Ipod or Nomad Zen

[Krk3561]

I got this and it kicks ass. It sounds better than the Ipod and is $231 less than the Ipod of the same size. You should get the Xtra because the screen is bigger and has a cool blue backlight, its worth the xtra money to get the xtra

Zen Xtra 30GB - $269 @ Newegg.com

 

[metalmania]

so all you ipod guys dance like the shadow people in those commercial?

 

[johnjkr1]

I cant say this enough...DO NOT buy creative audio products......have you ever seen their warranty? Its three months...not years...MONTHS......dell gives you a year and so does apple....rule #1, don't buy products from companies that don't support them

 

[FlasHBurN]

So has any one heard anything about the next generation of portable players? I am thinking about getting either an IPod or the Nomad..but I was thinking about waiting.

 

[waylman]

i can only vouch for the iPod. Im listening right now This thing is sweeter than Britney's PL's

 

[grant2]

Waiting til september??? Well of course new products are going to be better & cheaper but 9 months is a long time, why not just buy now and enjoy it while you can?

 

[FlasHBurN]

Originally posted by: grant2
Waiting til september??? Well of course new products are going to be better & cheaper but 9 months is a long time, why not just buy now and enjoy it while you can?

Where did anyone say September? That is why I asked when* new ones would be released.


edit : 'when' was implied in my question asking if any one has heard anything about the next players.

 

[quikah]

Do any of the hard drive players offer gapless playback?

Also can all of them be used as regular storage devices? I know the ipod can be used as a regular harddrive, however the current gen only has a doc connector so you need to carry the dock with you to transfer files?

Those are the 2 features I really want.

 

[grant2]

flashburn actually you DIDN'T say "when".

September is my best guess for the next generation of players to come out, since that's around when they were all announced/released/available in 2003.

Personally I wouldn't hold my breath for anything special to arrive in 2004 players. Maybe a little cheaper, maybe the HDs a little bigger, maybe slightly better software. Without wild new HD or battery technologies on the horizon, any improvements will be incremental.

The only (possibly) exciting players to be released may be 4gb players with 1" hard drives, if the drives actually arrive. Although the iRiver and Creative 1" drive players aren't too impressive (they weigh about 5-6oz) the rio nitrus is a svelt 2.5 oz... that's getting very close to memory stick players. If they can bump it to 4gb with the same weight, that would be one damn sweet player

 

[grant2]

Originally posted by: quikah
Do any of the hard drive players offer gapless playback?
Also can all of them be used as regular storage devices? I know the ipod can be used as a regular harddrive, however the current gen only has a doc connector so you need to carry the dock with you to transfer files?

If I recall correctly Rio Karma does offer gapless playback. (OTOH, the RCA Lyra 1.5gb player has a very LARGE gap).

Rio Karma does support file transfers through software (i.e. it doesn't just appear as another drive in windows) ... however, apparently the software is just a java applet which is part of the Karma's OS so it's a simple task to use it on any computer, even macs.

There is a fairly active support board for the rio karma, and probably all of the others too, where you can get definite answers to these questions.

 

[littlebitstrouds]

Originally posted by: Krk3561
I got this and it kicks ass. It sounds better than the Ipod and is $231 less than the Ipod of the same size. You should get the Xtra because the screen is bigger and has a cool blue backlight, its worth the xtra money to get the xtra

Zen Xtra 30GB - $269 @ Newegg.com

Hmmm this looks like it might be a good idea. Why hasn't there been a 6-8 differant product comparison review anywhere.

More advice would be nice.

 

[addragyn]

Of course it's less. It uses a 2.5" laptop drive. The iPod uses a 1.8" drive that is not nearly as common. Or cheap. It also means the iPod is smaller and uses a drive with a very high shock rating and was built with the best possible parts for the design. If you want to pay for that, cool. If not you can definitely get "more" for less.

"Do any of the hard drive players offer gapless playback?"
No. There is a "Join Tracks" funtion in iTunes.

"Also can all of them be used as regular storage devices? I know the ipod can be used as a regular harddrive, however the current gen only has a doc connector so you need to carry the dock with you to transfer files?"
In Linux, Windows & OS X the iPod mounts as a HD. It does not need drivers or software to do this. It is a true external hard drive. Since the iPod keeps track of your song ratings, and number of plays it uses a database. Thus it does require sw to transfer music to the player (and add it to the DB).
The 1s & 2nd gen iPod can be connected with a plain ole FireWire cable. The 3rd gens' have cable that has a dock connector on one end and FireWire (or USB2) on the other. This cable can plug into the iPod directly or into the dock, it's the same connector. Here
Also checkout the $18.95 PocketDock.

---

iPod stuff

iPod cans and buds

iPod Battery FAQ

 

[preslove]

rio karma. 20gb for < $300. Sizewise, has about the same volume as an ipod. Has a slick docking/charging port to keep it on when you bring it home. Batteries will last a lot longer on a charge than an ipod.

I dunno how you ended up stuck on ipod vs. zen, because zen is probably the worst alternative to ipod, behind iRiver (pretty slick) Dell jukebox (cheap!) and Karma (also pretty slick)

The dock also has an ethernet jack so you can plug it in and access files from any networked comp. Karma seems like the way to go.

 

[FlasHBurN]

I really would like to get a Karma, as that ethernet port rocks. But, only 20GB does kind of suck compared to the Nomad's 60GB version. If only they made a Karma with more space.

 

[grant2]

I wouldn't be surprised if a 40gb karma arrives within a few months. The product is announced, I guess they just have to get the hard drives and stick them in.

I guess it all depends on how much space you need. at last count my music collection was 3gb. But of course some people have a lot more.

 

[arsbanned]

I have a G2 iPod and really like it, especially now with the iTunes + iTMS functionality. I guess it comes down to personal preference.

 

[Yourself]

I was just checking out Rio's site and it says that the Karma has a 90 day limited warranty. Yikes....



Self

 

[FlasHBurN]

Originally posted by: Yourself
I was just checking out Rio's site and it says that the Karma has a 90 day limited warranty. Yikes....



Self

Isn't that the same length as the Creative warranty? That really sucks.

 

[arsbanned]

Whats' the iPod's? I never checked. I think it's a year? 90 days is very poor, I agree.

 

[amd4life]

ipod has better warranty service than creative ( 1 yr vs 3 months), and the dell is just darn ugly. So spend the money and for 300 you could get a used 15gb ipod with about six months of warranty

 

[tec699]

Originally posted by: amd4life
ipod has better warranty service than creative ( 1 yr vs 3 months), and the dell is just darn ugly. So spend the money and for 300 you could get a used 15gb ipod with about six months of warranty

That's your opinion, but I like the dell dj. My buddy has one and the thing rocks. Also, the Ipod looks too fragile. It looks like it could scratch very easily, but I guess that's what a protective covering is for. I'd go with the dell dj.

 

[mosco]

The ipod might be expensive but look at the sale for mp3 players during november(according to IDC):

OVERALL BEST SELLING MP3 PLAYERS FOR NOV. 2003 (by units)
1. 10GB iPod ($299)
2. 128MB Digitalway ($140)
3. 20GB iPod ($399)
4. 128MB iRiver ($119.99-$139.99)
5. 40GB iPod ($499)

Source: http://macobserver.com/article/2003/12/30.1.shtml and IDC

 

[grant2]

that's no surprise, they're the only mp3 player i've ever seen advertised on TV, they are the entrenched market leader, and you never hear anything bad about their quality.

 

[nortexoid]

i love my 15GB G3 iPod, but if i was to buy all over again, i'd probably go for the iRiver iHP-120. then i might consider the rio karma, but it's a little too thick for my tastes, and it's not recognized as a standard removable drive in windows. the karma also sorts by tags like the ipod (which is ok, but i'd like the option of sorting by directory/file structure too) while the iHP-120 uses directory/file structure. the battery life is amazing. they use a lithium polymer vs. the downgraded lithium ion that the ipod and karma use.

the only thing i don't like about the ihp-120 is that there's no dock and it uses usb 2.0 only and not firewire.

 

[FlasHBurN]

Does the Nomad sort by tags or by Directory/File structure?