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iPod 3G Product Review

The iPod is a small hard drive-based portable music player. The model I am reviewing has a 10 GB hard drive, which allows it to store 2,500 songs. (This number is based on an average of 4 minutes per song, where each song is encoded at 128 Kbps using Apple's AAC format.) That amount, which translates to 10,000 minutes of music is a rather significant improvement over a typical CD, which maxes out at 70 minutes.

The iPod's large capacity is easily its most desirable feature, as it allows thousands of songs, or hundreds of albums, to be stored in a single device smaller than the palm of your hand. However, the iPod shines in several other areas as well.

For one, the physical design of the 3G iPod is extremely efficient. The device houses all of its components in a case that is smaller than just about every other portable music player on the market. This means the iPod can be placed in your pocket or in a case clipped to your belt without you even knowing it's there. It is even small enough that you can buy an iPod arm band if you want to run with it. If you ask me, however, it is just too heavy to strap on my arm (and no, it is not because I am that weak). Even a belt clip can be a burden for jogging or working out at the gym. Of course, that is my opinion, and I have seen several people who seem to think otherwise, using the iPod while they work out.

While the iPod's size is great. the biggest plus of the iPod is its interface. This is what really separates it from the competition. The scroll wheel on the front allows you to quickly scroll through hundreds if not thousands of songs easily and efficiently. Because it accelerates the scrolling on the screen exponentially the faster you scroll the wheel, you can sort through 10 or 1000 songs in under five seconds. The scroll wheel can also be used to change the volume or to jump to a certain spot in a song (where the acceleration again comes in handy).

Besides the scroll wheel, there are previous, next, and play/pause buttons on the front of the iPod. These make it easy to go back to the beginning of the current song, jump to the previous song, advance to the next song, or pause the playback of a song. There is also a menu button and a select button, which lies in the middle of the scroll wheel. The select button is used to select the current song, directory, or other option on the screen while the menu button brings you to the previous menu. I think the menu button could be called the "Back" button, since that is really its function, but once you learn how to navigate, using the iPod's interface is super easy. Finally there is a convenient hold button on the top of the device that prevents the buttons from being pressed when the device is in your pocket.

The sound quality of the iPod is as good as any portable CD player I've used, and even better than some desktop systems. An equalizer is included with several styles to choose from, which can be used to fine-tune the sound. However, I wish there was a manual EQ as well. The included earphones have neodymium transducers, which make them very clear and give them a high output level. They are some of the best in-ear headphones I've used, though I've heard a number of people say they don't fit their ears. Fortunately, they fit mine. The audio out port on the iPod can also be used to send the audio signal to a stereo or other speaker system. This allows you to play your iPod's music through whatever speakers you want.

The iPod works so smoothly with the included iTunes software, even the most computer illiterate folks can figure it out. You can connect the device to either your computer's FireWire or USB 2.0 port, but I have found that FireWire is faster, so use that option if you have the choice. iTunes will either transfer your songs automatically or let you do it manually each time you connect your iPod, depending on what preference you choose. The iPod's interface is similar to iTunes, so once you've used iTunes for a little while, the iPod makes even more sense. Finally, the iPod can also be used as a hard drive (since it is, after all, hard drive-based). So if you don't have a gazillion songs to fill your iPod with, you can make use of the rest of the space by backing up other files from your computer.

The iPod is a superbly designed device, and its enormous popularity is evidence of that. If you are in the market for a portable music player, feel free to look at the various options, but I think you'll agree that the iPod is the best choice.

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