Page 1 of help please - i-pod digital music player thingy

Hello everybody

I know there have been previous posts on very similar issues, but my husband is looking for a digital music player thingy. He`s looked on-line at an i-pod and an i-river, but doesn`t really know much about them (nor do I, as I`m sure you can tell!). What he wants is a music player only, that he can load 600+ CDs onto to listen to. He`s unlikely to download tunes from the internet, and doesn`t need a radio. He`s gathered that both have dodgy ear-phones supplied, so is expecting to buy a new set/headphones. Battery life is not a major issue, as he will only be using it for a couple of hours each day. So what does he go for?
He does have a couple of specific questions:
1. When you download CDs, do the album names/track names get downloaded too, or do you have to type them in?
2. How long does it take?
3. Do you have to put the CDs onto your pc first, or can you transfer them direct to the digital music player thingy?

Thanks guys (sorry for such a long post)

katiekins
(because it makes me sound nice and cute)

This item was edited on Tuesday, 2nd November 2004, 12:54

Hi Katie

I own an I-River so can tell you about that.

1) When you download CD`s off the internet they will have the tracks/names etc downloaded with them. If you burn your CD to the PC it won`t. There are a lot of free databases on the web that will do this for you though, CDEX is one.

2) USB 2 connection is very quick. You are looking at seconds for an album

3) I-River does not require a PC. It has optical/line in port so can be connected direct to your Hi-Fi.

I chose I-river over IPOD because
1) Battery life is better (will he really remember to charge it every day)
2) FM radio
3) Optical out line - I now use my I-river as a digital jukebox via my AV amp
4) It can be connected directly to any PC and recognised as an extra hard drive without any other software. This means it can also be used for data storage

thanks KMac, sounds good. Which model do you have?

katiekins
(because it makes me sound nice and cute)

And I`ll represent the iPod camp! :D

1. When you download CDs, do the album names/track names get downloaded too, or do you have to type them in?

Once the CD is in, if you have an internet connection, iTunes will attempt to look up the info for you, including track names/albums. It`s very, very reliable and works well. iTunes comes with the iPod and works on both Mac and Windows. An iPod will work on either a Mac or Windows.

2. How long does it take?
`Backing` up a typical CD to your PC into iTunes takes between 5~10mins, depending on the speed of your CD/DVD drive. Transferring music from the computer to the iPod takes mere minutes. A typical CD can be transferred in around 10-secs. You can use either USB2.0 or FireWire.

Don`t forget, while the iPod is connected to the computer, the battery will automatically recharge itself via your USB cable on the PC, or via FireWire on the Mac.

3. Do you have to put the CDs onto your pc first, or can you transfer them direct to the digital music player thingy?

Put the CD in, load up iTunes, and select Import, that`s all there is to it. It`ll fetch the track names if your internet connection is open.

There`s a variety of harddrive sizes too to suit budgets. You might opt for an iPod Mini, it`s just as good as the bigger iPods, but has less storage space.

Battery life is pretty good too. Typically around 12-hours for the iPod, or about 8-hours for iPod Mini. It depends if you play the games, use the backlit display, put music onto `random` mode where the harddrive has to spin (and use energy) etc. Generally though, battery life is very good.

If you buy an iPod at the Apple Online Store, you can get free laser engraving, for the time being.

Don`t forget, the iPod isn`t just a music player, if you use a Mac, it`ll sync your calendar and address book too and can be used as a portable harddrive (and has built-in games too). Oh, and, in my opinion, it`s the nicest looking portable music player out there. :-)

iPod at Apple

HTH!

Anil
___________________________________________________
Anil Khedun
Reviewer, DVD Reviewer
The UK`s BIGGEST Online DVD Magazine!

This item was edited on Wednesday, 3rd November 2004, 21:46

He seems to be veering towards iPod. He is thinking of the 4th gen iPod 40GB as he`s seen one that a guy at his work has, and liked the look of it. He`s seen the free engraving but isn`t bothered. The U2 iPod looks very good, but he wants more than 20GB as we have 600+ CDs. Cheapest place appears to be Amazon, unless anyone knows any different? Our local Curry`s superstore is re-opening on Saturday after a refit, so we thought we might pop in and see if they have any special offers (I wouldn`t normally touch them with a barge pole, but you never know!)
I`m just jealous, as I`m the gadget freak in this house, and I won`t have one! (I only live 5 minutes walk from work, so don`t need one)
I want a new toy!

katiekins
(because it makes me sound nice and cute)