Whch mp3 player to buy

[ranger]

Kind of a silly question for a frequent flyer forum, but haven't had any success with forums pertaining to mp3 payers, so here goes.

I "think" I want to buy an mp3 player....mainly for our Hawaiian holiday.
I want to download my own music from CD's so I can listen to on the plane, at the beach, pool & hotel room.
Also, thought Internet access & email would be handy using wifi. Apparently the hotel has wifi.

Looking at the Apple ipod touch.
Am I aiming to high??????????
Any thoughts/suggestions are welcome.

Am in my 50's & female if that is relevant.

Thanks

 

[simongr]

The iPod touch is a great device. It holds heaps of songs and has other uses including wifi access to the internet, games, ability to play videos.

If you JUST want to play music then you can get a cheap MP3 player rather than a ipod - but for an overall experience I would go iPod

 

[ejb]

I second Simon's post, the IPod is great if you want the whole experience but a cheap mp3 is good enough for just music.

ejb

 

[djfuzz]

I agree with the above, an iPod Touch is perfect for the needs you describe. Of course, there are very good non-Apple alternatives out there too - but as a fellow iPod / iPhone user, this is the only choice I can recommend through personal experience, and through introducing it to friends / family who aren't as tech literate (or crazy) as I am.

How many CDs are you thinking of loading? You can fit the equivalent of about 150-200 standard CDs on the 8GB iPod Touch (and multiplied by four, then eight, for the 32GB and 64GB respectively).

The only other thing to consider is if you might want to get an iPhone now or in the future, as an iPhone does everything the iPod Touch does, and is also a phone. Worth considering.

Let us know how you go, and good luck.

 

[simongr]

I agree with the above, an iPod Touch is perfect for the needs you describe. Of course, there are very good non-Apple alternatives out there too

Really? Good non-Apple products exist? Say it isn't so Joe!

Seriously a bigger concern would be the amount of time it will take to copy your CDs to your computer (whether you buy a good MP3 or a non-apple MP3 ). It isn't a quick process.

 

[ranger]

Thanks to all your suggestions so far.
The thing with the iphone is then I would be up for rental thru a provider?????, whereas once I buy the ipod touch that is all I am up for?????
Is that correct?
As you can tell I am not too savvy with mp 3 players.
I don't think i would be bothered with itue cards & so forth.

Any good alternatives to the ipod touch?

Thanks again

 

[djfuzz]

Really? Good non-Apple products exist? Say it isn't so Joe!

Given the frequency with which I recommend Apple products to people, I tend to worry about my advice being dismissed out of hand as biased, so I do try at least to appear to be as even-handed as possible.

Seriously a bigger concern would be the amount of time it will take to copy your CDs to your computer (whether you buy a good MP3 or a non-apple MP3 ). It isn't a quick process.

Absolutely - a CD takes a few minutes to rip (up to, but usually less than, 10 minutes for longer disks on slower machines) - so while a handful of discs can be loaded onto your computer in one session, if you're loading your whole collection (say 20+), it's going to take a few days / weeks to get it all on there. But you can get started on this straight away by installing iTunes and copying your CDs to your computer even before you get an iPod / other MP3 player.

FWIW, the first time I did it I had to get through about 200 odd CDs - going through several discs in the background while I was working, it still took me a couple of weeks.

Thanks to all your suggestions so far.
The thing with the iphone is then I would be up for rental thru a provider?????, whereas once I buy the ipod touch that is all I am up for?????
Is that correct?
As you can tell I am not too savvy with mp 3 players.
I don't think i would be bothered with itue cards & so forth.

Any good alternatives to the ipod touch?

Thanks again

There are various many ways to buy an iPhone - either get it subsidised on a plan with your telco (in which case you either pay an upfront fee or pay it off in instalments over the course of your contract) or buy it outright from Apple. The former is cheaper (sometimes even free), but does lock you in to paying for the telco's service plan for up to two years, while the latter is more expensive but gives you complete freedom to use your iPhone on any telco on whatever plan you choose. It really depends on what your own phone uses / monthly budget is - happy to suggest ideas if you are willing to share that info.

Again, there are alternatives to the iPod Touch (the most obvious one being the Zune HD, which is not available in Australia), but assuming you are not a micromanager of content on your computer, then it would be difficult to recommend the others - at least with an iPod, you have iTunes to take care of all the heavy lifting for you.

 

[djfuzz]

As an example - an 8GB iPod Touch retails for $268, while an unlocked 8GB iPhone retails for $719.

However, a locked 8GB iPhone can be procured from a telco for free on a $50-60/month plan over two years.

 

[notzac]

Another vote for an iPod of some description - a big part of that is due to iTunes, which is hands down the easiest way to manage copying CDs in to your computer and then on to the iPod.

While you're out buying said iPod, make sure you pick up a decent set of headphones as well - your ears will thank you for it! The included headphones are dreadful..

 

[ric_melb]

Another fan of the IPod. Look at the range but the Nano works well for me. The ITouch would be better as it has a bigger screen and also the Wifi type features. Agree that Itunes adds to the pleasure of the player.

 

[SimonM]

+1 on the iPod Touch.
-1 on iTunes.

I love my iPod Touch and use it for watching as well as listening, plus it has a stunning range of applications. The killer feature for me? Skype. It turns an excellent MP3 player into a free communicator wherever in the world free WiFi is.

On the other hand, I really don't like iTunes and having to deal with it chills me.

 

[medhead]

I'm an iPhone user and like others love it. So you can't go wrong with a iPod/iPhone of some description. But I would ask if you plan to watch video or just music. Maybe a dumb question because once you get into it you will probably want video and hence get a Touch or iPhone. But if you a definitely only doing music I would recommend one of the others like a Classic.

Also I'd suggest trying to afford the larger memory versions.

On the subject of other mp3 devices Microsoft has always made good hardware. Not so good software but good hardware. :shock:

 

[ranger]

Thanks to everyone for your replies.
All very comprehensive.

Is it worth the extra money to step up from the 8GB to the 32GB?

Also what extra accessories would I be up for or that you feel are a plus.
I don't want to outlay money for the touch & then find I have to outlay more money for extras.

Also just how do you find which places have wifi access.........or is it just hit & miss??????
Sorry for some dumb questions.

 

[SimonM]

Is it worth the extra money to step up from the 8GB to the 32GB?

I didn't bother. I put 300 MP3s, a few TV shows and apps on mine and still had 3GB free.

Also what extra accessories would I be up for or that you feel are a plus.
I don't want to outlay money for the touch & then find I have to outlay more money for extras.

I thought the free earbuds were a little uncomfortable, so splurged on some Sennheiser in-ear things. They're good, but since then my wife gave me an basic Apple set with a microphone and now I use those most of the time as they're incredible for Skype. Incidentally, Skype sounds clearer on my Touch than any PC I've used, plus I can walk around the house.

What I really like is my MovieWedge.

Also just how do you find which places have wifi access.........or is it just hit & miss??????

Lots of cafes have a wi-fi sign in the window and Maccas offer it for free. I've only used the Touch on home or business networks that I can think of, so can't comment on the quality elsewhere, but it should work, even if a bit slow.

 

[djfuzz]

Thanks to everyone for your replies.
All very comprehensive.

Is it worth the extra money to step up from the 8GB to the 32GB?

Also what extra accessories would I be up for or that you feel are a plus.
I don't want to outlay money for the touch & then find I have to outlay more money for extras.

Also just how do you find which places have wifi access.........or is it just hit & miss??????
Sorry for some dumb questions.

It's only worth paying the $130-odd more for 32GB if that $130 is a trivial sum for you or you actually have more than 8GB of content - can you give us a rough idea of how many CDs you want to load on it?

Also, as a very rough guide, movies take about 700-1400MB, while TV shows take between 150-300MB of space.

Other than headphones as mentioned earlier, the only other accessory you may need is a case (which usually also includes a screen protector), and even then, only if you'll be carrying the iPod in a bag or otherwise exposed conditions. My phone sees a lot of action, so it is well protected, but I'd probably not worry about one if I had an iPod Touch (that's just me though).

As for Wifi, your iPod will detect any local Wifi networks and give you the option to join them. Of course, whether those hotspots give you free Internet access or require you to pay is another thing entirely.

 

[SimonM]

Also just how do you find which places have wifi access.........or is it just hit & miss??????

I forgot to mention FreeWiFi.com.au

 

[Bundy Bear]

Thanks to everyone for your replies.
All very comprehensive.

Is it worth the extra money to step up from the 8GB to the 32GB?

Also what extra accessories would I be up for or that you feel are a plus.
I don't want to outlay money for the touch & then find I have to outlay more money for extras.

Also just how do you find which places have wifi access.........or is it just hit & miss??????
Sorry for some dumb questions.

Depends on the price difference between 8GB to 32GB. I have a 16 gig iphone and I haven't filled it yet; so unless you have a huge CD collection or access to it I wouldn't bother going to 32gb if it was a lot more expensive.

Itouch is good as you really don't pay extra for using it unlike the iphone.

When you sign up for itunes you can download more songs and video; I did get myself a $20 gift card; and that usually takes me about 3 to 6 months to use it. One good use of Virgin Velocity points is a $20 gift card as I didn't even have enough money for a free flight and the Itunes card was perfect.

Wifi is hit and miss; but I have found more hits than misses. I love the free wifi in all of Hong Kong airport and found wifi in some strange places while I have been away.

Look for a good set of headphones; you can sometimes find good quality headphones with noise canceling which can really help on a long journey.

 

[medhead]

I would strong suggest ignoring the advice about memory size. If you get the touch then you will eventually put video on it. I have a 16GB iphone, with only about 4GB free, Itis filled with about 120 songs, about 100 apps and the rest is basically video. So that is 3 hours for Paris series, 1 hour for HMAS Sydney doco, 1 Ep media watch, 11 eps new inventors. I guess if I drop Paris then I'd be close to 8GB

But this is something that you need to judge, how much video would you want.

Also there is a free App that tells me what wifi is available around me - wifi finder

 

[straitman]

Depends on the price difference between 8GB to 32GB. I have a 16 gig iphone and I haven't filled it yet; so unless you have a huge CD collection or access to it I wouldn't bother going to 32gb if it was a lot more expensive.

Good to see that BB has covered the fact that there is a 16 gig version, so there is an in between option available.

 

[11sjw]

The iPod touch is a great device. It holds heaps of songs and has other uses including wifi access to the internet, games, ability to play videos.

If you JUST want to play music then you can get a cheap MP3 player rather than a ipod - but for an overall experience I would go iPod

+1, go with 32GB minimum. Duty Free will save you a few $$. Just grabbed one today!