MP3 player questions

[Hanso]

Hey guys, I'm in need of a new mp3 player. I have previously owned 2 irivers (H340 and E10) but to my knowledge iriver doesn't have a great mp3 player on the market right now or one comming in the near future.

I was going to buy a 16gb ipod nano but it has alot of bells and whistles I will never use. Storage capacity and sound quality is what I am after. That led me to the 160gb ipod classic but I have read in several reviews that it has very poor sound quality.

So does anyone have a suggestion of what I should buy?
Does anyone know when the next generation ipod classic is expected?

Thanks.

 

[Spiff]

I had an 80gb iPod which I was always happy with. I don't use it much anymore because I have an iPhone now - it's only 14gb though because I thought I would still use my iPod.

 

[Southy]

I have a 160Gb iPod classic, I dunno what soundquality issue people are talking about, I have no problem. Some people are just wankers I guess, and any ipod just needs a better set of earphone

 

[Blitzkrieg]

I think the quality of your files and headphones are more important. I was always happy with my iriver but recently got a Samsung Galaxy (iphone clone that runs google android). Haven't listed to music on it yet admittedly.

 

[FerretallicA]

I think the quality of your files and headphones are more important

I find it amazing how many self-proposed 'audiophiles' rip into how shit device-of-the-minute X apparently sounds when they're listening to low quality MP3s. $500 Sennheiser earphones + DOTM + lossy audio = accurately reproduced quality loss and artefacting. If you ever get a chance, have a read of any one of the boutique hifi magazines that run around the $30-40/issue mark. Simultaneously frustrating and highly amusing.

 

[Sydo]

I am little bit confused why people today would bother owning both a dedicated MP3 player AND a mobile phone..

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Agreed.

Listened to music on mine today, very happy indeed, the phone and headphone combination gave a better sound than my iriver.

 

[Winmar]

Yeah I don't get why people would have two devices either. What a pain in the arse, carrying around two things instead of one.

What's the Galaxy like, Jordan?

 

[Blitzkrieg]

I really like it. More customizable than the iphone without having to hack or jailbreak the operating system. All the pros are things I care about and the cons don't bother my so much, so was a no brainer to get it over the iphone.

 

[Hanso]

Hmm, I hadn't considered a phone because all I do with my mobile is send text msg's and make the odd phone call. I have never really heard anyone talk about a mobile phones mp3 playback qualties being on par with dedicated mp3 players.
I see the Optus and Telstra are offering most smart phones on $49 a month cap plans which is about the maximum I would want to sepend on a phone plan. Now I just have to work out which bloody phone I want

 

[dreamwatch]

At the risk of having shit flung at me, I agree that the iPod's don't sound as good as the older iRivers (I have an H140). I use Shure SE420 earphones, and when comparing my higher quality MP3's I can tell the difference, and that's all that matters. Having said that, since getting an iPhone I've gotten lazy and just been using that. I personally don't mind bringing two devices everywhere, but it's something to consider. I do wish iRiver would bring out something really nice, the 140 was lovely.

 

[FerretallicA]

I am little bit confused why people today would bother owning both a dedicated MP3 player AND a mobile phone..

...because I like my phone to be a phone.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

I have a friend that makes the same arguement, which I just don't get. You would rather inconveniece yourself simply to keep your phone as a seperate device? Why is that?

 

[Sydo]

...because I like my phone to be a phone.

'It' still is a phone.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Exactly. More features don't make it any less a mobile phone..

 

[FerretallicA]

Exactly. More features don't make it any less a mobile phone..

I strongly disagree. I've owned a device based on pretty much every kind of 'smartphone', 'PDA' and mobile computing platform since Windows Mobile 2002. Some were token efforts. Some, like my Jasjam/Hermes, I absolutely loved. One thing was consistent though. Even the most recent and highly-specced of them that I've owned (iPhone 3GS) was secondary in performance to even my 10 year old Ericcson T20s. That wasn't an exceptional phone either. It was just a phone.

By lesser performance I mean:

• Far worse battery life
• Far lower responsiveness - few things are so frustrating as getting a call, tapping "answer" on the touchscreen and it just keeps ringing like you haven't done anything. Even something as relatively simple as typing/tapping out an SMS... straight phones could generally keep up with me. I'm yet to use a PDA that hasn't lagged, and I'm not an exceptionally fast 'texter'.
• Freezing (NEVER happened to me on decent dedicated phones, has happened on EVERY single PDA/smartphone/etc I've owned at least infrequently)

One of the problems is that the expectations people have of 'smartphones' is continually increasing at a faster pace than what the hardware is improving, especially as their mainstream adoptance and commodity status grows. It becomes more important to have smooth-animated 3D interfaces, enough memory to support the average person's entire CD collection, swipe/gesture controls and useless shit like gyroscopes and accelerometers to remain competitive in the mainstream market. With all other factors scaled back a 1Ghz processor and 512Mb RAM is a fucking tonne of juice to be powering a phone on, but not that overwhelming when you factor in the rest of the shit. As a result, recent phones like the Galaxy S are still really impressive gadgets and great for things like music and web browsing on the go but still pale in comparison to the humble T20s and phones of its ilk.

I'm still quite likely to pick up an iPhone 4G once I can actually find a store that has them available. That said, my phone of choice at the moment is a Sony Ericsson Z610i with internet disabled, and I'll still be keeping it or a similar 'real' phone as my main line and 'go-to' at all times.

 

[Shadow298]

the IPhone 4 isn't even a phone at the moment

the fucked it up and it has issues with it's antenna and being simple able to make and receive phonecalls and text messages
even the internet applications suffer massively

I have my phone as a phone, simple as that -even if it is meant to be a fairly fancy one (Samsung UltraTouch or something)
would have an MP3 player but not a fan of what iTunes has done to my computer in the past (hijacking lots of functions and applications as well as other basic issues when trying to get stuff from the online Apple Store) and the other MP3 players don't have the same limits as the iPod Classic's 180 GB (usually less when it's all measured out, same with any storage device)
may get one in the future for longer trips and such but so far no need
don't like being distracted by things when I am walking around or even on the bus sometimes (since I usually play my DS or read then)
also just find it rude when people talk to you and don't bother to take out their headphones, even though they have switched off their music

 

[Sydo]

hehe.. old people. Wha'?

 

[Blitzkrieg]

The Galaxy is yet to give me any grief from lag or freezing or anything like that, but I can't argue about the battery life (though it is better that the iphone4). Performs as I need it to.

 

[Shadow298]

hehe.. old people. Wha'?

don't make me hit you with my walking stick, sonny!

and get off my lawn!