Calling all cook geeks... MP3 player help!

[SoulSmilen]

Music technology is not something I've kept up with, so I'm at a loss when it comes to MP3 players and which one is the best fit for someone.

My son is asking for an MP3 player, probably the iPod, for Christmas and I've looked at it and other players, and whoa! I have no clue which way to go. Is there someone here who can give me a quick run-down as to plusses or minuses with the different brands?

Video and music is a definite, so that narrows it down some. The 30gig hard drive is plenty, so I have that narrowed down, too. But what about compatibility, future accessories or features/options that I may not be aware of, audio formats that one plays and the other doesn't that might limit use, etc.

What about mp3 sites.. are there any that are proprietary other than iTunes (or is it even proprietary? LOL).

Accessories.. wow, just soooo lost.

Hellllllllllppppppppppp! Please?

[MAG_Pythons]

iPods stink - royally. all of my friends have them and they always complain about how they lost all their music randomly, that the screen will randomly go blank, videos won't upload, the battery lasts maybe an hour and the list goes on - i don't know of any good video MP3s but my friend has an awesome MP3 that just plays music and i'll ask her what it's called if you want me too

[wvgemini]

The only ones I can give advice on are the Creative Zen mini, Zen Sleek and iPod Video 30G. I had the Zen mini first and it lasted about six months (keep in mind I was in Iraq). I only took it out on a couple of missions, though, and always kept it in my pocket or covered someway. However, when it died, it really died. There was no reloading the firmware, no reformatting the harddrive, nothing.
So, I upgraded to the Zen Sleek (20G). I loved it (at first). But one day, I took it to the pool with me (still in Iraq ... yeah, we had a pool) and it froze up. Okay, fine. I thought. I'll let it cool down and it will be fine. It still won't do anything. I can turn it on but it never gets off of the load screen. And once you turn it on, you have to let the battery run out because it won't go off. I went through their troubleshooting guide on Creative's website and it seems several other people were having the same problems. So I have to send it back. Which is a shame on both because I really liked the extras in the Creative Zen line ... they included an FM radio (I could pick up Kurdish and Iraqi stations ) and a built-in voice recorder (that saved my butt more than once when I had to cover ceremonies over there ... I just turned on the recorder, put it on the podium, and got EVERYTHING I needed for my story)
This is when I broke down and bought an iPod. To tell you the truth, I did not want to buy one at first because it was the "trendy" thing to have. If something gets over commercialized I tend to shy away from it. Anyway, I love the friggin thing I take it to the gym (the 20G Zen Sleek is to bulky/sensitive to strap on your arm and go running ... maybe not a selling point for many, but I have to have my music when I run), play it in my car, plug it in to my home theater system at home ... I even keep pictures from Iraq, photos of my neices and nephews, my bf ... all of it on there.
Okay ... a quick rundown on what I know
Zen mini 5G
+
Voice recorder (10 hours)
FM Radio
Compatible with Windows OS
Don't know about MAC
Plays regular MP3 format
Comes in multiple colors
Can be worn while running/working out
-
Seemed to burn out quickly
Locked up often
On/Off button stopped working
If dropped, the battery pops off
Zen Sleek 20G
+
Voice recorder (10 hours)
FM Radio
Compatible with Windows OS
Don't know about MAC
Plays regular MP3 format
Color screen
-
Burned out really fast
If it overheats, it will probably go out
Bulky
Not recommended for gym or sports use (that is from Creative)
Creative tech support is not very customer friendly
iPod Video 30G
+
Sleek design
Big color screen
Compatible with Windows OS
(and of course MAC)
Comes in two colors
Can be worn while running/working out
Includes games
Holds photos
Plays videos ... including movies and TV shows
A lot of accessories are available for this thing
It's shiny
-
You have to convert all of your music to the iTunes format
Only plays Quicktime videos
Pretty much all accessories have to be purchased separately ...
this includes the charger
You don't get the software in the kit you buy ... but it's a free download

Sorry for the really long post ... hope this helps some.

[SoulSmilen]

Originally Posted by MAG_Pythons

iPods stink - royally. all of my friends have them and they always complain about how they lost all their music randomly, that the screen will randomly go blank, videos won't upload, the battery lasts maybe an hour and the list goes on - i don't know of any good video MP3s but my friend has an awesome MP3 that just plays music and i'll ask her what it's called if you want me too

Thanks for the feedback Mag; hmmm, first I've hear of them being no good. I'll definitely have to look for more opinions on them now. Thanks for the offer on the music player, but I know it will definitely have to be a video player, too.

[SoulSmilen]

Originally Posted by wvgemini

iPod Video 30G
+
Sleek design
Big color screen
Compatible with Windows OS
(and of course MAC)
Comes in two colors
Can be worn while running/working out
Includes games
Holds photos
Plays videos ... including movies and TV shows
A lot of accessories are available for this thing
It's shiny
-
You have to convert all of your music to the iTunes format
Only plays Quicktime videos
Pretty much all accessories have to be purchased separately ...
this includes the charger
You don't get the software in the kit you buy ... but it's a free download

Sorry for the really long post ... hope this helps some.

No apologies needed, this is exactly the kind of info I wanted! Hopefully I'll get more...

Shoot, every accessory for any electronics device has to be purchased separately these days, I'm prepared for that.. lol There are soooo many though; it's hard to decipher what he might need other than the basics. Charger, speakers.. dock?

Converting to iTunes format -- will the files be useless for other MP3 players after that or can they converted again, and will they lose quality?

Yeah I know.. too many questions. I just don't want to go drop 300 - 400 bucks and not know what I'm getting into.

[Sponger05]

I think the Ipod's are great. I have had two myself and all of my family/friends have them and very few have problems. I suggest getting the 20gb at least. That way your child will be able to listen to all the music and see all the videos he/she wants without running out of space!

Also- the docks are great. I bought my girlfriend the JBL one and she loves it and it works great but then got my mom the Bose one and that one is even better- great sound quality, but I believe they run $150-$200....

[MAG_Pythons]

you can drag items from windows media player to iTunes and back - no quality lost .... just a hassel

and iPods get expensive quick lol

[SoulSmilen]

iPods get expensive or KIDS get expensive? LOL

[wvgemini]

Originally Posted by SoulSmilen

There are soooo many though; it's hard to decipher what he might need other than the basics. Charger, speakers.. dock?

The charger block is really the only accessory you will need right off the bat IMO. The iPod (all of them that I know of, actually) can be used with regular speakers ... quality on those is up to you. I haven't found a need for the dock yet. The only oter accessory I love is my car tuner. It charges the iPod and you just find an empty station on the radio and sync the device up with your stereo and it plays through the car's system.

Originally Posted by SoulSmilen

Converting to iTunes format -- will the files be useless for other MP3 players after that or can they converted again, and will they lose quality?

When you convert your existing music, there is an option to convert as a copy. This would probably be your best option if you are planning on using multiple MP3 players. That way, you can have your iTunes and your MP3s.

And along those lines, if you don't want to loose all of your music ... from what I've heard, this happens most often when someone plugs their iPod into a comp that DOES NOT have their music library on it. It's kind of like built-in anti-piracy software. You can bypass it, though. Either when you set up your iPod and iTunes or when you plug your iPod into the comp, there will be an option to automatically or maually update your files ... ALWAYS MANUALLY UPDATE. If not, it will wipe out however many gigs you already have and replace it with whatever files are on that comp.

Originally Posted by SoulSmilen

Yeah I know.. too many questions. I just don't want to go drop 300 - 400 bucks and not know what I'm getting into.

I understand! I did online searches and asked everyone's opinion before I ordered mine. Esp. since when I ordered it, I had no way of returning the thing if I didn't like it.

	In My Opinon IMO = In My Opinion and IMHO = In My Honest Opinion

[SoulSmilen]

Argh, I misspelled 'cool' in the thread title; that is going to bother me to no end! LOL

Can someone fix it for me?????