[cofe]

so itunes 7 is out and they've finally clocked that gapless playback might come in handy for mixes etc. (applauds): well done apple.

however, it was evidently beyond them to transfer this groundbreaking technological innovation to the ipods themselves. so i can listen gapless on the machine but should i want such a luxury on my ipod i'm shit out of luck unless i buy a new ipod. and yes i know you can import mixes as one track but that's exactly what they want you to do...

so close apple, so close.

[Bubba]

I think you can do gapless on 5G iPods.

[soapy]

ipods, hmmm

why??

no line in
no vorbis/flac
no radio
no easy peasy usb 2
no file/folder browsing
no decent eq

i'd plump for the iaudio x5

[Houdini]

It's the moving parts issue that'll fuck 'em up.  Saw something on TeeVee t'other day about the longevity of iPODS.  They just aren't going the distance.  They're expensive.

[Bubba]

I'd think twice about getting another iPod - the battery life on mine is down to about 2 hours and I've not exactly used it heavily.

I find the control scheme a pain if you've got a lot of music loaded, though the 5G ones do have a search function which looks quite nice.

I would like an FM radio, and I would like FLAC support and I would like folder browsing rather than tag browsing...so I might well look at that iaudio X5 next - do you own one Soapy?
 

[soapy]

owned a few iriver and iaudio products


what can i say, i'm a geek and like features over form 


also check the iaudio 6 and A2


however, now you can get 2gb of flash based player for under £90, i'd question whether you want the moving parts issues of hdd based players; unless video was a big part of your use

have a scoot round here > http://www.advancedmp3players.co.uk/shop/

[moose]

I think the longativity issue for large capacity mp3 players is a general one.  The continuing quest for largely unrequired capacity means that modern hard-drives are built with the expectation of only lasting 2-3 years these days.  I see the repercussions in the department where I work: IT support rooms packed with new looking PCs with frigged drives.  Meanwhile most of our research equipment is controlled by old 386s and 486s with drives that have been happily clattering along for over 10 years!  Christ knows what would happen if they failed - enormously valuable analytical facilities completely at the mercy of ancient and irrepairable PCs.

That said, to contribute to the mp3 player knowledge.  I''ve got a 20gb Creative Zen Touch - battery life is still high after over a year (20hr'ish), and I have not had any trouble with it (apart from the random of entire library button is a bit too easy to hit accidently - you quickly learn to always keep it locked).  I guess if i was used to an ipod I might find the aesthetics clunky and the touch strip navigation a little sensitive and fiddly (pretty much impossible to use whilst walking).  Still for an undemanding user who just wants to listen to vaguely random tunes uninterupted its pretty good.  The provided software's crap but you can use mediaplayer instead (if you have no compunctions re the Gates' evil empire) which is easy enough and there are no copyright / protection issues either.  Creative also seem pretty goo at releasing patches etc in response to customer bugbears (making the touchstrip less sensitive, improving compatibility with 3rd party programmes etc.).

[unclesomebody]

ipods can actually do a lot of the things mentioned, but not natively. I ran Linux on mine for a while but after having to wipe it I haven't bothered reinstalling it. Running linux allowed me to play flac, use file/folder browsing, use line in strangely enough, and even watch video on my ipod video. Basically, it's capable of a whole lot more than what apple release it as, but it requires some time and effort to get it to do the things you want.

Also, I don't use itunes, I never have and never will. I use my ipod with winamp which works seamlessly. I might not get the album art with it, but I have another utility for that, and it's not something that bothers me too much anyway.

as for gapless playback, I can't comment, because I can't remember. But I'm sure it will be possible under Linux. So for those who dare... iLinux!

(also, in terms of sound quality, it's the headphones that make the biggest difference rather than EQ's and different players)

[soapy]

i concur moose,

and not being tied to either apple or microsoft is key

creative equipment is ok too, just not so featured as other makes


true uncle, a pair of earbuds are a prerequisite for decent in-ear sound

eq is useful for if you're running through monitor speakers

[squeek]

however, now you can get 2gb of flash based player for under £90, i'd question whether you want the moving parts issues of hdd based players; unless video was a big part of your use

One of the main uses I found for my 20gig mp3 player was that you could use it as a portable HD, so backup my photos, or copy a game/film to it when going to someone else's house.  I also kept a lot of utilities on it for when I get called my friend/relative to fix their PCs, although I suppose 2 gigs might be large enough for that too.