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Apple iPod Video 60 GB White MA003LL/A (5th Generation)
By: Apple Average Rating: 4.0 Total Reviews: 106
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 On: 2008-09-28
This is the worst mp3 player i thought this one would be better then the 30gig. But i was wrong it only lasted one month and apple would not fix it. I tried twice but nothing happend so i gave up. I got an ultra slim sony walkman from japan as a nice alternative and the battery life is excellent. It runs for 3 weeks straight on a battery that looks like a stick of gum. thats triple the ipod life so i say long live the cassette and good bye ipod.
 On: 2008-09-03
How did I ever live without an iPod?! Im sure the newer generation iPods are even better, but this one works just a well and you wont regret getting one.
 On: 2008-08-14
what can i say about an ipod everybody has one. this one also plays mp4 video. wish it also played .avi video but not too big deal. 60gb is a ton of storage
 On: 2008-04-07
The 60gb is good, but if you need more memory I highly recommend you max out your storage needs and get the 160gb version. I now sync every month or so. Cant beat that.
On: 2008-02-18
everything is working till now.
i have it for more than 2 years, using it everyday... for listening music, watching some videos and like a super pen drive and the battery still good!
i have a 30gb one and my mom has the 60gb.
they are really good!
On: 2007-11-24
Ive been an iPod user since I bought a 5gb way back in 02, and they just keep getting better! I have owned a 60GB white 5th gen iPod for several months now, and Im very very pleased with it. I use it for upwards of three hours a day, since I not only have all my music on it, but lots of TV shows, podcasts and audibooks. I also recently bought the AV connection kit, and use that to watch my TV shows from the iPod on my TV
Things I like about it:
* Easy to use and look good
* Excellent sound quality if you encode your music at a high bitrate and use a decent set of headphones
* Plays TV programs on my TV with surprisingly good quality
* iTunes is awesome - probably my prime reason for sticking with the iPod
* Podcast support is wonderful - I look forward to new episodes every time I use the iPod (Im a Scott Sigler junkie too)
Things I dont like so much:
* Poor battery life if using the backlight
* 60GB aint enough for me now, but thats not the iPods fault..
On: 2007-08-02
Im checking out some of the reviews here, and have decided to post my *complete* thoughts on this topic.
First off Id like to say that it doesnt matter if the iPod is black or white.
Second:
Alot of people here seem to be angry about the "freezing black apple screen". It can be frustrating. If, however, you depress the center button and menu button at the same time for about five seconds the iPod will reset it self (this process requires about three minutes to complete). My songs have never been lost when this happened. Id also like to note that Ive had this iPod for 14 months now and use it from 4 to 10 hours in a day, every day. Id again like to note that I bought a rubber case for my iPod 14 months ago as well.
It has only frozen about 4 or 5 times, which has only cost me about twenty minutes of silence in 14 months.
Some of these reviews speak of the low quality of this product, like saying it has crashed, or is now completely useless, or apple is an impossible company to deal with (this I agree with), or the procuct is over-hyped, or... well this is just a montage of thoughts and quotes.
I am very happy with this product and I expect it to work for at least 3 more years, but Ill never know because Its practically filled up and will have to move on to a much larger allotment of space. I have about 3 gigs left. At 160 kbps I have 10,419 songs I have 152 songs that are over twenty minutes long, some album sides burnt to CD then ripped to my iPod.
This is a product to take advantage of people, while Its still around.
I bought mine new for $400 dollars, I just saw a 5 Gig on sale at the mall for $189 dollars thats half price with TWELVE TIMES LESS SPACE!!!! A rip off if Ive ever seen one, especially when you can buy the 60 gig on this site for considerably less than I bought mine for.
I do not work for apple of amazon email me for more details buyers.
On: 2007-07-20
Ive had several minis for 3+ years and have had very few problems. In the 4 months Ive had had this 60 GB it has frozen 3-4 times requiring the "5R" treatment including wiping the thing clean and reloading all the songs back on.
The wheel also sustained a crack in the plastic while it was in a very sturdy case in a padded pocket in my purse. This is odd because I only use my ipod on my my commute for less than an hour a day and am quite meticulous about its care.
The best part is the more-than-ample space for my music. My kids are disgusted that I have a video iPod (they dont), yet I refuse to buy videos. This iPod should give me space for the next few years if it lasts that long.
On: 2007-07-16
I love the features of this product, but the quality is something to be desired. The Mac people love to talk about the PCs "Blue Screen of Death", well, this Apple product has the "Black Apple of Death". It freezes and locks on a regular basis. If you are lucky, it only seizes for a few minutes and then resets. If it is not your lucky day, it will freeze completely and be completely useless until the battery dies and it can be recharged. I have the same complaint as everyone else, too, it was marred and scratched with hours of purchase. Im sorry I bought this product. I love having an mp3 player that plays video, but I shouldve bought a different brand. Thankfully, there are many 3rd party companies that make accessories, because Apple charges a whole lot of money for every little thing.
On: 2007-07-01
For this price I expected a decent product. It breaks just after the warranty expires and they tell you they dont repair products, only replace them within warranty period. Zero stars would be much better as that is what I give it. Its difficult to get songs into the iPod and when it breaks youre out the whole enchilada! Look elsewhere if you want a decent personal jukebox and definitely avoid all things from Apple. I will be in the future.
On: 2007-05-07
The iPod video is SO far greater than my iPod Nano! Its still the best for music listening, but the picture quality is outstanding and playback is easy. The games are awesome, too! You wont regret buying one.
On: 2007-04-11
Wonderful. Holds all my songs, holds my books on tape so I can listen on the road. Photos are large and sharp. Very easy to use and easy to download. The dials are excelent, on-off and volume work flawlessly. I have many products such as car adapter, speakers, external charger, and external microphone and all work great. I highly recommend the unit. I would never get less then 60 gigs, plenty of space for all of my needs. On my recent trip to California this was the only thing I took for entertainment; never listened to a song twice.
On: 2007-03-08
Nothing but praise for th iPod 60 GB It seems like all of the problems of the past generations have been resolved. It makes a perfect gym companion
On: 2007-02-12
Another upgrade to the existing product by Apple. Seems to have better battery life than its predecessor. The only drawback to this product is the limitations Apple puts on copying itunes downloads, which at times can be inconvenient. Back up copies of purchased music will be in itunes format and not playable on any computer not authorized by the purchaser. If you have never owned an ipod, you may want to carefully review what you purchase on line to assure you will be receiving the charger and ipod and not just the ipod alone.
On: 2007-01-29
Yes, I was an iPod holdout until I found a good price on the 60 Gb gen 5 video iPod. Love the quality and podcasts I have discovered. This is a true bargin when you consider what it can do.
On: 2007-01-19
Other than the fact that it came with only a USB cable and earphones, it was brand new in the box and was just what I ordered. It works great. Just keep in mind you will probably need to spend another $100 dollars easy, on accessories. I currently have roughly 1800 songs on the unit and have only used 10% of the space available.
On: 2007-01-16
Great item! Completely happy with it. Audio and video quality superb.
On: 2007-01-14
i it a great price for that kind of product. it is a lot of quality and works really nice. i strongly recomend it.
On: 2007-01-12
I bought this ipod to replace one that had a failed hard drive. As with my previous ipod, setup was a breeze and everything worked as planned. I havent played with the photo or video capability but I assume they work well too. My only complaint/suggestion is that I wish there was an easier way to switch from shuffle to linear(?) play mode. I often dont know exactly what Im in the mood for so Ill be driving along listening in shuffle mode (via a cassette player adapter)and then Ill hear something I like and will want to hear the whole album. Unfortunately its too cumbersome to switch out of shuffle mode while Im driving, so I wind up continuing to listen in shuffle mode, slightly disappointed that I cant hear more of the desired album. All in all, I suppose thats a minor complaint. Now stop reading these reviews and complete your purchase already...
On: 2007-01-12
If Apple makes everthing works as it advertized, then its worth it.
On: 2007-01-09
Im not the personal receiver of this product. We, as a company, purchase the product redeemed to a point-earned system for our clients cardholders.
On: 2007-01-09
Great piece of technology. The use for podcasts was an unexpected bonus and has become by primary use. Amazing quality of sound and conveniece.
On: 2007-01-09
The 60GB iPod Video is great. The only thing I dont exactly like is the difficulty in getting personal(previously bought) dvds loaded for viewing - its not exactly user friendly to do that. The purchased dvds from the Apple store is fine, just a hassle to go the other way. But all in all, I would recommend it.
On: 2007-01-04
The 60 GB iPod is entirely adequate for most users needs. It is substantially less expensive than the newer 80 GB iPod, but still holds almost 30 full length movies. It appears that iPod is on the kick of introducing newer products (not better products) to replace models that are still perfectly suitable for most users needs. This will certainly increase the profitability of the company. While the screens brightness of the newer models is said to be brighter, one would really need to check both models to see if the newer version is worth the extra expense. I doubt that it really is.
On: 2006-12-11
We paid $600 when we bought this I-pod for our son in 2004. After less than two years use it completely crashed. Of course it was out of warranty. It was never dropped or abused in any way -- our son is an adult who took good care of it. Many others have told us of similar complaints. No one repairs an I-pod, its too expensive. I think this is a rip-off by a company that promises a user-friendly product. Neither we nor or son will buy another one.
 On: 2006-11-18
When trying to download information to the Ipod, I keep getting error messages reading Ipod is corrupt and it asks me to restore the Ipod. Sometimes the software will recognize the Ipod and other times it wont. I have installed and reinstalled the software several times, but it does not seem to fix the problem.
On: 2006-11-10
This is a perfect mp3 player. I had the 40Gb model before this and needed a bit of extra room. You cant ask for anything more than this. It does everything an mp3 player should, and more (podcasts, videos, photos). I bought the 60 a couple of weeks before the 80 was released at the same price. Bad timing on my behalf...
On: 2006-11-06
only problem is with apple earplugs. They are round and hard, Diffcult to fit in ear. Had to buy soft ones made by Sony (about $45). Surely not Amazons fault.
On: 2006-11-06
Works great and has lots of space. The only drawback is I cant figure out how to copy a DVD to it.
On: 2006-11-05
Before purchasing this product I did research on all iPods and knowing what I would be using it for I felt this Apple 60 GB iPod would be my best choice. Ordering and delivery was the easiest part of my purchase. When it arrived I read the booklet I received and inserted my disc into the computer. Nothing goes accordingly....I went on many web-sites to get the real scoop on the problems I was having. After 2 days of reading printed our material from other people I was able to use my ipod. Within a month it was not working. I went back to the booklet and found the toubleshooting section and have now had to reset this ipod several times to get it to work. I bought all the horns and whistles to enhance it (extra battery, cover, new-earphones, Bose speaker and the list goes on)
I am not disappointed in the technology of this amazing little piece of machinery but I do think there are a few bugs that need fixing.
On: 2006-11-03
60 GB was too quickly followed by the new 80 GB after my purchase so Im a little jaded that they didnt bring down the price for a product that was on the market for nearly a year, to be upgraded soon.
The problem with bigger memory is that you expect all other fetaures to evolve simultaneously, once you reach over 1,000 songs, you need more buttons, more functions and smoother navigation than the wheel, it just takes too long to find what youre looking for unless you have it on a playlist...
But I love having my own jukebox--mine stands handsomely on the Bose deck, very Zen and powerful sound that fills up the room!
On: 2006-11-02
I like Apples iPod, and have purchased several for myself and my children. My most recent, the Apple 60 GB iPod with Video Playback White, has performed well so far, with its battery life exceeding my previous iPod (a 40GB 4g version) handily. I have three qualms with the new one:
1. The display is very hard to read in any light level unless the backlight is on, which reduces battery life. My older versions did not have this limitation (although they didnt have color or video either).
2. This version of iPod doesnt use Firewire. I realize that for alot of Windows users, the Firewire was superfluous, and by not including it, Apple saves money, but I liked/wanted that feature.
3. Apple keeps making small changes to the exterior of the case, so now the sound out port is off to the side, so my carrying case flap has to remain open for me to use it (a small nit, I grant, but there it is).
It has been several years since I have even tried (or seen for that matter) another brand of MP3 player, so I have no non-Apple comparisons to make. It does what I want and is very portable. Its simple to operate, and if it breaks, Ill get another one.
An editorial point for consideration - if you have your own music from your own CDs, then DRM will not be an issue, and there can be *no* lock-in or lock-out. Apple, Microsoft and Real all have their own proprietary DRM, and with Apple having about 70 percent of the total market, buying from Apples store is the best/safest choice. If you have your own CDs though, this whole DRM thing is moot. I personally have several hundred CDs, and I have created my own MP3s from them, so I can move them anywhere I like at any time, but Apples iPod is the only device I would even consider given the current market for devices and music stores. There is nothing on the horizon that is worth considering in my opinion either.
On: 2006-10-27
I ordered and received the 60GB iPod from Amazon three days ago. Everything was going fine until the device locked up. After going online to Apple "help", re-loading software and attempting to reset it a dozen times, I gave up and called Apple tech support. Im well within my 90 day free tech support window. Apple told me that since I bought it from Amazon, they had no way to know when it shipped, so NO TECH SUPPORT! BUYER BEWARE, if you purchase this from Amazon, you are giving up your 90 days of free Apple tech support. Im not sure if I should be mad at Amazon or Apple ;-) !!
On: 2006-10-06
We own tons of music, and after owning a megar 700M Rio mp3 player and jumping to an iPod...well theres no comparison! The iPod changed the way we listen to music - perhaps forever. Theres nothing that can beat having all of your music in one place where you can draw from a vast library and well...its extremely entertaining. I would whole-heartedly recommend it for anyone and wish I had enough money to buy everybody I know one for a present because theyre great.
On: 2006-09-14
I bought this about 2 weeks ago. I have no complaints with iPod. If I have anything, perhaps its the quality of headphones.
What I did not like is the iTunes software and how the songs are managed.
1) It does not allow taking copy of my songs from iPod and back them up in some other machine. Can you believe this? I need to use 3rd party software to do this. Amazing why Apple would not provide something so basic.
2) I have not looked into the documentation but iTunes seem to store all the files flat in one directory. It does not allow organizing the files into directories and hierarchies. As a result, if I am managing iPod files manually, I have a difficult time to go though my list to find all the recent files to copy them to iPod.
3) When iPod is set to automatic updates, it synchronizes with the source whcih is your hard disk. In this process, it deletes any content that is on your iPod that does not exist on your disk. This is a big pain if we are managing files from multiple computers and those two computers are not in sync. Atleast, it should prompt me whether it should delete or not. Wishful thinking :-)
4) Software should allow defining our own attributes on a song. For example, I want to group my songs based on say a particular TV Show. I want to give it name TVShow. There is no way I can do this.
In a word, Apple seem to have designed iTunes expecting that everyone will download songs from iTunes, dont try to do much beyond synch automatically.
On: 2006-09-03
Since they first came out in 2001, Ive bought 3 hard-drive-based iPods. Each performed well, for its day, in sound quality and ease of use. All three, however, failed mechanically just slightly beyond the warranty period. In all, I have sunk over $1,000 into iPods, with nothing to show for it today. A single buyers experience is a tiny sample, of course, and perhaps I was just unlucky. In any event, I decided to cut my losses and bought a hard-drive-based mp3 player of different make. Thus far, after 18 months, the replacement brand has performed flawlessly.
On: 2006-08-29
I bought this to entertain my 4 yr. daughter on a cross country flight. Downloaded Dora, Mickeys Clubhouse and other cartoons as well as her favorite music. She was quiet and happy the whole trip. Of course I also have two seasons of Alias and tons of music for myself. The battery has done very well, too.
On: 2006-08-29
I listen to music 5 hours a day and last week my Creative Zen Touch fell down the stairs (with its "protective" case on) and itmalfunctioned after that. I bought that player because of its storage, it had 40 GB and that was the max capacity installed by any mp3 player. I was on my way to buy the Creative Zen Vision:M but I thank Apple for releasing this 60GB model. I listen to all kinds of music and love building my music library. Organizing it has become my new hobby.
I wasnt suprised by the new perks Apple had to offer because I had high expectations to the high price I paid. The most astounding feature of the Ipod (=Apple Ipod Video 60gb)is its compatability to play Videos and Pictures. I synced some professional photos and they still look great in that 2.5" LCD screen. The video quality was of decent quality, I noticed a lot of noise and block images while playback (its worse while fastforwarding or rewinding). But anyways I wont say much because Apple prioritized music over videos and photos. If you want a portable multimedia player go for Archos AV 500 or something similar.
I hear many people complaining about the audio format, I too am a little frustrated over it but not to a very large extent. We have to learn to look at the brighter side of things too. Apple introduced .acc format because of its lossless compression capability, thats why you get the most incredible sound compared to anyothe formats such as .mp3 or .wma s.
The Ipod is the Ipod today because its "slick click wheel". The wheel is the most recognizable feature of any Ipod. This is one of the biggest difference between the Zen Touch. Its "touch pad"s extremely low sensitivity will almost kill any Ipod user.
This is best excuse to buy any Ipod (Its trademark since 2001).
I am never satisfied with any of the stock earphones which comes with mp3 players. I bought a Sennheiser CX-300 Ear-canal plugs which I used to use with my Zen Touch, its sound is just exceptional with additional bass tweaking. I use that pair instead of the Apple ones, I know thier gonna suck so I dont even bother to open them.
The transfer rate is a little slower than the firewire which the earlier Ipods had. I like how it the USB wire charges as well as syncs at the same time. Other than that, nothing great about it. The OS is pretty friendly, there are many perks like 25 Most played, Games, Screen Lock and the wide variety of EQs. I dont know why people gripe about Custom EQs, there is atleast one EQ which can match the Custom one. (Why do we need EQs anyways?!, I always turn my off. The song is how the Composer intented it to be, so why go and change the vibes?)
Itunes is a pretty good software for transfering songs. The entire Black Box is pretty user friendly to use. What I consider friendly= a person should be able to use the stuff inside the box without reading the manual.
THE greatest difficulty I have experienced with the Ipod is displaying the Album Artwork... It Just doesnt want to show up! I have tried several programs and guides but all go down the drain in vain. It takes you a few days to figure it out. Try dragging album artworks from Napster and they are sure to work. It is a little easier if you automatically update ur music but I dont like how Ipod classifies my music. For example, it puts Sigur Ros under Rock! Well if thats true than 90% of your music will be under that Genre. Itunes should adopt the universal and professional AMG(allmusic, anyone?).
Actually forget what I previously stated, TRULY THE IPODS GREATEST DIFFICULTY IS THE "WAIT". If you have started to fill your Ipod even 25% of its full capacity, IT WILL LAGG like HELL. Everytime I plug in the USB port, some of my computer apps freeze. Not that I have a [...] PC (i have a gaming pc), it is because Itunes needs to scan every data in the Ipod so you can easily access it while transfering. It pisses me off everytime I update my Ipod.
Few recommendations for the Ipod, You should be able to create playlists via the Ipod itself. Few accessories should be included like Wall Charge, Silicone-Skin (the black container is TOO small for the 60gb Ipod, it was made for the 30GB one). Battery Life should improved by atleast a few hours. And last but not the least............ BRING DOWN THE PRICE!!!!! It costs an arm and a leg to buy one of these gagets..
But overall, You might be thinking why did I give it 5/5 stars? It is because there are no other mp3 players at present that can beat the features of what the Ipod has. Its sound quality is the main reason why it deserves a 5 star. I think the 5G Ipods output has improved since the previous 4G one. The Ipods interface is extremely user-friendly, its very easy to install and play your music. The Ipod is one of a kind, and there are none like it, period.
On: 2006-08-28
I listen to music 5 hours a day and last week my Creative Zen Touch fell down the stairs (with its "protective" case on) and it malfunctioned after that. I bought that player because of its storage, it had 40 GB and that was the max capacity installed by any mp3 player. I was on my way to buy the Creative Zen Vision:M but I thank Apple for releasing this 60GB model. I listen to all kinds of music and love building my music library. Organizing it has become my new hobby.
I wasnt surprised by the new perks Apple had to offer because I had high expectations to the high price I paid. The most astounding feature of the Ipod (=Apple Ipod Video 60gb)is its compatibility to play Videos and Pictures. I synced some photos and they look great in that 2.5" LCD screen. The video quality is just as good. Apple prioritized music over videos and photos, so with that being established its is versatile. If you want a portable multimedia player go for Archos AV 500 or something similar.
I hear many people complaining about the audio format, I too am a little frustrated over it but not to a very large extent. We have to learn to look at the brighter side of things too. Apple introduced .acc format because of its lossless compression capability, thats why you get the most incredible sound compared to any other formats such as .mp3 or .wma s.
The Ipod is the Ipod today because its "slick click wheel". The wheel is the most recognizable feature of any Ipod. This is one of the biggest difference between the Zen Touch. Its "touch pad"s extremely low sensitivity will almost kill any Ipod user.
This is best excuse to buy any Ipod.
I am never satisfied with any of the stock earphones which comes with mp3 players. I bought a Sennheiser CX-300 Ear-canal plugs which I used to use with my Zen Touch, its sound is just exceptional with additional bass tweaking. I use that pair instead of the Apple ones, I know thier gonna suck so I dont even bother to open them.
The transfer rate is a little slower than the firewire which the earlier Ipods had. I like how it the USB wire charges as well as syncs at the same time. Other than that, nothing great about it. The OS is pretty friendly, there are many perks like 25 Most played, Games, Screen Lock and the wide variety of EQs. I dont know why people gripe about Custom EQs, there is atleast one EQ which can match the Custom one. (Why do we need EQs anyways?!, I always turn my off. The song is how the Composer intented it to be, so why go and change the vibes?)
Itunes is a pretty good software for transfering songs. The entire Black Box is pretty user friendly to use. What I consider friendly= a person should be able to use the stuff inside the box without reading the manual.
THE greatest difficulty I have experienced with the Ipod is displaying the Album Artwork... It Just doesnt want to show up! I have tried several programs and guides but all go down the drain in vain. It takes you a few days to figure it out. Try dragging album artworks from Napster and they are sure to work. It is a little easier if you automatically update ur music but I dont like how Ipod classifies my music. For example, it puts Sigur Ros under Rock! Well if thats true than 90% of your music will be under that Genre. iTunes should adopt AMG.
Few recommendations for the Ipod. Few accessories should be included like Wall Charge, Silicone-Skin (the black container is TOO small for the 60gb Ipod, it was made for the 30GB one). Battery Life should improved by atleast a few hours. And last but not the least............ BRING DOWN THE PRICE!!!!! It costs an arm and a leg to buy one of these gagets..
But overall, You might be thinking why did I give it 4/5 stars? It is because there are no other mp3 players at present that can beat the features of what the Ipod has. It has one of the best sound qualities. The Ipods interface is extremely user-friendly, its very easy to install and play your music. The Ipod is one of a kind music player and they will continue to monopolize the music player industry.
On: 2006-08-24
I lost my last iPod and had to replace it. I bought this one and I am happy with the ease of reconnecting and downloading my stored data. Great machine!
On: 2006-08-23
Corrupt iTunes Library nightmare--
This year some bug in iTunes corrupted my iTunes song library. This is not an uncommon problem; if you search google you will find hundreds of hits related to this problem if you do a search for the following three words: iTunes corrupt library
When your iTunes library is corrupted that means every playlist you have created is gone and the links to all of the songs you owned are gone. Playlists are like folders or directories on a computer into which you put songs to organize them so that you dont have to navigate through all of your songs, albums, artists, etc., one by one. If you have hundreds of songs this is a big hassle when using an iPod if you want to go to one that may be way down on the list. You then have to manually import these songs back in and recreate your playlists. This has been a problem with iTunes for ages. You can backup your library and given that iTunes is unstable and may corrupt your library, this may be a good idea. If you like solving software problems iTunes is the way to go.
Unstable iTunes internet server destroys your shopping cart list nightmare--
One feature of iTunes is that you can select the option of using a shopping cart to gather your selections rather than having to buy now. This is done by selecting Edit from the iTunes menu, selecting Preferences and then selecting Store. Since this is run on their internet server you would think your list would be safe. But it isnt. Not only can your library on your own computer become corrupted, but if you put items into your iTunes shopping cart some software bug or database issue on the iTunes server can destroy the list of items you were intending to buy. This happened to me this week. Imagine spending hours sorting through songs and putting them in your cart. And then later you go back to buy the items and they are gone. Then you contact iTunes and tell them and they respond by telling you they have solved your problem of not being able to see the items in your cart by clearing your cart and that now you will be able to see items that you add to your cart. No, they couldnt tell you what you had in your cart before they cleared it.
But iTunes support then tells me, you could make a "wish list" as a playlist and then this wouldnt happen. This meaning that you wouldnt be mad at iTunes for the fact that their server software or database has a problem. But as I pointed out in the beginning, iTunes libraries get corrupted and that would also destroy your "wish list".
The unstable iTunes Shopping Cart issue was on the record as early as last fall and it is clear that iTunes could care less about solving that problem. And similarly iTunes could care less about the fact that their software has some issue in it that allows individuals iTunes libraries to be corrupted. If they cared these problems would have been fixed.
If you are considering buying a product that relies on iTunes you need to keep these things in mind.
On: 2006-08-18
I thought at some point I would purchase an apple computer, and stop wasting my money on dells....thinking of it as an investment. But after my experience with the ipod, i dont think I possibly can ever purchase another apple product.
Ive only filled this 60G ipod up to half capacity, and it crashes every single time I use it. It looses all of my music at least once a week, often on roadtrips, crashes 4-5 times while Im on my morning commute to work. Doesnt sync well even though its updated, and my itunes are updated. Ive had it worked on, had it replaced with a new one. It doesnt matter. This is a piece of junk. Its just infuriating! What a silly thing, to think that I could actually organize all of my music in one place. silly me.
Ive read reviews that some of the cheaper devices arent that great, but if they have the same problems as the ipod, you might as well get the cheaper version.
On: 2006-08-15
The 60GB iPod video is a marvelous music device that delivers superb sonic quality and flawless video playback at resolutions of 320x240, and with a smooth 30 frames per second. As an owner of the 3rd generation iPod, I can attest that this model is drastically improved on battery life performance allowing you to listen to music or watch videos for a greater period of time between charges. The sound quality is excellent and will be totally dependent on the encoded bit rate of your mp3s. Files encoded at 192 bits or higher, or encoded as AAC losless are phenomonal. I attach my iPod to the stereo in my car and it sounds better than music on CDs.
A couple of things to be aware of: included ear buds sound OK but will not deliver the true sound quality of this player. They are also a bit large and you may find them a bit uncomfortable as I do. Also, the player only comes with a USB 2 charging cable; there is no dock as there was with previous iPods. You will still be able to charge it off your computer and sync with your iTunes library without having to buy anything else. Also, the case that comes with the player is barely marginal. You will definitely want to invest in a more substantial carrying case. I did not purchase the extended warranty as I have a 3rd generation player bought over 2 years ago and it is still going strong with no problems.
This device works perfectly with iTunes for both PC and Mac. The greatest testament of the iPod music player is that it reflects perfectly the quality and high standards of excellence and innovation found in all of Apples products. You will find the same ease of use, intuitive interface, and flawless integration in Apples computers and operating system as found in the iPod.
On: 2006-08-07
The video and sound quality are really good. I like it.
Some designs are not intutive so it takes time to make iPods do what you want.
For example, to fast forward a audio book, you will need to press the center of the wheel "once". Be patient, wait for few seconds until the diamond appear, then turn the wheel.
Sometimes, iPod will stop playing in the middle of the audio book. After you re-try, you will need to fast-forward agin. A bit annoying since bookmarking doesnt always work.
Actually, 3 of my friends break iPod wheels in a year. I think the main reason is the not-so-intutive design that make you unnecessarily press (abuse) the wheels more than needed and end up breaking it.
If iPod screen can show something like "Working on bla bla....be patient..." after you press the wheel, most iPods lives can be saved.
On: 2006-08-05
My wife hasnt listened to me in 18 years. Now she has her gourd plugged into this mini-marvel 24/7. My self esteem has been kicked up a notch. Thanks Steve!
On: 2006-08-04
After I used my new ipot for a month my feeling is....not uesr friendly as I though. My personal feeling is it should be easy to load my MP3 into my ipot without any software, but it costs many confuse (may be Im too old)I cannot transfer my video to my ipot and I have to search any available software to tranfer my video file to my ipot. Some software doesnt work fine and i-tune isnt transfer file too.
On: 2006-08-02
It seems that iPod is too good at branding. And with a BIG EGO to invent its own media file formats different than mainstream MP3, jpg, wmv and mp4. Its just bad usability. Have you iPod users ever used other brands ? All others NEVER need to convert file format. iPod is a waste of time and life.
On: 2006-08-02
We are very excited and pleased with our recent purchase. The only thing which we did not anticipate while buying this product was the size difference between 30 GB and 60 GB. 60 GB is a lot more bulkier than the 30 GB and it was not mentioned anywhere.
Also, most of the cases and other accessories are made for 30 GM or below.
But overall we are very pleased with the purchase and love it.
On: 2006-07-28
Great additional features to an already good design. Expanded battery life is a big plus. Excellent color screen is visible in direct sunlight. Few accessories ship with the iPod though, which seemed strange... not even an AC charger, or dock, which needed to be purchased seperately. Overall though, a top notch design, and excellent quality. Highly recommended!
On: 2006-07-20
It is worth buying for that price. You can store so many songs, video, pics,what not!! i can now transfer my photos from my laptop to my pc without any problem. So fast, so good....Also the sound quality is excellent. Amazon offers the best price also without tax and free shipping. I bought this with a AV connector too. So was able to save on that too. But make sure you get a case to avoid scratches.
On: 2006-07-20
I bought the Creative Zen first but it was not for the non-techo savvy crowd. But this Ipod was truly plug and play and I love itunes. My son will be teaching me how to use it more productively. But, for now, it plays great sounding music. I also got the FM radio/remote accessory and that is great. It picked up many channels even in the remote area that I live. So, its a great product.
by: Anonymous On: 2006-07-19
This item is soo great! First I used my next door neighbors, and I liked it so much i went out and got one!
On: 2006-07-14
Apple have done it again. Slimmer than than previous models and with the added functionality of video, this iPod is the best yet. The only issue Ive discovered is the occasional halt in video playback as the processor appears to be working overtime. Maybe this is because Ive used 50GB and I have little free disk space. Well done Apple but bring on built in Bluetooth and A2DP though!
On: 2006-07-10
I moved up from a 20 GB ipod so Im already sold on the product. I like being able to add photos and home videos. I also needed more space for my music. My only complaint would be the ease at which the iPod is scratched, especially the back. AND, over the years the included accessory list has dwindled to almost nothing. They should probably include a plug in power adapter and a decent case. But, all in all, its a good product.
On: 2006-07-07
Had to have it - Im on my third pod. (No problems - dropped the first, left the second in a cab.)
Video - ok it is a small screen and not absolutely necessary but its a great way to show people your favorite South Park episode on a plane (if you find yourself needing to do that a lot). More "wow thats cool" than "How did I live without this?"
Audio - solid performance. I run with it on a treadmill absolutely no problem. Outdoor running the playback is flawless. The weight is "noticeable" - not cumbersome but you are aware its there.
Meanwhile - the ability to have, essentially, every song you ever loved available to you any time you want to hear it is great. Playing on shuffle and having a song you havent heard in years come up is great. Going on to iTunes and buying a song for $0.99 just because it sounds interesting (and discovering a new artist that you think is great) is great.
If you loved music growing up (Im in my 40s) an iPod may just reconnect you to music. Enjoy!
On: 2006-06-30
Got it before time, the transactions was great, the ipod was brand new in perfect conditions.
On: 2006-06-26
Bought the ipod for my husband for Fathers day. Other than having him "check out" for up to 10 huors each day to download music and videos, the ipod is a spectacular "toy". Compact (great packaging), easy to use, great design and so many great accessories to zazz it up, we are thrilled with the ipod.
On: 2006-06-06
I bought this 60GB iPod a month ago. I had lots of concerns because of peoples bad reactions to it, but I decided to buy it anyway because it looked like the best way to go for my needs.
Now, a month later, I just dont know how I ever lived without it.
First of all, the iTunes: I really feared this software because of peoples reactions and stories: how they cant work on more than one computer, and how they had to reload all of the content on their iPod when restalling the software, etc. This is the sort of things that happens to people who DOESNT READ INSTRUCTIONS! A quick adjustment in the preferences can tell the iTunes to only synch manually, which means - you dont need all the songs to be on the computer, you can choose what to put on the ipod, and you can use 100 different computers and load songs from these computers (I used it on 7 different computers to this date, and it works like a charm). To switch to manual, go to Edit -> Preferences -> iPod, and there are the options.
If you want to sae songs from the iPod on any computer you want, all you need is a simple freeware called Yamipod. Its really simple and easy to use.
The only bad thing that I can say is that it is really a delicate machine... but once you get a silicon case and a high quality screen protector, its perfect. I put my entire music collection on it, and I can listen to it all in shuffle mode, listen to albums, songs, specific artists... its a true delight. So please, read the manual, and youd find out that MOST of the problems are just misunderstanding of the machine.
On: 2006-05-20
I have to admit, I was quite reluctant to buy an ipod at first. First of all, all I saw were kids using ipods and it just had a sort of toyish look to it... and of course my thoughts were that a Palm can do all of that - maybe except for the disk space. But I can live with a 2gb SD card.
Well, finally got myself to spend $375 and buy the ipod video 60gb. Apple has simply won me over! They were smart enough to be the only company to produce the ipod (they have their exclusive connector) and they opened accessory production to any company who wanted to. Once you have an ipod there are millions of accessories out there no matter how you want to use your ipod. Best of all, since there are so many companies producing them they compete with each other and this gives consumers a large variety of quality accessories at competitive prices, and Apples still getting there huge chunk in ipod sales boosted partly because of this.
Yap, yap, yap, I had to share this. Now for my own experience with it.
I love using the ipod in its shuffle mode to play my 10gb of mp3 in a random order! You feel like youre listening to the radio with out the bla bla bla and ads.
What I have really been using this for is to put video footage from home videos. I convert them to the ipod and carry them around. Plus I got myself a cradle (not from apple from Keyspan White Av Dock for Ipod with remote) that connects to your TV and you can play your videos on the TV.
You can use it as a portable hard drive which is also spectacular! I also have an fm transmitter which is great for the car ( DLO Transpod In-Car Cradle/FM Transmitter, Silver ).
The ipod has contacts & notes but does not by far, replace a palm or a pda. Not yet at least.
Hope this helps!
All the best!
On: 2006-03-24
I was a little hesitant about buying an iPod after reading about so many people having problems with them. The iPod bought has only locked up once, but other than that I havent had any other problems. It sounds great and the video quality is excellent. Its hard to believe that something this small can have such good video quality.
On: 2006-03-23
Not for anything it is the most popular music player in the market. The screen is beautiful even though small and the battery holds plenty of playing time. Its worth the $$, even though it does not include a power ac charger. Love it!
On: 2006-03-22
It is easy to handle, very user friendly if you are used to work with windows. I love it.
On: 2006-03-20
This ipod is the best so far. I loaded my entire music collection on here, with plenty of room to spare. Great backup tool, and is very versatile. You dont need to buy ALL the apple products, just check out what you have at home or can by from the local electronic store. I found some computer speakers that fit into the ipod for something portable. I also already had some wires to hook up the ipod to my stereo receiver. If you dont have this already, check out your local walmart of electronic store. I bet its a lot cheaper than the apple brand. Definately get a case for this ipod right away. Once the screen scratches, video wont be the same.
On: 2006-03-19
By now, if you are contemplating the purchase of the iPod video, you have probably seen one and know you want it. So I will just confirm that the product works great and is a joy to use. The user interface is simply a breakthrough in human engineering and with 60GB you can afford to store songs in the highest quality and not worry about space.
If you are a PC user and this is your first iPod, this could also be your first exposure to iTunes. It was for me. And here, surprisingly, I am a little disappointed. I already had a sizable library of CDs that I had ripped using Windows Media Player in .WMA format. While iTunes can read .WMA, the iPod will not play these files. iTunes offers to translate all your .WMA files into iTunes format. Dont worry it will not destroy your existing files. However, dont make the same mistake I made: while Apple would like you to use its proprietary format, there is an option to use MP3 instead. I did not realize that until I had translated 10GB worth of songs. I believe using MP3 is a better choice because it is now a universal file format. Even my cell phone can play MP3 files.
It is fashionable to assume that any piece of software from Apple will be better than a corresponding product from Microsoft. Sadly, that is not the case with iTunes. While iTunes will translate your existing files, it will not copy album art. Silly, since the iPod does a great job of displaying album art. Fortunately, you can associate graphic files manually with your files. I also find that iTunes does not offer as many sorting options as Media Player and that it runs slower.
Despite my gripes with the software, I give the product 5 stars because once you have all your files in the iPod, you should not have to use iTunes very often. With so many accessories to use an iPod in you living room, kitchen or car it can easily become your only music playing device.
by: Anonymous On: 2006-03-18
The iPod first appeared four years ago, and the features continue to grow, with each update.
The iPod with video playback was introduced on October 13, 2005. However, one should not necessarily consider this player a video player, but a great iPod music player, with video capabilities as a fantastic bonus. Nevertheless, the iPod with video playback is the most capable and feature-rich iPod ever produced by Apple.
I have owned the 60 gig iPod with video playback, for several days now, and I continue to be impressed. Its physical appearance, quality, craftsmanship, and the wide array of features are keeping me entertained!
Video Playback - The iPod plays back H264 and MPEG4 encoded video. The iPods new display is larger than ever at 2.5 inches, giving it a resolution of 320x240. What video content can you play on your iPod? This area is limited, at least currently. You can buy music videos on iTunes at $1.99 per song, which will play beautifully on the iPod. Furthermore, Apple has made available select television shows, for download on iTunes. They cost $1.99 per episode, for titles including ABCs hits Lost and Desperate Housewives. You can also watch the episodes you purchase on your computer. If you want to put some of your own video, onto your iPod, you will need to use an application such as QuickTime Pro to convert the video to the specific requirements to play on the iPod. You can also find video podcasts, which will play on the new iPod. Even if you do not plan to view video on the new iPod, its primary purpose is to be used as the worlds best music player. You can still benefit from the beautiful new display, for it will help you find your favorite music faster, and you can view the album art that accompanies your music.
Size of new iPod - Does the picture of the new iPod make it appear larger to you? Well, it did to me. The iPod looked wider, in the photos I saw. However, it is not. The height and width of the iPod are identical to the previous generation iPod with click wheel. The only change in dimensions is the depth. The new iPod is actually thinner than what came before it! Yes, even this 60 gig is thinner than the previous 20 gig photo model. What does all this mean? The iPod continues get smaller, making it even easier to carry.
Capacity - This 60 gig iPod has room, for a lot of entertainment. With storage, for up to 15,000 songs, 25,000 photos, or 150 hours of video. The great thing I love about my 60 gig iPod is that my music, photos, and video only take up about 15 gigabytes. However, I use the additional space to backup data, from my computer. This is incredibly helpful, and could be a real saver, if something happened to your computer. See, the iPod functions as an external hard drive, so you can backup all sorts of data. Furthermore, with the video capabilities on the new iPod, you may find yourself needing the extra space that this 60 gig iPod provides.
New Software Features - Apple has added features, to the new iPod besides video support. First, they have a clock feature, which quickly allows you to view the time, in up to four different time zones simultaneously. Furthermore, there is a stop watch, and a screen lock, which you can enable to keep people from snooping on your calendar and/or contacts.
Battery - The battery life is one of the most important specifications that you, as an iPod user, are going to care about. This 60 gigabyte iPod sports a battery that will last up to 20 hours, when playing only music. Also note that repeatedly changing songs manually, and turning on the backlight will use up your battery considerably faster. Furthermore, the iPods battery lasts a maximum of three hours, when playing back video. This version of the iPod no longer includes an adapter to charge the iPod, at an electrical outlet. You will have to buy that adapter separately, or always charge the iPod via USB 2.0. The charging works fine, from your computers USB 2.0, but if youre traveling you might want the ability to charge, with the adapter. Also note that the iPod no longer supports syncing via firewire cable. You will have to use USB 2.0.
Mac or PC? This iPod works beautifully with either a Mac or PC. The iPod syncs your contacts, video, and music via the iTunes software.
Podcasting - The iPod continues to support podcasting. Podcasts are internet radio broadcasts, and there are thousands covering nearly every subject imaginable, and more are coming out every day. Podcasts are quickly becoming popular content on iPods around the world. Check them out, for this iPod supports Podcasts out of the box. There are also video podcasts, so with the new iPod, you will be able to watch video podcasts, on the iPods display.
Appearance - The iPod is beautiful, but the backs chrome finish is prone to scratches, and the screen can become scratched as well. It is a very good idea to protect the back of the iPod and the screen in some way. There are many cases and protectors out there, and you will surely find something you like. The new iPod is available in a black or white finish. The black color is quickly becoming the most popular, but the white iPod is still the signature color. Do note that the black may show fingerprints and scratches more than the white iPod, much as a black car shows these blemishes more than a lighter colored car. Apple is including a small sleeve-type case, with this iPod, to help you keep it in good condition.
Audiobooks - Im always using my iPod, to listen to audiobooks. You can store literally hundreds of audiobooks on here that you buy from iTunes, or Audible. The iPod even has a feature that can slow down or speed up the reading of the audiobook, so that you hear it at just the right pace.
Output - The iPod connects to your PC or Mac via the dock connector at the bottom of the unit. You will connect the included cable, to the computer via a USB 2.0 port. Furthermore, accessories are being made that will also connect to the bottom dock port, and you may purchase Apples Universal iPod dock, for easy syncing to your computer. The dock (available separately) also includes s-video output, so you can show off slideshows and video, on a television. There are also iPod A/V cables available that allow composite video and audio output, for connecting your iPod to your television. This might interest you, not only to display slideshows on a television, but also to display TV shows or music videos on a television, which you purchased from iTunes.
Value - This 60 gigabyte iPod is priced at $399, which is a great value. It provides a huge amount of storage space, and more features than ever.
Overall, this is another excellent product from Apple Computer. The design is elegant, simple, and intuitive. It will provide hours of entertainment and convenience. Enjoy your iPod experience.
On: 2006-03-15
I did a upgrade, I had iPod Photo, now I have the iPod Video !
On: 2006-03-10
Its hella expensive, but if you can afford it, this is definitely the way to go. I am BIG into music and 60GB has swallowed my collection whole, which makes the price more acceptable b/c if I take care of it properly, I know that it will last me years and years (probably longer than my interest in it will last) and I wont have to worry too much about filling it up and needing a new one of ridiculous capacity. I love that I can carry my entire music collection with me everywhere in this crazy little box instead of a 50lb CD case. And if something should happen to it, or to my computer, all my collection is preserved on the iPod or very well organized in iTunes and is not lost forever, or in need of rescanning.
Constructive criticism: I REALLY wish there was a better way to scroll thru the alphabet. Going from A to Z, when theres hunderds of choices, is really taxing. Not just on the poor iPod, but on me! If I just listened to Alanis, but now I want to hear Pink Floyd - thats a whirly-finger-motion workout!
Apples proprietary music format issues and quirky iTunes software are the only downsides to this product, but if you are *clever* these are of little consequence. Suffice it to say that free software is available online to fix most issues with format incompatibility, if such exists (especially with videos), and you DONT have to buy an "iPod" case for your iPod. Dont want to spend $20 for a case? Dont! Buy a digital camera case for $5 and stick the iPod in it. You wont be arrested. It wont stop working. Many digital cameras are the same size as the iPods so the cases fit perfectly. Plus, you have the bonus of extra compartments for earphones, charger, etc.
On: 2006-03-10
I love the iPod, but iTunes is a bit quirky and unreliable. I like all of the features with it, but it doesnt really fit a folder structure/filename type of organization. The track tags become critical to proper display and organization. The burning of CDs is VERY UNRELIABLE. I like that you can burn CD Audio from MP3s, but there are breaks and gaps particularly in the latter songs on the burned CD.
On: 2006-03-09
As far as what the 60GB ipod can do? Great functions, high quality screen and amazing capabilities. I would suggest the 30 GB model, because that is far more than I believe the average user will need.
My issues with this product:
It is very difficult to convert you media to a format in which the ipod will receive. Ive struggled with each different type or format, and it seems each format I try to convert is a new (and very frustrating) battle. Apple suggests buying 3rd party software, which will run you about 25 to 50 bucks per program. Hopefully the one you choose will accomodate all your needs.
The screen scratches very easily (like with your fingernail). Due to how delicate this item is cosmetically, you will undoubtably have to purchase a protective case to preserve you investment, which will run you an additional 20 to 50 bucks. Of course these cases bulk up your ipod, so the small size gets to be not so small. It will fit in my shirt pocket without the case - cannot fit with a case.
It does NOT come with a wall charger, (that will cost you an additional 30 bucks with no cord). The only way to charge it is to plug it into a usb port on your computer. Unless you bring or have computers everywhere you go, this may be a problem.
Apple provides limited (very limited) support on the issues Ive brought forward. They will deny any defects or durability issues (despite class action law suits suggesting the same). They offer free software to convert video, but this software only works with limited quicktime formats. In fact, I have not been able to get any of their programs to work with any of my formats. Maybe all 12 different style formats are different than the rest of the world? .mpg, .wmv, .rm, etc?
Overall, Im happy with what the product can do, but see many ways it can be improved. Im sure I will continue to struggle, but when i do get it to work, I love it. I just expect a lot more from a product that takes 400 dollars of my hard earned money.
On: 2006-03-07
I have had my 60 gig ipod for aprox 3 months I have taken it on trips with me, I have slept with it on, and used it to help get me through my boring days at work. This product has not let me down yet.I Have lots of music on there right now over 2 thousand songs and aprox 3 hours of music videos or podcasts on my ipod and have only used 10 gigs of memory. The video on the ipod is great quality. There are free podcasts for download to try out this feature. I am a dj and there is a show called DJ Battle TV which is great for me and free. I would check out Itunes to see if the is anything that interest you on the site. I have not tried to convert dvd yet for my ipod but imagine soon it will not be very hard. Below I have listed acouple things you may want to know before you buy this product.
1. Backup all songs you have on your Ipod. I have only backed up about 1/4th of all the songs on my ipod. There for if you lose it or it breaks you may lose all your music. Also the ipod has an annoying feature which will automatically put any music in you library on your Ipod. For memory reasons I try not to store a lot of media on my computer (that is why I went with the 60 gig ipod). So with one mistake click I could erase the songs on my ipod and replace them with songs that happen to be in my library at the time.
2.Buy a case for your Ipod the screen gets scratched by anything, before purchase I heard this and just figured "those people probably arent being careful". I think I can say with confidence not one person in the world with this product was more careful than me with this and my screen after aprox a month and a half was scuffed up. I did get a case and suggest a belkin case with tough rubberized skin and screen protector has worked great for me.
3.As far as I know once the song is on your Ipod and deleted from your library there is no way to get it from your Ipod to anything else. This was not mentioned in any review I read before I purchased the ipod. This is annoying for me because I bought my ipod to keep my computer free of mp3s and video wasting space on my computer. Again if something happens I will be out alot of music.
4. If you want the most out of the ipod you will invest a long time uploading songs. You have to make sure artists name are spelled the exact same way this is caps sensitive and also space sensitive. For Example, if I spell notorious big, Notorious Big, or Notorious Big , the Ipod will create three seperate artist names on your ipod and split up that artists music. This may not sound that bad but if you put a cd in your computer and Itunes spells and artist name one way or has that cd in a genre, if you put another cd from that same artist in your computer it may be spelled a diff way or in a diff genre and you will have to go in and manually change it.
So far this has been a great purchase I have just been a little disapointed with some things. Overall, this is a great item and I have been very happy with it.
On: 2006-03-07
This works great - the battery is a bit shortlived but when used with an external battery source (purchased from Play and running on 4xAA batteries) it works a treat and lasts for hours.
The screen is the perfect size for travelling and with a separately purchased case, the screen is protected from scratches.
The memory is massive, downloading films etc is complicated and takes a while to convert DVDs into the right format but its great when its done.
Highly recommended
On: 2006-03-03
I got the ipod video just after it was released and im just completely satisfied with it. before i go on for hours about how much i love it. let me tell you the things that are wrong with it.
1. The software, there are a few bugs here and there. like if your songs from one artist have album info and dont have album info, then the ones without the info wont show up in the Artist view.
2. ITunes allows you to set the type of a vide to "TV Show" but when you do that (even with the new firmware) the video cant be found on the ipod.
3. some of the older ipod accessories dont work. but im sure they are hard at work creating new ones.
4. They dont give u a wall charger.
5. It crashed :( my ipod actually froze and crashed & then died.
now for the good stuff.
- They replaced it without charging anything. so ive now got a new ipod after waiting for 5 days, a bit long but thats ok.
- The video quality on both the screen and the TV are just amazing. never expected it to be that good.
- the sound as usual remains very good but im not a big fan of the ear buds as theyre a little big for me & im going to change them for the Bose headphones.
- It looks absolutely amazing (nothing surprising)
- Its easy to use.
So it does everything it claims to well and with style.
kudos for the apple service :)
the crash is what took away that 1 point for me.
On: 2006-03-02
This iPod is as good as it gets (until the next iteration releases). I dont have any battery issues, which was my main concern when purchasing the iPod. I know older generation iPods have horrible battery problems, but so far Im getting at least 10-12 hours of music out of it before it dies. With full-color video, this will obviously be less, but that should be expected.
The color screen is bright and vibrant, so is very easy to read. As far as iPod features go, theyre all in there, including HDD features. 60GB is a lot -- I dont have that much music and video currently to fill it, which is great -- plenty of room left for the future. This is a great buy -- definitely worth the price (which should go down soon now that the next generation iPod has been announced). As an aside, this is a much better value than the iPod Nano, whch maxxes out at 4 GB for just $100 less (I believe). This iPod is not that thick either, for being 60GB -- my wifes G2 40GB iPod is much thicker.
I definitely recommend this for its usefulness an value. No complaints at all!
On: 2006-02-25
Im a tech. junky but new to the world of Apple and not really into the .mp3 player thing. For the most part I had been using my Treo as my .mp3 player of choice just cause it was easy and always around. I figured 1 Gig was enough and I was happy.
However, last December while Christmas Gift shopping I popped into the Apple store...just to look. Im not quite sure what happened, all I remember are random flashes and streaks of bright white, nodding my head, swiping my credit car and $800+ dollars later walking out with a pair of 60 GB white Ipods. One for a gift and one for me.
When I got back to my car I pulled the two black boxes out out of the opaque white bag and stared at them. What had I done? Did I really need to buy these? My answer was probably not but I figured what the heck. Theyve got to be good for something!
Once wrapped I put them under the tree and basically forgot about them until Christmas. Once Christmas arrived the gift giving activities commenced. I handed my friend his Ipod, he torn through the paper and held up the box. His words were thank you but his expression that of confusion. Looking back I knew he wasnt a big personal music person and I shrugged and said, "I thought youd want one." I explained to him my experience at the apple store and what had happened. We laughed and moved on.
I opended up my Ipod a little later and left the box on my desk for a few days. After all, my treo plays music so I was in no rush to get going with my new Ipod. I wasnt even sure Id keep it. Once I did have some spare time I busted out my laptop and proceeded through the installation procedures. No big deal, pretty straight forward. I thought it was kinda cool that you had to name your Ipod which I did after careful thought.
I figured that I had 60Gb (really 55 Gb ahem gripe 1)so I mine as well get it all in there. Shortly I had a full assembly line going. I must have spent the whole night and a good part of the next day just installing and installing. I wanted EVERYTHING in there. I didnt care. Wanda and the Wall Mart Singers...sure...put that in there...Ive got the room! Once I was finished I had a sense of achievement, like I had done something worth while. I had used up about 20 Gb of space and was happy. 40 Gb (uh...really 35 Gb) left!
I started looking at accesories. Gotta get a case...priority number 1. Unfortunately I was not aware of the reaction that would occur on the surface of the rear plate when the Ipod was removed from its hermetically sealed environment/shipping container. As soon as the Ipod came in contact with the ambient atmosphere the rear casing reacted and spawned countless scratches and blemishes (Gripe 2).
Once I got my case I took my Ipod to the lab in which I work, dawned on some poly gloves, polished all surfaces and placed it in its case. Phew. Hopefully that will prevent further destruction.
Since all my music was in there I figured I should use the thing...pretty logical progression eh? Anyway, I started listening to it at work. Ok...this is cool...got my music when I want it (not to mention the podcasts). Then I decided to run a connection to some speakers installed in my master bathroom for the morning routine. OK...cool...got music there too. Of course, gotta have it hooked up into my car. Darn, my 05 Accord doesnt have an input jack for iPods! Could this be a reason to buy a new car? (Scary thing...yes). Gotta take my iPod hiking with me, running with me and biking with me. (unfortunately, not swimming with me. I gotta work on that one.)
Soon I found that my iPod and I were unseparable. I knew it got really bad when I found myself sleeping with it! Is it possible to spoon with something so small?
Im truly hoping my g/f doesnt catch on but I think she suspects something is up! Thankfully she doesnt do the tech things so shell never read this. Phew.
So thats my story. Im having an affair with my iPod. I love it and I know it loves me. Weve been together now about 2 months and I look forward to a lifetime together.
However, Im pretty sure that when the next model comes out Ill ditch this one and go for the newer pretty one.
So, in summary:
Plus side
Lots of space (even if it is not really 60Gb)
Easy to use
Sounds great
Awesome video play back
Great design/look
Minus Side
Not really 60Gb (more like 55)
Sratches upon contact with atmosphere
Have to use iTunes and cant get music off without special software
On: 2006-02-20
Absolutely the product is great no question about that.
Very cute ipod
On: 2006-02-15
I bought an ipod 40GB for last christmas. By May of last year the screen died and the ipod was replaced with a refurbished model even though I had paid five months before for a NEW one. Now its february one year and one month later and I brought my non-functioning ipod to the apple store and was told the harddrive was dead and all the could do is sell me a new one. The person told me it was obviously well cared for but the hard drives dont always last and thats all he could do for me after a year.
Now I know why apple does so well with the ipod product line. Its because consumers have to replace them with new models every year!
Im very disappointed with this product and if you want one either accept that after a year it may die suddenly or make sure you purchase apple care and expect to be sending it in every six months and receiving refurbished models to replace your new one.
On: 2006-02-10
After a long research on different types of MP3 players and many visits to shops to see them in person I decided to buy the 60GB iPod video. I dont regret the buy. I think it is an amazing player and the features are great. Im very happy with the iPod. So far I had it for four weeks and everything has been running smoothly.
I have used the video features only a few times and it is very cool, the display is very small but clear, also you have the iPod close to your eyes so I dont see it as an inconvenience.
NOTE: The battery doesent last long when using the videos. Remember this is an MP3 player with video feature, so if you want it mainly for videos I would not recommend it, this is for the occasional video every now and then.
The photo feature is very cool, again the display is small but clear.
The software iTunes is a good piece of software, it has some annoying faults, but overall is o.k.
The reason I rated the 60GB iPod Video four stars and
not five is because of this:
·It is not 60GB as advertised, it only comes with 55GB
of usable capacity
·You cant fit 15,000 songs as advertised (maybe if
you only put punk songs). I have 20GB so far and I have
around 3,200 songs in it (but I do put the album cover
jpegs for each song, so that uses some memory but not
that much).
·It does not come with an AC charger. You need to
charge the iPod via the USB cable into a computer.
·It is vulnerable to scratches very easy.
·And... The thing that I really hate about this and any
other iPod is the fact that the batteries are really
expensive and complicated to replace, but, thats part
of APPLEs strategy.
Overall, I do recommend the 60GB iPod Video but remember all these electronic gadgets are in a way `disposable because in 4 years from now this model will be completely obsolete. Thats the way all technology is...
On: 2006-02-06
but the battery life is terrible. I have a lot of cds, and it is great to be able to take them everywhere in a small, portable MP3 player, but the battery life is not good at all. On the 60 GB iPod with Video, I get about 13 hours of battery life. The backlight kills the battery, and so does watching videos. I highly recommend this iPod if you listen to music a lot and dont mind charging the iPod a lot. Also, I would recommend buying a wall charger, a car charger, and sound cancelling headphones, or headphones that go over your ear and not in them. Also, dont play the iPod too loud, because it could cause permanant hearing damage. Highly recommended...
On: 2006-02-01
I just got my new Ipod today. I had all my music on it already so it didnt take long to set up. It took a total of ten minutes to have it all set up and completed. After installing the software, it took only a few minutes to upload 570 songs and three episodes of Monk to the Ipod. So, far it works great. The real time saver is if you have all your music and stuff on your computer already. That is the part that can take time. My old MP3 player just starting wearing out. So, I decided to upgrade to an Ipod. I am so glad that I did. It is great so far. Everything is nicely organized, and easy to figure out. The video picture is great. I didnt expect it to be as clear as it is. I am going to put more episodes of Monk on it, and other video. I will also try to upload some pictures on it. The only problem is I would recommend buying the power adapter for it that you plug into an outlet. It gives you a better way to charge it without a computer. I also got the car adapter for long trips. A carrying case is recommended too. I got the Isnug case. It is very good. Holds the basic stuff and is not to bulky. Bottom line is it the Ipod is definitly worth the money. Highly recommended!
On: 2006-01-20
This is the 4th iPod I buy and is of course the best one Ive owned. Ive had absolutely no problems whatsoever and it has worked great for me. I was a little worried about the scratching issues that I had heard before buying it, but in my own experience can say that it is not as "delicate" as others claim. Of course it CAN scratch as any other of the plastic iPods can. But as of today 2 months after getting it and using it a LOT, only a few scratches are visible on the chrome side because I hadnt gotten a case for it.
I went with the white because I find it more "classic".
One of the features I was interested in trying when I first got it was outputting video to TV. I purchased a US$5 video camera cable at an electronics store which worked just as well as any advertised iPod-specific AV cable. (Note: With the cable I bought two of the RCA colors where "switched". Im not sure if it was the particular cable I bought but video goes out through red and right audio goes through the yellow. Left audio goes through the white as it normally would. I guess that with an iPod-specific cable this is not the case. Just hook them up until you see video if you get one of these cheaper cables.)
Apples "standard" settings can be a bit confusing if you dont know anything about compression. You dont HAVE to encode in 320x240 or 480x480. There are other settings as well. Look up "last ipod video guide" with your search engine to find a good article which includes handy tips about the video settings you can or should use with the iPod.
I found that compressing widescreen footage to MPEG-4 video at 640x352 pixels at 2.5Mbps was the greatest quality I could get. I would leave audio at the standard 128 kbps AAC encoding.
H.264 looks great on the iPod but because of its size constraint I think its not the best option if you want to output to TV.
I tried hooking the iPod to a Samsung 42" widescreen television (HDTV-ready) with the first settings I mentioned and I was surprised by the quality.
There are plenty of shareware apps and one or another freeware apps (such as iSquint) with which you can achieve great looking video which compress video even faster than Quicktime.
Of course the iPod has many other cool new features like the stopwatch, the lock and a higher-res screen. But I mostly use it to listen to music or output video to TV.
I definitely recommend it.
On: 2006-01-18
I just upgraded from the ipod 20gb iphoto to this model. I have really enjoyed having an ipod and the video option has made it that much better. The battery in these seem to last at least 4 hours, although they are rated at 5 or so.
The screen on this one is bigger than the iphoto and equally bright and defined. If you buy one make sure to get the AV cable which allows you to plug into a home stereo for playing music or a tv for playing a movie or showing photos. It is amazing that a person can carry all of their photos in their palm, and take and show them to anyone. Now if apple would just add a phone feature!
In my opinion it is worth looking at all of the non-apple mp3 players out there, especially since Apple has one of the higher price tags. But in the end the apple quality can be relied on. As I stated, I have had two and both have performed very well so I think this is the one I would recommend.
A couple of things I wish apple would change are:
1- Include the AV cable.
2- Allow audio books to be added to the audiobooks folder, without buying them from the itunes store.
3- Allow movement of media not only to the ipod, but from it as well.
Other than that, this ipod is great.
On: 2006-01-17
Be ready to spend a lot of time getting your favorite videos, music, home videos and photographs in your 60 Gb iPod. No matter how many music you purchase, you are going to feel that you have no limit of space. You can put your whole cd collection and all your mp3 in your pc, this device will eat the whole thing
On: 2006-01-15
I am amazed at what this ipod does. I use it for calendar, contacts, notes, music, and videos, but I am most thrilled that it has opened the portable world of podcasts. I am able to subscribe to great free podcasts of radio shows that I previously had to listen to on my computer. My only complaint is that I wish it had come with its own charger so that I dont have to keep my computer on while I am charging the ipod.
On: 2006-01-13
I have only come to the world of iPod recently and, I admit, somewhat reluctantly. I started with a Nano which I have been very happy with. Recently it occured to me that an iPod 5G could serve very nicely as an external backup drive so I immediately ordered one (can you spell "Business Expense"?)
Here is what I love about my iPod:
1) Beauty
2) Clear, crisp, large display for videos
3) Got to love that click wheel interface
4) iTunes, the best software bundled with an MP3 player that Ive seen.
5) Great battery life... this thing will last through a full day of travel.
6) 60GB is enough to back up everything on my laptop which only has a 60GB hard drive!
7) The ear buds that come with this iPod are actually very nice, comfortable, stay in my ears (thats the big one!) and have good sound.
8) Equalizer, I got my rock and roll sound goin on!
9) I love the clock feature, I setup all the time zones that I could want with a separate clock; from Hawaii thru Florida.
10) I downloaded my calendar and contacts from Outlook so now my reminders show up on the iPod, how cool is that!
11) I love rating my songs as I listen to them on the iPod; lets face it Im a ratings-aholic!
Now you may be wondering, why didnt I give this baby 5 stars?
1) Where are the accessories? you might as well tack on an extra $100 to the price of this for the accessories you will need to buy: AC adapter ($30), case ($30), etc...
2) I get frustrated with the fact that I have to plug this thing into a computer to do anything with it. At the very least I would like to be able to delete songs. And why cant I modify playlist settings and stuff like that?
3) You better just buy a case for this before you even take it out of the box, and even with my case on it I see it is getting scratched.
4) Im a little miffed with Apple that they sabotaged my favorite player (MusicMatch) so it wont work with the iPod :( At least my Rhapsody can talk to it...
Youve been warned, now get on out there and buy yourself one of these puppies. I vote the iPod Video my favorite business expense of the year!
On: 2006-01-11
I can die a happy man. This is the best, the absolute best, piece of gadgetry Ive ever owned. Im currently in the process of ripping my 3+ briefcases of CDs to my external HD; Ive only filled up 20GB so far, and thats including the second and third volumes of Family Guy, plus the Stewie movie.
Which brings me to why I can die a happy man: watching Family Guy, in great resolution, wherever I want? Is there anything better? I would argue that there is not.
As an aside, everyone should know: Apple tried to make it difficult to watch your own movies on the iPod. In a perfect world, iTunes would be able to rip DVDs to MP4 format just like it rips CDs...but, alas, Apple is trying to get you to buy their music vids and TV shows from iTMS, so, there is no such feature. However, I did some Googling, and found the 2 utilities you need. First, download a free program called DVD Decrypter (http://www.dvddecrypter.com). This allows you to rip the VOB files from most any DVD, so long as you have a drive that reads DVDs on your computer. However, VOBs cant be played on the iPod. So, you need to download the Videora iPod Converter, from http://www.videora.com, as well. This will convert VOBs to MP4s, which will play in your iPod. Videoras website has a great tutorial.
Why all this? Well, to take your iPod Video to the next level, you need to be able to watch more than silly U2 videos on it. It has the space you need, so why not? Music anywhere is great and all, but DVDs anywhere? Thats the complete package.
So, as for the rest of the product:
-The aesthetic design is sleek and pretty. However, Ive noticed (as has pretty much everyone else) that the screen gets scratches if you so much as look at it sideways. This is terribly frustrating. I bought a case for it, but because Apple is so slow with shipping, I went for nearly 2 weeks with just the little leather case it comes with. I never got anything near the screen, I only used one of those silk sunglass polishers to clean the screen, and I was oh-so-careful with it. Yet, there are still faint scratches if you look at it in the right light. Im telling you, if the rest of this product wasnt so well-designed, Apple would never be able to get away with this flaw. But, so be it. Now, my case just takes the scratches instead, which is nominally better.
-The onboard software is good for playing music, but Ive found it to be somewhat glitchy when playing videos. As I noted above, I uploaded a bunch of Family Guy episodes. When I watch them, the battery level suddenly dips down---once in awhile, if, say, my battery meter is at half, and I try to play a movie, it will cut back to the menu without playing, and the battery meter will be red, on empty. As soon as I switch back to music playback, the meter goes back to half. I dont understand this jump. On top of that, sometimes, after playing videos, the unit refuses to turn off. I have to stop playback and wait for it to turn off automatically. Im not sure whether this can or will be fixed by future iPod software updaters, but its pretty frustrating.
All this leads me to believe that Apple rushed the whole video concept to market, without thorough product testing, to get in under the holiday-shopping wire. Then again, maybe it plays fine when youre only using Apples paltry iTunes video selections. Either way, while the video quality is absolutely fabulous, these glitches are a little annoying.
-The battery life for music playback is more than enough for me, most of the time. However, the video playback drains the battery pretty heavily.
-The interface is pretty easy to use, and I like the click wheel. Given that the calendar & contacts databases arent editable (theyre simply downloaded from Outlook, etc.), theyre pretty much just a minor convenience, in case I forget my palm or cellphone, and need someones phone number or my schedule. The games are nice, especially the music trivia, which uses your own library. Since the only iPod Ive owned prior to this was a Shuffle, I dont know how it compares to previous pods. Overall, though, its easy to navigate your music. One complaint I do have with the way Apple organizes your music is that, if the "Artist" field has any guest artists inserted, then it creates an entire new folder and artist. For example, when I bought the new Thievery Corporation album, the majority of the songs had guest artists. Like, instead of just "Thievery Corporation", it was "Thievery Corporation featuring _____". So when I went to browse through my iPod by artist, it created a new category for each one, which was about 10 categories just on that one CD. And this was an album bought from iTunes. Slightly annoying...but I digress.
Overall, its an amazing piece of machinery, dispite its glitches and design flaws. At the end of the day, Ill be able to have my entire cd library in one little box thats the size of my wallet. Given that, not 15 years ago, we were still doing research with encyclopedias, and I got my first CD in the early 90s, Id say that this is simply amazing. Ive heard songs come through on random shuffle that I havent heard in 5 years! While I am disappointed by the fragility of the casing, among other small things, this is 5+ stars--no doubt.
On: 2006-01-11
ok i finally got an Ipod video (60 gig) for christmas. ive gone from no player thats protable to a portable beauty.lol. this thing has the best quality ever(used to have an iriver but my frined broke it) but this has way better music quality, and let me tell u the video is like ..... WHOA! its got better quality then my tv (but then again i dont have a HD tv) but ive got 11 videos for it and love it. this thing is prefect, i dont have any complants,expect the screens sum times stall, or freeze up but im opk with it, cuz i no im the one doing that(switching screens to fast)but other then that its wonderful. ive got a scratch or 2, but im ok with that cuz they r just hair scratches, its doesnt scratch as easly as people say, i was so worryed about it but its really nothign as long as u use the cloths case that came with it(sugest holding it by the sides while trying to shove it in(prevents scratchs on the screen)ive got a new case for it. i do sugest u get a new case for it, but ya. Id liek to state sumthign that ive noticed people complaning about . ok the ipod video isnt just an mp3 player its more of an mp4 player(video playing) and once u thigk about the price isnt bad at all. cuz if u buy a portable dvd player(around 200 to 300) and buy a 20 gig mp3(cheapest brand) ull still over exceed even the price of my 400 dallor 60 gig ipod. ive realized this and im only 16.but i love this thing ive playd it at school all day, ever day. oh and ya the battery is alittle short but theres ways to deal with that(just as soon as u get home put it on the charger, in the morning and stuff, it lastes the whole day at school for me(barly). i say dont buy it just for the video, cuz the battery sux wen watching videos only cuz of the huge screen thats liek HD. so ya. its worth every penny. its a must have. and i used to hate ipod. so this is a huge turn around. i used to hate ipod cuz it was so easily broken(unless u have a nice case for it. but yes a must have!
On: 2006-01-10
I dont know what is so fancy about it, but the new iPod with a larger screen, video playback and thinner body ROCKS.
I have owned a Shuffle (512MB) and a Color Display 20GB. I got this one yesterday and even though first impression was not as good as the previous (packaging is not that great), when I connected it to my iTunes and saw it transferring my massive 50GB music library i almost broke down and cried.
The display isnt just larger, but clearer and with better contrast. It is incredibly light for a 60GB unit and battery lasts forever (of course, its new).
All of you who think that video is useless in the "tiny" screen, are more than wrong. I used to think that way and now im trying to convert my dvd concerts so I can have them always with me.
Apple Rocks!
On: 2006-01-09
I recieved the iPod Video for my christmas gift last year and all i have to say is that its wonderful,i got the 60 gig white and the sound,style,memory,video quality of this device is awsome,i recommend it to everyone who loves music this will become your new best friend,you can also use it in boring parties trust me its loud enough to filter out whatever they are playing i tested it.my only complaint is that it scratches easily and takes the beauty away from te device so thats why i keep mines in the case most of the time.i love it so much im gonna listen to it now
On: 2006-01-06
I received this product, a 60 GB iPod Color for Christmas...Its very nice and I like it. I love the fact that the iPod has graphics now, everything looks completely different and better, and that you can watch music videos on it. I also like the newer big flatscreen. :)
However, I have one concern. Is Apple going to make an even better product soon? It seems to me Apple is being money hungry and doesnt really fully explore the options of what an iPod could have before they actually make them.
They make ones, and then a year later they make WAY better ones. So then the iPod that they made a year ago couldve already had the features that the new ones that they are just releasing have, but instead they just give it the "basic" features and then pump out newer iPods which has features that the old iPod from a year ago couldve already had but they dont, all just for you to waste more of your money on. Not everyone can afford to buy the newest iPod every new year.
Last year I received my first iPod for Christmas and it *was* the newest one with 30GB (if not newest pretty close), and then they came out with a few more and now this one and I got this one this year because well my family knew I wanted one. So now my fear is that by next year an already better one will already be out. Apple will you please stop pumping them out like this because this is getting old.
My very old friend who I no longer talk to used to have an iPod way before I had one...So then I get one for Christmas, the *newest* one last year, and then shortly she also knows about it and thinks about buying it. I think also the iPod Minis were shortly released before mine was (which by the way, Apple stopped making them as of July 05) and she also wanted that one. I think she did buy one of them but Im not sure which. Now this year, they release an iPod Nano and this iPod. MY GOSH!
On: 2006-01-05
Unfreakin believable on how much you can put on this puppy. Have all my CDs on it, and still have 50+ gig left. :-000 Next to go on it are my audio books. The sound quality, even with the earbuds is pretty cool.
Bought the gizmo to listen to it via the cars tape deck, sound quality isnt outstanding, but its great to have all the music in one spot. Also bought the car recharger as well. Also have the Logic3 speaker-charger-sync device. Works like a charm.
Right now, I get NPRs Science Friday podcast. Great to listen whenever. As far as the videos go, for such a dinky screen, its not bad at all. Im using it more for sound
As other reviewers have said, you do need to buy a screen protector, but thats true with any handheld device. And as far as durability, any honest idiot knows you gotta be careful with any kind of handheld!!!
On: 2005-12-30
To start off, this is overall a very good product, but there are a few setbacks that need to be considered before buying. Here are some pros and cons:
Pros:
-Simple to use. Like most products made by Apple, the IPods interface is very user friendly with the simple click wheel for navigation. Uploading music and Synchronizing Photos is also very easy to do with the Itunes software. Working with video is another story (explained in cons).
-Size. While the 60gb model is not quite on the small end, it does pack lots of features for its size. Apple was able to fit 60gb worth of space into an IPod, which is actually smaller than the original IPod. Not bad.
-Clear video playback (if you can get it to work)
-Battery Life. The 60gb model comes with a bigger battery than the 30gb, giving it very good battery life. For playing music, I can leave it running all day and still be at half charge. For watching videos, I can manage to get all the way through Lord of The Rings before the battery dies.
Cons:
-Screen. The Screen on the IPod sucks. It is so bad that if you rub your finger along the screen, it will put in scratches. On a normal IPod, this wouldnt be bad, but if you want to watch videos, scratches on the screen distort the image. If you are going to buy this you NEED a hard case that completely covers the screen, or one of the sticky screen protectors.
-Video Playback. In that area, Apple has tried very hard to limit you. The problem is that the videos need to be in MPEG4 format with a size of 320x240. You can buy nicely formatted shows off Itunes Music Store for a price, but that would add up fast. You can put your own videos on, but since Itunes is not a video converter, you need a 3rd party program. The only one I found that works is Videora IPod converter, but even this takes an expert to convert it the right way. If you are good with computers and have a lot of patience, then you can get most any movie on (even DVD movies). However, most people who buy this IPod never manage to get movies to work. Keep that in mind if the video feature is one of the main reasons you are looking at this item in the first place.
Overall, however, this is a very nice product. I have enjoyed many hours of use and continue to enjoy it. The cons it has need to be taken into consideration, and so do the other options out there for Portable Video Players. These include the Creative Zen Vision, the Archos AV500 Mobile DVR, the Sony PSP and others. Look into all of this before buying the IPod.
On: 2005-12-30
I must say -- I was a holdover and didnt own an iPod. I wasnt big on the security rights limitations on iPod music -- which is kindof freaky. Recently though, I bought one as a christmas gift and of course part of the gift was organizing her music...Wow...it was easy to upload music but loading 120CDs took a while but iTunes recognized most of the CDs and labeled them for me. All in all, the CDs used up 10 gig or about 1/3 of her 30gig iPod.
In the process of doing this, I came to realize what Id been missing ... organization. iPod makes it tremendously simple to organize, sort, find All your music...so I got one too! only I got myself the 60gig option as mine had to be bigger (I am an avid photographer and plan to move pictures from my camera, and Ill also use it as a portable hard drive).
Two things I noticed after I held both units, the 60 gig iPod is twice as thick as the 30gig -- something that the sites dont really tell. So if you want shiek thin, get the 30gig and if you want cavernous storage get the 60gig...hehe Ive always wanted to use the word cavernous in a sentence :-). Two, the battery lasts 16 hours on the 30gig and 20hours on the 60gig.
I also downloaded a Podcast just to see how it would work...wow, the screen has some very high resolution and everything looks really sharp with very smooth playback. David Hasselhoff of Knight Rider looks a bit anachronistic against the shiek white of the iPod. Hats off to you Dave, was a big fan of the show as a kid and now its the first video on my iPod. I shouldve downloaded Galactica -- not a ton of choices out there for TV but Im sure that will change soon. I also played the Podcast on the computer and its not as sharp although pretty good quality -- I definitely think theyre made to be viewed in the iPod. Download from the site for a 45minute episode over broadband was slow about 2mins but download to the iPod from my computer was pretty fast 10-20 seconds -- not as speedy as music but then again its video.
Ok but then I discovered Podcasts...basically you go into iTunes and you can subscribe to news shows, comedy shows, sports shows all for free! Theres a gazillion free newsvideos etc out there. Example, I love Meet the Press -- I can watch it whenever I want. If you love sports, there are tons of sports related podcasts etc. Its great!
I think this 5th generation is amazing. If you own an older model...I think theyre awesome and Id upgrade. I have the white iPod and Im enjoying the music that was buried in CDs at the back of my TV armoir for years. I hear black looks cooler...but that it shows scratches easier (dont know). So there you have it, hope it helps guys.
Of note, I own a pair of Shure headphones and I must say...whencombined with iPod, I can hear nuances to music that I didnt know where there! Amazing sound.
Got both (and the Shure) from Amazon -- shipping was fast and everything looked great.
by: Anonymous On: 2005-12-26
I have just gotten the white iPod Video 60gb for Christmas and I am amazed! It is surprisingly easy to put photos and videos on it, contradicting what I have heard so far. But if I were you, I would buy a case that protects the iPod and the delicate screen. I recommend the InvisibleSHIELD. Here is the link: http://thinkdifferentstore.com/product_info.php/products_id/1431
The graphics and the quality are exceptional for such a small device. But a word of caution, the battery drains faster.
by: Anonymous On: 2005-12-26
This is a great music player. It work well. It is also easy to use. I have news for you. When the iPod says do not diconnect you have to go to iTunes and eject the iPod. Read the Adobe iPod features guide to learn more about that stuff.(It comes on the installation CD.) I recently had the Creative Zen Portable Media Center. I didnt even have it for a year and it broke. It might have been defective. Though this iPod is smaller and lighter. They pretty much do the same thing. If you want a small music player, a photo viewer, and a video player get the iPod Video 60GB. It is the 5th generation of the iPod.
On: 2005-12-26
I have to say, I was all for the new 5G iPod until I started getting into making the portable device usable in various settings. Apple is killing their customer base by turning a highly priced $400 portable music device into a $600 item by gouging customers for every single accessory needed - even splitting up the wall charger and the cable needed to connect the charger to the iPod ($60 to charge your iPod through an outlet)!
The screen scratches, even with a soft cloth. You will have to buy a screen cover of some sort right away. The class scratches easier than even the most fragile coated sunglasses I have ever owned. Why cant they just use the same scratch resistant glass everyone uses on PDA screens?
Heres a break down of what Ive spent so far on my $400 iPod:
$400 - 60 Gig 5G Ipod Video (comes with a usb cable and worthless earbud headphones that will have to be replaced.
$30 - usb power adapter (allows the iPod usb cable to charge the iPod. No usb cable provided, so youll have to use the one that was provided for your computer synching (a pain, I know).
$30 - usb cable for the usb power adapter
$40 - universal dock for my home stereo
$30 - usb cable for my universal dock (none provided with the dock)
$22 - 1/8" mini headphone to RCA cable for connecting to my home stereo (Monster Cable brand, could have gone cheaper for basic Radio Shack cables)
$20 - 1/8" mini to 1/8" mini cable for connecting the iPod to my car stereo or other speaker systems (Monster Cable).
$20 - for the cheapest rubber protective sleeve offered to keep the HIGHLY scratch prone screen from scratching.
This turns a $400 item into a $592 item. If you want the remote for the dock or any other accessories, the dollar figure continues to grow. In my opinion, if you havent already heavily invested in the iPod, go another route. There are a plethora of other portable media devices out there that give you much more bang for your buck. From companies that actually have the customers needs and best interest in mind. And besides, youll be cool and unique and not like every other conformist out there (yes, I am one of those conformists, but learn from me).
If this review was helpful to you, please click on "yes". Thank you kindly.
On: 2005-12-26
I couldnt decide if I wanted the Nano or to bite the bullet, and get the new iPod video ($400 is pretty spendy). Well, hubby surprised me with the 60 gig iPod video. Everything about the iPod is beautiful, right down to that packaging. The video quality is UNREAL. The sound quality is bright, crisp, and I can hear things in songs that Ive never heard before. I highly recommend a case for the iPod, to protect from scratching (I chose a pretty pink leather one). Ive been using the iTunes software for about a year for downloading music, so Im pretty familiar with it, but a first time iTunes/iPod user should have no problems using this. I plan on investing in a docking station for work and an adapter for my car very soon. This item is a MUST for any music lover.
On: 2005-12-25
Beauty is in the eye of the eye of the beholder so if you like the astethics and beautiful video screen technology, you will love this. I have an IPOD Video 30 Gig bought right before Christmas 2005.
If you are like me and like simplicity, relatively bug free software (I can live with minor bugs and expect a few), and ease of use, then this is an overpriced duckling.
I have tried to get this to work on my Windows XP and my Windows 2000 operating systems with no luck. The interface hangs indefinitely. I have patience, having no children and not much else to do, so if it ever did decide to "unhang" Id be here ready to use the loading of media software. But it doesnt wish to be compatible with any of my Windows operating systems.
I am a stockholder of AAPL and wish it to make me lots of money. But Im more beholden to good technology than increased shareholder value and this, my dear reader, is a POS.
The screen of the IPOD always seems to read "Do not disconnect" no matter what I do. It doesnt like to turn off. I cant load anything easily.
If I were to design this, Id want a cableless interface where the USB connection pops out from the unit and plugs directly into the computer. Of course the software would work with all standard operating systems...duh.
I never got far enough to see if the file structure supported multiple sub directories. If not, that would be very important to me. It should function like a normal hard drive fur chrissakes.
Anyway, Im going to wait for their customer service complaints to go down and to get an later version. Its not the smartest thing to buy the first version of software or hardware kits.
Not recommeded.
On: 2005-12-17
I received the IPOD this week. The music, photos, videos are great but there is one draw back. The 20 hour music playback time is a bunch of garbage. I did the test where the backlight was on maybe 10 seconds at the most, had the hold switch on and had the playlist on repeat until the battery died. It died after 8 hours. I called support and he said 10 - 12 hours is the norm. I said the advertisement claims up to 20 hours and he said well i dont know about that. I now have to test if the video will last 2 - 3 hours as they claim. Not sure how they can get away with this deceptive advertising.
On: 2005-12-14
Im looking at this jazzy 60 GB iPod with Video Playback, but I have a problem. About 16 months ago, I bought a 40 GB Wheel iPod and loved it. But just over a year after buying it I had difficulty in getting the iPod to charge. So I paid Apple $65 for the battery replacement service and sent my iPod off. Nearly three weeks passed, without hearing anything from Apple, so I called Apple Customer Service. After waiting on the telephone for 25 minutes I got a customer service rep who, after finding my record, reported that there was nothing wrong with the battery, but there was a hardware problem, and that in order to get it fixed, I would have to pay $265. "It would be cheaper to buy a new one," my customer service rep said. So naturally, I thought about upgrading to the new Video apple. But I have a problem: what do I do with the piece of junk that my first iPod turned into? And there is an additional potential problem: what happens if I spring for $400 for the upgraded Apple, and THAT turns into a piece of junk? The lesson learned (the tough way) is this: Apple turns out junk and then doesnt stand behind its product. The iPod is a nifty creation, but if it doesnt work for more than a year, it isnt worth a damn. And if Apple itself doesnt stand behind their products, then one has to wonder whether buying an Apple product is a wise investment. From my experience, Apple is more concerned with its profit margins then supporting the products it does produce.
On: 2005-12-11
Unfortunately my 4G iPod photo that I was very happy with was lost/stolen. This led me to buy the 5G video product soon after it was released. I bought it as a music player first and foremost, with the video as an after thought, assuming I would rarely if ever use it.
After 5 weeks of ownership, I am very pleased.
- Considering the 60GB size, I was happy that this was still smaller and lighter than the 30GB 4G.
- I have been nervous about the screen scratching and have been looking for a better case than what was in the package...but so far not even a minor scratch.
- Had no expectations for the video, but the quality is excellent considering the screen size. Watched an episode of Lost on a plane (irony) and found after taking a moment for my eyes to adjust to the size, that it was really easy to see and the size posed no problems. Its been fun to download some free trailers and so forth...but still overall, the video seems like something I will only use in the air.
- Sound seems slightly better than the 4G, but I do not have a great ear, so its barely noticeable.
Battery life is definately a concern if you plan on using it for video, but the 40% more batter life for the 60GB versus the 30GB was worth the additional $ to me. The exclusion of the AC charger is dissapointing and would pose a problem for those who travel without a laptop. Thankfully, I didnt lose that on my old one, so Im set, but others should take note.
Well, I wish I didnt lose my 4G and could have waited for a few more upgrades in the product, but considering my expectations I am a happy camper. As the title says, a great music player, with massive storage and good sound, with the added bonus of a quality video playback device with a vivid picture making up for the size of the screen.
On: 2005-11-19
PROS: Surprising good quality video, music videos available on iTunes, large amount of storage space, sleeker | | |
