by joedesi - Written: Oct 12 '04 (Updated Oct 12 '04)
Product Rating:
Sound:
Ease of Use:
Durability:
Portability:
Battery Life:
Pros: Trendy, fashionable and 4 gigs is storage a plenty!
Cons: Primitive software on iPod unit, no graphic eq. Expensive.
The Bottom Line: This is a good piece of equipment. Small and portable, with a great design and a huge storage capacity it's really worth it, in spite of the intimidating price.
joedesi's Full Review: Apple iPod mini First Gen. Silver (4 GB, M9160LL/A...
This is a great product. Right from the box it ships in - it's just so bloody cool. That's the best way I can start this off.
So I purchased it from the campus bookstore, not knowing what to expect really. Originally I had considered the 40 gigabyte model, but in reality it just seemed to big in physical size and really overpriced. Having 40 gigabytes of music on a portable music player doesn't seem right for the average user.
In the box, you get:
1 iPod of your choice of colour, I chose Gold.
1 set of headphones
2 sets of headphone paddings
1 USB to iPod Cable
1 Firewire to iPod cable
1 AC adaptor with removable head for travellers (attachments not included)
1 White case
1 CDROM disc
1 Manual
1 Warranty card
The cables all come with small plastic covers for the ends. I guess for the price it should!
Okay, so I had originally thought that I could just drag and drop the files like an external USB drive. Guess again. I had to use the Apply iTunes software. No big deal, just popped the CD in, and followed the instructions.
The installation was complete and it also installs Apple's Quicktime if you want. After you reboot your computer, you're ready to put your iPod in. The software was a bit tedious at first - I really just wanted to select some songs and hit a big transfer button. The manual does provide some useful tips to questions you might ask yourself in your head, so read it. Eventually once you get the hang of this software it's a real breeze, and it is definitely not as buggy as other portable unit software, like Sony's NetMD package. Music transfers quickly, no complaints there, and there was no distortion from transfer as is common to some players.
The unit itself is SLEEK. Smooth construction, there's no faults in its design, although the screen looks like it will scratch easily. The sharp edges make the unit seem as if it was machined out of a chunk of aluminum. It's very cool. It has a nice weight to it, and is about the size of a small mobile phone. The buttons are functional and easy to figure out, except maybe the volume control/scrolling. It looks like a spinning wheel, but you actually just slide your finger along the white surface.
The menus are easily navigable, and it comes with a few cheesy features like some games and a calendar. I found the software on the iPod to be disappointing. There isn't even a graphic equalizer, or some sort of animation. Maybe with newer software we'll see that. In fact I couldn't figure out how to display the bitrate on the screen either.
The sound quality of the music is what you would expect from an MP3 player, I think for the price Apple could have somehow but in a better D/A chip. And there is also no SRS or WOW function, which would be cool. You can make your own playlists or listen based upon your ID3 tags, which are easy to edit using the iTunes software.
I ditched the Apple headphones in favour of my Sony MDRG74SL. Not really digital reference headphones or anything, just a decent sized magnet to give better quality.
There are also a plethora of languages pre-installed on the unit including several asian languages, although I was disappointed there was no Arabic or Punjabi ;).
Battery life is great, I can usually go a few days without having to charge, but the great thing is you never really have to "charge" because the unit charges on its own while you are transferring music. You can increase your battery life by switching the backlight off and decreasing the contrast. The backlighting has a cool 2-second feature, useful if you just want to check the time, which is displayed in the now playing window.
I use it at the gym, on my rollerblades and even in my room hooked up to my Altec Lansing speakers. Note that you should set your EQ to flat when doing this. Definitely was worth it, and I know it will last me a long time. Very happy with my purchase.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 250 Recommended for: Athletes - Lightweight and Portable, Perfect for the Gym
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