iPod sucks

66 comments on “iPod sucks”

1. It’s ‘fun’ (don’t get me wrong, the problems you’ve mentioned are NOT fun at all) to read this article and find an iPod advertisement just below your blog in your RSS-feed. What a coincidence!

2. well with the “iPod battery fix” ad, i am pretty impressed with adsense

3. I had the exact same experience, Ed, and even did the battery replacement. Worked for a while, but eventually had the same problem. I’m sure each successive generation is better, but now I’m pissed off! So I moved over to a Nomad + Yahoo Music and I’ve been happy so far.

4. When not in use do you leave the iPod sitting in the PC connected Dock all the time? If so and no matter what claims Apple makes it seems to overcharge the battery and lead to problems like you encountered. I always remove my ClickWheel iPod from Dock after syncing and charging. No problems with battery life here.

   I’m an infrequent Long Island Railroad commuter and need at least 4-6 hours of charge daily.

   I did have a hard disk fail. I have since learned that when not in use it’s a good thing to bring the iPod to the top level menu and slide the “lock” button on top (showing red). That’s the cloisest thing to a iPod shutdown and seems to park the disk and also save the battery charge.

   Hope this helps!

   Great blog!

5. There’s a piece on cnet.com on ipod nightmaers and how to deal with them:
   http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-11292_7-6386351-1.html?tag=cnetfd.ld2

   Gui

6. Like most devices, the iPod has a lithium ion battery. These batteries don’t do well in cold temperatures. The device is only rated down to 32 degrees F (and up to 95 degrees F).

   If it was kept externally while running in 30 degree weather I could easily see the battery dieing very rapidly. Even just being cold can reduce the battery life greatly.

   There is nothing Apple can do about this, either. Your best bet is to keep it insulated against your body.

   I do this with DSLR camera batteries, too, when camping in the cold — otherwise they’ll just die.

   Just my two cents…

   -Shane.

7. Apple lost my loyalty years ago. Now if i could find anyone who was any better I might switch.

8. If i told you you would be holding that iPod Mini 3 years ago, and that it only costs $199 for everything you got for that sum. And then I told you that electronics do no last forever…especially small ones you incorporate into your everyday, indoor and outdoor life…wouldn’t you have bought it anyway?

   Why not look at the cup as half-full 😉

   all the best,

   jh

9. i just lost my ipod and need another option or to buy another one…now i am torn which way to go.

10. I also strongly agree, ipods suck.
    They are horribly produced as far as reliablity/durablity concerns go. However their ease of use and style still make them pretty darn attractive.

    Here are the few things i have learned over the years, 1st and 2nd gen ipods are a waste of time because they had a major design flaw where the ports were soldered on. 1st gen ipod minis similarly had a poor headphone jack design. 4th and 5th gen ipods still seem over priced, thus my strong suggestions in purchasing a new or used ipod would be a 3rd gen ipod (best price/durablity/space etc) and then a 2nd generation ipod mini.

    And probably more importantly, if you decide to fix a broken one, it can be done rather easily, i would strongly sugget ebay for spare parts as they are the cheapest source. And lastly when you do decide to disasseble the ipods i would use http://www.ipodrepairguide.com for disasembly guides to help you with your ipod repair.

11. I was just on my way out for a run, and wouldn’t you know it, my i-pod mini is failing me…..yet again. I’ve lost all of my music on two occassions and had to reinstall the software, the battery has malfunctioned on numerous occassions, and now it appears to be dead. That pesky battery with the exclamation mark has haunted my daily runs and workouts. Depending on the cost to repair, I might do so. However, if the expense is too high, I’m going to abandon it all together and I DEFINITELY will not be replacing it. I’ve been using it less than one year, and while I’ve enjoyed the compact size and variety of music, I won’t miss the nagging question before each workout of “will it bloody work this time”.
    Maybe I’ll just dust off my discman and listen to skipping songs as I jog.

12. I’ve witnessed friends from every corner of the globe buy, repair and replace their iPods over the years. So many complaints, so many repairs. Being the engineer amongst them, they’ve turned to me at some point to help rescue their music libraries, transfer play lists and otherwise deal with bugs on both Windows and OSX platforms. I have been thoroughly unimpressed with iPods and even less so with Apple’s service – and I no longer invest any time whatsoever attempting to “fix” their problems.

    I’ll admit that having all of the 1,000+ CDs in my collection available to me anywhere on demand was alluring – but that allure evaporated when I realized that I keep at most 20-to-30 albums in high rotation. I simply have no need for instant access to all of my music – in fact, I probably haven’t listened to two-thirds of it for half a decade.

    So, for the past two years I’ve been traveling with my Audiovox SMT5600 smart phone – a tiny, tiny phone with a big, big display – essentially a Windows laptop without a bulky keyboard. I’m able to deal with Outlook contacts, Calendar entries, voice notes/dictation, Web browsing and numerous e-mail accounts from anywhere I can get a signal. I haven’t had any problems with hardware, software or wireless service. Well, I did drop my first SMT down my stoop and the display cracked upon street impact. Cingular replaced it for $30, and my entire mobile music library selection of 40+ albums synchronized from my desktop overnight.

    Apple schmapple.

13. The fun gets better. I have been hooked on ipods since purchasing a 2nd generation model shortly after their release. I may have been one of the lucky ones as my old 2nd generation iPod continues to operate after all the use and abuse of 3 years now (although this may also be attributed to the fact that this ipod did sit for a year in the glove compartment of an ex-girlfriend before I was able to track her back down and take the thing back, artificial life extention through inactivity hahah.) Getting back to my point however, I purchased a 5th generation iPod at Christmas. It was time to upgrade to a larger HD. A few days later as I’m searching for an Apple supplier not sold out on cases, my new iPod falls out of my pocket as I stand out of my car. Inspection of the iPod after removal from the thin case that came with it revealed a vertical crack was left through the LCD by the roughly two-foot fall. It would appear the larger screen on the 5th generation ipod comes at the cost of resistance to damage.

    On a related note, Apple’s warranty for 5th generation iPods from their Support site specifically excludes LCD damage from coverage. I look forward to the class-action refund if my experience proves to be as commonplace as I believe it will.

14. someone stole my ipod, and i’m pretty sure apple won’t replace it. any ideas on where to get good, cheap ones? ebay’s lookin pretty good right now..

15. IPODS SUCK,, well Apple in general sucks.. I bought a 5th gen ipod just after christmas, the LCD broke on it about 20 days in, I call Apple, They tell me to send it to them, I do. They send it back saying they wont replace the LCD , even if it was their fault that it was broken they wouldnt of replaced it, and its not like i sat on it or ne thing, it seriously just cracked, So im left here with a $400.00 hard drive that does absolutely nothing, Thanks Apple.

16. I would not want anything from APPLE.
    I have never had good luck with their products. So, I have a patent pending for a kick butt, mp3 player that will seriously compete with the I-pod.
    Coming soon………….

17. right about now, i’m pretty pissed off with apple ipods. not all of Apple though, cause mac computers are good. anyway i’ve gone through about two 20 GB click wheel ipods. i got my first one last last christmas and it lasted for a while until it started chopping up my music and then not completing a song, and then just skipping songs entirely after abou a minute or two of having the screen stuck on the song. then it just wouldn’t open to the menu at all, it would get stuck on the apple logo and then just be like that no matter what i did restart, tried to restore, wouldn’t turn up in itunes. then it didn’t turn on at all even though i know it was charged. anyway had many problems with it when it started to go bad. sent it back to apple to have repairs, got another one back for this last christmas, and it has been working GREAT till now when it started chopping up my music again. being REALLY slow, and just making a lot of clicking sounds. skipping alot of my songs, and then the frowning ipod face which stayed like that for a couple of days. i use a boa stereo thing were you place the ipod in the little dock place and it charges while it plays, and i use it ALOT. since it charges while it’s on it i think charging it too much is affecting my harddrive. because after a few days it let me get into menu, and it was slow for a while then it started playing regular again, but i’m playing it on regular speakers, so tha battery goes down, and it’s playing fine. but i’m still pissed about losing all the shit load of music i used to have on my original ipod. oh well.

    that’s just the problems with mine, i’m not even getting into the crap i had to go through trying to fix my brother’s ipod which by the way, i did. but took a LONG time lots of restores and different tries. and lost ALL of that music.

    Apple ipods also suck because you can’t take off music from the ipod and put it on a computer. and my computer has been crashing often= lose everything in itunes= if i lose all my music on my ipod i don’t have anything to put back on it, can’t even get the music my brother has on his.

    sooooo FRUSTRATING.

18. you guys must learn the ways of creative. i had creative mp3 products since the beginning and they are solid. cheaper, more functional, and way better sound quality. my 30G creative nomad zen xtra cost $140, which is what apple now charges for their 1G nano. creative’s battery is removable (w/o breaking warranty). i love it, you guys should check them out.
    apple may have the best computers, but not the best music players.
    http://subreal403.tripod.com/ipodsuck.htm

19. I came across this blog while searching to see if other people were experiencing similar difficulties with their iPods. I have had a rather bad run with them because of the three in my household, two no longer work, full stop and one is struggling. Mine (40 GB click wheel) began experiencing random locking/pausing after 18 months, my partner’s (Mini) died completely after 12 months –just outside the warranty and my sister’s (shuffle) died completely after 15 months. The battery seems to be the primary contributor in each case though my ipod (40 GB click wheel) also pauses at will sporadically. Once it experiences one of these random pauses (and naturally these random pauses are becoming less sporadic and more consistent), it does not respond to the click wheel so I have to leave it until the battery has run out and then recharge–at which point it works again. Currently, however, the fully charged battery lasts a maximum of about 90 minutes. My partner’s mini began to suffer from fragmented display (so you could not actually read the titles, artists, etc.) and then within about 10 days, its battery went completely dead. The shuffle just died quite suddenly and quickly. Once you have become accustomed to having your whole music catalogue with you wherever you go, its very difficult to go back to the days of a discman 😉 That said, I am loathe to try more iPods and am hoping to find a reliable alternative. Recommendations would be welcome!

    PS–Will be checking out Elaine’s suggestion of Creative Nomad Zen Xtra–Cheers Elaine

20. well…
    i like the mac computers, the iPods are ok, except when they break. i just had my mini’s Hdd break after my friend gave it to me…
    Apple replaced it for free even thought it was out of the warenty by 2 years…

21. just a side note, that was rusty’s suggestion for the creative zen xtra

22. Lets discuss this irrespective of the “space” here. By nature hard drive based players obviously offer larger space. Having said that, I’ll write some questions to help you make your purchasing decision.

    You can read the features above so I will not reiterate them.

    [*]AA (disposeable) battery. Why is that good?
    I don’t like proprietary batteries. They are expensive, and after few months, they are out of production, non supported as companies come up with newer product models. So you’re stuck. Now mp3 players (most of them) have the battery built in. What makes it even worse is that with exception to Creative players, most others are completelye irreplaceable. Ipods too! That is where AA, or AAA batteries come handy. They are found anywhere there is civilization. They are disposeable, cheap!
    Of course this little wonder offers 40+ hours of playtime with just one AA battery. Ipods barely offer 10 hours of playtime. So compare that.

    [*]The music formats.
    Majority of the online music vendors use WMA format. Guess what? Ipods don’t play them. Its because they want to force people to buy from itunes store (true for other Apple products, and Microsof is accuesed of monopoly!). With this Samsung player, you are not bound to a specific vendor. Dump your music in it, regardless of the source, it will start playing. Not to mention Samung player also plays more music formats than ipod.

    [*]Line input.
    Do you have old cassetts? Old records? VHS tapes? Got your favorite songs or any audio on them? Guess what, you can use this player to make mp3s from ANY audio source. Just connect the included cable and press record on the player. You don’t need a computer for this. Line input is not available for Ipods even as an expensive add on.

    [*]Built in mic.
    Need to record your lecture? Capture a moment? Record live concerts or any other events with this feature. Now this is available for ipods. You can get an extra thing to carry for around $40 or more. Then again, Ipods are capable of handling only 1 accessory at a time. You have to remove other add on such as a remote

    [*]Control without seeing?
    Many people buy Ipods just to show off, “hey, look, I’m controlling an Ipod, look at me! Oopss, I forgot I can’t operate it from my pocket! I need to have it in my hands to do everything, except the “hold” switch”. Yah. Of course thats true. This Samsung player, you can operate from your pocekt, change volume, skip songs, on, off, pause basically everything. Obviously you’ll need to look at the menus if you want to change the settings, but it no way requires you to look at it. You can operate it with your eyes closed. Ipods are incapable of being controlled without looking. There is a remote for ipods (another $40 extra) which has 3/4 buttons such as back, forward, volume up and down only!

    [*]Size? Yes it matters.
    Please have a look at the images I have added. You can see for yourself how “small” it is. It comfortably fits in your palm. A bit cube shaped so its easier to hold. Just a little bigger than an AA battery. Its just above 2 inches in height, and little more than a half inch depth.

    [*]Flash? yes please!
    I always prefer flash players to any “hard drive” based players. Sure the space is small, but flash players are more reliable. The reason is, in hard drive players, there are parts moving, spinning and if for any reason they are dropped accidentally, or experiences a big jerk, it is more than likely that the drive data reader (the magnetic head) being displaced. In plain English, your fancy hard drive player won’t play anything any more. This is true for Ipods and any other hard drive player as well. Now flash players on the other hand, shake them with all of your might, nothing will happen, and the music will also be skip-free. Basically flash players are generally VERY stable, solid, not allergic to simple or tough shaking, jerk etc. Unless you break them with a hammer, or drive your car over them, flash players are very sturdy, tough guys.
    By the way, if you don’t believe me, you can try shaking your hard drive player but be WARNED, you might very well damage it parmanently!

    [*]Others things about this player.
    – Body is made of aluminum (2 sides) and plastic (2 sides) (Its one of the VERY few mp3 players that are extremely well built, built to last! Even some newer models from Samsuing are fully made of cheap plastic, which most other players are made of anyway).
    – Portable storage. It comes with both cable and a mini plug so it can be uses as a storage drive. Its plug and play, platform independent. Translation, you can use it at your computer, your friends computer, your secret lovers computer, your boss’s (if you’re allowed) computer etc. Only few hard drive players are plug and play, but most of the flash players are plug and play.
    – FM radio. It wasn’t important for me, but its there. Reception is pretty good and again you can directly record from FM radio without any wires to mp3 format. You can even change the region, if you’re moving outside the US.
    – Advanced SRS, WOW effects, detailed, customizeable equaliser settings, display mode, default volume etc. As it might come as shocking to many, Ipods aren’t the only players that “shuffles” music. Its a common feature that many many players have built in. You can set to normal, repeat 1, repeat all, and of course shuffle all songs in this Samsung player.

    Final Verdict:
    Please don’t give in to the “hype” and just buy an ipod. Do compare the features, prices. Ipods are overrated, overpriced and offers very little for the money you pay for it. So if money doesn’t matter to you, all you care about is how fashionable, how cool it looks, maybe Ipods are for you but if you are a serious, conscious, educated consumer, this Samsung player is a must buy. This is one purchase you will not regret. I’m actually getting a second one too!

23. Cheers Rusty for pointing out my previous erroneous attribution and for the Creative Zen recommendation.

    Regarding Samsung yp posting: I will look into this model as it sounds very promising. My only hesitiation is the storage size, though I am cognisant of the points you raised with regard to the differentials between Flash player and hard drive players so it will be something to consider moving forward.

    Cheers m8

24. both my ipods broke within a 2 months. The file thing showed up, they froze and they shuffled back and forth without me doing anything. The reason is ipods are just worthless crap… sure they are the most famous thing out there but wasn’t the mac computer the most famous thing in the 1990’s. The mac has been outdated because of its technical difficulties and so will the ipod. I suggest anyone that wants a reliable mp3 player get a dell or something. My friend has had her dell for 3 years and it still works like new. Y

25. My Ipod battery died. IT sucks. Now it is starting to skip songs. Im angry! O well.

26. My Ipod battery died. IT sucks. Now it is starting to skip songs. Im angry! O well.

27. My ipod stopped working after 14 months. $300 for something that lasts that long is not worth it. By the way, I purchased it at Worst Buy with a service plan which they fail to honor. Bottom line: Don’t buy from apple-look at all these people whose ipods aren’t working. Also, don’t buy from Best Lie.

28. I dont like I-Pods, I mean you pay for the name! I wont pay extra money just because it says Apple! I have 2 different MP4 players from iAUDIO (COWON AMERICA) and I am extremely satisfied with both! There is no need for any I-Tunes or stuff! If it goes by hardware iAUDIO’s are same if not better than I-Pods, believe me I’ve checked before spending all that money! And whats best is that it is made in Korea, unlike I-Pod’s which are made in China! I hope I could help some people with this information!

29. I don’t understand why the IPOD has gathered so much hype. There are thousands of Mp3 players that are just as good, and better. IPOD has become, basically, the general description for all players. Who wants an mp3 player that you can use with only ONE software/music product (itunes)? Napster is the best. You use a napster compatible player, and with a subscription, the world’s music is your library to take anywhere you and the player go. IPODS are heavily over rated, and nobody seems to realize it except everyone on this page!!!!

30. i really want a mp3 player because they dont seem to cause u as much trouble but can u still use itunes and all the songs u have on it and download it onto a mp3 player? my ipod usally breaks within 6months! then i gotta get a new 1 cuz i got the warenty for the year! but now my batery died and it wont come back on when i try charging it. my ipod keeps me busy and when im in the car i dont wanna listen to crapy music tht my dad puts on! i just dint know if u can take ur ipod downloads and put it on a mp3

31. Ipods really suck!!! I made a terrible mistake and I got an apple ipod. What I am doing now is to pay 140$ for a new ipod hdd which died broken in a few months. From now on I won t even eat an apple in my life 🙂

32. Screw Apple and its stupid iPods. Microsoft will once again DOMINATE Apple as always with the Zune*. Think about it, the main reason people leave Apple, is because Apple simply doesnt care a single bit about thier costomers. Once you buy their stupid products, they try to make you buy more, and more of them. Plus they’re extreemly overpriced. Microsoft does it’s best (especaly with so many costomers) to ensure that you get what you pay for. I havnt to this day seen Microsoft Ads on the Windows enviornment. Throw away the Trashentosh and buy yourself a ThinkPad, or build your own machine.

    *Name subject to change.

33. My $0.02 for the price of iPod:

    1. No radio
    2. No recording
    3. No replaceable battery
    4. No transfer of contents from it back to computer

    Summary = iPod sucks big time

34. Not sure if iPod sucks or not but their warranty definitely sucks. I purchased an iPod online in October 2005 and this thing crashed on me in August 2006. The store refused to even look at it because the mfg date was June 2005 and that is when the warranty started. I think iPod sales have turned Apple to an arrogant company which does not care about its customers any longer. I WOULD NEVER BUY AN APPLE PRODUCT AGAIN!

35. I BOUGHT AN APPLE NANO FOR MY 12 YEAR OLD SON FOR CHRISTMAS LAST YEAR (2005).WE HAD HIS NAME ENGRAVED ON THE BACK.WHEN HE OPENED HIS GIFT HE WAS THRILLED OUT OF HIS MIND. WHILE MY KIDS WERE OPENING THEIR GIFTS I HAD TO CHECK OUT MY SONS COOL GIFT. WHILE LOOKING AT THE ENGRAVING ON THE BACK I NOTICED THAT THERE WAS A HUGE DENT ON THE BACK COVER AND THE HOLD BUTTON HAD JUST FALLEN OFF. I WASN’T TOO WORRIED ABOUT IT BECAUSE WE HAD JUST BOUGHT IT FROM THE APPLE STORE AT GREEN HILLS MALL IN NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE WITH THE EXTENDED WARRANTY I WAS PRETTY SURE THAT IT WOULD BE COVERED….SO I THOUGHT. AFTER COUNTLESS TRIPS TO THE STORE, E-MAILS TO APPLE, SHIPPING, PHONE CALLS AND RARELY BEING ABLE TO TALK TO A LIVE PERSON. I GAVE UP AND BOUGHT HIM A MP3 PLAYER HE LOVES IT AND THERE HAS BEEN NO PROBLEMS. WHO EVER READS THIS POST. BUYER BEWARE, THEIR CUSTOMER SERVICE SUCKS BIG TIME.

    P.S. APPLE NEVER DID A THING EVEN WITH AN EXTENDED WARRANTY

36. ipod sucks…they dont stand behind their warranty!

37. I’ve got a Creative Zen Vision:M and I love it! Much better than an iPoo.

    http://www.creative.com/products/product.asp?category=213&subcategory=214&product=14331

38. I have 2 ipod minis. One I got from someone who was throwing it out because it was broken. I bought a replacement battery for $15 and did the replacement in ten minutes! My other ipod was purchased as an open box special at Best Buy for $50. (6gb mini!!) Know what? They are not worth MY investment, although I spent next to nothing on them. Why? Well Itunes is proprietary and although slick…. a bit of a pain. But the real peave I have is that my ipod minis battery drains while the thing is off! If I charge it all of the time… I will ruin the battery. If I leave it unplugged it will drain in a week. I have earched many forums and I cannot find a fix. Now I did find something I like better. A SONY high capacity mini disk. It has better compression and can hold about 600 – 700 songs. I can maitain the songs on a disc and change disks as needed, so I can alternate between 600+ song collections. And some of the better models have great navigation. They come with line-in jacks so you can transfer cassette tapes, and records. They have remote controls so I can leave it in my pocket and operate from the remote. And nearly all of them come with a replaceable “AA” size lithium rechargeable battery, that can be replaced with an alkaline one in a pinch. The battery life is 25 – 40 hours per charge. The units are practicly indestructable. And for the price of a Nanao 4G I can get a near top of the line model. BTW – Sony makes excellent headphones that have a much richer sound than Apple’s. The downside used to be that MP3s were converted to a proprietary, but better sounding format ATARAC 3… but this is no longer true. And also that the desktop software Sonic Stage was very tempermental. But the new version is pretty good, and there are alternatives. The unit isn’t much bigger than my mini. I love it. Sorry Apple … I I believe that ipods are disposable, cheaply made, and over-hyped. To learn more about minidisc players try http://www.minidisc.org.

39. I will never buy the iPod:
    1- You cant put pirated mp3s on it, ok, so you can with third party tools, but they make it a pain in the ass. Im sorry apple, but I’m not interestd in giving you money, nor the music industry, why should i give you my money to buy something i could get for free easily from somewhere else?

    2- battery. Pain in the ass, my friend had it and it was a pain in the ass before he got some upgrade, and still, my mp3 has AAA rechargable batteries, on a long trip i just charge 3 and keep in my pocket, why go through the trouble of getting an iPod?

    3- Why should I spend extra money just to get a music player that… maybe… looks good, but not anymore since everyone else has one

    4- which brings me to the last point, EVERYONE has an iPod, that point alone makes me not want to buy an iPod. The trend? does it look better? is it special? no and no.

    There are better and cheaper mp3s out there whos ownership is not a cliche in it self, and can actually play pirated music without the hassel.

    sorry iPod, I’m not someone who buys something juts because everyone else has it, or just because everyone says its good. I’m capiable of independent thought.

40. Get the COWON iAUDIO G2. Takes standard batteries, handles Ogg Vorbis, and makes you look like a trend-setter instead of a lemming.

41. i dropped my 20 g iPod on my carpeted floor from knee height 3 times and it works now. my computer wouldn’t recognize it earlier and it kept frowning and clicking a nd showing me the apple sign. i visited apple supports site but it didn’t work. YAY!!!! it works now. PS. drop it gently

42. I don’t like the iPod because it, more or less, has various problems when trouble is encountered with the equipment.

    If the battery wears out, it’s Apple’s recommendation to ship the iPod for service.

    If it’s out of warranty when the battery goes, you have to pay a service fee of about $59. If it’s within warranty when the battery goes, but beyond six months, you must pay a $29 shipping and handling charge.

    Other failures outside of warranty: up to $249, depending on the model of the iPod.

    And, the “service” usually involves shipping a replacement iPod to you rather than repairing your broken iPod, which means that whatever collection you had stored on the failed unit will be lost, especially if you didn’t back it up before the failure.

    I’ll stick with my Sony Hi-MD Walkman. It may not be as elegant or stylish, but my music is stored on removable discs this way (Hi-MD discs can store up to 1 gigabyte each; it isn’t as much as a 20 gig iPod, but 1 gig for compressed music is still plenty and you can carry a few extra discs in your pocket or carrying case, which aren’t very big anyways) and the batteries can be replaced easily should they die (if you can’t deal with replacing a dead AA battery with a new alkaline or freshly charged NiMH yourself after 40 or so hours of play, then I don’t know what to say). And, if the player should fail, I can just simply go to a store, brick-n-mortar or online, and buy a new Hi-MD player and play my discs on it as if nothing happened.

    Of course, this means that you’ll have to deal with the inferior (and sometimes irritating) SonicStage software as opposed to using the far superior iTunes utility, but I’m willing to settle for that if it means that I can save myself some money, time, and even worse aggrivation in the long run.

43. try archos. beats it all

44. Ok, so I have been reading all of these posts, and honestly, The Ipod in my eyes doesn’t have competition for 2 reasons. One, its too gay to have competition, and two the zune that is supposedly its “destroyer” is also gay. They both suck big time…go archos yeaaaah

45. Well, Ive done research on both Zune and iPod, and they both suck. Seriously, If you want a good high-quality mp3 get Archos.
    iPod and Zune are put to shame by the Archos.
    This is the best advice you will get about mp3’s

46. Ipod and Zune are a ripp off these are Much better I have been supplying them to all my friends. Do yourself a favor get on of the Mp4’s

    Pros: It does everything you can think of and want on an mp3/4 player. Even the integrated speakers are pretty good. And unlike the ipod and some other mp3s I know of where the battery is built in, you can actually replace the lithium battery yourself from a little batter door in the back. You can store all your files on it like a USB flash drive while using it for videos, sharing your photos, playing music, and if you get tired of the music you have on it you can always use the fm radio. The picture quality is really phenominal. Every screen is animated with fantastic color and backlight. Oh and did I mention that it is so small and light weight. the design leaves less room for controls and buttons and more for the display screen, which is a fantastic use of space allowing this to be kept small. It even has a voice recorder for my work meetings and class lectures. (even though I really bought this for my son;))

    Cons: They only have up to 120GB’s but for most people this is fantastic I stored Britney Spears, Parris Hilton, Shakira , Gnarls Barkley, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Sean Paul, Nelly Furtado, Pink, Sandi Thom and there was still 95% of space left. And the manual is very helpful. Luckily I am computer savy and figured out how to work it with my pc and convert the files for it . The video player does have this slight delay so the quality is a little distorted, but for the price and considering you are not watching a 50″ tv screen it is just great to have.

    Other thought: While I hate apple ipods after seeing this, they do include a software which makes it easier for technically deficient people to be able to use it. The software provided is Excellent but not the same as IPod’s. By the time you actually find an mp3/4 player with video player , photo, voice recorder, and fm in a store you are going to pay ATLEAST $200.00 here you can get on for less than $40.00

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47. Who in their right fucking mind would buy this useless piece of shit known as iPod? It’s a fucking iPod nation, and they’ll tell you if you don’t have one, you’re not a part of the elite. Fuck that. This iPod shuffle (that was given to me) is garbage. RCA, iRiver … anything else works great, but this … this is beyond a waste. I’ve never seen so many posts on common issues dealing with iPods, and that’s on their support page no less. I even worked at an electronics store that sold iPods, and we had to send a whole shippment back because they were all defective. This, to me, shows lack of attention to detail within the factory. Junk.

48. Man does the iPod service suck! I have a three-year-old iPod that won’t hold a charge anymore. I sent it to Apple with a request that the battery be replaced under their battery replacement program (cost $65.95 plus shipping). They sent it back saying the battery is okay. Maybe the laws of physics are different at Apple, but it won’t hold a charge here in Michigan. Now I’m out the cost of shipping and still have an iPod that doesn’t work. I’m going to try a new independent iPod repair shop that opened up in town recently.

49. I just sent my new iPOD back after two months because it was not working well in cold temps. Battery would crap out completely.
    I phoned Apple to find out that “it does not work well in hot or cold temps”
    WHAT???!!! I’M in CANADA, it’s below freezing for 4 months of the year where I live!

50. I’m on my 3rd ipod in one year. The second one got sent back for repairs while under warranty. It kept freezing and locking up on my while I was out walking. I use it with nike. All my mileage would be unsaved when it shut down or locked up. So we sent it back and bought a new one. I’ve had it less than a week and its doing the same thing. Now I see that it doesn’t do well in cold temps. What?!? Isn’t it boasted as being used for runners, ect? But it can’t handle the tempature outside? It’s winter here and I walk and run when its below freezing. In the summer it goes past 95f. Where do the Apple designers live? *shakes head and walks away*

51. I am one more dissatified ipod owner and recognize my own problems in the many complaints here. It froze up constantly and most of the time it would not let me reboot–I had to let the battery die to turn it off. Nothing like running and having your music stop 1 mile into a 5 mile run. One year and one month after I purchased the 20GB ipod it officially died and HP (yea, I got an ipod + hp) offered to fix it….for $269 with a footnote that it could cost more. I refuse to purchase another ipod and am determined to find a better MP3 and will take every opportunity to spread the word that the ipod sucks!!

52. I don’t know why I didn’t read this site before I bought my useless iPod and its useless warranty. More of the same, sent back for repairs under warranty and the warrantied repairs will cost more than the useless iPod.
    My uncle bought a $3000.00 MAC and is now finding out that his is as useless as my iPod. Is there any way to spread this word quicker against a sham company like Apple? I’m willing to admit that I got suckered in by slick ads. I hope their marketing dept develops scabies.

53. i agree boooo ipod i hate ipod the should burn

54. Six month ago I bought an iPod (an iPod Video of 30GB 5th generation). First it was an incredible experience, having my hold audio-library in such as small device. But then the iPod start failing, getting worst every time, freezing always when I wanted to use it. And where I live here in Chile is an expensive item, so I was expecting a quality product, but the iPod remains far bellow my expectations. At the beginning I thought that it was just my particular device, but all my friends, that have the same iPod version, told me that it was something usual. And if you considered all the money wasted in this device (including cases, docks, headphones, cables and speakers) is a huge investment for something in which you can’t trust. So if you are considering buying an iPod, please don’t, because it doesn’t worth it. Or you will end up like me with US $300 less and listening to music in a PEN-DRIVE MP3 of US $15, which y guarantee that want failed as much as the iPod Video.

55. One of my friends stole my brothers I Pod and then broke it. I’m not sure which friend did it though because two were over at the same time when his I Pod went missing. I was wondering if he could get a new one for free does that ever happen?

56. You guys make the iPod sound so bad, however with every expensive device, you must take care of it. Also they are not hard to fix, the replacement parts are cheap! Also I wouldn’t do an extended warranty like some of you who did, because you can do everything yourself if you’re willing to for a much cheaper cost! I do have to admit I have a different experience than most of you, I find that Apple customer service is decent, they extended my warranty longer and they replace my cables free of charge. Nothing is perfect so even Microsoft, Creative have these problems too…

57. lets just say that the iPod is a solid mp3 player. I rarely has any defects or errors and it has a strong outer structure.

    it only has a problem when it comes to extra features unlike other mp3 players. Radio, voice recorder, and .wma file playback (this can be ignored if you want to convert this anyway)

58. You made out better than I did. My iPod didn’t work from the moment I downloaded my first songs. Piece of shit.

59. well i got my first ipod as a “reward” from work. 2gen 4gig. had it for about 1 1/2 years works great never any problems. I set up REAL PLAYER to manage my device and LOVE it. (hate itunes) recently a fiend gave her son a ipod mini by hp. granted it was bought secong hand but i tried everything to repai this thing and it is corrupted. wasted money.

60. 3rd ipod and i gave up

    bought my gen 3 new. 60gb. used it for 6 month, battery died. i send it back to apple, i paid for them to repair it, after 2 weeks it dies again, i sent it back again, they send back another one, it dies in 2 weeks…. im like WTF!

    i ask them for another one, they tell me to fk off and pay 60$

    I will never buy another apple product ever. im 24. i have a long time to live. i tell ALLLLL of my friends not to buy an ipod cause its throwing money down the trash… they listen and get alternatives.

    lol FK apple FK ipod.

    my 400$ is going to cost you mother fkers thousands in LOST sales,

61. Get a Samsung YP. It’s a 2 gig model, in various colors. Very light. Has a touch sensitive buttons, kind of like the ipod wheel, only better. It’s got several levels of folder structures. You can have playlists, or play by album, artist, genre or just play all songs!
    12 hours on battery, and is just the most awesome player you’ll ever need. Just memory is small..

    Could also look into the mobiblu cube. I’ve been wanting that but no one sells it in Canada. So I haven’t had experience it with.

    But I am very much pleased with samsung YP. During Christmas, it was on sale for $60 bucks!

62. There might be a way to get that old broken iPod working again with out having to go out and pay $250 for the new ones. Rapid Repair is an iPod and Zune Repair company that can bring your old friend back to life. 85% of our repairs are under $90, and lot’s of times, it may just need a battery for $20. We don’t charge you for labor or installation either; your already paying enough for your musical pleasures. If your not sure whats wrong, take advantage of our free diagnostic service to find out what’s really wrong with you iPod.

63. I hate ipods i got a shuffle 1st gen 4 for christmas and it broke twice with firmware problems, then it had a crack on it. Then it accidently went into the washing machine. Well, my earphones survived and worked perfectly but they were philips brand not apple. I now have a creative zen microphoto and Im very happy with it the “creative mediasource” software is not as annoying as itunes. I prefer the microphoto’s looks to the ipod cause its got a awesome pulsating blue led thing around it. The sound quality is better with the same earphones i compared nano to microphoto and the microphoto kicks its ass. I will never have anything apple ever again. Oh yeah when i broke it with firmware problems, the service was reliable but it was 3rd party.

    Summary: iPod SUCKS, Creative ZEN rocks, iRiver is NOT a rip off since it came out 4.5 years b4 iPOO did

64. I hate Ipods. I got so angry with my nano that i through it on the ground and it broke. The parts inside seem very very cheap and flimsy. It always flat out froze. i held play, i held menu, and it just doesnt turn off. there should just be a button that cuts the power. another annoying thing about ipods is that it is a bitch to get the music onto it. i would rather have my music organized in folders, and simply drag the folder/folders into the ipod (it would open like an external hard drive). that would b much more simpler and easier than using the annoying slow program itunes. Now itunes is like the Retarted kid of computer programs. my music is an an external hard drive, and the other day i unplugged it with itunes still open accidentally, and now it says that everyone of my songs “Cannot be found. Would you like to locate it?”. so later i wanted to listen to music so i reset my computer, plugged my hard drive in, and opened itunes. and i STILL get that same message that my songs cannot be found! No i would not, because im not doing that for 30 gbs of music. the hdd is present so the songs should just know their old location, i shouldent have to waste my time locating them. im going on a trip with the school band so i bought an ipod mini from a friend for $30. today i went to put some of my songs on it and it amazingly worked (i had to delete my whole itunes library then just import it all again). i clicked a song on the ipod and its frozen and wont turn off. Thanks Apple, for making a terrible product that does nothing but annoy the shit out of the customers who payed hundreds of dollars for your piece of shitty plastic.

65. Anyone who bought ipods wasted your money. I’m sorry, but ipod are overpriced electronics that pump out of the lines from the same chinese factories as everything else. You just pay 3 times what the other companies charge. In my opinion they ruined the the mp3 player market by drastically inflating the prices.

66. My experience with my iPod…

    Ode to Apple

    I bought a Microsoft Zune
    It perfectly plays multiple tunes
    But without accessories and toys
    I could not listen to my noise
    So, with no components for the job
    I bought an iPod

    After 13 months of use I have awoken
    To find my iPod broken
    No mistreatment or heavy use
    Or even significant abuse
    Never even dropped it on the floor
    So I’m off to the Apple store.

    At the Apple store I wait in line
    Patiently biding my time
    Apple, you see
    Is a most popular company
    With the iPhone, iPod, and Mac
    Everybody wants to give them their cash
    I just wonder if they’ll give me back mine

    My iPod, I’m told, has died
    To replace it, another one I must buy
    Only 13 months old
    A piece of junk I was sold
    $300 down the drain
    This has been the biggest pain
    Yet my Zune is working just fine

    Fuck Apple.

    -by Jason Fleischman

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