Customer Reviews

Apple iPod 15 GB White M9460LL/A (3rd Generation)

5 star:		(112)
4 star:		(36)
3 star:		(17)
2 star:		(12)
1 star:		(21)

 

 

I love my iPod. I spent a week and burned my CD collection into iTunes and transferred it to my iPod. My 15 GB iPod is now half full. Sound quality is excellent, and the music is skip free even when jogging (even my clumsy attempt at jogging).

Granted, there are iPod clones on the market that are less expensive, but the lack the add-ons. There are FM transmitters, recorders, tape adapters, and the iPod can also be used as a backup drive, which I also love. Now, my biggest problem is trying to organize the music into the best play lists.

However, everything isn't perfect in iPod-land. As a result, I deducted one star for the following reasons:

With the 15GB model, you do not get the docking stand or a case. When I first saw the case, I thought the back of the case was made of surgical steel. It isn't, and it scratches easily. So do your self a favor and purchase a case as soon as possible. I found the back got scratched up just laying it on a bare desk. A good case will also keep you from accidentally touching the buttons, which are sensitive.

Also, transferring songs from your iPod to another computer is protected. This is something that isn't advertised anywhere. Uploading music purchased through iTunes is restricted. However, if you've purchased and ripped the music from your own CDs, then you can transfer them at will. This is annoying.

Why? Because I wanted to dock my iPod with the computer at work, which is behind a firewall. No deal-- the corporate firewall blocks the authorization. As a result, I cannot authorize the computer, so I cannot transfer a quite a few songs.

Warning to PC Users: You will need a firewire card or a USB cable (not included) in order to attach the iPod to your PC. Save yourself the frustration and order the USB cable when you purchase.

I bought an iPod because -- well, I love mp3s, and I'm a sucker for marketing ploys, I confess. The huge capacity, even in a small model, the nice huge LCD screen (compared to most players), the fun of iTunes (and it is fun) -- I took the plunge, bought, and I'm completely satisfied.

In my humble opinion, there are only two issues to be had with the iPod, and neither worries me:

1) Battery life. Yes, apparently, the battery will run out eventually, at some point in the future, and I will have to shell out $99 for a new battery (I could do it myself for $49 but ARE YOU CRAZY? There's no way I'm risking the life of my prrecioussss...). Huh. Yeah, that's upsetting. Some unknown date in the future, several years from now, I may have to replace a battery for $99. That's horrible. Shocking. Honestly? It's not that big a deal. In three years, you'll probably go through two sets, at least, of rechargeable batteries -- that could run you $30 or so. Plus the charger, another $20, maybe. So that's $50 right there I'd have spent otherwise. Most importantly, the Lithium battery in the iPod could last you for anywhere from 2 to 10 years, depending on how you use it (...).I think that's long enough that everyone should stop worrying about the battery issue.

2) The case. Yes, to be fair, the darn thing scratches if you even look at it funny. I suspect that's the price we pay for it being so pearly-white and purty. Well, there are two solutions. One, buy a case. Simple. Two, buy iCleaner, which works like a charm. Seriously, for all I know, other products (such as Ice Creme) work too, but iCleaner's what I bought and it's flawless. Nor was it that expensive, really, considering how much you get.

Personally,I think it's a great little machine and I've been in love with mine for months now. Enjoy yours!

(This is a review I wrote for the 40GB iPod. Most of it applies to this model as well.)

What I like best about Amazon reviews is that, unlike Consumer Reports or other technical reviewers, they come from people who own the product and use it every day. Hence a disclaimer - I got my iPod a week ago.

That being said - it is awesome. My iPod is connected to my PowerBook, where I have almost 5,000 songs stored in iTunes. All I have to do is put the iPod in the cradle and it automatically syncs. The first time took about 30 minutes or so - after that it hasn't taken more than a minute or so. It's much easier than other MP3 players. (For Christmas last year, I bought my dad a Rio MP3 player. Teaching him how to load songs onto it was a huge pain.)

The sound quality is as good as it gets for an MP3. I bring my iPod everywhere and am listening to songs I forgot I have. It's also forced me to go through my music library and make sure everything is labeled properly (if it's not, it's going to be hard to find on an iPod, as it doesn't have a search function).

The games it comes with are mindless timewasters, which is what they were intended to be. The music quiz is pretty cool though. The address book and calendar functions are useful, although a bit of a pain to update if you don't use Mac's Address Book and iCal, as you can't use iSync.

The only complaints I have are minor:

-When attached to the remote control, the earphone cord is too long. While it can be tucked in a pocket if you are wearing normal clothes, it's a pain when you go to the gym or for a run.
-There's a slight pause between songs, which is annoying when listening to a complete concert.
-Like many newer cars, mine doesn't have a tape deck. Hence, the only way to play my iPod through the car stereo is through an FM transmitter - most of which have lousy reputations.
-The functionality of the calendar and address book could be improved, although I'm sure that will come in time and iPods will be fully functioning PDAs as well.

By now we all know what the iPod is and what it does - but just in case you don't, it's a device similar to what the walkman was 20 years ago that plays music from an internal hard drive instead of a cassette tape. You can currently get an iPod in 3 different sizes, 15, 20, or 40 gigabyte hard drives (not including the new mini iPod which holds 4 gigs). It will play several different file formats, not just mp3s. You can play full quality (16-bit) wav or AIFF files, as well as AAC or Audible files. The unit can also be used as a standalone hard drive.

This is all controlled from a simple touch-sensitive interface that allows you to scroll through your songs in a very organized way - either by song name, artist name, album name, or according to your own playlists. You will control the songs uploaded into the iPod from a computer, either a Mac or a PC, and Apple limits you in your ability to upload a song from an iPod onto someone else's computer (i.e. it knows which computer is yours). This is to prevent illegal file sharing.

It works well in general, and will hold thousands of songs. The exact number it will hold depends upon the quality of the files you import into it. I have the 15 GB model, and I mostly use full quality AIFFs or the highest quality MP3s and I've barely gone over halfway. By the time I fill the thing up, I'm sure they'll have something else for me to buy.

There. Now that's out of the way I can get on with the opinion side of things. It's an overall great product that has helped revolutionize the way we listen to music, some of it good, some bad. Most of my complaints about the iPod center around its lack of features, rather than current features that don't function properly.

The unit seems to offer very little compared with the technology that's available today. Why isn't the screen in color? Why doesn't it offer more PDA-like features? These are incredibly inexpensive features to install and would make it a far more valuable piece of equipment. Why doesn't it communicate wirelessly with Airport systems? Why isn't there an easier way to manage playlists from within the iPod itself, not just from a computer? Why isn't there a touch screen/stylus interface for even easier, less cumbersome usage? With all the technology coming to life today, the iPod seems to be remarkably less than what it could be.

I also find the problem of non-sharing between computers to be annoying. While I appreciate and agree that such elements should be controlled, cars still drive over 70 miles per hour - we leave it to the consumer to decide not to speed and break the law. Apple shouldn't decide for us. I'm a songwriter and I store song ideas in my iPod to take to writing sessions. The problem? When I want to leave a copy with a co-writer for him to work on, I can't because the iPod won't let me transfer a song to a computer that isn't mine. Here is a completely legal transaction being blocked by Apple's stringency. It can be very annoying.

I'm looking forward to what Apple does in the future with this device. Hopefully they'll make it more functional, incorporating the current and inexpensive technology available right now.

I think the iPod is a wonderful device. I loved it.....while it worked.

I carried my iPod from home to work in a padded case. Four months after getting the iPod, the drive started making a strange noise and stopped working. I took it to the Apple store to get repaired under warranty. The technician looked at the iPod and noticed a nearly undetectable blemish in the shiny silver back. He declared that the iPod had been "abused" and thus voided the warranty. It would cost me $300 to repair the unit (when it cost nearly the same new) if I wanted it to work again. I was informed by Apple customer service and the store manager that I had no other option and they would not honor the warranty even though another customer in the store couldn't find the "blemish".

Warning to any potential buyers - The iPod is great but is easily damaged. Since it is a sealed unit, any repair basically necessitates a new unit and if it isn't under warranty, will cost you the same as a new one. Since Apple appears to void their warranties at the drop of a hat, this means that if you want to gamble $300 on a product that could stop working because of normal usage, go for it.

This ranked as the worst customer experience I've ever had. Save yourself the headache and don't buy the beautiful, but hopelessly fragile iPod.

I bought this IPod as a 70th birthday present for myself and I am enjoying every minute of it.

It is very easy to set up and I particularly enjoy the ability to make Smart Playlists sorted by artist, genre or several other categories I have not tried as yet.

I walk for 30 minutes twice a day and have transferred all my walking music from CDs to the IPod. {One caveat is to not have "shuffle" on when using walking music because most walking music CDs start slow and build up speed. "Shuffle" entirely destroyed this! The problem was solved by making a separate playlist for slow and fast walking. Then "shuffle " was an asset.}

Recently I have been downloading music from the Apple site I-Tunes. Again, the supplied software makes this very easy and I very much appreciate the ability to download one or two pieces of music from a particular artist or a whole CD.

This is one of the best birthday presents I have ever had.

At one point in the past I swore an oath to myself that I would never buy an Apple iPod. The small size, the nice capacity, the friendly software, and the option to buy songs one by one or whole albums online would NEVER sway me over to the iPod.

After finding out that I'd be coming over here to Iraq, I reconsidered. The iPod is VERY well-sealed with almost no holes or cracks (not counting the headphone jack and the plug-in spot to transfer files) for sand and dust to get into, unlike most players. But there're two things that should be taken into account before buying it.

One, the battery life will hold less charge over time. But unless you're going to be listening to music for 12 hours straight, I wouldn't worry about it. Even here in Iraq I have time to listen to my songs and then charge the battery. And if you want to use it in your car you can always get an adaptor. I have a warranty on my iPod, so when the battery finally gives up, I'll get a brand new iPod for free. I'll have to transfer all of my songs again, but since they're on my computer it'll only take about 15 minutes at the most.

And two, the screen. Though nice and pretty, it scratches when you breathe hard on it. So I bought a carrying case for it. No scratches now.

Overall, the iPod is worth the price you pay for it. The software is user-friendly, you can fit LOTS of songs on it, the sound quality is outstanding, and it's durable. It's lasted me quite awhile out here in Iraq so far, and I doubt anything short of a mortar attack could make it quit on me.

Constantly changing my mind over what to do with my money, I decided on an iPod. Once you've tried out an iPod you can't go back. I'm going to simply divide this first into pros and cons.

Pros:
-keeps your entire music library
-smaller & weighs less than it looks
-allows you to truly hear your music for the first time picks up on all of the background beats)
-scroll wheel is fast (goes through 200 songs in 3 seconds)
-the hold is really useful when put in your pocket (kinda obvious)

-backlight really illuminates the screen
-extremely fast transfers (using USB 2.0 but still same as firewire)
-ability to view text files on iPod screen
-can act as a 15 GB hard drive
-awesome Apple customer service

Cons:
-battery time could be much better
-lack of firewire card on comp.
-foam on headphones continues to fall off
-metal on back easily smudges and scratches
-costly but would still be worthy to most consumers

Besides that, I recommend that you get it especially if you collect music on your computer's hard drive. I would recommend using Apple in that you can engrave whatever on the metal part of the iPod for free.

P.S.
Mandatory Accessories:
-Jam Jacket cover ($20)keeps scratches off the back of iPod
-USB 2.0 cable (as opposed to supplied firewire cable)because it allows for greater versatility in treating the iPod as a hard drive and is cheaper than purchasing a $40 firewire card($20)
-Applecare Protection Plan (if you're getting an iPod you MUST get this because after 1.5 years the battery will diminish in daily lifespan) = $60

PROS::
***outstanding design
***reliable
***touch sensitive click wheel and buttons
***interchangeable languages (more than 10)

CONS::
***doesn't come with usb 2.0 cable for pc users
***no fm, no voice recorder
***doesn't support wma files

after getting this 15gb apple ipod, i could understand why it is so popular everywhere. functionally, there isn't very much ipod can do, compared to other hdd type mp3 players on the market. for example, to record voice, external sounds, fm radio and fm recorder, you have to purchase extra parts. even though the ipod lacks any indigenous innovations or features, it is a industrial design at its best. from the box, manual, to even the cables, everything is designed to perfection. the ipod itself is EXTREMELY reliable. touch sensitive click wheel has very precise response, and the clean, white and silver back design makes it top of the line in every department. transporting and auto-synching with itunes makes everything organized and neat at the click of a button. calenders, alarm, clock, equalizer persets, games... ipod may be priced higher than most mp3 players, but it is definitely worth the money.

I have had my iPod for 3 months and I love it! I got it from my parents for my 16th birthday. It's the best gift I've ever been given. I am a huge music lover and I would always have to lug around cases of cds and my cd walkman, but now it is much easier with the iPod! For those who have a big music collection like I do, the iPod is definitely worth the money. I have over 350 cds and over 2000 mp3s, so it used to be a pain having to choose what I was going to take with me. Now that I have the iPod, I can take my whole collection with me!
I think the iPod works great and I have not had very many problems with it. When I got it, it was not compatible with Windows ME, so we had to get Windows XP, which was okay since Windows ME is a piece of crap anyway. And I did have to buy the cable to hook the iPod to my computer. After that, it worked great! I love how iTunes organizes my music. I have not bought any songs from iTunes, I just import my mp3s and my cds, which is very easy to do.
The only thing I don't like about iTunes is after you delete a song off of your hard drive, it won't let you move the song around to different playlists or change the information. I do not have the space on my computer to keep all my cds uploaded. And to those who want to delete songs off their hard drive but still keep them on your iPod, the only thing you have to do is select the option 'update only checked songs'. As long as you keep the song in the iTunes library and keep it checked, it will remain on the iPod.
I have heard that the battery life isn't very good, but I haven't had any problems so far. I listen to my iPod everyday, anywhere from 1 to 5 hours. I am constantly recharging it, and I hook it to my computer and add new songs 2-3 times a day. I think it has held up very well for all of my use. It is very good for long car rides, I make 13 hour trips often and the iPod does well and I am able to listen to it for most of the trip. I don't think it's a pain to charge either, I just plug it in overnight and it's fully charged by morning. You can also charge/run it in the car as long as you have the right adaptor.
It does come with games on it, I love music quiz. It takes a clip of any one of your songs and gives you about four song titles to choose from, you have to guess which song it is by the clip. You have a time limit and you get points. It's a very fun game for someone like me who has 3059 songs on their iPod, you have to know your music well!
The iPod has a very pretty design and I love all the white accessories. When I first used it, I was amazed at the sound quality. It was alot better than my cds on my cd walkman. I loved the white iPod headphones (very clear sound), but unfortunately, my sister's cat got ahold of them and chewed up the cord and ruined them. Luckily you can buy replacments from Apple.com. In the meantime, I am using my old headphones from my cd walkman, but the sound quality is not as clear.
The iPod does scratch easily, but it's a fragile device and I sort of expected that. And to those of you that complain that the iPod breaks when you drop it, well, what do you expect? It is an expensive, fragile device and should be handled with care. It's not meant to be dropped!
The iPod is very simple to use. I love the buttons and was surprised at how sensitive they were, but as long as you put it on 'hold' when you are not using it, you will be fine. I like how you can put your music into playlists and I like how you can browse by artist, album, song, genre, composer. That type of organization is a must for someone with alot of music. The five star rating system is also something I like. You can rate each song from 1 to 5 stars. The iPod also has an 'On-The-Go' playlist where you can select any song you want while on your iPod and it adds it to the playlist. It also has 3 playlists: My Top Rated, Recently Played, and Top 25 Most Played.
It has the capability to record, keep a list of contacts, has a calendar, has notes and also keeps the time and date for you. The iPod has shuffle and repeat options, a backlight timer (the backlight is very nice), you can choose from several different languages, and it has 22 different equalizers you can choose from to make different genres of music sound better.
That is just a little bit of information about the iPod, there is alot to it and you will soon learn how to use it the best way and how to use all of it's features. I love my iPod and I'm very happy with it. I hope to get a bigger one in the future, such as the 40 GB, as I am running out of space on this one. The iPod is a great product and a must for anyone who is a music lover and has a large music collection. I highly reccommend it.