iPod = iHappy

As I write this, I am on using of the greatest gadgets I have ever used, my 20GB Apple iPod. It started out with the 'gee factor' (as in "Gee, that looks like a swell thing to own"), but quickly went up the scale to the Cool Item That I Want. It skipped, Yes, I'm a Tech Geek But I Still Want It and went straight to Wife, This Is the Xmas Present To End All Xmas Presents. Wily woman that she is, though, she tried to convince me that I really didn't need an iPod, and nearly had me convinced that I would be better served with a new camera lens, or other similarly cool tech gift. But in the end, I decided that I would have to have it, particularly when she told me that although I didn't need one, she picked one up for our son, because it seemed like a cool gift for him. (Did I mention that she is part Evil?).

Nevertheless, on Xmas morning, the wrapping came off and I had my new toy, my iPod, the purveyor of music for times endless. Although I had to wait to go play with it, when the relatives had left, I shot downstairs to charge this bad boy up and get used to it. And to think, she thought I would never use it.

[ • what is an iPOD? • ]
To those just returning from that deserted island in the Pacific (or Kansas), an iPod is the market-leading digital music player out there. Digital music is usually synonomous with MP3s, which are musical files which have been compressed into a fraction of their original size off of a CD (where they are either .WAV or .CDA files). You lose some sound quality, but most of that is barely noticable in exchange for a great reduction in size (say a 128MB song down to a 4.5MB song). With the iPod, you can have copies of your favorite songs and listen to them in much the same way you would have listened to your CD Walkman or even a mixed tape on the original walkman. The big difference - instead of a couple dozen songs, you can have a couple thousand sounds at your fingertips.

[ • learning CURVE • ]
If anything, the iPod is incredibly easy to learn to use. I unpacked mine - the iPod, a USB cord to connect to my computer, a power cord to connect to an outlet, some earphones and an installation CD - and went to work. I hooked up the iPod to the charger, and it was charged in about an hour. I then went to my computer and hooked it to my computer via the USB cord (fire wire if you are using a Mac), and put in the installation CD. 5 minutes later, I was moving songs from iTunes to the iPod and listening to it.

The instruction manual is fairly basic, but it doesn't have to be an encycolpedia because what you can't figure out just by looking at it can be explained in a paragraph. It took me 3 minutes of reading to find out some less obvious functionality, and less than 10 minutes of using it to get a mostly complete hold on what I gotten from Santa.

[ • that cool iPOD STYLE • ]
The iPod benefits from Apple's great stylistic underpinnings. Although not used widely, there has always been a sense that Apple knew how to make things visually stunning (such as when they released the iMac), and the iPod is no exception. Small enough to fit in your pocket, it comes with a simple interface and an easy-to-use set of buttons. Sit it on your desk, or keep it with you and the soft lines and colors make it a fashion statement in addition to a technical wonder. Mine is a soft white color with a chrome back, and is just cool-looking in addition to functional.

[ • let the MUSIC PLAY • ]
The iPod's reputation comes from the fact that it packs a lot of functionality into a small package. While the basic function - playing digital music files - is still the foremost on the list of uses, it does have a few other things going for it. Although I don't really use it for this, you can have a contact list on it, keep a calendar, play games and a lot of other built-in functionality. But music is what it does best.

Using the iPod is simple. You load your songs - either by dragging them to the iPod icon on your desktop or by using iTunes - and walk away. To play them, you use the dial on the front of the iPod to scroll through a menu and select the appropriate functionality. Those familiar with both Macs and Windows will instantly recognize the expanding menus the iPod uses, and will quickly get used to moving their finger around the dial to move between them. On the face of the iPod is a navigator with (clockwise from top) menu, fast forward/next, play/pause and review/previous icons, and a selector button in the middle. Menu starts the menu system, or takes you back/up a level when scrolling through your menu. The forward/review buttons are used when you are playing music to go to the next/previous track or scan through the song. The play/pause button allows you to start playing a song from anywhere in the menu, or pause/play a song currently selected. The center button acts like an enter button, allowing you to select the item highlighted in your menu. Simple, huh?

The menu system is just as easy to navigate. From the main screen, your menu will include several key sections: Music, Extras, Settings, Shuffle Songs, Backlight and (if you have a song loaded) Now Playing. Simply select the appropriate menu to go to the sub-menu for that setting. For example, under MUSIC, you will find the music classified by playlists, artists, albums, songs, genres, composers and audiobooks. This gives you great control at getting to the music you want quickly. Create a playlist of "Favorite Songs" or "Beach Music". Or choose an artist or album or even genre (jazz vs. heavy metal vs. soundtracks), and start playing. Simple. Set up your player to use the shuffle feature to shuffle songs (if you are playing from within the genre, artist or album sections), or by album (from within genre or artist, where it will play each album through in random order).

The iPod is a wonder of modern engineering, and it's both a stylish and useful device. The iPod provides up to 12 hours of playing at a normal volume setting, which while not the best amount is quite a bit considering you can charge it while listening. I've used mine for most of my work day and it seems to hold up very well to being in constant use. The sound quality of the iPod is good, if not great - partially because of the fact that you are playing compressed digital music, partially because this is NOT a high-end audio unit and partially because the included headphones are decent but not fantastic. Other options are available that are said to greatly improve the sound quality.

[ • ipod meet iTUNES • ]
By far the easiest way to manage your music is through the Apple iTunes program that you can download off of your installation disc or from the Apple site. iTunes allows you to manage your music easily, make edits as needed, and sync your iPod almost effortlessly. I love it as an organizer of my music, both what I get from the iTunes site and what I import (although I prefer MusicMatch CD Jukebox¹ to actually rip the music from CDs and work with the ID3 tags².

You use iTunes to sort your music, rate the songs, play them on your computer - and to, of course, add them to your iPod. You can have the two automatically sync up every time you plug your iPod in, or manually do it when you add new stuff. Plus, you can easily create Playlists or Smart Playlists (playlists that grow based on criteria that you pre-select), so that you can have easy access to certain groups of tunes.

The only problem I had at all was with my iTunes installation. The copy I had was several iterations old, and when I tried to install the newer version from the CD, I ran into installation conflicts that wouldn't allow me to install it properly. Luckily, I just uninstalled everything and started from scratch and had no more problems.

[ • why you WANT AN IPOD • ]
Anyone who loves music would love these, whether you a Mac afficianado or not. The interface is better than most of the rivals, and it's small and stylish to boot. Although larger than the iPod mini's, it's still small enough to carry with you with a minimal amount of fuss. It's great for people who spend a lot of time on the road or outside their home (college kids, people who commute via train, etc.). It's not just for the hip and the tech geek - everyone can take advantage of having their favorite songs with them wherever they go. And it's also great for those who need to block out background news at school, home or work - I use mine at work to keep myself from getting distracted by the clatter around me.

[ • geek STUFF • ]
¹ MusicMatch Jukebox » MusicMatch is my choice for ripping songs from CDs, and ironically for playing MP3s on my computer, although iTunes is making headway in that regard. One of the features that I love about MusicMatch is the CD Database (CDDB) lookup functionality. When I first started organizing my MP3's on iTunes, I noticed how many were missing information and tags, or had completely incorrect ones. While iTunes will help you search for the right information, you have to do it one at a time. MusicMatch, however, will let you query the CDDB with batches of songs - a life-saver when trying to change Sarah McLachlan's "Under a Blackened Sky" to the real name of the song. warning: this review is for a much older version.

² ID3 tags » ID3 tags are the part of an MP3 file that hold the extra information about the song: title, artist, album, track number, genre, notes, album cover, etc. These tags can be edited in numerous ways, including through iTunes and other MP3 playing programs.

MP3 vs. AAC » While MP3 is the gold standard for digital music, Apple does have its own proprietary format, as well. You can load your MP3 files, get the AAC files via conversion or download protected AAC files via iTunes (protected is a relatively liberal term, particularly compared to the RIAA-sponsored version). Which is better? Well it depends on who you ask, actually, although 160-bit MP3 files tend to be the most used. MP3 files are slightly larger than similar bit-rate AAC files, but also sound better at the same bit-rate. In the end, it's a personal choice. I tend to burn my CDs to 160-bit MP3, then import them into iTunes and use the CONVERT tool to make them 160-bit AAC. I still have the MP3, which I then burn to DVD-RW to save in case I want to create an MP3 disc later.

[ • the FINAL CUT • ]
O' iPod, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways ... well, it's about 2,434 songs and 8.8 GB, so far, and I've barely scratched the surface of my CD collection. I'm not sure that I'll be able to get it all in, but I'll have a good time doing it. I use my iPod all of the time, and the amount of music I can have with me at work, at the gym or even around the house is astounding - I have enough to change the style on a whim, which is great for my spur-of-the-moment mind. The ability to have playlists ready for every mood, or have a genre-based set of songs at my fingertips is something that I can't help but really enjoy.

But it is the iPod's inherent coolness and ease-of-use that makes it so good. 80% market-share can't be all wrong, and in my case, it's not. I have been nothing but happy with my experience with the iPod so far - and I'm sure that you will, too. The only question is how I break it to my wife that I might need to get the 40 or 60GB versions this Xmas...

[ • tech SPECS • ]
Dimensions » 4.1" x 2.4" x 0.57" (l x w x h)
Weight » 5.6 ounces
Display » 2" diagonal LCD screen
Storage » 20GB (about 5,000 songs)
Audio Formats Supported » AAC, Protected AAC (iTunes), MP3, MP3 CBR, Apple Lossless, WAV, AIFF
Frequency Response » 20 - 20,000 Hz
Battery Life » up to 12 hours
Connectivity » USB 2.0 and/or Firewire 400
Charge Time » 4 hours from dead to full (2 hours for 80% fast charge)
Warranty » 1-year limited parts.

[ • related REVIEWS • ]
MusicMatch Jukebox » MusicMatch Jukebox is a great tool for ripping music from your CDs, organizing the ID3 information and even playing the music on your machine - much better than Windows Media Player 10, and no spyware. Plus, if you buy the PRO version, you get lifetime upgrades. warning: this review is for a much older version.