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Apple iPod 40 GB White M9268LL/A (4th Generation)
By: Apple Average Rating: 3.0 Total Reviews: 122
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 On: 2007-11-28
This is the second one of these I have bought.. and both have shut down on me. I have wasted over $600 on these Ipods as well as another $100+ to repair one of them. They are great for storing mass amounts of music... but they are very tempermental, and seem to breakdown unexpectedly and for no reason at all (i never dropped them/ no water damage/ hardly any scratches). Its as if these were put on some sort of timer to shut down on you after a while, so that you HAVE to go out and buy another. I really love the idea of an ipod.. but when I buy one, Id hope that it would last me a LONG time cosidering how much they cost. But they fail on you as easily as any disposable item you can buy... and quite frankly, its too much money to spend on something that lasts no longer than a plastic fork.
On: 2007-11-20
Mine broke after just over a year. No warrantee. I brought it to an Apple store, they checked it and told me to through it away. They wanted to charge me $350 to fix it or offered to sell me a brand new one for $300. Guess which option I selected? Just make sure you have backed up all your music!!!
 On: 2007-07-30
I have had this ipod since a few months after launch. It worked very well, but recently it has become completely unusable. I have had problems with it in the past although luckily I had the hardware fix-it 2 year program with Best Buy. I usually dont buy into those gimmicks but Im glad I did n this case. The hard drive failed and they were able to fix it. Now I have been having severe click wheel problems. For months I have had problems with the scrolling function and have to do special maneuvers with the wheel and can get it to scroll for very short periods of time. Recently the click wheel will not even click, the buttons will not function. So basically I have a shiny white box with a hard drive in it that cant be used the way it was supposed to. Sadly my extended warranty from Best Buy has expired so I cannot get it fixed. Guess Ill have to save up and buy another iPod but I will be waiting till the 6th generation comes out.
On: 2007-05-15
I got mine for a Xmas present 2 years ago. Within 6 months it acted up, making me do the ridiculous R method of resetting it over and again. Itunes refuses to recognize it and now it tells me that I have a corrupted iPod--no kidding! At the moment, it is sitting on my desk like a dead bug on its back, frozen. Save yourself years of aggravation, listen to those of us who have had this for over a year...caveat emptor.
by: Anonymous On: 2007-02-01
I got it new about 2 years ago. I bought it from Apples Refurb site, and when it arrived, it showed the sad iPod icon. I took it to Apple, they said it needed a new hard drive!!!! Then the clickwheel went on it, which makes it so it wont always respond. Then the hold switch wont lock on it, and then all the problems stopped for a while. Then 5 months later, it wouldnt even turn on, and then only the backlight would show, and there was nothing on the screen. When the warranty was up, it died on that day. Now it sits in its box on my desk. Dont buy this iPod!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
On: 2007-01-31
I got it new about 2 years ago. I bought it from Apples Refurb site, and when it arrived, it showed the sad iPod icon. I took it to Apple, they said it needed a new hard drive!!!! Then the clickwheel went on it, which makes it so it wont always respond. Then the hold switch wont lock on it, and then all the problems stopped for a while. Then 5 months later, it wouldnt even turn on, and then only the backlight would show, and there was nothing on the screen. When the warranty was up, it died on that day. Now it sits in its box on my desk. Dont buy this iPod!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
On: 2007-01-29
I was lucky enough to have an HP service contract that extends the warranty for 90 days after repair. My iPod 40g has failed for the 8th time in less than 2 years or like clock-work about every 90 days. Always the same "Sad Face" icon that will not respond to any of the simple procedures that Apple or HP propose to remedy the problem.
I cannot understand why Apple has not instituted at least a trade-in program for this ultimate lemon. A recent survey showed that it failed at 10x the rate of the newer models. For me, I am not sure that I will ever buy an Apple product again regardless of a trade-in.
I really have never understood the cult of Apple. It is no more reliable a product or more intuitive a product than anyone else. It is all Steves PR.
On: 2007-01-24
It arrived broken. Getting it replaced by apple has already taken a week and a half, and they dont plan to get it to me until another week from now. So now Im having to wait almost a month before I get the stupid thing, and god knows if itll even work then.
On: 2007-01-23
It arrived broken. Getting it replaced by apple has already taken a week and a half, and they dont plan to get it to me until another week from now. So now Im having to wait almost a month before I get the stupid thing, and god knows if itll even work then.
On: 2007-01-12
Im a member of the 40 GIG Ipod Club. Purchased first 40 GIG Ipod 2/05. First Hard Drive Failure 10/01/05. At that time thought it would be wise to purchase Apple Care Protection for Ipod. Second hard drive failure 2/22/06. Third Hard Drive failure 8/06. Brought it in to Apple store and the guy said the connector to the hard drive was loose and he fixed it (taped it in place). It worked so I was happy. He also said they were not supposed to fix them and he would order me a new one if I wanted, I was happy it was working and went on my way. Fourth hard drive failure 11/10/06. Brought it in and they are ordering me a new or refurbished one. I like my Ipod but this is rediculous. I guess the next one will last 4 to 9 months, I will be out of warranty, maybe I can fix it myself or buy a more dependable Ipod, or heaven forbid, buy a Microsoft Zune or whatever they call them.
 On: 2006-12-19
After owning my 4G 40GB IPOD for almost a year, it died out. Luckily, I owned it for ALMOST a year, and sent it in before my warranty expired out. Apple sent me a brand new IPOD with a postage paid envelope to send in my defective one. I was happy at the fact that they did it so quickly too. The only problem was that my problems werent over. After about 6 months of using the new IPOD, it died out too. I have no warrenty now, so im stuck trying to restore, restart, and all those other crappy "R" fixes that they have that dont work. Now it seems that im just another statistic for people who spent a lot of money on a peice of junk. Apple has made a lot of money off this product, I think the least they should do is have some sort of definite recall for anyone who has bought this model. Its really pretty discouraging to see this many people with the same problem. I loved the ease of use of it, but now im really hesitant on buying a new IPOD. That new Zune is actually starting to look kind of good...
On: 2006-12-13
In the first year, I had to send my iPod in under warranty a total of three times. Twice, they replaced it. My iPod recently died for good, and because Im not covered under warranty anymore, I could buy a new one for the cost of replacing it. When I looked into it, I found that loads of people with the same model had the exact same problems. Its the lemon of the bunch. Theres a reason they discontinued it.
On: 2006-11-28
Be warned folks, the 4th generation of ipod is the most unreliable in the lineup. If youre looking for a cheaper old version of ipod (who needs video anyway) go for the 3G. My almost 2 year old ipod popped up with the notorious sad face icon out of nowhere and is now unusable. I have taken very good care of it in that time, never even dropping it once. I called the NYC Apple Store to ask about getting it fixed and was told I was better off buying a new one! How about that? Nice customer service. Needless to say when I do get around to replacing my broken mp3 player it wont be one from Apple. Obviously I will miss the use of ease I have come to expect but the hardware is simply not hardy enough.
 On: 2006-11-06
You dont find many of these new and still wrapped in plastic. I needed one with firewire, so this is what I bought. It was packaged just fine and I received it via UPS just in time. Im just not fond of using UPS. As for the actual iPod, I love it. I had a 2nd generation for a long time, but after botching it up, I needed a new one. I would have gone with a video iPod, but both Macs I own do not have USB 2.0. Transfer rates would have been s l o w. I needed one with firewire and enough room to hold my music. I cant believe Apple abandoned firewire on the newer models. Mine even came with the dock. Apple has abandoned that notion as well in the new iPods. Having a dock really is nice. The price on this one might have been a bit much considering its age, but you cant beat finding a 4th gen 40GB iPod in new condition this far down the road. Im protecting the screen after seeing scratches on my brothers 20GB 4G. Im more careful with my stuff though, so even without the screen protector, I doubt Ill see much damage. Im not taking any chances though.
On: 2006-11-05
You dont find many of these new and still wrapped in plastic. I needed one with firewire, so this is what I bought. It was packaged just fine and I received it via UPS just in time. Im just not fond of using UPS. As for the actual iPod, I love it. I had a 2nd generation for a long time, but after botching it up, I needed a new one. I would have gone with a video iPod, but both Macs I own do not have USB 2.0. Transfer rates would have been s l o w. I needed one with firewire and enough room to hold my music. I cant believe Apple abandoned firewire on the newer models. Mine even came with the dock. Apple has abandoned that notion as well in the new iPods. Having a dock really is nice. The price on this one might have been a bit much considering its age, but you cant beat finding a 4th gen 40GB iPod in new condition this far down the road. Im protecting the screen after seeing scratches on my brothers 20GB 4G. Im more careful with my stuff though, so even without the screen protector, I doubt Ill see much damage. Im not taking any chances though.
On: 2006-10-17
Apple Computers should be ashamed of themselves. I received my 40 GB ipod as a 2004 Christmas present and the problems began after only 6 months. Though I sould say, I really loved my ipod before it crapped out on me. I see a lot of other customers have had similar trouble with this thing and I just want to cast my vote of disapproval. The problems are: The computer/itunes not recognizing the ipod. The hard drive spinning up but never starting. The hard drive crashing and losing all data resulting in having to reset the ipod to factory settings and reinstalling the software and after all that having the same problem happen again.
After hearing all the horror stories about Apples customer service I figure its not worth trying to repair. Since this model has been discontinued, theres no point in telling people not to buy it now. I only hope that the new ipods are better. Ill be reading the reviews very carefully if and when I decide to get another ipod. Live and learn.
On: 2006-10-16
Apple Computers should be ashamed of themselves. I received my 40 GB ipod as a 2004 Christmas present and the problems began after only 6 months. Though I sould say, I really loved my ipod before it crapped out on me. I see a lot of other customers have had similar trouble with this thing and I just want to cast my vote of disapproval. The problems are: The computer/itunes not recognizing the ipod. The hard drive spinning up but never starting. The hard drive crashing and losing all data resulting in having to reset the ipod to factory settings and reinstalling the software and after all that having the same problem happen again.
After hearing all the horror stories about Apples customer service I figure its not worth trying to repair. Since this model has been discontinued, theres no point in telling people not to buy it now. I only hope that the new ipods are better. Ill be reading the reviews very carefully if and when I decide to get another ipod. Live and learn.
On: 2006-08-29
Got myself this 40 gig iPod from Amazon for Christmas 2004. In early 2005 Apple introduced the 60 gig iPod. (Missed it by that much!) Mine worked fine for 7 months then the hard drive kept spinning up, over and over, but would never engage and the screen displayed a sad face icon. Went to Apples support site and tried their suggestions but when you get that sad face icon it basically needs service. The site gave me a form to fill out to return the iPod to Apple by mail. (I didnt know there was an Apple store about 30 minutes (one way) from me and the site didnt bother to inform me of that.) Apple sends me an empty box overnight. I slip the iPod inside and call DHL back to come pick it up. An hour later it was on its way back to Apple, overnight. They check it in the next day but it takes 3 days before they get around to sending me a replacement. Another overnight shipment and after a week I get my replacement iPod. Cost me over $30 in shipping to do this because Apple will only pay for shipping for the first 6 months of your 1-year warranty. They also dont offer a cheaper non-overnight alternative. I did love the iPod when it worked so I figured Id better protect the nearly $400 investment with Apples extended warranty. About $70 more. With that Apple would pay shipping during the warranty period.
So I pull out my replacement iPod, turn it on and -voila!- sad face icon! Right out of the box! Call them up. Ask if they will send me a new one and Ill slip this broken one in the return box. Nope. Not their process. So we do the empty-box-to-me-overnight, full-box-to-them-overnight, three-days-to-send-a-replacement-overnight and a-week-later-I get-my-3rd-replacement-iPod tango. Actually, its the same one I sent them with a letter saying they were able to fix it without any repairs to the hardware. I turn it on and ta-da! Sad face icon! Im getting steamed. Do a little poking about the Apple site and find there is an Apple store in a mall 30 minutes from me. WHAT?! I dont have to do the weeklong mail repair? I make an online appointment with the Apple Genius Bar and show up right on time. Genius hears my story, sees the problem, will replace, but they are out of stock of the 40 gig iPods, might take a week to get them in. Argh! Okay, 2 days later I get a call from the store telling me my iPod is ready for pickup. They tell me no appt necessary when just picking up so I go at my convenience. Genius gives me 4th iPod. I turn it on. Bada-bing! Sad face icon, right out of the box, right in front of Geniuss face! He gets another one from the back. Holy smokes, the 5th iPod works! I take it home and spend several hours recharging and then uploading my 20 gigs of music, audiobooks, and podcasts.
5th iPod lasts about 2 months and Im back at the Genius bar again. This genius tells me they had a bad batch of the 40 gig drives when I got my last replacement but hes gonna give me a new one which will be fine. Uh-huh. My 6th 40 gig iPod works a few months then does the same damned thing with the hard drive spinning up over and over in and endless loop but never being able to read the contents. Back to the Genius bar and onto replacement iPod #7.
So $500, 4 hours of driving + gas costs, and 7 iPods later, I have 4 months left on my extended warranty. Cats have nine lives do iPods? Its pretty clear the 40 gig drives are defective and "the bad batch" is the ONLY batch they have and rather than upgrading customers to a product that works they just keep feeding us the same supply of defective junk until the warranty runs out and were stuck with a costly repair. This really is deserving of a class action lawsuit. Apple should be ashamed of themselves. I laugh when I see their anti-PC commercials. Ive never had this much trouble with any other brand of computer equipment. If they dont make good on this defective product Ill be switching to Creative Zen. Really shameful.
UPDATE: iPod #7 hard drive failed AGAIN, just days before warranty was up. On to iPod #8 now with a 90 day warranty. Wonder if itll make it.
On: 2006-08-22
believe the one year rule, Ive had my iPod since last march (05) and it worked great until last week. All of a sudden I noticed the battery wasnt holding a charge, then my computer and itunes wouldnt recognize it, and after resetting it (ie erasing all my music from it) and reinstalling itunes I cant get it to work. Im hoping when I go to the Apple store that they can figure something out, I dont feel like getting it serviced for $250.
On: 2006-08-21
believe the one year rule, Ive had my iPod since last march (05) and it worked great until last week. All of a sudden I noticed the battery wasnt holding a charge, then my computer and itunes wouldnt recognize it, and after resetting it (ie erasing all my music from it) and reinstalling itunes I cant get it to work. Im hoping when I go to the Apple store that they can figure something out, I dont feel like getting it serviced for $250.
On: 2006-08-12
Really liked my Ipod for almost 2 years, thought the sound quality was fine, like Itunes and the playlists, bought a car radio with an Aux plug and used it in the car every day. All of a sudden the hard drive just died 2 days ago- wouldnt mount to the computer initially and then wouldnt turn on at all. I am just barely within my 2 year window for my American Express extended warranty, so hopefully I will come out ok- the replacement cost from the Apple Store near me is $270.... I am not happy that a $400 player would just die within 2 years and no one at Apple cares. Ridiculous.
On: 2006-07-16
My research, both online and talking to iPod users, made me realize that if I wanted portable music I wanted LESS GB, not more because 20, 40, and 60 GB models strain the battery. But I wanted a huge GB storage space and only wanted to use my iPod beside my bed so I got the 40 GB model a year and a half ago. The battery should last me forever since I stick on a rechargeable JBL Soundstage system (good, not great, but I dont super high volume next to my bed pillow). So far Ive had no battery problems.
For bedside or table use, get lots of GB. For a portable, getter a less expensive, less GB model.
On: 2006-07-15
My research, both online and talking to iPod users, made me realize that if I wanted portable music I wanted LESS GB, not more because 20, 40, and 60 GB models strain the battery. But I wanted a huge GB storage space and only wanted to use my iPod beside my bed so I got the 40 GB model a year and a half ago. The battery should last me forever since I stick on a rechargeable JBL Soundstage system (good, not great, but I dont super high volume next to my bed pillow). So far Ive had no battery problems.
For bedside or table use, get lots of GB. For a portable, getter a less expensive, less GB model.
On: 2006-07-02
I bought this 40 GB iPod for $195 refurbished at Small Dog Electronics. It has a one year warranty. Its my first iPod and is a dream (especially once I figured out the shuffle). Its easy to use.
As someone else recommended, make sure to upload your music to iTunes and take the time to properly categorize your genres, etc. This will maximize your experience in listening to exactly what you want.
On: 2006-07-01
I bought this 40 GB iPod for $195 refurbished at Small Dog Electronics. It has a one year warranty. Its my first iPod and is a dream (especially once I figured out the shuffle). Its easy to use.
As someone else recommended, make sure to upload your music to iTunes and take the time to properly categorize your genres, etc. This will maximize your experience in listening to exactly what you want.
On: 2006-06-04
I love the iPod interface, but this little guy just cant seem to last two years. My hard drive died, and the Apple store couldnt get it going again unless I shelled out $200-$250 for a replacement hard drive. Might as well buy a new one. I have to say that these iPods either have batteries or hard drives that die in what seems to be a short time frame. Apple did offer me a 10% discount on my next iPod if I turned in my old one, but to be honest, I found that a laughable offer give how much I originally paid for it. They also wanted me to buy the $60 extended warrenty (so that it would cover two instead of one years). Apple, if you cant make a product that lasts for two years, then either take it off the market or improve your quality. I did buy another iPod because the store offered me a students discount, but if this one dies with in two years, I am seriously going to consider another company.
On: 2006-06-03
I love the iPod interface, but this little guy just cant seem to last two years. My hard drive died, and the Apple store couldnt get it going again unless I shelled out $200-$250 for a replacement hard drive. Might as well buy a new one. I have to say that these iPods either have batteries or hard drives that die in what seems to be a short time frame. Apple did offer me a 10% discount on my next iPod if I turned in my old one, but to be honest, I found that a laughable offer give how much I originally paid for it. They also wanted me to buy the $60 extended warrenty (so that it would cover two instead of one years). Apple, if you cant make a product that lasts for two years, then either take it off the market or improve your quality. I did buy another iPod because the store offered me a students discount, but if this one dies with in two years, I am seriously going to consider another company.
On: 2006-05-19
I received this ipod, my first, for my birthday when I was in college. I have gotten an amazing amount of use from it, and it hasnt the slightest indication of imaging and has shown absolutely no flaws from the beginning. It doesnt have the bells and whistles that the more recent upgraded models have, but this particular ipod broke the barriers of the previous mp3 players on the market and demonstrated what huge amounts of music data could be stored on such a small thing. If youre looking for the bare bones music player, with no need for the video and picture-holding capabilities, and you have a lot of music to boot, this is a great option for you. Its a shame the current high-capacity iPods offer only 30GB and 60GB, respectively, because I imagine a lot of people would prefer thier device to fall somewhere between those two storage amounts. I think Apple should produce a very wide variety of sizes and features for its listeners. Either way, though, this makes a great product, and for the enrichment of my ears (and for the deflation of my pockets), I will probably be buying iPods for the rest of my days.
On: 2006-05-18
I received this ipod, my first, for my birthday when I was in college. I have gotten an amazing amount of use from it, and it hasnt the slightest indication of imaging and has shown absolutely no flaws from the beginning. It doesnt have the bells and whistles that the more recent upgraded models have, but this particular ipod broke the barriers of the previous mp3 players on the market and demonstrated what huge amounts of music data could be stored on such a small thing. If youre looking for the bare bones music player, with no need for the video and picture-holding capabilities, and you have a lot of music to boot, this is a great option for you. Its a shame the current high-capacity iPods offer only 30GB and 60GB, respectively, because I imagine a lot of people would prefer thier device to fall somewhere between those two storage amounts. I think Apple should produce a very wide variety of sizes and features for its listeners. Either way, though, this makes a great product, and for the enrichment of my ears (and for the deflation of my pockets), I will probably be buying iPods for the rest of my days.
On: 2006-04-03
Hp Ipod what can I say. I got it as a christmas present in 2004 and it broke down in 2005. Hp sent me a new one no problem but then the new one was worse than my old one. The new one was only 6 months old. I emailed Hp and they were not very nice about my situation as they were the first time. They took me through ever troubleshooting that I have already done. Then they told me that I would have to get a new one. I thought this was ridculous because they sent me one just 6 months ago. I said they sent me a faulty product and I should not have to get a new one. They told me it was just like a computer and the hard drive can stop at anytime. Please! I have had many PC and the only time they mess up was when I did something wrong. My hard drive never messes up in the computer. I never dropped my ipod i always update it and I think it is pretty ridiculous that a product 400 dollars has a shelf life of 6months to a year. BEWARE WHEN YOU BUY.
On: 2006-04-02
Hp Ipod what can I say. I got it as a christmas present in 2004 and it broke down in 2005. Hp sent me a new one no problem but then the new one was worse than my old one. The new one was only 6 months old. I emailed Hp and they were not very nice about my situation as they were the first time. They took me through ever troubleshooting that I have already done. Then they told me that I would have to get a new one. I thought this was ridculous because they sent me one just 6 months ago. I said they sent me a faulty product and I should not have to get a new one. They told me it was just like a computer and the hard drive can stop at anytime. Please! I have had many PC and the only time they mess up was when I did something wrong. My hard drive never messes up in the computer. I never dropped my ipod i always update it and I think it is pretty ridiculous that a product 400 dollars has a shelf life of 6months to a year. BEWARE WHEN YOU BUY.
On: 2006-03-14
I purchased this iPod for $350 last March. Less than two months later, it started freezing. Customer service finally sent me anouther one in July. It worked for a few months. Then it started crashing again. I was finally told a few days ago that my hard drive needs to be replaced...for $319. My limited warranty had expired! An independent repair service quoted me $200 for a replacement hard drive. I am outraged and will never buy an iPod again. $350 for nothing!
On: 2006-03-13
I purchased this iPod for $350 last March. Less than two months later, it started freezing. Customer service finally sent me anouther one in July. It worked for a few months. Then it started crashing again. I was finally told a few days ago that my hard drive needs to be replaced...for $319. My limited warranty had expired! An independent repair service quoted me $200 for a replacement hard drive. I am outraged and will never buy an iPod again. $350 for nothing!
On: 2006-03-10
Worked just great for about 9 months, never crashed once. Then one day it just woulndt turn on anymore. I sent it in for replacement, but instead of a new one they gave me a refurbished one. This one crashed once in a while, had to be reformated twice, until 5 months later it permanently crashed. They sent me another refurbished one which crashes about 50% of the times I use it, had to be restored twice and then crashed permanently just 2 months after receiving it. I am so angry with Apple now. I deserve my money back for this.
On: 2006-03-09
Worked just great for about 9 months, never crashed once. Then one day it just wouldnt turn on anymore. I sent it in for replacement, but instead of a new one they gave me a refurbished one. This one crashed once in a while, had to be reformated twice, until 5 months later it permanently crashed. They sent me another refurbished one which crashes about 50% of the times I use it, had to be restored twice and then crashed permanently just 2 months after receiving it. I am so angry with Apple now. I deserve my money back for this.
On: 2006-03-08
MY IPOD worked perfectly for exactly one year and five days. However, just as the 1 year warranty expired, my IPODs hard drive crashed not only deleting the four thousand songs that I had worked so hard to build up (and spent plenty of money downloading). It seems quite convenient that almost the day after the warranty expired, the IPOD crashed. If you are going to buy an IPOD, go for the cheapest one as it is absolutely crushing to have this happen to a $350 dollar piece of equipment.
On: 2006-02-16
I have had my I pod for less then a year and I have enjoyed it for the short time I had it. For the past three months it has been shipped out three times for service. Every time it has come back not repaired and I had to ship it back to be serviced again. I feel that apple is just biding time until my warrenty expires. I have visited the apple wesite as suggest by my ipod and the website is just about as helpful as the technicians that repair the ipods. I have never had a electronic device that was so costly work so poorly and for such a short period of time. I would strongly recommend not purchasing this item.
On: 2006-02-03
A word of warning to potential buyers. MY sons Nano is "stuck" in the "LOCKED" mode. I did some internet research and it appears nearly all Nanos have this problem. Obviously a design flaw. The unit is still under warranty. I spent two-hours on Apples "Award winning website" and finally gave up. A total nightmare...please see for yourself. Their are multiple class-action lawsuits against Apple over the Ipod. Final note...BUYER BEWARE!
On: 2006-02-02
A word of warning to potential buyers. MY sons Nano is "stuck" in the "LOCKED" mode. I did some internet research and it appears nearly all Nanos have this problem. Obviously a design flaw. The unit is still under warranty. I spent two-hours on Apples "Award winning website" and finally gave up. A total nightmare...please see for yourself. Their are multiple class-action lawsuits against Apple over the Ipod. Final note...BUYER BEWARE!
On: 2006-01-18
Let me start by saying that I am hopelessly in love with my iPod. So imagine how heartrenching my decision will be to put it where it belongs- as a paperwieght on my desk- and replace it with something that actually spends more time playing music, and less time being shipped back to Apple for repair.
I got my iPod in August of 2004. By June of 2005, it showed me a pretty little picture of a folder (ie: its memory) and a question mark (ie: it couldnt seem to find it). The folks at Apple support were hesitant, but polite, and within two weeks I had a new (ok refurbished)40GB iPod to again fall in love with. Love, however, is a fickle thing, and by December 2005, I woke up one morning to find a very sad looking iPod icon occupying my beloveds screen. Another day spent on Apples support site, and on the phone, begging, yes, begging them to send me a replacement, in spite of the fact that it was no longer covered by warrenty. Strings appear to have been pulled, and a box appeared by mail to retreive my 2nd iPod, which was soon replaced by #3. (I have no idea how I ended up in the Canadian branch of the Apple support phone tree, but I highly reccommend them, they should all get raises) Now it is January of 2006 (just barely 1 month later) and my iPod has died. Im am begining to think that maybe this relationship is not working for me, and that maybe I shoud start seeing other mp3 players. Sorry iPod, its not you, its me...oh wait, nevermind...its not me at all...
I dont know if these are even still on the market, but if you buy one, just know that before long, it will succome to the same fate as all the other 40GB iPods before it...a shiny, glorified $400 paperweight.
On: 2006-01-17
Let me start by saying that I am hopelessly in love with my iPod. So imagine how heartrenching my decision will be to put it where it belongs- as a paperwieght on my desk- and replace it with something that actually spends more time playing music, and less time being shipped back to Apple for repair.
I got my iPod in August of 2004. By June of 2005, it showed me a pretty little picture of a folder (ie: its memory) and a question mark (ie: it couldnt seem to find it). The folks at Apple support were hesitant, but polite, and within two weeks I had a new (ok refurbished)40GB iPod to again fall in love with. Love, however, is a fickle thing, and by December 2005, I woke up one morning to find a very sad looking iPod icon occupying my beloveds screen. Another day spent on Apples support site, and on the phone, begging, yes, begging them to send me a replacement, in spite of the fact that it was no longer covered by warrenty. Strings appear to have been pulled, and a box appeared by mail to retreive my 2nd iPod, which was soon replaced by #3. (I have no idea how I ended up in the Canadian branch of the Apple support phone tree, but I highly reccommend them, they should all get raises) Now it is January of 2006 (just barely 1 month later) and my iPod has died. Im am begining to think that maybe this relationship is not working for me, and that maybe I shoud start seeing other mp3 players. Sorry iPod, its not you, its me...oh wait, nevermind...its not me at all...
I dont know if these are even still on the market, but if you buy one, just know that before long, it will succome to the same fate as all the other 40GB iPods before it...a shiny, glorified $400 paperweight.
On: 2006-01-13
Let me say that I had purchsed this ipod for use with my Alphine
headunit in my car. If you plan on doing the same be very
careful, especially if you drive daily on bumpy roads. Contrary
to popular belief the ipod is not skip proof. Therefore any
little bump shake or quick movement will cause an ipod to act
crazy. I have had this ipod skip, and sadly lock up on me while
driving. Unfortunately for me my ipod locked up for the last
time today. I lost over 700 hundred songs and now my ipod will
not even work right anymore. This ipod also uses a large amount
of battery power, and would never save my settings. You also
have to recharge this thing frequently to avoid the battery from
going dead. I am very disappointed in this ipod
and will never buy one again. Apple only provides a 1 year
warrenty for ipod and I have heard that getting it fixed would
cost more than a new ipod itself. Now I am stuck with a broken
ipod. My suggestion is save your money and not waste it on ipod.
You would be better off investing your money else where.
by: leisg On: 2005-12-15
I bought this iPod as a gift for my son Christmas 2004. This was his only gift. Within days it began freezing, even though he treated it with the utmost care. Within 3 or 4 months, it crashed. I was told an insurance policy I purchased for it was no good as the problem was with the hard drive (and the hard drive isnt covered). Apple ultimately returned my call...but the associate who dealt with me was condescending and dismissive. I have since talked to 4 or 5 other people with the same sad story. Do your research. This iPod IS a lemon. In fact, youll find fewer and fewer sites even offering it. I would LOVE to join a class action lawsuit...and Im not someone who is vindictive, just frustrated and disgusted.
On: 2005-12-14
I bought this iPod as a gift for my son Christmas 2004. This was his only gift. Within days it began freezing, even though he treated it with the utmost care. Within 3 or 4 months, it crashed. I was told an insurance policy I purchased for it was no good as the problem was with the hard drive (and the hard drive isnt covered). Apple ultimately returned my call...but the associate who dealt with me was condescending and dismissive. I have since talked to 4 or 5 other people with the same sad story. Do your research. This iPod IS a lemon. In fact, youll find fewer and fewer sites even offering it. I would LOVE to join a class action lawsuit...and Im not someone who is vindictive, just frustrated and disgusted.
On: 2005-11-24
My iPod has failed for the fourth time this year. This is simply a sickeningly, pathetically, embarrasingly unstable device. Apple should be ashamed with themselves. I shalnt buy another Apple product ... not out or spite/recrimination, it would simply be a waste of money and time. I hope that Apple have counted just how many customers theyve lost by selling this tat.
On: 2005-11-23
My iPod has failed for the fourth time this year. This is simply a sickeningly, pathetically, embarrasingly unstable device. Apple should be ashamed with themselves. I shalnt buy another Apple product ... not out or spite/recrimination, it would simply be a waste of money and time. I hope that Apple have counted just how many customers theyve lost by selling this tat.
On: 2005-11-15
My 40 GB Ipod died after 4 months and had to be sent back to Apple for repair. They sent me a new one which also died after 4 months. Very similar experience to previous poster. It seems there is a serious design flaw with the 40 GB Ipod. I definitely would not bother buying this.
On: 2005-11-14
My 40 GB Ipod died after 4 months and had to be sent back to Apple for repair. They sent me a new one which also died after 4 months. Very similar experience to previous poster. It seems there is a serious design flaw with the 40 GB Ipod. I definitely would not bother buying this.
On: 2005-10-12
It looks good, but... there are some problems with it.
used the device for about a week and it died. A cute little failure icon appeared and that was the end of the story. Went thru all of the troubleshooting with apple and they said "Take it in for repair."
The interface is extremely constrained and clumsy. If you want to do anything not in the few simple commands, its just not possible. it could safely be called fascist but ill be polite and stick with "clumsy."
You can manually build playlists, but there is no easy way to put similar types of music together (say all your percussion). Using hack tools online you can get around this but its awkward.
The software install is messy and changes any number of setting on the local system.
iTunes flashes adverts and tries to get you to buy something. it appears aimed more at marketing music than at organizing and playing music.
if you use this for anything athletic, you can hit the button to block key presses. useful! but the first time you stretch and pull the headphone jack out, it shuts itself off. a "feature" you cant disable. you need to dig it out, unlock it, reset it, and start over....
the phones that come with it are a torture device, and a good indicator of what apple thinks of its users.
in summary, its a cute device and popular. but (remember high school?) like a cute and popular teen it has little substance and is more abrasive than useful.
consider saving your money.
On: 2005-10-11
Background: I have bought Apple products since 1988. Staunch Mac enthusiast, having bought over 10 macs, successively.
Bought the ipod mini 2 years ago for my kid. She loved it, but needed more space so I bought her a 40 gb for Xmas 2005. Intially worked fine. After six months-the hard drive malfunctioned. Oh, I forgot to tell you that this is an HP IPOD $$**%~! Well, HP replaces that ipod with a REFURBISHED 40 gb Ipod in June 2005. They tell me the warranty has been extended to June 2006--which would make sense since it offers a year warranty.
Well, in October, 2005, the new Ipod has the same disc drive malfunction. HP says they will replace it with another one, but my warranty is only for 90 days.
Guess what, they know, and I know that the 40 GB will break again in another five months but I will be out of warranty.
So I told HP, dont give me the $400 IP Replacement, DOWNGRADE me to a 20gb Ipod because I know that the 40 gb all will break soon. HP says that they cannot do that. WHY NOT? I am asking for a cheaper product in exchange for a lesser product than I purchased.
Read the reviews people, the 40 GB Ipod has MAJOR DESIGN FLAWS and apple should step up and replace these things. For all of the people who have given them positive reviews--just wait another couple of months until yours breaks and then write about how wonderful they are.
$400 is a LOT OF MONEY to buy something that will only work for four months. If I knew how to start a CLASS ACTION Lawsuit against HP and APPLE I would NOT HESITATE. Does anyone know of any class actions that I could Join.
DO NOT BUY A USED 40GB IPOD. They are junk. Apple has stopped making them because they know they were garbage.
I want my $400 back!!!!!
On: 2005-10-11
It looks good, but... there are some problems with it.
used the device for about a week and it died. A cute little failure icon appeared and that was the end of the story. Went thru all of the troubleshooting with apple and they said "Take it in for repair."
The interface is extremely constrained and clumsy. If you want to do anything not in the few simple commands, its just not possible. it could safely be called fascist but ill be polite and stick with "clumsy."
You can manually build playlists, but there is no easy way to put similar types of music together (say all your percussion). Using hack tools online you can get around this but its awkward.
The software install is messy and changes any number of setting on the local system.
iTunes flashes adverts and tries to get you to buy something. it appears aimed more at marketing music than at organizing and playing music.
if you use this for anything athletic, you can hit the button to block key presses. useful! but the first time you stretch and pull the headphone jack out, it shuts itself off. a "feature" you cant disable. you need to dig it out, unlock it, reset it, and start over....
the phones that come with it are a torture device, and a good indicator of what apple thinks of its users.
in summary, its a cute device and popular. but (remember high school?) like a cute and popular teen it has little substance and is more abrasive than useful.
consider saving your money.
On: 2005-10-10
Background: I have bought Apple products since 1988. Staunch Mac enthusiast, having bought over 10 macs, successively.
Bought the ipod mini 2 years ago for my kid. She loved it, but needed more space so I bought her a 40 gb for Xmas 2005. Intially worked fine. After six months-the hard drive malfunctioned. Oh, I forgot to tell you that this is an HP IPOD $$**%~! Well, HP replaces that ipod with a REFURBISHED 40 gb Ipod in June 2005. They tell me the warranty has been extended to June 2006--which would make sense since it offers a year warranty.
Well, in October, 2005, the new Ipod has the same disc drive malfunction. HP says they will replace it with another one, but my warranty is only for 90 days.
Guess what, they know, and I know that the 40 GB will break again in another five months but I will be out of warranty.
So I told HP, dont give me the $400 IP Replacement, DOWNGRADE me to a 20gb Ipod because I know that the 40 gb all will break soon. HP says that they cannot do that. WHY NOT? I am asking for a cheaper product in exchange for a lesser product than I purchased.
Read the reviews people, the 40 GB Ipod has MAJOR DESIGN FLAWS and apple should step up and replace these things. For all of the people who have given them positive reviews--just wait another couple of months until yours breaks and then write about how wonderful they are.
$400 is a LOT OF MONEY to buy something that will only work for four months. If I knew how to start a CLASS ACTION Lawsuit against HP and APPLE I would NOT HESITATE. Does anyone know of any class actions that I could Join.
DO NOT BUY A USED 40GB IPOD. They are junk. Apple has stopped making them because they know they were garbage.
I want my $400 back!!!!!
On: 2005-09-03
What A joke . Im on my third Ipod. The first one the wheel dial failed within like one day. The second one has a bad wheel also ,and it has at the most 30 hrs of use on it. I am waiting for the replacement as I type this. I have no faith in these now .These things are total garbage . I regret ever buying it.Do yourself a favor and get anything but this useless waste of money.Steve Jobs should be personally reimbersing all the peaople who have been inconvienenced and frustrated with this thing.There have been so many problems that they had to have known it before release.To me that is in excusable.I think its time for a class action suit.
On: 2005-08-31
got an ipod last year and screen shot. Got a replacement this year, dead a few months later. 3 phone calls and many hours later, was told the replacement only warrenty for 90 days. To fix it, cost $264. You must be kidding. bad service, bad quality, dead battery all the time. good bye Ipod. I am getting a sony NW-HD5
On: 2005-08-31
Got my ipod last year, the screen shot this year. Got a replacement from Apple and it died in a few months. Spent many hours on the phone with Apple, finally it was told the replacement is out of 90 days warrenty. Bad customer services and quality. I have seem been charging the silly thing all the time. The battery does not last (1-2hours). I have ordered a sony Sony NW-HD5 (red) after reading the review. The battery is removable and last 40 hours. Cant wait for my new toy. Goodbye IPOD for good!!
On: 2005-08-30
got an ipod last year and screen shot. Got a replacement this year, dead a few months later. 3 phone calls and many hours later, was told the replacement only warrenty for 90 days. To fix it, cost $264. You must be kidding. bad service, bad quality, dead battery all the time. good bye Ipod. I am getting a sony NW-HD5
On: 2005-08-30
Got my ipod last year, the screen shot this year. Got a replacement from Apple and it died in a few months. Spent many hours on the phone with Apple, finally it was told the replacement is out of 90 days warrenty. Bad customer services and quality. I have seem been charging the silly thing all the time. The battery does not last (1-2hours). I have ordered a sony Sony NW-HD5 (red) after reading the review. The battery is removable and last 40 hours. Cant wait for my new toy. Goodbye IPOD for good!!
On: 2005-08-27
Ive had the 4th generation 40 Gb Ipod for 9 months, so I feel prepared to give a balanced review. The things I like are that it holds more than 10,000 songs, it is very portable, the scroll wheel is fun and easy to use, and it sounds great (it sounds as good as the quality of what you put into it. If you put in high fidelity mp3s, youll get high fidelity sound). I also love how seamlessly the Ipod works with the iTunes software.
Here are the things to watch for. Ipods crash a lot. Sometimes when I want to eject it from my computer, the darn computer wont eject, and even after I use the Hardware removal feature on Windows XP, my files still get corrupted. I have to regularly erase my Ipod and reload my mp3s because songs get shortened or corrupted. And since you can only load an iTunes song up to ten times on your player, it wont be long before you can no longer use a song that you purchased fair and square from the iTunes store, and that doesnt make me very happy.
While I was on vacation, the whole unit just crashed and even when I rebooted it, it would come back to the same frozen menu. Once I got back from vacation and went through the same tired process of erasing and reloading the library, things were ok for a week or so, until for some inexplicable reason, songs at the front end of the library began to get corrupted.
Did I mention how easily the unit gets scratched? I bought iDrops to clean the scratches, but sorry to say, they were a waste of money.
I have the thing under warranty, so I plan on getting a replacement. In the meantime, let me say that the absolute best MP3 player I have owned is the much cheaper Creative Nomad Jukebox 2LX 20 GB unit that I purchased at WalMart. I gave it to my niece last year after three years of faithful service (it NEVER crashed or broke), and I miss it. I bought two others for my brother in laws, and they have played them every day for the past two years.
I also own a refurbished Nomad JukeBox Zen Xtra 60 GB, but I will refer you to my review of that product.
On: 2005-08-18
Just approaching the one year mark my Ipod began skipping through songs and freezing up. Following another week the ipod hard drive failed. After looking online at discussion groups this seems like a common problem. There are currently no fixes other than "purchase a new Ipod." Pretty expensive device for only one year of very moderate use. Apple should change their name to Crapple. It would be more fitting.
On: 2005-07-24
We have completely wasted our money buying this ipod from Apple. It experienced a software crash within 4 months, so we sent it off to the Applecare centre with their couriers for repair. It was returned back to us damaged! Since then, Apple refuse to accept responsibility for the damage and we cant do anything about it. We are disgusted with the way we have been treated and will never buy anything from Apple again. I would recommend anyone thinking of buying an ipod to read the reviews on the Amazon.com USA website first as these are genuine reviews. Dont waste your money on this product - its overrated and unreliable.
On: 2005-07-14
I bought my 40-gig ipod in December of 2004 at Amazon, and the player worked decently for about 4 and a half months. Then, my click wheel broke, and I decided to exchange it at the Apple store. Unfortunately, they did not have my model in stock, and I had to wait 6 days for my replacement. My replacement turned out to be defective (unfortunately, Apple replaces your ipods with refurbished products in most cases), and I decided to send it to California myself (we have only one Apple store in NYC, and there are huge lines at the genius bar, where they solve technical problems). This time, they repaired my refurbished replacement, which lasted another 2 weeks. The bottom line is that I have completely lost faith in Apple products and will never buy anything from this company. I was lucky that I purchased Applecare, so I have an opportunity to fight with them for another year and a half, but, on the other hand, it might as well
prolong the torture of dealing with the company which sells second-rate junk for unbelievably high prices.
On: 2005-07-08
Maybe theyll send me one that works next time.
Ive lost data and songs each time it crashes, and frustratingly there has been no pattern to the various deaths, so theyve been impossible to prevent. Im not technically illiterate and Im a recent Apple convert but just cant rely on it.
Buy the Applecare- replacements are quickly sent out but sadly, just as prone to dying. The last time I sent mine back, the UPS driver just said not another one.
On: 2005-07-07
Maybe theyll send me one that works next time.
Ive lost data and songs each time it crashes, and frustratingly there has been no pattern to the various deaths, so theyve been impossible to prevent. Im not technically illiterate and Im a recent Apple convert but just cant rely on it.
Buy the Applecare- replacements are quickly sent out but sadly, just as prone to dying. The last time I sent mine back, the UPS driver just said not another one.
On: 2005-07-05
This thing was probably the first Big Toy Ive purchased for myself in years. Concider the pricetag first: this is not a small purchase, though I think the advertising campaign has done its best to curb that feeling. In the end however it did not add up. Ipod is as fragile and prone to skipping as any portable CD player you ever used, due to its jumble of moveable internal parts which dont take kindly to, say, the motion of jogging. To me this defeats the purpose of a portable music player, that is responds poorly to movement. For a minute there, Ipod will change your life. Its an amazing experience being able to house so much information in such a small space, and no doubt you will be amazed at the shuffle feature which allows you to hear your music collection like you probably were never able to before. But this product feels unfinished, unperfected, and with too many bugs and uncertainties to really warrent the price tag. In the end I wonder whether or not Ipod will be remembered as something like an Atari: incredibly cool in concept but totally unreliable and ultimatly not very well-made. At my college, Ipods are hugely popular, and probably one in every three students carries one. However, I am yet to meet a single person who has owned their Ipod for more than six months and who has not already had it crash, break entirely, and/or lose everything at least once. To me, this doesnt seem like a very respectable rate. If you are planning on buying one, I would suggest letting it live a very plush, metropolitan life away from any kind of stress or strain, because under anything less it will break, and after the hours and hours of wasted life it will take you to upload your CD collection onto this thing, when it breaks, it will hurt. My vote is no on Ipod if youre planning on using it outside these conditions. Under fairly passive conditions however, and I mean the delicate, fearful, vaselike handling of it, it is a amazing toy, if one that will claim a good deal of your free time.
On: 2005-07-05
The following points are why you should NOT buy an iPod.
1. The battery power sucks. It says on the box that it can last up to 12 hours. HA. Ive had mine for 10 months now, and the battery lasts MAYBE 2 hours at the most. And Ive been doing everything to save this battery (e.g charging it only when the battery is at a minimum - which the manual does not mention). Guess what - the battery still sucks.
2. iPods arent meant to stop when you shake them right? Well they do. You cant even go jogging with one for more than 15 minutes without having it freeze.
3. I wanted the time to show always on my iPod, and there is a setting that is supposed to do exactly this. But does it? Of course not. The time never appears on my iPod.
4. The earphones are a pain - no matter what you do, they will tangle up and their covers will come off.
5. The back of the iPod is a mirror. WHY IS IT NOT SCRATCH-PROOF? WHY IS THERE A MIRROR AT ALL?
6. You cannot take music off an iPod once it is on, except by deleting it.
7. On European iPods, like mine, the maximum volume is pathetic, i.e put it on full volume on a train and you can barely hear it. This is because of some stupid EU rule, but I blame iPod all the same.
8. It says it is a 40G iPod, but actually 3G are already taken up when you buy it by some software which is essential to the iPod, so in fact it is only a 37G iPod.
9. The iPod is ridiculously over-priced.
9. Save yourself all this trouble by buying a Sony mp3, or an iRiver. They are more reliable and dont generally SUCK like iPods do. And their battery power is far more reliable.
On: 2005-07-04
This thing was probably the first Big Toy Ive purchased for myself in years. Concider the pricetag first: this is not a small purchase, though I think the advertising campaign has done its best to curb that feeling. In the end however it did not add up. Ipod is as fragile and prone to skipping as any portable CD player you ever used, due to its jumble of moveable internal parts which dont take kindly to, say, the motion of jogging. To me this defeats the purpose of a portable music player, that is responds poorly to movement. For a minute there, Ipod will change your life. Its an amazing experience being able to house so much information in such a small space, and no doubt you will be amazed at the shuffle feature which allows you to hear your music collection like you probably were never able to before. But this product feels unfinished, unperfected, and with too many bugs and uncertainties to really warrent the price tag. In the end I wonder whether or not Ipod will be remembered as something like an Atari: incredibly cool in concept but totally unreliable and ultimatly not very well-made. At my college, Ipods are hugely popular, and probably one in every three students carries one. However, I am yet to meet a single person who has owned their Ipod for more than six months and who has not already had it crash, break entirely, and/or lose everything at least once. To me, this doesnt seem like a very respectable rate. If you are planning on buying one, I would suggest letting it live a very plush, metropolitan life away from any kind of stress or strain, because under anything less it will break, and after the hours and hours of wasted life it will take you to upload your CD collection onto this thing, when it breaks, it will hurt. My vote is no on Ipod if youre planning on using it outside these conditions. Under fairly passive conditions however, and I mean the delicate, fearful, vaselike handling of it, it is a amazing toy, if one that will claim a good deal of your free time.
On: 2005-07-04
The following points are why you should NOT buy an iPod.
1. The battery power sucks. It says on the box that it can last up to 12 hours. HA. Ive had mine for 10 months now, and the battery lasts MAYBE 2 hours at the most. And Ive been doing everything to save this battery (e.g charging it only when the battery is at a minimum - which the manual does not mention). Guess what - the battery still sucks.
2. iPods arent meant to stop when you shake them right? Well they do. You cant even go jogging with one for more than 15 minutes without having it freeze.
3. I wanted the time to show always on my iPod, and there is a setting that is supposed to do exactly this. But does it? Of course not. The time never appears on my iPod.
4. The earphones are a pain - no matter what you do, they will tangle up and their covers will come off.
5. The back of the iPod is a mirror. WHY IS IT NOT SCRATCH-PROOF? WHY IS THERE A MIRROR AT ALL?
6. You cannot take music off an iPod once it is on, except by deleting it.
7. On European iPods, like mine, the maximum volume is pathetic, i.e put it on full volume on a train and you can barely hear it. This is because of some stupid EU rule, but I blame iPod all the same.
8. It says it is a 40G iPod, but actually 3G are already taken up when you buy it by some software which is essential to the iPod, so in fact it is only a 37G iPod.
9. The iPod is ridiculously over-priced.
9. Save yourself all this trouble by buying a Sony mp3, or an iRiver. They are more reliable and dont generally SUCK like iPods do. And their battery power is far more reliable.
On: 2005-05-27
First, check the user forums on the MAC website. Look at the comments from users of ITunes whove tried to use recent upgrades.
Second, try to find customer support.
(...and I havent even mentioned the terrible battery. I have a 40 gig, and I rarely can get more than 4 hours of play-time from a charge.)
 On: 2005-04-27
Brought this 40gb ipod for my daughter and she loves it. Use was easy to learn and software pretty easy to use. Looking back on it now...40gb is overkill. She will never fill it up! Downside are the earphones that come with it. Works much better with the Apple optional earphone...but then its another $40.00. After you purchase one of these ipods are when the cost really start to go up. From downloads to all the accessory that you can buy will set you back hundreds of dollars on top of the original cost of the ipod. I still like it enough to have purchase a Mini ipod for the wife for mothers day from my daughter. She likes this so she does not have to share now. For someone that will not have thousands of tunes...a mini is just fine!
On: 2005-04-26
Brought this 40gb ipod for my daughter and she loves it. Use was easy to learn and software pretty easy to use. Looking back on it now...40gb is overkill. She will never fill it up! Downside are the earphones that come with it. Works much better with the Apple optional earphone...but then its another $40.00. After you purchase one of these ipods are when the cost really start to go up. From downloads to all the accessory that you can buy will set you back hundreds of dollars on top of the original cost of the ipod. I still like it enough to have purchase a Mini ipod for the wife for mothers day from my daughter. She likes this so she does not have to share now. For someone that will not have thousands of tunes...a mini is just fine!
On: 2005-04-21
I returned my iPod after 3 weeks.
I bought my iPod for one reason: to listen to while I run. This is definitely not the product for that. You will have lots of people tell you that the iPod has a 25 minute skip protection, and yes, that is true. However, my workouts are composed of a single MP3 that includes not just music, but verbal cues on how fast I should be running at certain points in my run. This means I have MP3s that are 45 minutes to 2 hours long. Invariably, the iPod would lock up 24 minutes and 59 seconds into my run.
You may argue that this is a special case, but I would counter that due to the ridiculous limitation of not implementing cross-fading, anyone wanting to listen to a "complete" album will want to record the album in its entirety as a single MP3, thus creating an MP3 that goes beyond the 25 minute cache. If you happen to be doing anything more strenuous than sitting at a desk while listening to that album, your iPod will freeze up like a Minnesota pond in December.
I bought a flash based MP3 player with better sound and, unbelievably, an even less intuitive interface than the iPod. And yes, the iPod interface is extremely unintuitive. I gave my iPod to three people who had never used one before and asked them to play a specific song. After 5 minutes, not one of them was able to find the tune.
On: 2005-04-01
There are only 3 purchases that I can say have changed my life.
1. My house
2. My motorcycle
3. My iPod (40gb)
If you are considering one, you WILL NOT be disappointed!!!
On: 2005-04-01
I ordered my 40 gig ipod last week after the price dipped in the wake of Apples decision to discontinue this line. The first few days were great. What an elegant little device! Sound quality was great; storage space massive; battery life more than adequate, transfer times quick. It did cause my Windows machine to become a bit more unstable, but what new installation doesnt? Then, tragedy struck. The buttons and clickwheel began to work only intermittantly. Eventually, it got to the point where the iPod would only turn on when plugged in, and hitting a button would only cause it to turn off again. I quickly exhausted all of Apples tech supports suggestions and returned it. I did not drop the iPod or put it through any abuse beyond normal activity (walking, lifting at the gym, etc.). Stories like mine abound on the internet. So before you buy, realize that the iPod is a delicate creature. Despite Apples claim that it is intended for "active" people, it is NOT intended to be used during jogging or other rigorous activity. If you drop it, the chances are pretty good that you will break it. If you want to use an mp3 player for running or anticipate dropping it, I recommend going with a flash memory player.
Hopefully my replacement iPod will be less problematic.
On: 2005-03-31
There are only 3 purchases that I can say have changed my life.
1. My house
2. My motorcycle
3. My iPod (40gb)
If you are considering one, you WILL NOT be disappointed!!!
On: 2005-03-31
I ordered my 40 gig ipod last week after the price dipped in the wake of Apples decision to discontinue this line. The first few days were great. What an elegant little device! Sound quality was great; storage space massive; battery life more than adequate, transfer times quick. It did cause my Windows machine to become a bit more unstable, but what new installation doesnt? Then, tragedy struck. The buttons and clickwheel began to work only intermittantly. Eventually, it got to the point where the iPod would only turn on when plugged in, and hitting a button would only cause it to turn off again. I quickly exhausted all of Apples tech supports suggestions and returned it. I did not drop the iPod or put it through any abuse beyond normal activity (walking, lifting at the gym, etc.). Stories like mine abound on the internet. So before you buy, realize that the iPod is a delicate creature. Despite Apples claim that it is intended for "active" people, it is NOT intended to be used during jogging or other rigorous activity. If you drop it, the chances are pretty good that you will break it. If you want to use an mp3 player for running or anticipate dropping it, I recommend going with a flash memory player.
Hopefully my replacement iPod will be less problematic.
On: 2005-03-30
Ive got to admit that I was lured into the hype of having an ipod and I havent been significantly disappointed with the design and functionality of my precious. However, making my ipod into a working music library has been an extremely time consuming and frustrating experience. iTunes has half the features of the Windows Media player and the features that it is missing are the very ones that make sorting through hundreds of music tracks and artists a speedy and organized process. In my darkest hours I wished that Gates would don his corporate bandit disguise to rip-off the ipod concept. On the positive side, if you have been "apple pure" for the entirity of your computer existance you wont know what you are missing.
On: 2005-03-30
Other reviewers have covered the technical aspects of this iPod very well, so I wont go into it. Lets talk more about the "real life" aspects.
But before I do, let me tell you my set-up:
I have an external HD from Seagate that I use to store my music (in case my laptop HD crashes and I lose all my music...anyways, 40GB of HD space is a helluva lot). So, I use the 40GB as a back-up of my music.
Im getting the iPod shuffle for portability, so soon, this 40GB is staying home, permanently on its dock, hooked up to speakers. This will also free up my laptop RAM, so it will run faster.
Ok, so the user aspects:
1. Only buy the 40GB if you have a massive music collection. I have more music than 90% of the population, and I still have plenty of room to grow. Most people would have problems filling up even an iPod 20GB.
2. The headphones SUCK. Ive already blown them out, so that if I turn the volume up, I get horrible distortion. Not that Im crying; the audio quality was pathetic anyways. I assume that anyone with enough music for a 40GB is inherently an audiophile, so buy new headphones. For portability issues, an in-ear headphone is probably best, but at home, an over-the-ear cant be beat.
3. It is a pain trying to turn up the volume/rewind/ffw, especially since you have to take the iPod out of purse/pocket, adjust, and then put it back in. Buy the remote.
4. As soon as you take the plastic off the iPod, you will scratch it. Put it in protection ASAP. I personally use a hard case by Contour, mainly because I want to give it a fighting chance in case I drop it (and considering that its actually a big hefty, it would be easier to drop than a slimmer 20GB or a much smaller iPod mini).I also kept the plastic on the clickwheel - it doesnt hinder functionality.
5. Due to the rash of iPod thefts, you may want to buy a clip to keep your iPod attachd to your purse/pants. Again, if you have a remote, this is not a big issue.
6. Battery life is low; no way around it if you have a lot of files and you are going through them manually. Turn off the backlight if at all possible, or keep it to 5 seconds.I get maybe 3 hours with 5 second backlight and manually going through my music.
7. If you really want to know all the ins-and-outs of the iPod, get the Missing Manual for the iPod.
8. Get ready for your life to change in the best way possible. As a 40GB-er, we live, eat and breathe music, so no one will appreciate the iPod as much as we do.
On: 2005-03-29
Ive got to admit that I was lured into the hype of having an ipod and I havent been significantly disappointed with the design and functionality of my precious. However, making my ipod into a working music library has been an extremely time consuming and frustrating experience. iTunes has half the features of the Windows Media player and the features that it is missing are the very ones that make sorting through hundreds of music tracks and artists a speedy and organized process. In my darkest hours I wished that Gates would don his corporate bandit disguise to rip-off the ipod concept. On the positive side, if you have been "apple pure" for the entirity of your computer existance you wont know what you are missing.
On: 2005-03-27
The 40 GB IPOD is no longer available thru Amazon nor apple.com. I called a retail store and they said it is discontinued in order to make the 30 GB photo IPOD "more attractive" Does anyone know if apple is about to debut a new generation of IPODs? Why discontinue the 40 GB why not discontinue the 20 GB? Any insight would be helpful...still want a 40 GB.
On: 2005-03-26
The 40 GB IPOD is no longer available thru Amazon nor apple.com. I called a retail store and they said it is discontinued in order to make the 30 GB photo IPOD "more attractive" Does anyone know if apple is about to debut a new generation of IPODs? Why discontinue the 40 GB why not discontinue the 20 GB? Any insight would be helpful...still want a 40 GB.
On: 2005-03-26
I-Pod. Yeah its all that. The sound is great, it hold a bazillion songs which you can put into your own little playlists. It does lots of cool things. This big one, which I have, is smooth and solid. It plays forever on a charge, looks groovy and my friends think Im hip. However, the little wonky earphones are such a disappointment. They hurt. Anything that deforms the cartilage in your ears is going to eventually hurt. Is there any way around this that retains the cool image of having the white earphones on? Ive seen the "in ear" earphones, and have read the "insertion" advice for the standard earphones (Danger!Danger, Will Robinson!!) and I am still dubious. Come on Apple. You pride yourself on styly design. You can do better than this.
On: 2005-03-25
I-Pod. Yeah its all that. The sound is great, it hold a bazillion songs which you can put into your own little playlists. It does lots of cool things. This big one, which I have, is smooth and solid. It plays forever on a charge, looks groovy and my friends think Im hip. However, the little wonky earphones are such a disappointment. They hurt. Anything that deforms the cartilage in your ears is going to eventually hurt. Is there any way around this that retains the cool image of having the white earphones on? Ive seen the "in ear" earphones, and have read the "insertion" advice for the standard earphones (Danger!Danger, Will Robinson!!) and I am still dubious. Come on Apple. You pride yourself on styly design. You can do better than this.
On: 2005-03-22
I bought the IPOD based on reputation and the fact that Apple sells an accessory to connect to my living room stereo amplifier. I have a Windows ME computer. I spent 1 week trying to make it work (downloaded IPOD Software 2.0 which is incompatible with the Apple 40 GB iPod, read a bunch of hack advice to try and load drivers, tried using it on my work computer - IPOD doesnt work on Windows NT machines either)and then sent it back to Amazon in frustration. Apparently Apple doesnt view us Win ME folks sophisticated enough to own and operate an IPOD.
So for half the price I bought a Rio Karma 20 GB which includes everything you need to connect to both your computer and home hi fi. Within 5 minutes I had this toy humming on both my Win SE and hi fi. And the interface is just like your average Win vs. Mac interface, no the most elegant, but straight forward functionality.
Hey - I dont want art, I want easy access to my otherwise unmanageable collection of CDs. And thats what you get at a great price.
On: 2005-03-17
Ive owned a 20GB iPod for 6 months and now that its full, Im replacing it with this 40GB version, now, before its no longer available. This Amazon price is a real bargain. This model was just discontinued and replaced with the more expensive iPod Photo that comes in only 2 sizes: 30GB and 60GB. I dont care about displaying photos, so this 40GB is what I need.
Although it has its (minor) faults, I love the iPod and I use it every single day -- when running on my treadmill, working around the house, doing yard work, and reading in bed. I have ripped (converted) over 400 of my CDs and put all that music on my iPod. Ive never had it freeze up on me, but once I had to reformat it after an error occured when copying songs to it. Thats pretty disgusting, but it didnt take too long to reformat it and copy my music library to it again.
Here are some comments or pointers you might find helpful:
* Plan to buy some good headphones. Maybe theyre OK for some people, but I find the included ear buds highly uncomfortable and unusable.
* If you have a Windows PC, make sure you have Windows XP or youre willing to upgrade to XP. The iTunes software that manages your music library wont run on Windows 98.
* You dont have to buy tunes from the Apple iTunes store in order to use your iPod Apple makes it confusing because they use the same name "iTunes" for both their music store and the software that manages your music library on your computer. Ive never bought a song. I use the iTunes program for ripping my CDs (converting them to computer files that get loaded onto the iPod), and organizing all of those songs.
* If you have a lot of music, you may end up buying a larger disk drive. If you want to fill your 40GB iPod, youll need at least 40GB of free disk space, obviously. I got a 120GB drive, and now I plan to get a 2nd 120GB drive to use for backup. Trying to back up this much data onto CDs just isnt practical, and I dont want to have to rip over 400 CDs again if my drive goes bad!
* Get a padded carrying case. Before I got one, I dropped my iPod a couple of times and I feel very lucky that it continued working. Case Logic makes a great, small, padded nylon case with a belt loop and removable arm band. (I think Case Logic makes the best-designed cases for cameras, laptops, and other devices, by the way).
* Youll probably want to get adapters for playing your iPod through your home stereo and car stereo. After all, when your entire CD collection is in a unit the size of a deck of cards, why would you want to lug around old-fashioned physical CDs anymore? I got a generic brand cassette player adapter for playing the iPod in my cars cassette player. And a simple "stereo miniplug to RCA plugs" adapter from Radio Shack will let you enjoy the continuous play and shuffle features on your home stereo. Dont pay exorbitant prices for these accessories -- just go to Radio Shack and tell them what you want to do.
* When you set up your iPod and install the software for the first time (at least on a Windows PC), it is pretty confusing. Im an expert computer user, and I had difficulty getting through it and had to start over a couple times. I cant believe how lame the user interface and the instructions are for this process! But once you get through it and you start using iTunes to manage the music on your iPod, its a much better experience.
* Ive read complaints that the instruction booklet is not thorough enough. That is true. But there is a complete manual on the CD that comes with the iPod. When you install the software from the CD, I dont think the User Guide is copied from the CD to your computer, so its no wonder people never see it. So make sure you look on the CD for the User Guide PDF file.
* It took me forever to figure out how to shuffle the songs within an album, but you can do it. Doesnt Apple test the user interface on real people before releasing an important product? Apparently not. Its confusing because there are 2 Shuffle options on the menus. The "Shuffle Songs" option on the main menu is what most people see and use. It shuffles all the songs on your iPod, which is great fun. But if you want to play just one album and shuffle the songs that are on that album, you have to go to the Settings menu. On the Settings menu, there is a Shuffle setting with 3 options: Songs, Albums, Off. If you select Songs, then exit the Settings menu, and then play an album or playlist, the songs within the album or playlist are played in shuffled order (yay!). If you select Albums, then albums are played in shuffled order (but not the songs within the albums) when you play a series of albums.
* Ive read complaints that when you shuffle songs, you get things like audio books playing in your shuffle mix. You can avoid this from happening by using a combination of the song information (tags), playlists, and the above tip on how to shuffle songs within a playlist. For example, make sure all your audio books have something in common in one of their tag items (e.g., make sure the Genre includes the word "book" for each of your audio books) -- you can do this in iTunes with the "Get Info" operation. Then create a playlist named "Just Music", say, by selecting all files where Genre does not contain "book". Now, you can play your "Just Music" playlist in shuffled order (see the above tip). You can use the same idea to create playlists of classical music only, rock music only, etc., so that you dont get an ear-shattering Jimi Hendrix jam in the middle of your bedtime soft music shuffle! Why doesnt Apple read peoples complaints here at Amazon and elsewhere, then improve their software, User Guide and on-line help? Sometimes I think I should be the product marketing manager for the iPod, but then Id have to move back to the Silicon Valley. No thanks! LOL!
* Like so many others, I guess, I just love playing all of my thousands of songs in shuffle mode. I never know whats coming next, but I know its something I will like, because its from my music collection. Its surprising how many songs I cant identify, because they are from CDs I dont play that often. Its a solitaire game of Name That Tune! And I have discovered some great songs that I never really noticed before, simply because they are played out of context from the rest of the CD that they appear on.
So, although the installation, some of the user interface, and the available instructions are sometimes brain-dead, the iPod itself is an incredible device. For an extreme music lover like myself, Id almost say its "life changing", but that may be going a bit overboard!
by: digito On: 2005-03-16
The ipod is another example of the big companies trying to control the market. This piece of hardware is too delicate, unreliable and expensive. One of my major shocks was to find out that the sound has no bass and treble adjusters, no enhancement whatsoever and it sounds overall poor, flat and definitely harsh, also it has no built in radio tuner. True, it is a convenient piece of hardware, but the cost, complexity and absence of sound controls makes it another technical curiosity of our century. Stick to a good walkman and/or cd player, make your life easier, not complicated. Overall: MEDIOCRE.
On: 2005-03-16
I just cant seem to fill this thing up. I have loaded over a thousand songs, backed up my iPhoto and still have room. It is my constant companion and the address book is a handy item. The only thing I dont like is the ear buds (too big for my ears) so I replaced them with some Sony ear buds. They arent white, but they are comfortable. I used to love my 6-disc in dask CD player. Now I never have CDs in it.
On: 2005-03-16
Ive owned a 20GB iPod for 6 months and now that its full, Im replacing it with this 40GB version, now, before its no longer available. This Amazon price is a real bargain. This model was just discontinued and replaced with the more expensive iPod Photo that comes in only 2 sizes: 30GB and 60GB. I dont care about displaying photos, so this 40GB is what I need.
Although it has its (minor) faults, I love the iPod and I use it every single day -- when running on my treadmill, working around the house, doing yard work, and reading in bed. I have ripped (converted) over 400 of my CDs and put all that music on my iPod. Ive never had it freeze up on me, but once I had to reformat it after an error occured when copying songs to it. Thats pretty disgusting, but it didnt take too long to reformat it and copy my music library to it again.
Here are some comments or pointers you might find helpful:
* Plan to buy some good headphones. Maybe theyre OK for some people, but I find the included ear buds highly uncomfortable and unusable.
* If you have a Windows PC, make sure you have Windows XP or youre willing to upgrade to XP. The iTunes software that manages your music library wont run on Windows 98.
* You dont have to buy tunes from the Apple iTunes store in order to use your iPod Apple makes it confusing because they use the same name "iTunes" for both their music store and the software that manages your music library on your computer. Ive never bought a song. I use the iTunes program for ripping my CDs (converting them to computer files that get loaded onto the iPod), and organizing all of those songs.
* If you have a lot of music, you may end up buying a larger disk drive. If you want to fill your 40GB iPod, youll need at least 40GB of free disk space, obviously. I got a 120GB drive, and now I plan to get a 2nd 120GB drive to use for backup. Trying to back up this much data onto CDs just isnt practical, and I dont want to have to rip over 400 CDs again if my drive goes bad!
* Get a padded carrying case. Before I got one, I dropped my iPod a couple of times and I feel very lucky that it continued working. Case Logic makes a great, small, padded nylon case with a belt loop and removable arm band. (I think Case Logic makes the best-designed cases for cameras, laptops, and other devices, by the way).
* Youll probably want to get adapters for playing your iPod through your home stereo and car stereo. After all, when your entire CD collection is in a unit the size of a deck of cards, why would you want to lug around old-fashioned physical CDs anymore? I got a generic brand cassette player adapter for playing the iPod in my cars cassette player. And a simple "stereo miniplug to RCA plugs" adapter from Radio Shack will let you enjoy the continuous play and shuffle features on your home stereo. Dont pay exorbitant prices for these accessories -- just go to Radio Shack and tell them what you want to do.
* When you set up your iPod and install the software for the first time (at least on a Windows PC), it is pretty confusing. Im an expert computer user, and I had difficulty getting through it and had to start over a couple times. I cant believe how lame the user interface and the instructions are for this process! But once you get through it and you start using iTunes to manage the music on your iPod, its a much better experience.
* Ive read complaints that the instruction booklet is not thorough enough. That is true. But there is a complete manual on the CD that comes with the iPod. When you install the software from the CD, I dont think the User Guide is copied from the CD to your computer, so its no wonder people never see it. So make sure you look on the CD for the User Guide PDF file.
* It took me forever to figure out how to shuffle the songs within an album, but you can do it. Doesnt Apple test the user interface on real people before releasing an important product? Apparently not. Its confusing because there are 2 Shuffle options on the menus. The "Shuffle Songs" option on the main menu is what most people see and use. It shuffles all the songs on your iPod, which is great fun. But if you want to play just one album and shuffle the songs that are on that album, you have to go to the Settings menu. On the Settings menu, there is a Shuffle setting with 3 options: Songs, Albums, Off. If you select Songs, then exit the Settings menu, and then play an album or playlist, the songs within the album or playlist are played in shuffled order (yay!). If you select Albums, then albums are played in shuffled order (but not the songs within the albums) when you play a series of albums.
* Ive read complaints that when you shuffle songs, you get things like audio books playing in your shuffle mix. You can avoid this from happening by using a combination of the song information (tags), playlists, and the above tip on how to shuffle songs within a playlist. For example, make sure all your audio books have something in common in one of their tag items (e.g., make sure the Genre includes the word "book" for each of your audio books) -- you can do this in iTunes with the "Get Info" operation. Then create a playlist named "Just Music", say, by selecting all files where Genre does not contain "book". Now, you can play your "Just Music" playlist in shuffled order (see the above tip). You can use the same idea to create playlists of classical music only, rock music only, etc., so that you dont get an ear-shattering Jimi Hendrix jam in the middle of your bedtime soft music shuffle! Why doesnt Apple read peoples complaints here at Amazon and elsewhere, then improve their software, User Guide and on-line help? Sometimes I think I should be the product marketing manager for the iPod, but then Id have to move back to the Silicon Valley. No thanks! LOL!
* Like so many others, I guess, I just love playing all of my thousands of songs in shuffle mode. I never know whats coming next, but I know its something I will like, because its from my music collection. Its surprising how many songs I cant identify, because they are from CDs I dont play that often. Its a solitaire game of Name That Tune! And I have discovered some great songs that I never really noticed before, simply because they are played out of context from the rest of the CD that they appear on.
So, although the installation, some of the user interface, and the available instructions are sometimes brain-dead, the iPod itself is an incredible device. For an extreme music lover like myself, Id almost say its "life changing", but that may be going a bit overboard!
On: 2005-03-15
The ipod is another example of the big companies trying to control the market. This piece of hardware is too delicate, unreliable and expensive. One of my major shocks was to find out that the sound has no bass and treble adjusters, no enhancement whatsoever and it sounds overall poor, flat and definitely harsh, also it has no built in radio tuner. True, it is a convenient piece of hardware, but the cost, complexity and absence of sound controls makes it another technical curiosity of our century. Stick to a good walkman and/or cd player, make your life easier, not complicated. Overall: MEDIOCRE.
On: 2005-03-11
Great Hardware - the best. Marginal software - itunes is mediocre and unwieldy!! Ive had my 40gig ipod 3 weeks and Ive reformated it twice. Im looking at my frozen apple ipod now again which wont re-boot. I have to reformat it. It hates big file downloads in the juvenile cradle. If one music file in your 30 gig collection happens to lose its link while being downloaded to your "one-way" ipod it might freeze the ipod to the core. !!!! Not possible to use this proprietary machine with anything but lowly itunes. Stick to MP3 - uses less space and easier to handle big files. An Apple MP3 player wouldnt be bad. GOOD LUCK !! Shooperman Age 45
On: 2005-03-09
The 40 GB iPod, what a wonderful toy! I started off wanting this product back when I found out how impressive iTunes was in storing music. Im sure other products play music just fine or even create play lists on the fly. iTunes just does it all and ripping and burning CDs just makes it seem so easy. This is a long way from the old days where you had to purchase software to rip a CD and then purchase a program to burn a CD. Although I will recommend ripping all your songs in MP3 format with the highest bit rate of 192 or 360.
Now on to the iPod, I received this as a Christmas gift, which Im sure made a dent in my parents pocket but thanks! I had the device setup and synced with iTunes in 10 minutes. It comes with a wall charger, USB cable, Firewire cable, headphones, and of course a setup CD. The only thing I dont like about this is the wall charger uses my Firewire cable and I constantly have to unplug it from the wall to make sure I can sync my iPod on the run. The black shield cover for the headphones also keeps falling off so you should just put them back in the box when you get a chance.
Moving on to operational ability, firstly the dial is pretty nice to maneuver around. However when you do try to do some of the push button functions in which you have to hold down for five seconds it gets difficult. Turning it off requires that you hold down the play/pause button that ends up either playing or pausing or seeking forward or backwards. The same goes for the lighted interface, its just too hard to use these buttons. The backlight doesnt even stay on while youre trying to browse for a song, itll just turn off.
In addition to this Apple hasnt added any common functionality of iTunes into the iPod, for example zero second pre-gap or fade into next song. This is incredibly useful to listen to CDs that are continuous such as classical, some rock, and trance songs. Apple can fix this in two seconds with a firmware upgrade but chances are they wont. So why buy one? Buy an iPod because it has great sound output, a great interface with iTunes, playlists are a breeze to setup, and because even with its flaws it surpasses all the other MP3 players on the market.
On: 2005-03-08
The 40 GB iPod, what a wonderful toy! I started off wanting this product back when I found out how impressive iTunes was in storing music. Im sure other products play music just fine or even create play lists on the fly. iTunes just does it all and ripping and burning CDs just makes it seem so easy. This is a long way from the old days where you had to purchase software to rip a CD and then purchase a program to burn a CD. Although I will recommend ripping all your songs in MP3 format with the highest bit rate of 192 or 360.
Now on to the iPod, I received this as a Christmas gift, which Im sure made a dent in my parents pocket but thanks! I had the device setup and synced with iTunes in 10 minutes. It comes with a wall charger, USB cable, Firewire cable, headphones, and of course a setup CD. The only thing I dont like about this is the wall charger uses my Firewire cable and I constantly have to unplug it from the wall to make sure I can sync my iPod on the run. The black shield cover for the headphones also keeps falling off so you should just put them back in the box when you get a chance.
Moving on to operational ability, firstly the dial is pretty nice to maneuver around. However when you do try to do some of the push button functions in which you have to hold down for five seconds it gets difficult. Turning it off requires that you hold down the play/pause button that ends up either playing or pausing or seeking forward or backwards. The same goes for the lighted interface, its just too hard to use these buttons. The backlight doesnt even stay on while youre trying to browse for a song, itll just turn off.
In addition to this Apple hasnt added any common functionality of iTunes into the iPod, for example zero second pre-gap or fade into next song. This is incredibly useful to listen to CDs that are continuous such as classical, some rock, and trance songs. Apple can fix this in two seconds with a firmware upgrade but chances are they wont. So why buy one? Buy an iPod because it has great sound output, a great interface with iTunes, playlists are a breeze to setup, and because even with its flaws it surpasses all the other MP3 players on the market.
On: 2005-03-03
Nothing to add all previous praises: its the best! I also want to help out Microsoft XP/ Outlook users, whod like to transfer their contacts onto their iPods. The advice Apple gives does NOT work: "drag your contacts to the Contacts folder once you can see your iPod as a hard drive in My Computer " This did NOT work. Rather, I had to open each contact I wanted to transfer manually, and then click on "save as a Vcard" under the "File" tab. It lets you determine the saving destination, which then you choose as the Contacts folder in your iPod. Hope this helps.
On: 2005-03-02
Nothing to add all previous praises: its the best! I also want to help out Microsoft XP/ Outlook users, whod like to transfer their contacts onto their iPods. The advice Apple gives does NOT work: "drag your contacts to the Contacts folder once you can see your iPod as a hard drive in My Computer " This did NOT work. Rather, I had to open each contact I wanted to transfer manually, and then click on "save as a Vcard" under the "File" tab. It lets you determine the saving destination, which then you choose as the Contacts folder in your iPod. Hope this helps.
On: 2005-03-01
Ive had my iPod for almost 6 months and have had absolutely no problems with it, except for a CHKDSK error that occured one time in Windows. However, after some research online, I figured out how to correct that and it now works fine.
I currently have 2200 songs on my 40 gig. iPod and have TONS of disk space left. I will probably run out of space on the hard disk on my computer before I fill up the iPod! Ive stayed busy importing my big CD collection and still have a lot to go.
Im thrilled with the sound quality, both through the headphones and the docking station on my home stereo. My only complaint is you cant shuffle playlists, as mentioned previously. The smart playlists make up for this somewhat, though, since you can set your criteria and iTunes will create a playlist based on that. Also, the shiny back scratches extremely easily. I did invest in the carrying case (Apple charges big bucks for their accessories), which is fine for exercising and protecting the iPod, but you have to remove the iPod from the case to adjust the sound or skip a song.
A word about Apples customer service: My daughter got a 20 gig. iPod and we had some problems getting the software installed. I called Apple for assistance and got a really snotty customer service rep. who informed us we got ONE phone call for free and then we had to purchase the Apple Customer Care package! Considering the price theyre charging for this little gadget, they ought to provide better customer service. I was NOT impressed with their service.
My iPod syncs up perfectly with iTunes and updates really quickly, even in Windows. All in all, Im very satisfied. I would recommend this to any music lover!
On: 2005-02-28
Ive had my iPod for almost 6 months and have had absolutely no problems with it, except for a CHKDSK error that occured one time in Windows. However, after some research online, I figured out how to correct that and it now works fine.
I currently have 2200 songs on my 40 gig. iPod and have TONS of disk space left. I will probably run out of space on the hard disk on my computer before I fill up the iPod! Ive stayed busy importing my big CD collection and still have a lot to go.
Im thrilled with the sound quality, both through the headphones and the docking station on my home stereo. My only complaint is you cant shuffle playlists, as mentioned previously. The smart playlists make up for this somewhat, though, since you can set your criteria and iTunes will create a playlist based on that. Also, the shiny back scratches extremely easily. I did invest in the carrying case (Apple charges big bucks for their accessories), which is fine for exercising and protecting the iPod, but you have to remove the iPod from the case to adjust the sound or skip a song.
A word about Apples customer service: My daughter got a 20 gig. iPod and we had some problems getting the software installed. I called Apple for assistance and got a really snotty customer service rep. who informed us we got ONE phone call for free and then we had to purchase the Apple Customer Care package! Considering the price theyre charging for this little gadget, they ought to provide better customer service. I was NOT impressed with their service.
My iPod syncs up perfectly with iTunes and updates really quickly, even in Windows. All in all, Im very satisfied. I would recommend this to any music lover!
On: 2005-02-27
I love my iPod, but there are some there are problems, along with things Apple didnt consider, but should have. First of all, as another reviewer said, it is very fragile. I have never dropped my iPod, and suddenly underside of the case is popping out a little bit. I have no explanation for it. Second, Apple shouldve taken into consideration, such as people who put audio books or lessons onto their iPods; I did and I dont want to have to constantly skip them when Im shuffling through my song library. Finally, the head phone design couldve been better. Since it hangs so far in front when Im listening to something, all I have to do is stand up for the cord to get caught on any number of things and have the earpieces snap out of my ears. Im surprised they still work after this happening as often does, so I guess they deserve credit for that.
There are other small, somewhat understandable flaws (ie. lag). Overall, I recommend this for people who have tons of music, and also this particular model because it comes with free stuff. The quality of the organization system is very poor though.
On: 2005-02-26
I love my iPod, but there are some there are problems, along with things Apple didnt consider, but should have. First of all, as another reviewer said, it is very fragile. I have never dropped my iPod, and suddenly underside of the case is popping out a little bit. I have no explanation for it. Second, Apple shouldve taken into consideration, such as people who put audio books or lessons onto their iPods; I did and I dont want to have to constantly skip them when Im shuffling through my song library. Finally, the head phone design couldve been better. Since it hangs so far in front when Im listening to something, all I have to do is stand up for the cord to get caught on any number of things and have the earpieces snap out of my ears. Im surprised they still work after this happening as often does, so I guess they deserve credit for that.
There are other small, somewhat understandable flaws (ie. lag). Overall, I recommend this for people who have tons of music, and also this particular model because it comes with free stuff. The quality of the organization system is very poor though.
On: 2005-02-24
**** LATEST update to iPod family ****
- iPod & iPod photo lines merged; no more iPod photo 30 GB
- iPod comes in two capacities - 20 GB ($299), 60 GB ($399) with color screen & photo support
- U2 iPod (20 GB) down to $329 from $349 - with color screen & photo support
- iPod shuffle 1 GB down to $129 from $149
- iPod 60 GB down to $399 from $449
- new version of iTunes (4.9) that support podcasts
***************************************
You should be looking at iPod photo 30 GB instead of this product, from now onwards!
Today (23 Feb 2005), Apple announced a major change in its iPod lineup and here is how it affects iPod 40 GB and iPod photo models:
> iPod 40 GB is discontinued
> iPod photo 40 GB is discontinued
> iPod photo 30 GB (new product) replaces the 40 GB iPod photo and the regular iPod 40 GB
> iPod photo 60 GB now costs $150 less -- $449 instead of $599
> iPod photo 30 GB costs $349 ($150 less than iPod photo 40 GB and $50 less than regular iPod 40 GB)
> iPod dock ($39), AV cable ($19), carrying case ($29), and firewire cable ($19) do not ship with iPod photo (you may not really need them)
> Now we get three things with iPod photo: earphones, USB based AC adapter, USB 2.0 cable
> In additon to the above, a firewire cable continues to ship with iPod 20 GB & iPod U2 edition
> iPod photo Camera Connector is introduced - this can be used for connecting your digital camera directly to the iPod
Since I have iPod 40 GB as well as iPod photo 60 GB, I strongly recommend iPod photo for those who are looking beyond the iPod 20 GB. The color screen has much better resolution and it also has a scrolling feature for long texts. Of course, the ability to store and view the photos is a great value addition too.
On: 2005-02-24
I received my new IPOD 40gb player about 3 weeks ago, it is a great looking player, very compact in size, and it sounds great. I also purchased the FM Modulator connector cable for the car, I have no complaints about the sound quality or the quality of the product.
But BEWARE if you want to manage your own music!! I wanted to combine my music into one smaller player in size, but larger in capacity... the Apple IPOD makes it very difficult to set your music up the way you want it on your player! IPOD forces you to do it their way, period.
When you plug in the ipod it goes about erasing and transferring files, there is an option to disable to automatic updates, but I still cant figure out how to make it transfer manually... it has even erased files off my hard drive!
Plus theres no way to erase a file on the fly off the IPOD itself while playing... ugh!
BASICALLY What Im saying is this is a great looking and sounding unit, but I will never buy another one again... its so much easier with other MP3 players to build everything on your computer then drag and drop the whole directory on to the MP3 player, and IPOD is very deficient in this area. I am forced to use it as a "Shuffle Player", because I could never find anything on it.
On: 2005-02-23
**** LATEST update to iPod family ****
- iPod & iPod photo lines merged; no more iPod photo 30 GB
- iPod comes in two capacities - 20 GB ($299), 60 GB ($399) with color screen & photo support
- U2 iPod (20 GB) down to $329 from $349 - with color screen & photo support
- iPod shuffle 1 GB down to $129 from $149
- iPod 60 GB down to $399 from $449
- new version of iTunes (4.9) that support podcasts
***************************************
You should be looking at iPod photo 30 GB instead of this product, from now onwards!
Today (23 Feb 2005), Apple announced a major change in its iPod lineup and here is how it affects iPod 40 GB and iPod photo models:
> iPod 40 GB is discontinued
> iPod photo 40 GB is discontinued
> iPod photo 30 GB (new product) replaces the 40 GB iPod photo and the regular iPod 40 GB
> iPod photo 60 GB now costs $150 less -- $449 instead of $599
> iPod photo 30 GB costs $349 ($150 less than iPod photo 40 GB and $50 less than regular iPod 40 GB)
> iPod dock ($39), AV cable ($19), carrying case ($29), and firewire cable ($19) do not ship with iPod photo (you may not really need them)
> Now we get three things with iPod photo: earphones, USB based AC adapter, USB 2.0 cable
> In additon to the above, a firewire cable continues to ship with iPod 20 GB & iPod U2 edition
> iPod photo Camera Connector is introduced - this can be used for connecting your digital camera directly to the iPod
Since I have iPod 40 GB as well as iPod photo 60 GB, I strongly recommend iPod photo for those who are looking beyond the iPod 20 GB. The color screen has much better resolution and it also has a scrolling feature for long texts. Of course, the ability to store and view the photos is a great value addition too.
On: 2005-02-23
I received my new IPOD 40gb player about 3 weeks ago, it is a great looking player, very compact in size, and it sounds great. I also purchased the FM Modulator connector cable for the car, I have no complaints about the sound quality or the quality of the product.
But BEWARE if you want to manage your own music!! I wanted to combine my music into one smaller player in size, but larger in capacity... the Apple IPOD makes it very difficult to set your music up the way you want it on your player! IPOD forces you to do it their way, period.
When you plug in the ipod it goes about erasing and transferring files, there is an option to disable to automatic updates, but I still cant figure out how to make it transfer manually... it has even erased files off my hard drive!
Plus theres no way to erase a file on the fly off the IPOD itself while playing... ugh!
BASICALLY What Im saying is this is a great looking and sounding unit, but I will never buy another one again... its so much easier with other MP3 players to build everything on your computer then drag and drop the whole directory on to the MP3 player, and IPOD is very deficient in this area. I am forced to use it as a "Shuffle Player", because I could never find anything on it.
On: 2005-02-19
The interface is fun to use. But, after I spent a ton of time importing my CD collection, which includes books on CD, I discovered that you cant shuffle playlists. What does that mean? It means that I could only shuffle the songs in one "album" or alternatively ALL of the "songs" which include excepts from books on CD. There is a catego | | |
