cendant's Full Review: Apple iPod 5th Generation Black (60 GB) MP3 Player
My wife surprised me with an iPod this Christmas. I had been pricing some cheaper MP3 players over the past few months because I wanted something to listen to on my hour or so commute to work. I had an old generic MP3 player that held a total of 16 songs, but I stopped using it a couple of years ago because I would get so bored of those songs and so tired of the hassle of replacing them every few days.
Right out of the package, the video iPod is sleek. She got me the black model which I was extremely happy with. For some reason, I just don't like the white one.
Naturally, the first thing I did was hook the iPod up to my computer with the included USB cord. I was a little disappointed that the machine didn't come with some preloaded songs or videos so I could test it out, but I guess Apple wants to make sure you sign up for ITunes as soon as possible!
It took me a few minutes to download iTunes to my computer, but after I did I was able to download my first song (Rainer Maria's Catastrophe Keeps Us Together if you care) within a minute or so. The iTunes catalog is huge, and I was even able to locate songs by some of the more obscure bands that I listen to.
When I listened to the song, the sound quality was great. The controls were also extremely intuitive, with simple navigation menus for finding your way to the songs that you've saved on your iPod. It took me a minute to figure out that you have to sort of move your finger in a circle around the center button to scroll through menus and change the volume, but once I got the hang of that, it was extremely easy.
My next task was to download a video for the iPod, and instead of spending $9.99 (which is the cost of most movies on iTunes, vs. 99 cents for most songs) for a movie, I downloaded a video PodCast produced by VH1.
The quality of the video blew me away. I expected a fuzzy little screen, but the resolution on this iPod is fantastic. It is small enough that I could see getting pretty annoyed watching an entire 2 hour movie on the tiny screen, but it is big enough and detailed enough that I would be content watching it for up to an hour or so at a time.
I occasionally take 3 hour bus trips, and I am always looking to reduce the weight of the stuff I carry with me. I will definitely bring my iPod instead of my portable DVD player next time I take the bus. The screen on the iPod is much smaller, but if I load a few movies onto it, the total packing size and weight will be about 1/10 of the DVD player and DVDs I used to carry with me.
I downloaded a movie the next day, and it went very smoothly. The only problem is the time involved. I use a cable modem, but even so it took about a half hour to download Good Will Hunting, with its 1.2 Gig file size. In addition, after downloading the movie from iTunes, it took another 15 minutes or so to transfer the file from iTunes to my iPod itself.
The video catalog is less extensive than the song catalog, but I am sure Apple is adding new movies every day so this won't be the situation for long.
The battery life is also great. I haven't done a thorough test of battery life, but I have had it going for as much as 2 hours straight alternating between music and video without needing a recharge. (By the way I didn't realize this before I got it, but the iPod recharges when you plug it in to your computer's USB port.)
I had been resisting the iPod for a long time because of its steep $250 price tag. After having used the device for some time now, I still think it is expensive, but I have found that it delivers more value than I previously thought. If you are the kind of person who would use a device like this every day during your commute, or if you're a frequent flier or some other variety of road warrior, I think the $250 would be a great investment for you. If you're a more casual user, I would just go for a cheaper model like the iPod shuffle for music.
Update: Six Months of Ownership... Now that I've owned my video iPod for six months, I've really run it through the gauntlet and it has come out unscathed. I still highly recommend it for people who would use it frequently, and I have a few more comments/discoveries etc...
First of all, I didn't know that I could download games onto my iPod when I first got it. However, I have since downloaded "Texas Hold Em," which is a fantastic poker game with superb graphics. It's a surprisingly good diversion, and I was even able to find some cheat codes online (just Google them) to let me see the other players cards etc... every now and then. The gameplay and the graphics for Hold Em are great, so I recommend downloading that if you're a games person.
I've also since downloaded a few movies and TV shows. Notably, I am the proud owner of the first episode of Knight Rider (a 2 part episode), Goodwill Hunting, and Enemy of the State with Will Smith. I have been very satisfied with the comfort level of watching the movies on a few airplane flights and long bus rides. The only thing that bugged me a little was on one bus ride when the sun was shining right in my window, it made it a little harder to see the display.
I also recommend that you get a pair of those big cushioned headphones if you're going to be listening to this for an extended period of time on a trip. The ear buds that come with the iPod don't block out enough outside noises (crying babies, plane and bus engines etc...) and you would really have to blast the volume to hear the occasional whispered conversations that come up in movies and TV shows, which will either bug your fellow passengers or make you deaf over the course of a long trip.
The batteries have never died on me, and are more than enough to last through a 2.5 hour movie (but you would not get two movies out of it).
You can buy all kinds of accessories, but I have found them to be very expensive (eg a $50 device that lets you broadcast your ipod to the FM radio in your car) and I've stuck with the basic ipod and have been very happy with it.
It's a little frustrating that you have to have a computer to charge your ipod (unless you buy another one of those accessories to let you charge it in a wall outlet), but I don't consider that a huge deal.
In summary, after six months of use, I still highly recommend this product!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 250 Recommended for: Music Lovers - High Capacity Storage for an Entire Album Collection
All preowned iPods are quality tested and receive a cosmetic check and cleaning an inventory of all components download and play tests product repacka...More at Target
All preowned iPods are quality tested and receive a cosmetic check and cleaning an inventory of all components download and play tests product repacka...More at Target
Stores up to 15,000 songs, 20,000 photos, or 150 hours of video playback 2.5-inch (diagonal) color LCD with LED backlight Up to 14 hours of music play...More at Amazon Marketplace
Stores up to 15,000 songs, 20,000 photos, or 150 hours of video playback 2.5-inch (diagonal) color LCD with LED backlight Up to 14 hours of music play...More at Amazon Marketplace
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