Which iPod do I need? Too many options - pls help!!

Up_To_Scratch

Hi everyone!

Made the grave mistake of asking for an iPod for Christmas & then realised just how much choice there is & how much they vary in design & price etc - this is a nightmare! Have been reading up on iPods (consumer sites, wiki etc), but the more I read, the more confused I become. :eek:

Anyhoo, hoped that if I gave my specifications over here, someone could point me in the right direction? Any help VERY gratefully received. Ok, so I am looking for my iPod to fulfil the following:

* enable me to put all my CDs in the attic & also OH's CDs (except those I want for the car, lol) to free up room in my lounge & plenty of space for future music, so it needs a good amount of memory, to be able to store & play tracks as albums & a screen so I can sort through them easily

* enable me to say goodbye to a stereo in the lounge, by using it with a docking station with speakers instead. Obviously this means the iPod needs to be the type to be compatible with a docking station (as not all are?) & this docking station also need to be good quality & the type that charges the iPod whilst it sits there

* allow me to store photographs, as kind of a back up to my laptop & USB flash drives (& so I can show off pics of my daughter etc when I'm out and about/visiting relatives)

* be user-friendly to take jogging with me (not that this will EVER happen, but best to have good intentions, methinks)

* not cost the earth, but at the same time be good enough to last me - I don't want to be replacing it anytime in the forseeable future & I know these things have a tendency to date a fair bit (HOW many generations of iPod are there already?!)

* be able to organise my entire life for me: do the shopping, ironing etc (hehehe, just kidding - but wouldn't that be nice?!) :rotfl:


I know I'm probably asking a lot with the above, but please can someone who knows their iPod stuff tell me what I need & where is the best place to buy each item, what with current deals that are on (these also seem to change at a rate of knots!)? In fact, if I just knew which iPod would suit me I could go onto some price comparison sites, but as I stand at the moment I just don't know where to start.

Please help!!

G. x

eyelinerprincess

* enable me to put all my CDs in the attic & also OH's CDs (except those I want for the car, lol) to free up room in my lounge & plenty of space for future music, so it needs a good amount of memory, to be able to store & play tracks as albums & a screen so I can sort through them easily

It depends how many CDs you have to be honest. I have a 30gb, there are...*checks* 3671 songs on it, as well as 65 videos, and I still have 9.83gb left! I calculate you could fit over 4500 songs on it.

* enable me to say goodbye to a stereo in the lounge, by using it with a docking station with speakers instead. Obviously this means the iPod needs to be the type to be compatible with a docking station (as not all are?) & this docking station also need to be good quality & the type that charges the iPod whilst it sits there

I personally wouldn't buy the type that charges the ipod. The more you charge it, the more the battery life wears down over time, so you'd end up needing to change the battery quicker than if you didn't charge it all the time. You can buy some battery operated speakers, which are pretty good, from a tenner! I got mine for a fiver and I wouldn't trade it for a fancy docking station.
If you are intent on buying a docking station, though, I'm sure I saw somewhere (Currys? I think it was the one that Edith Bowman advertises) a free docking station with selected ipods.

* allow me to store photographs, as kind of a back up to my laptop & USB flash drives (& so I can show off pics of my daughter etc when I'm out and about/visiting relatives)

Any video ipod can store pictures and display them on the screen, and all ipods can act as flash drives, I've used mine to store numerous documents, you just need to plug it into a computer that has the ipod software installed

* be user-friendly to take jogging with me (not that this will EVER happen, but best to have good intentions, methinks)

I've found mine to be pretty sturdy, but you can buy a holder to attach to your clothes when you're out and about pretty cheaply

* not cost the earth, but at the same time be good enough to last me - I don't want to be replacing it anytime in the forseeable future & I know these things have a tendency to date a fair bit (HOW many generations of iPod are there already?!)

I've found they last pretty well, and the generation thing is just adding whistles and bells to them. As for price, it's just a matter of shopping around to see what the best deal is.

* be able to organise my entire life for me: do the shopping, ironing etc (hehehe, just kidding - but wouldn't that be nice?!) :rotfl:

You can add text documents to remind you to do things, but the rest is up to you, I'm afraid.

[Deleted User]

Just to answer the question - it sounds like an 80gb Ipod Classic will suit you. The only thing you should avoid is jogging - it's got a Hard disk in it and won't like you shaking it a lot. You can pick these up for about 150 : http://www.play.com/Electronics/Electronics/4-/3476065/New-Apple-iPod-Classic-80GB/Product.html

Cheapest i've seen is Dixons tax free at the airport (135)

You can put a calendar on it and phone numbers, but you can't edit it from the ipod.

Just remember that all the ipod accessories are a bit expensive and you'll probably want a plug charger (they need charging via a PC otherwise.. i personally use a dock to charge it), a case, itrip (transmits music by FM so it'll play on your car stereo)

Up_To_Scratch

Hi eyelinerprincess

Thanks for the quick reply & opinions... throws up a new set of questions though, hope you don't mind? [*blushes*]

Memory: you say you have a 30GB iPod, but the newer models (the nano & the touch, for example) seem to only come in 4, 8 & 16GB hard drive memory, which would suggest they can store much less. So what do you do about that - do you know if these newer models take a memory card instead? As it goes, OH & I haven't got that many CDs compared to some (probably 80-100 between us), but thousands of photographs & this increases by the day! Obviously want plenty of room for new CDs in the future too.

Docking station: I did want a docking station rather than plug in speakers, just so as to be able to use it like a stereo & for it to look like a stereo in the lounge (this is the main place we will use it), but I understand what you say about battery life. I guess what I was looking for was a docking station that would allow me to play music from the iPod off the mains power, rather then running off the battery power & me having to take it off the docking station to charge it 'cos the battery's died. Does that make sense?

Charging: I have heard tell of people having to charge their iPod through the USB port on their PC? Am I right to assume that you can also charge them through the mains? & if so, do all models come with a mains charger, or is this something else I need to buy?

iPod software: Do I take it this comes in the box with the iPod on a disc? & I have a PC, not an Apple/Mac, so are all compatible with Windows?

You say the generations are just adding "whistles and bells", but I can't really grasp what these are! Also trying to see the main differences between the models (classic, nano & touch - I can see the shuffle has no video screen).

Thanks again,

G.

Up_To_Scratch

ringo_24601 wrote: »

Just to answer the question - it sounds like an 80gb Ipod Classic will suit you. The only thing you should avoid is jogging - it's got a Hard disk in it and won't like you shaking it a lot. You can pick these up for about 150 : http://www.play.com/Electronics/Electronics/4-/3476065/New-Apple-iPod-Classic-80GB/Product.html

Cheapest i've seen is Dixons tax free at the airport (135)

You can put a calendar on it and phone numbers, but you can't edit it from the ipod.

Just remember that all the ipod accessories are a bit expensive and you'll probably want a plug charger (they need charging via a PC otherwise.. i personally use a dock to charge it), a case, itrip (transmits music by FM so it'll play on your car stereo)

Thanks for that. Very interesting to hear that you can put phone numbers on it too - great backup for my mobile phone book. Do iPods have Bluetooth? Would ideally like to be able to do some editing from the iPod itself, rather than having to link up to my laptop, which model would allow me to do that please? I've also put some more info above (in my reply to eyelinerprincess) if that helps!

Thanks for your patience, I know I'm pretty ignorant when it comes to these, but I'm known for loving my gadgets (once I get the hang of them, that is!:o ) :rotfl:

[Deleted User]

Ipod's don't have bluetooth, but i believe you can plug in a bluetooth transmitter (to use with bluetooth headphones)

No model will allow you to update the phone details or calendar.

Here are the current models available:
Shuffle (1gb) - v small, no screen
Nano (4gb / 8gb) small, plays video
Classic (80gb / 160gb) larger, plays video, large memory
Touch (8gb / 16gb) larger, touch screen, wifi (browses internet when connected), plays video

The Classic has a hard disk in it (moving parts) and the rest use solid state memory (no moving parts). One day in the near future you'll see a Classic with solid state memory, perhaps in the coming year.

New Ipods do not come with a mains charger or software provided - you've got to download Itunes yourself. I have this Ipod dock/speaker set for the kitchen and I use it to charge my ipod:

http://www.richersounds.co.uk/showproduct.php?cda=showproduct&pid=KENS-SX2000

The battery lasts quite a while - i watch TV shows on mine (Downloaded from the net or ripped from a DVD) on the train in the morning/evening and listen to it during the day while i work. It's not run out of batteries on me and i usually recharge it every other day.

I have about 1000 photos on my Ipod, you have 2 options when storing them - store as backup or store as display.. it will shrink them down if you're just using for display. I don't want to fill mine up with photos so it's display only for me. There are cheaper external hard disk alternatives for storing them, and that's what i use.

Up_To_Scratch

Hi ringo_24601 & thanks for your replies.

Think I'm starting to get clearer on these now (about time - lol). As I suspected, I definitely have no use for a Shuffle, so options are drawn down to a Nano, Classic or Touch (although Touch strikes me as a bit steep). Which model do you have?

Likely then, that I'll choose a:

8GB Nano (which I understand is available for £117.45)
80GB Classic (which I understand is available for £147.74)
8GB Touch (which seem to be about £185)

My question therefore is, what is the advantage of the Nano or Touch over the Classic (as it seems quite mad that the Classic offers a massive 80GB, whereas the others are 8GB for a similar price)?

Also, is there a huge difference in the size & therefore portability? & are they all compatible with docking stations, like the one you mention? & do you have to buy a specific docking station for the model you have? Or are the stations generally able to accommodate any model? Sorry, too many questions, I'm sure, but I'm getting there - promise!! x

eyelinerprincess

Memory: you say you have a 30GB iPod, but the newer models (the nano & the touch, for example) seem to only come in 4, 8 & 16GB hard drive memory, which would suggest they can store much less. So what do you do about that - do you know if these newer models take a memory card instead? As it goes, OH & I haven't got that many CDs compared to some (probably 80-100 between us), but thousands of photographs & this increases by the day! Obviously want plenty of room for new CDs in the future too.

There's no way to add extra memory onto the ipod, the size of memory is what you have bought in the beginning. Plus bear in mind that the screen on the nano would be a lot smaller than say, the screen on the classic.

Docking station: I did want a docking station rather than plug in speakers, just so as to be able to use it like a stereo & for it to look like a stereo in the lounge (this is the main place we will use it), but I understand what you say about battery life. I guess what I was looking for was a docking station that would allow me to play music from the iPod off the mains power, rather then running off the battery power & me having to take it off the docking station to charge it 'cos the battery's died. Does that make sense?

That's what the normal docking stations use, but that was just my 2c, that the battery life will be shorter with a docking station rather than battery operated speakers. From what you want, you'd be better going for a docking station, although I personally would never use one.

Charging: I have heard tell of people having to charge their iPod through the USB port on their PC? Am I right to assume that you can also charge them through the mains? & if so, do all models come with a mains charger, or is this something else I need to buy?

My newest ipod (old one sustained water damage) didn't come with a mains charger, but my old one did. I don't know what models do come with a charger, but if you were to buy a docking station, this would charge the ipod too.

iPod software: Do I take it this comes in the box with the iPod on a disc? & I have a PC, not an Apple/Mac, so are all compatible with Windows?

I think it all comes now either on disc or you have to download it from the apple site. There are updates all the time, though, so I would suggest downloading the latest version of itunes from the itunes site and just installing the ipod software.

You say the generations are just adding "whistles and bells", but I can't really grasp what these are! Also trying to see the main differences between the models (classic, nano & touch - I can see the shuffle has no video screen).

My first ipod had no colour screen, no way to play videos or put photos on, it was 3rd generation. As the generations have gone on, they've added the stuff that you'd like but don't really need from an mp3 player (colour screen, displaying album artwork, photos, videos, bluetooth etc etc etc.)

[Deleted User]

First - i have an 80gb Classic (white). I've had it since October and have used it nearly every day since. The back is a little scratched but the screen is still perfect and the front is too.

Things to remember - 'solid state memory' is like a USB key memory.. very small but still fairly expensive. Hard disk memory is larger (physically) but pound per gb cheaper for space. The classic is bigger because it's got a compact hard disk inside it. The others are smaller because solid state memory takes up a lot less space.

The classic is actually really thin, my mobile phone is thicker. However, i wouldn't want to take it running/the gym

So, the nano advantages? It can be shook around more, it's smaller, it's cheaper (but not pound per gb)

The touch - well, that's the fancy next gen. It's got wifi and web browsing. A nice big touch screen also, so great for viewing your photos. However, it's 16gb max at the moment and comes at a premium because it's new. Expect these capacities to hit 32gb and above by the end of the year.

Personally, I decided that since I've got 35gb of music on my PC, i needed an 80gb Classic and for 160 quid, it was better value than any other competator. It's all about how you plan to use it really and what you want to spend.

They come with adaptors so you can use the ipod docks with the difference devices.. little plastic slips that help them fit the space.

Up_To_Scratch

ringo_24601 wrote: »

Things to remember - 'solid state memory' is like a USB key memory.. very small but still fairly expensive. Hard disk memory is larger (physically) but pound per gb cheaper for space. The classic is bigger because it's got a compact hard disk inside it. The others are smaller because solid state memory takes up a lot less space.
want to spend.
&
They come with adaptors so you can use the ipod docks with the difference devices.. little plastic slips that help them fit the space.

Thank you - now all starts to become clear! :j Think next step will be to go in a shop & have a play with the Classic and the Nano (shame, but not sure the budget will stretch to a Touch & like we've said the memory's not that great for the price anyway).

ckerrd

Silly question perhaps - but does it have to be an ipod?

If you don't intend to use it as a personal mp3 player you could whack all the CDs onto a hard drive and them use something like this to listen to them in the house.

Or there are plenty of other non-Apple mp3 players on the market