Is any mp3 player more user-friendly than the Ipod?

[wabbajack]

Is any mp3 player more user-friendly than the Ipod?

My sister and I are looking for a mp3 player for our mother for christmas. My sister doesn't like the Ipod's DRM, and wants to find a more user-friendly player for our mother. I was under the impression that even with DRM, the Ipod is still the most user-friendly player.

What's your opinion? any input greatly appreciated!

 

[davidd]

I personally think my iriver h120 is incredibly easy to use, and I like it a lot more than the ipods

 

[MrSlacker]

Quote:

Originally Posted by davidd I personally think my iriver h120 is incredibly easy to use, and I like it a lot more than the ipods

quoted for truth.
i have h120 and i learned how to use everything in 5 minutes and it has a LOT of fetures. when i played with my friend's ipod, i was like "how the hell do i ****" i couldnt figure out anything. and i am the guy that never opens manual unless i spend 2 hours trying to figure something out. i learn how to use most electronic devices in a very short period of time without manuals. but with ipod i needed a manual to figure out how to see your library. help this helps

 

[blessingx]

No.

Just out of curiousity what part of the iPods DRM don't you like?

 

[wabbajack]

Cool! Thank you very much for your replies! I'm looking into the Iriver h120. Hope I can find a place to buy one new, with fast shipping. Thanks for your help, it's nice to know what my options are.

blessingx: To tell you the truth, I'm not sure, it's my sister who doesn't like it. I think it has something to do with Itunes and trying to transfer music between computers. I personally use a Creative Nomad Jukebox 3, which gets alot of complaints about software and user-interface. I've gotten used to it, but I don't think my mother would.

 

[Slimshizzy]

I have had the exact opposite experience with IHPs and iPods.

I have seen my grandparents work iPods and seen my techie friends cry at their inability to work the iRiver players.

I've owned both an IHP 120 and a click wheel iPod - take a look at the difference in scrolling in real life. Going through my music on the ihp's little scroll stick was a pain, was slow, and going through it with an iPod was wonderful, accurate, and quick.

But my anecdotal experience is no better than yours.

 

[D-EJ915]

Whatever the case, just try to find out how nice the place's return policy is in case she doesn't like it.

 

[wabbajack]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Slimshizzy I have had the exact opposite experience with IHPs and iPods. I have seen my grandparents work iPods and seen my techie friends cry at their inability to work the iRiver players. But my anecdotal experience is no better than yours.

well, I'm just looking for opinions, so that includes anecdotal experience. If something can go wrong with a given player, my mom will make it happen, and I'll be the one who has to fix it.

 

[Rangers34]

I can't imagine you're likely to find anything more user-friendly, and certainly not iRivers. I love the things, but they're designed to be 'full-featured' (another word for complicated) while iPods are manufactured for 'everyone' (dumbed down). Especially if the problem involves iTunes, apples software is DEFINITELY the easiest to use... in some ways it's easier to deal with iTunes than drag-and-drop. That said, I hate iPods and buy creative

 

[Krishna]

I find the Rio Karma, or especially the Rio Carbon very easy to use. I would say they would be on par, or even slightly better than the Ipod.

The Ihp-120 is horrendous to use, for the first 1hr atleast. You start to get used to it with all of the context sensitive buttons, but its no where in the league of the Karma or Ipod for ease of use.

 

[AuroraProject]

iriver ihp-xxx series learning curve: solid 15-30 minutes + read the manual once, and refer back to it occasionally.

ipod learning curve: 3.6 seconds + manual? What for?

In all seriousness, the ipod is THE easiest to use, plus itunes is very user friendly as well.

 

[timo_nyc]

I'm also convinced the iPod is the easiest to use.

 

[bundee1]

Circuitcity has the coolest return policy. 30 days, 1 question asked as long as you have the original packaging. I returned my Zen Xtra 3 weeks after I purchased it and exchanged it for an Ipod. They looked at the contents of the package, asked me the reason I was exchanging and gave me a new Ipod 40GB. Just like in the commercials, I didnt have to make up some dumb excuse. Also (knock on wood) I got one of the new batch that doesnt have the static with lossless and headphone use.

 

[wabbajack]

Thanks for the replys. A lot more Ipod votes. Any second opinions on the Rio Karma or Carbon? Just Curious. Thanks again!

 

[terrymx]

to tell the truth when i first pick up an ipod i have no idea how to use it, till my friend tell me. then its still confusing to navigate around. i dont like the lag time between pressing buttons. i'm not good with touch sensitive stuff, i prefer clicks.

but i agree iriver joystick is annoying overtime, hard to use. D-pad for me.

archos gmini is also very easy to use, if your mom is familiar with windows interface.