be expected of something this size but it's a factor nonetheless), and the unavailability of important accessories that work with the IPOD's firewire port like a car charger, spare charger, and firewire cables to help make up for the lower battery life. I'm told they'll become available in July sometime.
Rating:
Summary: Windows problems all easily bypassed
Review: Like other reviewers, I was excited about the ipod. This initial enthusiasm was tempered when I tried to install on my XP system.
After much web research I found the simple cures and now my ipod is a pleasure. I reinstalled all software with my virus software off after a fresh restart. I sync my whole library with ephpod but use MusicMatch for it's tagging and playlist functions. I got a powered Firewire connector from belkin to allow charging/powering while syncing with my PC. I use Outpod to transfer contacts and calendar data.
Rating:
Summary: Awesome product, if you can get it to work
Review: I purchased the 30 gig Windows iPod the day it hit the market, blissfully unaware of all the problems encountered by owners of previous versions. My experience getting the thing working was a moderate hassle, but I'm happy to say that it's working great now, and it's simply the most incredible little machine! However, I can understand and sympathize with those who have had difficulty getting the software and hardware to interact. Apple definitely is not terribly interested in the concerns of Windows users. As many iPod owners have experienced, the Musicmatch software for Windows is terrible. The software simply won't work with my Gateway PC (later I learned from an Apple drone, as others have pointed out, that the software is only confirmed compatible with Dell and Sony PCs sporting a specific Firewire card). That's unacceptible to advertise a product for the PC without making it crystal clear that it will only work with a limited number of specific machines. Apple should rethink their marketing strategy for Windows users, or figure out how to refine the iPod so it works cleanly with any Windows-based system. However, the freeware product Ephpod came to the rescue. This is a simple to use, easily installed program that interfaces beautifully with the iPod on Windows, and does the job of Musicmatch perfectly. I've now uninstalled Musicmatch, and I've had no problems since. Ephpod manages the transfer of your music library effortlessly and cleanly. Now that the iPod is up and running, I can't imagine how I've lived without it. I have around 700 CDs, and it's incredible to be able to carry around the bulk of my collection on such a small, inconspicuous device. The user interface is nice, it's easy to catalog and access your songs, and it fits right inside your shirt pocket. Simply awesome. I have a few additional nits. First, the earbuds that come with the iPod aren't the greatest soundwise, so other headphones are recommended. Second, the advertised battery life is up to 8 hours, but I find the iPod drains the battery much more quickly. I'm hoping the Belkin battery pack will fix this problem. Third, the iPod consistently requires resetting for various reasons. The manual states that this resets everything to factory settings, but that's never happened to me, every time I reset, all my previous settings remain. Perhaps that's a function of using Ephpod, I'm not sure, but restting has never created issues for me (besides irritation). Finally, the touch pads for scrolling the menus, while nice, are a tad sensitive, and take some time to get used to. However, this is just a small annoyance, and, on balance, the touchpads are pretty slick. I feel the pain of those Windows users that have struggled with iPod, but there is hope, perhaps, for those who persevere. Because of the issues that exist, I've rated iPod only 3 stars, there is lots of room for improvement. But now that I'm up and running, the resultant music-listening experience is definitely 5 stars.
Rating:
Summary: My Second iPod - Is It Really Better?
Review: Yes, I am a spoiled brat. My parents bought me the 20 GB iPod about three months ago and I loved it. However, this was not sufficient to handle my 800 CD collection. Luckily for all the techies in the world, I have indeed used both extensively since I own the old 20 GB and the new 30 GB machines. In this review, I will outline the differences between the first and second generation iPods, some negative and some positive. Keep in mind that the iPod is the ONLY MP3 player on the market in its league. Absolutely no one can match the versatility and disk size of this tiny creation by Apple. This is why it deserves 5 stars no matter how many tiny flaws it has. First of all, upon holding the new iPod, I realized that it has been shrunk quite a bit from its already small size. It is both thinner and smoother around the edges. For those who have not used the first generation iPod, the edges are abrasive on the hand and can chip easily. The new case has a curved, smooth aluminum wrapping around the side, thus eliminating the edge. The buttons have also been moved around and all buttons are now touch-sensitive like the scroll wheel on the old 20 GB model. The new touch sensitive buttons are difficult to locate blindly. Therefore, you cannot easily find the Menu button to hold down to activate the lighting. The new backlit buttons do not do much good if you cannot find where the light button is. With the old models, the buttons were much smoother and easier to locate blindly. Screen resolution seems to be of a lower quality on the new models, which is dismaying considering the lower battery life of a quoted eight hours. One would think that the battery life might be used for something, but it is not for the screen. Let me note, I have NEVER been able to get eight hours battery life on a full charge with the new model. And this makes me ask myself what good a 30 GB hard drive does if you can only play eight CD's worth of music at a time. I am a Windows user at this time although I want to switch to Mac when I leave for college. Until then, I have to use a bootleg software called EphPod to transfer music because of the SLOW transfer speed of MusicMatch Jukebox. Please use EphPod and don't bog your computer down with MusicMatch. The least Apple could do would be to include the full version of the program. If you want to use MMJB, be prepared to pay $20.00 for the full version or you will be stuck with 2x ripping speed. Holistically, 30 GB is a huge hard drive. This is wonderful because I can almost fit all my music on the iPod. Also, the operating system Apple uses on the iPod is easy to use even though it has a bit of a delay when loaded up with music. It even includes Arkanoid and Solitaire if you are bored on line or on the bus. The included headphones are a joke and hurt your ears. The remote control is a waste considering the fact that iPod can fit in your pants pocket or on the included belt clip much easier than in your backpack. Just make sure you don't set it down or it will easily scratch the case. In conclusion, iPod is a wonderful MP3 player with some small flaws. The new models hold massive amounts of music that will keeps you going for weeks without repeating a song. It is a user friendly device that will be stylish for years to come.
Rating:
Summary: Windows user's beware!
Review: The interface and controls on the iPod are well designed and truly a pleasure to use - I cannot take away from those aspects of the product. The two units I purchased (15 and 30 gig) both had hard drive errors. I'm not sure if Apple is as worried about quality in these new incarnations of the iPod. If you are a windows user, beware. The software (MusicMatch JukeBox) that comes with the iPod is full of bugs and can easily bring down the most basic of computers. The software consistently lost contact with the iPod which forced me to have to reset the unit. Bad news.
Rating:
Summary: Buy an ipod and change the way you listen to music
Review: Okay, the Ipod is expensive, but it is worth every penny. A friend said why are you buying a $500 walkman. It's nothing like a walkman -- it can become one of the only ways you listen to music. I had had a rio 500, that at most stored 60 minutes, and usually 40 minutes of music. The 30 GB Ipod stores 20 days of music. 20 DAYS!!! Can you comprehend that? You can basically put 7000 songs, or an entire 200-300 collection in a little box. Forget about shlepping a CD player and cds with you. In fact, I think this is the beginning of not using CDs any more. Besides using the very powerful earphones when you go hiking... or the gym... I plug it into my stereo instead of my 6 cd changer... and used a belkin cassette adapter to use it instead of my 6 cd changer in my car. Why do you need CDs any more, when you can decide what type of music you want on the fly (not while driving). And then, get small speakers and use it in your bedroom too. You can also use it as a portable hard drive... save ALL your documents. ANd it has a sync for contacts and a calendar. Forget about palm... this is easier to sync on the mac than palm (granted you can't change contacts.) It comes in reality to about 27 G, not 30... and I had some trouble syncing to the mac on my imac 500, but the use value overweighs the negative factors. If you have about 5000 songs, I still would pay the extra money for the 30 GB, because you can easily fill it up. And the coolest thing is that it glows in the dark.
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