Dims 0 Posted July 2, 2004 Share Posted July 2, 2004 Not a good competitor becuase is only will used the sony inhouse music format (ATRAC???) which is meant to be shit. This means that people will have to convert their whole mp3 collections to a format that doesn't work as well and is not supported by anyone but Sony, just to use the new Sony player. Apparently the software linking it to your computer is a pain in the arse to use as well. This will keep a lot of potential buyers away just so sony can keep their record company arm happy. Stupid......Sony........stupid!!!!! Link to post Share on other sites
danz 0 Posted July 2, 2004 Share Posted July 2, 2004 hmmmm....sounds familiar to me....aac, iTunes... please, Apple is just as bad with that stuff as sony (ok...ATRAC does suck and no mp3s is really WEAK!!)... ender...you went with the nomad?? I was turned off by its size and software... You guys are all overlooking wonderful players...like mine! The Rio Karma...Veronica, 15hrs WITH a battery pack...I get 15 hours without one...plays 5 different audio formats and has tons of features. I love it! danz Link to post Share on other sites
big-will 7 Posted July 2, 2004 Share Posted July 2, 2004 But does it have a mirror? Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted July 5, 2004 Share Posted July 5, 2004 Won't some 14-year-old geek just crack the firmware so it can play mp3? It's probably going to be a case of just putting in another codec. Look at what people have done with the X-box. All the manufacturing side of Sony has had to do is put in some semblence of protection to placate SME. I would doubt it's very strong. Someone making better and cheaper hardware than Apple. Now there's a surprise.... Link to post Share on other sites
big-will 7 Posted July 6, 2004 Share Posted July 6, 2004 It CAN play mp3 can't it?? Link to post Share on other sites
veronica 2 Posted July 6, 2004 Share Posted July 6, 2004 Yes it can. Link to post Share on other sites
viv&kev 0 Posted July 7, 2004 Share Posted July 7, 2004 Once you have converted songs to this AAC format, can you change them back to MPG if you want to? Link to post Share on other sites
Dims 0 Posted July 7, 2004 Share Posted July 7, 2004 No.....it......can't Read the story carefully. In a lame attempt to keep it all in the family the player only plays ATRAC format. This is so sony could also market their 20 gig player as being able to hold more songs (13,000) than the apple 40 gig player (10,000 songs) as ATRAC format allows greater compresion. It is all playing with number to get consumers that don't no shit from clay, because ATRAC comperssion is meant to sound pretty bad. And I bet the interface is no where near as good as the ipod's. No Fakie I am no sure what is possible with the Sony player, but you are probably right. But how many consumers will bother re-rigging their player? Most people don't even know what mp3 (not MPGs) are! Dan, it is not the same as AAC with apple, because AAC files at the same bitrate as mp3 files sound better. It is a better format, and the iPOD can play both, so what are you talking about? I have said before I think the Rio is a good player, so quit you desparate jabs at the best mp3 and AAC palyer on the market, the mighty iPOD! Sony have ossified, they used to be a brilliant company making brilliant products (OK, their TV's and stereo's are still pretty good) I am not totally sure but I don't think there is a way of directly converting your AAC files to mp3, although you can import a mp3 into iTunes as a AAC file. You could burn the AAC file to a CD, then reimport it as a mp3 (change import setting in prefs) but then you would suffer loss of quality. Link to post Share on other sites
veronica 2 Posted July 7, 2004 Share Posted July 7, 2004 Sorry, I thought the subject was ipod at that point.... Link to post Share on other sites
veronica 2 Posted July 8, 2004 Share Posted July 8, 2004 ipod mini coming later this month http://www.apple.co.jp/ipodmini/ 28140 yen. Link to post Share on other sites
TheOrange 0 Posted July 8, 2004 Share Posted July 8, 2004 Good for jogging! Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted July 8, 2004 Share Posted July 8, 2004 That looks like the bomb that some psycho locked around the neck of a pizza delivery guy a while back in the US. Only it didn't play music, it blew his head off. Take care now Orange - all the jogging will do you no good if you go bang. Link to post Share on other sites
frannyo 2 Posted July 8, 2004 Share Posted July 8, 2004 All you ipod fans might want to read this: http://www.dukebox.com/ipodtrash.php Link to post Share on other sites
damian 0 Posted July 8, 2004 Share Posted July 8, 2004 Q: "Allows you to copy your own music on/ off at will" A: "No. Additional 3rd party, unsupported software required" what a load of crap. The Apple iPod is designed to work with Apple iTunes. What is 3rd party about that? You dont even need iTunes to transfer songs on and off the iPod, although the two work very well together. Price: so what if it is overpriced. Doesn't worry me. Record Audio: My digicam can record audio and I never use it, who wants to record little conversations with yourself anyway? Record Video: its a friggin mp3 player! formats: blah blah boring. Walking down the traffic filled road with $30 ear buds and you complain about sound quality of the very industry standard mp3? Give me a break. If sound quality matters then sit at home with your sealed acoustic room and use nothing but gold jacks and leads and bose speakers... then you have the right to complain about mp3 being low quality. Until then the smallest environmental interference (including the noise of your car engine) negates any sound quality benefit, particularly if you are playing your mp3 files via a tape deck car kit in the first place. Play video on TV: no the ipod cant do this either. Apparently at the price this feature should be expected. For sure there are legitimate feature shortcomings in the ipod, but the anger and foot stamping at which bemoaning old geeks carry on about them is nuts. Fact is, Apple have dominated the market and the iPod is a wonderful creation and this seems to get up peoples noses. Apple are marketing and design masters and this gets up peoples noses (and sucks me in). yet again, who cares, it is only money and it is only a toy, buy and enjoy and stop sulking in such an anti-Apple manner. Besides, Apple take consumers for a ride big time, the iPod is not nearly their worst offence. Once again, spend and be happy. ** by the way, i admit to being a gushing Apple design sucker on the issue of iPods. It is my intention to have sex whilst both of us are listening to our iPods. First I need to find a partner and then make sure she owns sexPod ** I also predict that the iPod is going to accelerate its fall from popularity with certain types. I am amazed by the number of suited dull looking guys I see in the city with their iPod earbuds. I am certain that this type of popularity and "dork! he's got no idea, fuffff, whatever" descriptions are going to put of the core HD player fans. After all, image and ego remains everything for most of us. Link to post Share on other sites
scouser 4 Posted July 9, 2004 Share Posted July 9, 2004 What exactly is the big benefit of the minipod - just that its smaller than normalpod? Link to post Share on other sites
KlingKlang 1 Posted July 9, 2004 Share Posted July 9, 2004 Sexier? Armband? Link to post Share on other sites
grungy-gonads 54 Posted July 10, 2004 Share Posted July 10, 2004 Here here db. Spot on there dude. I have another few ideas for your handle when you decide to rebrand: - Dogs Bottom - Delicious Baguette - Dismal Blighty What do you think? (And do I get a prize?) Link to post Share on other sites
damian 0 Posted July 10, 2004 Share Posted July 10, 2004 GG - I think the third one might get a run at some stage in the next few years in the UK. If I ever return to Australia it will become Dingo's Baby. Link to post Share on other sites
dale#1 1 Posted July 14, 2004 Share Posted July 14, 2004 spend and be happy - its a good way to think. Link to post Share on other sites
veronica 2 Posted July 20, 2004 Share Posted July 20, 2004 4th gen *pods: July 26 issue - Veteran Podsters understand that at least once a year Apple performs a feat that at once infuses them with dread and delight: an iPod upgrade. The delight comes from a new look and new capabilities. The dread comes from the realization that you're a step behind the cutting edge and must consider whether to buy your way back on it. And here it goes again. The considerably tweaked fourth-generation iPod will roll out this week, and NEWSWEEK got an advance peek. It looks a bit different, operates more efficiently, has a few more features and costs less. Here are the highlights. The click wheel. The iPod keeps getting slimmer and more streamlined. While the initial version had a relatively boxy feel, subsequent versions have been curvier and smaller. This one is about a millimeter thinner and, more significantly, eliminates the control buttons that sat under the display screen. Instead, it uses a "click wheel," where the controls are placed on the compass points of the circular touchpad that lets you scroll through menus. This is an innovation carried over from the diminutive iPod Mini. "It was developed out of necessity for the Mini, because there wasn't enough room [for the buttons]," says Steve Jobs. "But the minute we experienced it we just thought, 'My God, why didn't we think of this sooner?' " More efficient menus. There's less thumbing required to get to your favorite stuff. "Music" is a first-level entry, and now a single click initiates the popular technique of shuffling your library for playback. New features. You can create multiple on-the-go playlists and delete songs from those ad hoc mixes. And audiobooks are not only easier to find, you can listen to them at normal speed, slower or 25 percent faster, without its sounding like a Munchkin. Longer play. Coast-to-coasters rejoice: the new iPods are rated for 12 hours of rockin' between charges—a 50 percent boost in battery life. This is accomplished, Apple says, not by a heavier battery but diligent conservation of power. Lower price. The top-of-the-line iPod, holding 10,000 songs (40 gigs, as geeks will tell you), now costs $399. The lower-capacity model, with room for 5,000 songs (20 gigs), costs $299. That's a $100 price reduction for each. (There's no more 15-gig model.) Color. Fuggedaboutit. Despite rumors to the contrary, the wide-bodies are still as pure as the driven snow. Bottom line: If you have yet to jump on the iPod bandwagon, it's cheaper and more attractive to do so. If you're already plugged in, the question is whether you should engage in the "iPod Bump," where you snap up the spiffy new version and pass Old Reliable to a grateful friend or family member (or the highest eBay bidder). If your music collection has exceeded your iPod's storage space, or your listening binges exceed your current iPod's battery life—or if you want to hear Bill Clinton's abridged book in 4-1/2 hours rather than six—consider the Bump this time around. Of course, if your heart went aflutter at the very sight of this year's model, you're probably in line at the Apple Store already. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5457434/site/newsweek/ Link to post Share on other sites
sunrise 0 Posted July 20, 2004 Share Posted July 20, 2004 A non-event. Good news is lower prices, longer battery, and slightly smaller pod. But - still no 16 bit 44.1k stereo in. It's looking bleak. I may have to eventually get an iRiver, along with my beloved iPod. I'd much prefer not to have 2 gadgets to do what one should do. And no, I'm not likely be trashing my iPod soon..... I will hold out until the next upgrade (which might have the rumored video on board, who knows) before I consider getting the iRiver as well. But I'm not very hopeful that Apple will come thru for us audio recording people. It's so ridiculous since Apple now own a pro audio company (EMagic = Logic) and are in the pro audio stakes now, so why don't they up at least one model of their iPods to pro audio status for input? Stupid................ Link to post Share on other sites
scouser 4 Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 Hardly earth-shattering changes there hey? Link to post Share on other sites
veronica 2 Posted July 22, 2004 Share Posted July 22, 2004 I thought the same. Its a bit disappointing. I suppose they're just trying to squeeze as much as possible out of podmania. Link to post Share on other sites
Dims 0 Posted July 23, 2004 Share Posted July 23, 2004 Oh for god's sake, put a ****ing replaceable (or better) battery in the thing. How many complaints have they had and still they are sticking with the same battery, and improving battery life through reduced power consumption, yada, yada, yada.......... IDIOTS! I am jumping ship with the next purchase to better value players, with good design, far better battery life and better price, and so will a lot of techno-savvy folk as well. Check out the latest offerings from Zen! It's a pity they missed the opportunity to kill the competition with this new release. If only other players worked so well with iTunes Link to post Share on other sites
veronica 2 Posted July 24, 2004 Share Posted July 24, 2004 You deserter!!! Link to post Share on other sites
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