Rating: 
Summary: Very useful device EVEN if you dont listen to music
Review: First, in my views ipod is a very well designed product with a simple and usable interface. It works very well and I use it with a windows pc. I tried another hard drive based player earlier, but its interface was more cumbersome than ipod and it was bulkier too. I would not buy those memory based mp3 players because swapping things in and out is not what you want to do. You want to store songs/books etc. in one go, not every day. Maybe change once in a while but not every day. A Hard drive is a MUST!
There is no point in my telling about the ipod because so many have already done so. Its a great device. I dont listen to music on my ipod. Then whats the use of buying the ipod? Because I listen to audio books. And ipod is the perfect device for that! You can buy and store as many books as you want and listen to them on your ipod. Ipod automatically remembers the position in each book. Audible.com is where I buy my audio books from (Amazon sells audio books through them too). They have a subscription service using which I get any 2 books that I want each month for a monthly price (not much). Even if we dont have time to read books ourselves, we can listen to them while commuting! I would have never been able to read all these books if I didnt have ipod and audible. Another reason not to go for those memory (non-harddrive) based players is this. Some Books can be very long and you cant store them in a small memory unless you sacrifice quality. Not many mp3 players support audible.com format. Ipod works perfect! now i can listen to books any time I am getting bored or travelling/commuting. Its effortless and wonderful!
Rating: 
Summary: convenient, but not the best
Review: First of all, I have to say that the iPod is definitely more convenient than an everyday CD player. Finally, you can have all your songs in one place, so you don't have to carry around a bulky CD case and search for the CD you want. For someone constantly on the move, like me, that's a blessing. Also, the iPOD is small and light, small enough, in fact, to fit into your pocket, purse, or backpack. The 20GB version also comes with a carry-case that means your iPOD won't be damaged if you put it in your backpack or purse. Now, I use iPod with a Windows PC, so I don't know if my problems only apply to Windows users, but I've found that often, songs won't play, or they'll skip. In my book, this is incredibly annoying. Also, some CD players let you listen to the radio in addition to your own CD's, but with iPod, this is not the case. The other thing is that, if you use the earphones that come with the iPod, be forewarned: they're small and uncomfortable (they start hurting after a while), and they frequently fall out. In short, while the iPod is an extremely convenient device, I don't think it's worth the money. If it were me, I'd go for a reliable CD player, despite having to lug around a bulky CD case, but it's up to you.
Rating:
Summary: IPOD and nothing else
Review: Like to start by saying, I am a PC fan, been that way for the past 10 or so years. But this has changed my mind about apple products. I have the 15 GB, and got this 20 GB for my wife. The 15 GB is a little slimmer. Everything else is the same. So what ever I say in here goes for both. I can't pack my 15 GB yet, and I have alot of music in it. I haven't tried anything else in the mp3 players, but really I don't think I will ever do. The software with it needs a little more work. There are alot of softwares out there for it, and better than the original one. As for the car. I tried the radio transmitters (transmiting to radio channels 88.3, 5, and 7). Bought two, and they both are just as bad. I invested into a modulator, and believe me, it is sooooooo much better. All in all, can't see me listen to music anyother way from now on. A friend of mine had an mp3 player in his car, but can he take his with him to the house, jogging, traveling..... NO, plus he still changes CD in the car (cause he can't fit all'of his music in one CD) :(
Rating: 
Summary: iPod batteries suck
Review: i purchased an ipod and was very disapointed when i found out i had to buy a new cable before being able to use it. also the battery is lithium ion which means that it is practically worth less after 300 charges. that suck
it wouldn't even play for one hour. you can learn how to change your ipod battery at posci.com but mine broke while i was doing it. also the metal on the iPod gets scratched very easily. after the ipod broke i got a new mp3 player. i got the iRiver ihp-120. it has a lithium polymer battery and it last for 3000 charges instead of the puny ipods 300. also the battery last for 16 hours twice as good as the ipod. the iriver hasn't gotten scrachted once. as an even better plus te iriver has a very high quality microphone which is awesome. lastly the irier cost less then the ipod DO NOT GET THE IPOD GET AN IRIVER I SWEAR YOU WILL NOT REGRET IT
Rating: 
Summary: Fabulously designed player...unless you want it to last
Review: I bought my first iPod 5 GB player in Feb. 2002 because i was going away for 5 weeks and didn't want to lug a bunch of CD's around. I loved it immediately, and in the next two years everyone who has come into contact has loved it, both when playing with it at parties where it acted as DJ and in cars where it kept us entertained for hours. So what's the problem? In exactly 2 years since i've owned the iPod, i'm now on my THIRD iPod which yesterday died a death. The first one inexplicably died with a hard disk crash after a mere 8 months. Apparently i didn't qualify for a replacement, but due to company screwups Apple accidentally sent me one anyway. This second one almost immediately started showing battery issues, going from the spec. of 10 hours down to as little as 5 hours of battery life. After 4 months I couldn't take it any more and moved onto my THIRD iPod. In exactly one year, this one has crashed with a hard drive failure and Apple says it will cost me $249 + Shipping to replace it. So the count is 3 iPods in 2 years, with the original costing me $399. I think I think that although the design is genius, nobody at Apple bothered looking at how the thing would work in the real world, for someone who uses it every day. I didn't even drop the thing, i believe it just wore out (well, 2 of them did and the third had the notorious case of the battery hijinks). To summarize, the iPod is a terrific design, and buy it if you plan to use it sparingly. If you actually intend to use it almost every day, you're throwing your money away and will have to replace it fairly quickly. If you don't mind spending $300 or $400 every one to two years, then it's okay. If like me you're outraged at buying a product that fits your needs for 5 years but only lasts barely 2, then go elsewhere.
Rating: 
Summary: Big Price, Cool Case, No WMA Support
Review: It's newer. It's cooler. It's way hip, but it still doesn't support WMA playback leaving Windows users to install new software and rip their music into yet another format. I've checked it out, and have decided that I am saying "No" until the iPod sincerely supports Windows.
Rating:
Summary: An amazing MP3 player!!
Review: It took a lot of research and time until I decided I should buy an iPod. I (and my parents) were getting a bit tired of me leaving my CDs around and I was always to lazy to clean them up so they got scratched or went missing around the house. That and also having a lot of songs led me to want an MP3 player. Not just any old MP3 player though, a really good quality one. One that would work when I needed it to, one that had enough storage space, had a nice interface, wasn't way to expensive, and one that was portable. It took me a while I until I came to the iPod. It had everything I wanted in an MP3 player except it was a bit expensive and I wasn't really sure it would work flawlessly with my Windows PC. After a load of reading up on different players like the Dell Jukebox and the Karma and the Zen, I really thought I'd like to get the iPod. I also went to the Apple Store to try it out. I spent the (money) on the 20 gig iPod because it came with accesories I would need if I got one and the low end model, the 15 gig one didn't come with it. In the end it would have been more expensive if I got the 15 gig one with the accesories. Also keep in mind you need to buy the ... USB2 cable if you do not have firewire. You can charge your iPod while or not while you load songs to it via the AC adapter cord. The other cord is the USB2 plug. I took the iPod home with me, got iTunes for windows, ripped my songs to my hard drive, and was ready for anything. After installing the software the iPod came with, I plugged it in and iTunes loaded up and all 272 of my songs went to the iPod in no time. I also then charged it up to the max and listened to it while I was charging it. At first it sounded a bit scratchy and stuff and then I took it off the dock and it was fine. Then I put it back on the dock and it was fine too. Hasn't done that since. The songs load in no time, the sound quality is amazing, and the interface is perfect. The unit itself is sexy! So yes, the one gripe I bet you have is the price tag. Yeah, I will admit (the price) for 20 gigs is a bit steep compared to the competition but there are advantages. First, the interface of the iPod itself. It is clean and organized and so easy to use its not even funny. The first time I used an iPod was in the Apple Store last summer and I picked it up and in seconds I knew how to get to everything with relative ease. The buttons are touch sensitive and you don't press anything. It's almost like magic and it's amazingly sleek. You won't find many products that make you go wow when all you do is press some buttons. The backlight is also useful and none of the other MP3 players really have the look of the iPod and the feel that make it so easy and great to use. The iPod is also obviously made by Apple and I haven't used or seen any Apple products that have problems and aren't good. The thing works flawlessly with iTunes for Windows and I have had it since Novemeber and it works perfectly. Apple makes quality products and you can tell they made an effort with the iPod. Buying an MP3 might be the last and only portable unit you will need for your music, so why not spend a bit extra to get an easy to use, sexy, and 100% quality product by getting the iPod?
Rating:
Summary: Do your research and you won't have any complaints
Review: This is by far the absolute best MP3 player on the market today...no comparison. I purchased a 5GB several months after they first came out and have since bought a new 15GB. I've read many of the reviews on this site as well as others and am dumbfounded as to the things other users complain about. First off, do your research and don't complain that the iPod doesn't come with a USB 2.0 cord. You should have know that before you made your purchase. It's concerning that people will spend $300-$400 without properly researching the product. Also, to the users who say the iPod should have PDA functionality, such as color/touch screen, wireless capability, etc, think about what you are buying. You're buying an MP3 player, not a PDA,. Get over it and stop complaining. One point that is well made it that MusicMatch does have it's problems when used with the iPod. However, the iPod was designed to work with the Mac. Apple does offers iTunes for free to PC users and since this is Apple's own software it seems to reason it works better with Apple hardware. This to me is intuitive, so why are other people so misinformed. Simply put, this is an extraordinary piece of equipment. Apple is the innovative leader and will remain so in the future, I hope. Otherwise we would be left using inferior PC hardware that would function on Microsoft software, which is pathetic. THANKS APPLE.
Rating:
Summary: You pay for a brand name
Review: Overly expensive
Prohibitive file transfer (one computer only)
Bad battery life
Battery replacement costs at least $50 more
USB/Firewire cable not included
No playlist generation on the fly
Limited file type support
Small screen
Oversensitive/difficult to use touch interface But if you want to spend hundreds for a brand name, be my guest... In the meantime I will go against the status quo happily with my Creative Labs Nomad Jukebox Zen in hand.
Rating:
Summary: Don't settle for second best.
Review: I just upgraded to a 20gb iPod and I love it. I still have my 5gb iPod and I still love it. My 5gb iPod will not go into retirement that quickly because I can get over 8 hours of battery life. That is god send if you are skier like me. For everyday use, the 20gb is the bomb! If you are on the fence of getting one, (like the Nike Commercial), just do it. You will not regret it. And why settle for second best if you can get the best. Don't sell out on yourself. I would have given it 5 stars if the battery life was the same as my 5gb. At least I still have my 5gb for the slopes.
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