For the longest time, I've refused to buy Apple products and thought that Apple's business was all about hype and a good marketing plan. While both are true, I also refused to learn a new OS or better yet a new interface (referring to Windows vs. Mac). Don't get me wrong though, Apple products has the slickest and well designed apparatus available in the market. When I first bought my MP3 player, although iPods were out and most of the young kids were buying them, I never even considered it as a viable option. I went for Creative Labs which I was a lot more familiar with, and besides, not made by Apple. As I've used it over time, I was disappointed mostly with its syncing process and we are talking about an MP3 player who supposedly was the top in its class.
Until recently, I started using iTunes which has far better interface than Windows media. I've been using Winamp for the longest time, which is quite comparable to iTunes except that it doesn't have access to podcasts. I also recently purchased an iPod touch which I loved the second I started using it. Although the syncing process has a slight learning curve, it didn't take long for me to realize that the syncing process was painless. For a very long time, I already knew that Apple held a big portion of the MP3 consumers market since majority of the MP3 accessories were built for iPod.
The main reason that I purchased an iPod is for the following reason:
- Painless syncing process with my media.
- The 2.0 firmware adds the ability to use fun applications and the addition of Outlook exchange for checking work emails.
- It has tons of extra applications that other MP3 players doesn't have such as weather, time, maps, Internet browser, etc.
While my main reason in purchasing an iPod touch was for ease of transfer between the MP3 player and my laptop, I didn't realize that there was more to it than just playing music. In an essence, there's going to be no reason why the device would be neglected for a long period of time since there's plenty of built-in features to play around with. Maybe I'm still in the early stages of ownership but with new applications being built all the time, that should be enough reason to keep the iTouch exciting in the future.
I like the fact that I can install games within iTunes or from the iPhone through the App store. While the built-in YouTube should be enough to keep a regular user entertained, I have already installed several free applications and games such as AOL radio, Last.FM and Pandora during the times when I want to listen to online music. Since I'm a power user, I'd like to take advantage of what the iTunes and iTouch has to offer. Here are some links that I've discovered in the past few days that can be beneficial if you're using the iTunes/iTouch/iPhone.
- SaveOurTunes - allows a user to download a shared music.
- ITLU - the first major problem that I've encountered when using iTunes is its inability to refresh and get the latest MP3 from a specific directory. This application syncs and adds newly added music to your music library.
While I love my iTouch, I'd still would want to own an iPod in the near future once the hype dies down a little. The reason I want one is for its 3G capabilities including the built-in GPS. I can then use it to listen to online radio anywhere without having to worry about WIFI availability. As oppose to iTouch, the iPhone also has a camera and a speaker to record sounds. Maybe you'd ask why not just get an iPhone instead of owning both? Well...for some reason, I'd want to keep the MP3 player as separate since I use it a lot in the gym and the phone as just for that, and to check e-mails here and there.