iPod versus Sony ?

bunnydrumming

I would really like to use my well earned Boots Points (£165's worth so far) to buy an MP3 player. However being a newbie I am now very concerned with good value for money.

I have heard loads of bad press about iPod batteries. I love all the accessories that come with iPods but as i dont want to wast money having to replace the iPod battery which MP3 player should i go for.

Does anyone have good experiences of iPOds or should i avoid. I like the look of sony but have not seen any accessories

LULUBELLE_2

I bought iPod minis, for my 17 year old niece and 11 year old nephew, the Xmas before last. To say they are permanently connected to them would be an understatement :rolleyes: No problems at all, with the batteries or any other part of them! I bought silicone cases for them immediately and they've done an ace job of protecting them. :T

Don't know anyone that's had a Sony, sorry.

YBNB

There will inevitably people who come on to bemoan their iPod experiences.

Here's mine. I saved and saved, and at Christmas 2004, I bought a 20gB iPod. I use it most days each week, for up to 6 hours at a time.

It's got all my record collection on it, plus hundreds of hours of Podcasts I've downloaded for free.

Yes, it was expensive when I bought it, but it's never come close to letting me down yet, it looks stylish, I find the iTunes software a piece of cake to use, and as a result I've no interest in changing brands. When this dies, I'll buy the best replacement iPod I can afford.

Good luck in choosing

Phantom_Flan_Flinger

Can't comment on the Sony either, but at your price range, the most popular choices are the Ipod, the Zen Micro and the IRiver H10.

The issues with the Ipods have more or less been resolved now.

robt_2

Ipod nanos are great - not had any problems with it.

wolfman

I'd go for an iPod.

For me the Sony Network Walkman's battery life is the only thing it really beats the iPod on. I'm not sure how robust it is in comparison to the iPod. The iPod is generally quite robust, but scratches easily which can be annoying.

iPods have the best ergonomics (control method) of any mp3 player. The click wheel is ingenious. They're an iconic symbol and look good (important to some people). They're also well sized and very easy to use.

The main thing I don't like with Sony's is the 3rd party software you have to use (Sonic Stage) to transfer tracks across (it's awful in my opinion as a software developer), and that it converts your mp3's (a perfectly good format) to Sony's ATRAC format when transferring them across.

scheming_gypsy

aren't IPODS a pain in the !!!!!! though having to use ITunes to convert to M4P rather then just copying MP3 and WMA's over?

shopbot

I've got a Creative Zen Micro and been really happy with it.

With a bit of sharp shopping you can pick them up from as little as £79.99.

wolfman

scheming_gypsy wrote:

aren't IPODS a pain in the !!!!!! though having to use ITunes to convert to M4P rather then just copying MP3 and WMA's over?

Nope. Plenty of alternatives. And none require any conversion.

If you fancy paying Anapod is very good.

EphPod is a free alternative. Or even better, use Portable Winamp, with the ml_ipod plugin. That way you never actually have to install any software on a computer to use your iPod, you just run Portable Winamp directly from it and use that.

iPod Shuffles also have Database Builder (google it). It's a 12kb console app that'll build the iTunes Db file for you. You can literally drag 'n' drop the mp3's you want.

It's by no means ideal (drag 'n' drop in Windows Explorer would be), but it's a step closer, and is much better than using Sonic Stage (awful) or iTunes (I find it bloated and prefer Winamp).

wonderfullife_2

Hi
Iriver for me, just drag and drop, no need for any software. I have the H140.
I spotted this one the other day, Creative Zen Touch 20GB MP3 Player, looks pretty good for £129.00
http://www.komplett.co.uk/k/ki.asp?sku=302205&cks=!!!!!!&assoc=5A39DAA7-10EA-4BCF-889D-E46501023430
Although I don't know if boots sell them.

Phantom_Flan_Flinger

If the Boots website is a reflection of what's on offer in store, then you're probably going to go for an Ipod as they don't do the Creative Zen Micro and don't do any IRiver products.

It's mostly Apple products, a few Sony and one or two Philips and Archos.