The best only gets better

It wasn’t the first MP3 player, but Apple’s iPod was unquestionably the best—easy to use, beautiful to look at, and lovely to listen to. Over the years, it’s only gotten better, with further refinements to the interface, virtually seamless integration with the fabulicious iTunes media player, and tasty third-party extensions that allow you to take your e-mail, contacts, and Podcasts on the road. Now it’s
got a color screen and photo-viewing support, as well. Who could complain?

Well, we can. Our attitude toward the iPod as an MP3 player hasn’t changed: It’s still, by far, the best that rupees can buy, although it doesn’t support OGG or WMA files natively and lacks a custom EQ facility. As a photo viewer though, it’s unimpressive. The tiny, not-particularly-sharp two-inch screen is hardly a thrilling viewing experience (nor is it meant to be, we suspect; an optional composite video cable will let you view photos and listen to music simultaneously on your television set for a much more dramatic presentation). Attachments for certain camera makes and models are also available, and allow you to download pictures directly to the iPod’s hard drive, but your camera’s LCD is likely to have just as good a screen as the iPod, so this optional feature is only a storage convenience.

But we digress. The iPod is first and foremost an MP3 player, and it shows its maturity by passing on esoteric features in favor of refined finishing touches, such as an impressive battery life—a whopping 16 hours in audio-only mode at 75 percent volume. And fast track searching with the scroll wheel is available by simply pressing the center button during playback. It’s definitely a little thing, but the iPod stops playback when we accidentally yank our headphones—plug them back in, press play, and you’ll resume from where you left off.

Despite the shoulder-shrug we give to the photo-viewing aspect and the proprietary connector, the iPod remains simple, transparently functional every step of the way, and a pleasure to listen to.

+ MODS: Awesome sound, superior hardware interface.

- FRAUDS: Proprietary cable, no custom EQ.

Month Reviewed: July 2005
Verdict: 9
kickass=yes
URL: www.ipod.com

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