March 23, 2006
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Apart of the Crowd
Oftentimes, on my commute, I feel a bit like this:
But no matter what, I’m not buying one of them. Just not a fan.
Because it’s too popular? No.
Because you don’t use MP3s? Not even close.
Because it’s expensive? No, but getting there…
Because there’s something better? Pretty much, yesLet’s compare real quick…
iPod:
• usually requires extra software
• iTunes doesn’t have the music I want
• costs $200 for a good one
• expensive to replaceMP3/CD Player:
• only need a CD-burner to use
• costs $35 for the player, $2 for a CD-RW
• if I get tired of the 17+ hours on the CD-RW, I just re-burn it
• runs on cheap AA batteries for 20+ hoursNow, don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying iPods are bad.
Just, for me, they’re useless. I’m not gonna do anything with 20GB of
space, not even with 4GB of space, that I couldn’t do with 750MB of
space that I can very easily switch up. And, I have a strong aversion
to merchandise that forces you to either use its software or hunt down
a work-around to bypass it. So, no, the added storage and organization
of the iPod just isn’t worth an extra $163 to me.And there’s the added benefit of being the only one on the train who still has black headphones. KF
Comments (7)
yea….I’m against the ipod movement too. but my reasons are based on the fact that almost every single person i know who has an ipod, has had their ipod break within a year. I’ve had my mp3/cd player for going on 3 years. The only thing nice about an ipod is it’s size….but on the day i invest in an mp3 player it probably won’t be an ipod.
i used to be against them, but ipod saved my ass when the creative mp3 player hated me. i got the 20GB on both mp3 players, but i like having a ton of space for music. my ipod hasn’t broken or anything, and i’m the most technologically-stupid person around. plus, a warranty does help…. and i dun use the earbuds. i still use my black headphones… granted, that’s only because the earbuds interfere with the rook piercing and dun stay in my ears, but still….
bravo for not buying one just ’cause everyone else has one! viva nonconformity! fight the power!
Me, I have an Iriver. Why? Because unlike an Ipod, it also plays other file formats (ogg, wav, etc etc), allows me to drag and drop (no software needed), large amounts of mods (free for the most part), and other such things. And let’s not forget about how the headphones that come with an Ipod (or any other player for that matter) are not that good at all…I always wonder about the people who use them and claim them to be good.
And I’m not even going to get into my issues with Itunes here…that’s a whole other subject entirely that would go on for at least a few pages.
yea, i find that the best way to study kanji for me is to have one character, then look all the different compounds (or a bunch of different compounds) that uses that characeter. Also try to find euphenisms, etc.
but if that doesn’t work, i’ll try your method =)
thanks for the tips!
Okay, well, if you were to buy a regular iPod, sure it would be $200. And yes, my shuffle was $100, but I don’t have to constantly replace the batteries, and I get good battery life out of it. [I charge it roughly once every two weeks.] I know that iTunes sucks, which is why I can see why things like iRiver would be better for PC users. I happen to have a Mac because they’re better platforms for graphics work [And I've personally found them easier to work with in general.], so I already have iTunes installed. The only problem I’ve had is not being able to play ogg files, but I’ve only got one small part of my music collection that’s ogg format, and the one song I really wanted out of the collection I converted to MP3 anyway.
I got the shuffle because I was tired of lugging my cd player about, and ESPECIALLY fed up with the damn thing shocking me in the winter via the headphones. [Yay static electricity...] And the thing skips regardless of ‘skip protection’ if you jar it enough, which happens when you’re crowded on a Metro train with a conductor that can’t use the brakes properly. *sigh* I have had only one problem with the shuffle, and that was my own doing. [Charging it while Diablo is doing retarded things on my computer is BAD. But then again, Diablo is the only thing that's ever messed with my computer at all, amazingly.] And no one’s forced to use the white headphones. I use’em because I am just too lazy to get different ones. Andrew uses different ones because he likes his better.
I didn’t get it for the fad, I just wanted a simpler way to take a playlist with me when I commuted, and being able to make an up-to-8 hour playlist for longer trips–like the 4 hour trip to New Jersey–was a nice bonus. And there’s the added factor that I can drop kick this thing and even accidentally put it in the refridgerator and it still runs perfectly. [Yes, I actually put it in the bag I was carrying my bento to work in when I was going through the metal detectors, and then forgot to take it out before I put it in the fridge at work....only to find it 4 hours later. Haha. Oops...]
Whenever I decide to replace this–which I don’t see happening in the forseeable future–I may get a cross-platform one like NV’s iRiver, but I’m content for now. But to each their own.
i have an i pod of my own but thats cause it was given to me as a present, now i love the hard drive as i can take well all my pretty pretty japanese men with me whereever i go. so score for that. also i dont use the white headphones, i still use my sony tiny ear piece thingys and there awesome.
i HATE i tunes, it sucks so thats a pretty big strike against the i pod in my book. so if i get a new mp3 player it’ll probably be more like anands.