Need advice on i-Pod for old folks...

[ashaman7122]

After seeing the wealth of info provided when Glenn asked for home theater info (I took notes for myself), I figured I would bring this question to the faithful...

In an effort to consolidate and organize their music collection and ease their listening experience, I am thinking about buying my parents some i-Pods. As I debate the wisdom of this decision, I am thinking that they will get maximum enjoyment out of using these anywhere and everywhere: the house, the car, my father's workshop, walking, biking, etc.

How well do the FM transmitter doo-dads work in regards to the i-Pod?

I would go the route of docking stations or some such, but I don't see that as being practical.

In the home: My foks have a 720p Hitachi TV with a Yamaha 6.1 system that they barely utilize. I've tried to pre-program all their settings for various sources, but they somehow manage to undo all of that. The last time I was there watching a movie, they had it on 6-channel stereo and were amazed when I kicked it over to DTS, even though I've repeatedly gone over this with them. That being said, they do enjoy music on their system (even in 6-channel stereo!). They listen to their DirecTV music stations and spin CDs in their system, but there is no i-Pod jack. I suppose I could just buy a cable and line in to their AUX or some such...

In the car: They both drive recent model Hondas with 6-disc changers, but neither vehicle has a jack to line in a player.

In the workshop: Dad keeps a CD jambox (normally a fairly ballsy one) in his shop. They live right on the water in a fairly corrosive environment (salt & sand). My dad has a good friend and neighbor that owns a chain of pawn shops, so when one player craps out, he usually has a hook-up on a replacement. Just to give you an idea on the environment, my father has actually constructed a protective box that is down-mounted on a pole from the ceiling. When he wants to jam, he opens up the doors and sides of the box and pivots the whole rig in the direction he wishes. When not in use, his player is enclosed, protected from the elements, and even kept dehumidified with a little light bulb in the box that keeps all things dry. With all this in mind, the idea of wiring up a workshop system has never seemed wise. One thing that Dad despises, though, is the constant shuffling of CDs every 40-80 minutes, especially when there's sawdust everywhere or he has dirty hands, etc. Out of the both of them, he would get the most utility out of this gift.

With all this crap in mind, individual i-Pods with FM transmitter adapters seems like the way to go...if they, indeed, work well...and if they, indeed, can be used with ease in all places.

Anyone have any postive, negative thoughts on this...or any alternatives that you care to offer?

Thanks to all for your feedback...

Rock on!

 

[kellsco]

I got my husband an FM transmitter last year for Christmas. It was not expensive by any means, but it was not cheap either. We ended up taking it back as there was just too many FM signals here in the city for him to get it to work decent. We did think about going with a different brand, etc, but he decided to go with XM Radio instead. Sorry I do not remember the brand, but I got it at Best Buy. Keep the receipt!

 

[Jibrille]

The major issue with multiple iPods, is how many computers will they be hooking up to? The way iTunes and the iPod work together can cause issues if you try to connect a second iPod without the correct settings. A lot of people auto-sync the music on their computer to their iPod when they hook it up. If you connect a second iPod with that setting on, it can completely wipe out that iPod and replace it with the settings for the first one.
Apple has a few ways to avoid this problem: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1495

FM transmitters can range in price. The problem is also that they can range in quality too and it's really the worst option for listening to an iPod in your car. If they have older cars with tape decks, you might want to use a cassette adapter. They're cheap and the quality isn't too bad. If they have a car with aux-in, that's the best solution but few cars seem to have this option.

 

[Magius]

The major issue with multiple iPods, is how many computers will they be hooking up to? The way iTunes and the iPod work together can cause issues if you try to connect a second iPod without the correct settings. A lot of people auto-sync the music on their computer to their iPod when they hook it up. If you connect a second iPod with that setting on, it can completely wipe out that iPod and replace it with the settings for the first one.
Apple has a few ways to avoid this problem: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1495

FM transmitters can range in price. The problem is also that they can range in quality too and it's really the worst option for listening to an iPod in your car. If they have older cars with tape decks, you might want to use a cassette adapter. They're cheap and the quality isn't too bad. If they have a car with aux-in, that's the best solution but few cars seem to have this option.

In regards to iPods all you have to do is check the "Manually Manage Music" box to turn off "Synch." You can then plug them into any computer anytime without affecting your content.

My wife bought 2 RCA MP3 players with radio for herself and her dad last year. One uses a typical rechargeable ion battery with a 4GB flash drive. The other is a 2GB player that uses AA bateries. The radio function works well on both of them.

She works in a metal building, and has had desktop radios that had reception problems. The 4GB RCA player has had no problems with reception. She tells me she can walk deep into the building and still pick up her station clearly.

She picked them up at WalMart.

 

[Jibrille]

In regards to iPods all you have to do is check the "Manually Manage Music" box to turn off "Synch." You can then plug them into any computer anytime without affecting your content.

Yeah, it's just that no one ever seems to do that and then they bitch about the syncing feature wiping out an iPod. I've seen so much bitching about the iPod and iTunes and so often it deals with things that are relatively easy to solve. And it's usually from people I'd normally think of as tech savvy.

 

[BABS]

I bought a gizmo for listening to the ipod in the car and so far have never been able to get it to work.

The problem that my daughter and I had with our ipods was that we needed to set up her laptop so that she and I both had separate log ons and desktops. Otherwise, when I connected my ipod, her itunes would over-ride my account. It was a huge pain.

Now my only problem is if I bring my ipod into work and if I need to charge it and hook it into my pc it realizes that it's been formatted for an Apple, etc., being that I don't wish to compromise what I already have on my ipod, I unplug it but use the cord that plugs into the electric outlet.

It's a vicious battle!

 

[ashaman7122]

The major issue with multiple iPods, is how many computers will they be hooking up to? The way iTunes and the iPod work together can cause issues if you try to connect a second iPod without the correct settings.

Thanks for the feedback and your response. I understand your concern over my possible pain in implementing this for them, but I will be the one to rip their collection and load their players, either on my system or theirs (will probably get them an external hard-drive to safely tuck their collection into when I am done)...they will never actually plug their player into a computer or access I-Tunes at all (I shudder to think...) so any software issues are not a concern (for them).

I'm trying to make this an easy, enjoyable gift for them. They get the utility out of it...I'll do all the advance grunt work. To them, it'll just be a magic little music box. On the other hand, if I were to just give them empty, unformatted players and say "enjoy!"...they would only gather dust...hehe...

This sounds kind of harsh...I'm not intending to be critical...I just know that they won't be either willing or able to set it up on their own.

So far, I'm getting mixed signals on the feasibility of the FM transmitters. I'm seeing that I should look into some of the higher end transmitters if I do go that route (I'm assuming that you get what you pay for).

My original thinking was: if this route doesn't cut it...then this whole gift idea is probably not pursuing. I'm just trying to put a little bit of high-tech into their low-tech application, hehe...

Good feedback so far...thanks to all for chiming in...anyone else have any thoughts?

 

[Magius]

The 4GB RCA player was about $40. I asked to be sure, and the radio function works where desktop radios have failed.

 

[ashaman7122]

The 4GB RCA player was about $40. I asked to be sure, and the radio function works where desktop radios have failed.

Thanks for the tip, Magius.

For the record, I was thinking about a larger player. 30, 60-gig...maybe more...have to doublecheck their overall collection...

 

[Pellaz]

Hmm, what a nice idea for a gift! Hassle-free iPods! The iPods alone are a great gift, but the gift of all that iTunes labor is almost incalculable!

Depending on what electrical power services are available (say, out in your dad's shop), you could consider hooking up the iPod to a set of powered speakers normally sold for hi-end PC audio. They have a 1/8" stereo jack as input and depending on how much money you want to spend, the powered speakers can be a space-efficient way to fill a room with sound. Even a pretty powerful system isn't all that expensive and since they're not made specifically for iPods, they aren't "silly" overpriced.

As for the vehicles, that's gonna be a bit tricker since you said they have no AUX inputs, just CD changers. That might mean you'll have to use an FM transmitter but as many have observed, the quality can vary greatly...and even high-end FM transmitters aren't immune to interference from other stations and sources.
You didn't indicate if their Hondas had cassette decks but being late-model cars, they probably don't....which is a shame, since I've had nothing but good luck with my cassette adapter. About $10 at WalMart.
I use it all the time in the car with my iPod and it sounds fine. Nothing like having 15,000 songs available for long trips......like, going across the country...fifteen times...both ways...in the snow...barefoot....