[MacDEF]

I mentioned the possibility of making an external battery pack using a FireWire cable a few months ago -- I'm glad someone has actually done it! I can't remember the site, though -- I saw it a couple weeks ago. Your best bet is to search the iPod-specific websites like ipodlounge.com, ipodding.com, etc.

I would think that the easiest route would be to buy one of the many car adapter power cables, cut the adapter end off, and hook up a battery pack to the wire.

 

[lucien]

This homebrew batery pack sounds like an excellent idea, but it's sounding less and less like an elegant solution like just screwing a bit of black plastic into the side of an MD player.

I suppose you could make an elegant one with some work put into it though. It might even be a commercially viable invention. Am I right in thinking that it would just plug into the FireWire port, and all soldering is done on the adapter end, meaning that no warranty would be voided?

Hmmm....

 

[lextek]

A line out wonder be a plus.
I wish there was a way to make a playlist on the iPod itself.
Scratch prone.

Never had any troublw with shuffle. 20 gigger.

So really not much I don't like about the iPod.

 

[williamgoody]

That battery pack info can be found at www.ipoding.com in the forums, I believe in the "hacking" section.
If you go to the apple site, www.apple.com, in the discussion area for the ipod, you'll see the active discussions concerning the lockup issue. It's rather rampant among runners, and had been an issue since the older style 10 gigers came out. The only ipod not suffering from this apparently is the 5 gig model.

Didn't I read somewhere that the new ipods were to have some sort of "smart" feature, ala the smart DJ function in the Rioport?

 

[lucien]

Quote:

Originally posted by williamgoody Didn't I read somewhere that the new ipods were to have some sort of "smart" feature, ala the smart DJ function in the Rioport?

What do you mean by this? I haven't heard of it.

 

[Robster1958]

i believe it refers to "smart playlist" feature in iTunes3.

this allows you to create playlist based on attributes such best-liked (rated by you), most-played (based on actual play), and other things <??>

 

[MarcW]

I can't believe nobody has mentioned what is in my eyes the most serious flaw about the iPod. The inability to replace the battery. Yes, I know that technically it can be done. BUT the official word from Apple is that the battery is not replacable. For a $500 item that is just plain unacceptable. I can get my battery replaced in my $9.99 watch from Walmart but Apple doesn't support this on a $500 item. For a company that prides itself in putting considerable effort in the design of a product this is one heck of an oversight.

-MarcW

 

[MacDEF]

One reason people may not mention this is because they really aren't worried about it. I'm about to get the 20GB model and I'm not the least bit concerned. The battery is a standard Sony battery and replacement is pretty simple:

 

[leon]

I've been disappointed in a number of ways, and I will be putting up my iPod for sale (which is also why I got the DS8 - MD is so much better for my purposes). These are mostly small annoyances that add up.

MacDEF,
I'll have to disagree... just how far are you willing to DIY a $500 (or even $300) item and effectively wiping Apple's ass?

 

[e-r0ck]

A queue function is allowing you to choose the next song that will play. So you're listening to Track A, then you think "aw man, i love this song and want to hear the kickin guitar solo at the end, but I want to hear Track X next." The Queue Function lets you go to that file while Track A is still playing, and select Track X to play directly afterwards. Its sort of a simplistic version of creating Playlists on the fly.

Its cool for parties or when you're with friends and want to make sure a certain song plays.

The new Archos Multimedia player has it... actually all the Archos players have it. Unforuanately Archos has been dismissed by many audiophiles because their previous players were pretty much feces in a metal casing. I love the new Multimedia player though. It lets you play video and display pictures. I always put my pictures in a playlist with music and the picture displays as the music is playing, making for really cool slideshows or if you want to display the album cover as the album's playing. Cool stuff.


...oh, and it sounds good too.

. Too many people compare new products to ones of the previous generation. I tihnk it sounds just as good as the new NJB3. I haven't listened to the iPod side by side with the Archos MM or the NJB3 though.

 

[grinch]

http://ipoding.com/modules.php?op=mo...thread&tid=507

check that thread out! awesome invention and doesn't sound very hard to do at all. just a couple of battery packs and some heatshrinks.. very minimal soldering as far as i can tell!

 

[Taphil]

A queue feature, a la NJB1/3, allows you to select individual songs or groups of songs (by artist, album, genre, composer) to add to a playlist you can create on the iPod itself. Not everyone wants to listen to an entire album at a time or has pre-existing playlists to fit their needs/mood.

MacDEF - you keep saying it, but battery replacement ISN'T simple. First, find a place that will supply the battery....there isn't one. It may be a Sony battery, but that doesn't mean you can just buy it. Then you have to solder/attach the power connector and the pc board that's on top of the battery. And then you have to get the iPod open, which will void your warranty. And opening it isn't like undoing some screws. Unless you've had experiened with opening it, you might end up denting the hell out of the plastic trying to take off the metal back. So, replacing the battery isn't even an option. I'm not too worried about it, however, as I think it'll last about 2-3 years, at which point I'll have some better mp3 player anyway.

 

[williamgoody]

Leon, I'd love to hear why you were dissappointed with your ipod?
Lucien, there are issues with ipods with joggers that the unit freezes on them when running, completely locking up, and having to be reset. It only problematic with 10 or 20 gig ipods, as it is theorized tht it has to do with the multi-platter hard drive used.
Robester, you hit the nail on the head.
I'm kinda leaning to go back to my MD for everyday use, using the ipod for situational listening.

 

[MacDEF]

Quote:

Originally posted by leon MacDEF, I'll have to disagree... just how far are you willing to DIY a $500 (or even $300) item and effectively wiping Apple's ass?

I have no problem opening an iPod in three years to replace the battery if it needs it

-- you don't damage it by opening it. Not sure what you mean by "effectively wiping Apple's ass," though

e-rock, thanks for filling me in on the queue function. You don't get that, it appears (on the other hand, you do get auto-updating "smart" playlists).


Quote:

Originally posted by Taphil A queue feature, a la NJB1/3, allows you to select individual songs or groups of songs (by artist, album, genre, composer) to add to a playlist you can create on the iPod itself. Not everyone wants to listen to an entire album at a time or has pre-existing playlists to fit their needs/mood.

I see -- I think the difference we're seeing is more differences in the overall vision of the players. Most hard-drive players are more "self-contained," (they almost had to be originally, given the dearth of any good desktop software to link up to), whereas the iPod is more like an extension of your computer (you sync everything with your main collection). Queuing does sound cool, though.

Removing the back isn't really that difficult; I've seen someone do it. And replacing the battery is also pretty trivial -- any monkey with a soldering iron could do it

As for getting one... I'll bet my Max that within the next two years (when some of the most heavily-used batteries will start to fade), that there will be either a steady supply for new batteries, or another solution for replacing the battery

As for the iPod locking up, I'm not surprised by that -- if an MP3 player uses a hard drive, you *shouldn't* be jogging with it. I would never use an iPod for any kind of exercise where it would experience that kind of shock. MD or solid-state MP3 units are far, far superior to any HD-based unit for such uses.

 

[leon]

Quote:

Originally posted by MacDEF Not sure what you mean by "effectively wiping Apple's ass," though Removing the back isn't really that difficult; I've seen someone do it. And replacing the battery is also pretty trivial -- any monkey with a soldering iron could do it

My point being, if it costs that much, you shouldn't even have to be a monkey, for God's sake, sucking up to Apple and taking what they missed in stride just because we'll have them over Gateway any day

williamgoody,
Small things like
- we really should be able to jump between albums without making a new playlist; the soft (firm?) ware prevents the interface from being all that it can be;
- the small pop that comes on before playback starts, depending on your iPod's mood for the day;
- the remote is unclippable, it's a joke trying to clip it onto something other than a thin, straight ride of clothing;

I get a nagging feeling that if it was Sony or Panasonic making the iPod, some of these may have been ironed out before the thing reached the market.

I don't buy the notion that these concerns are trivial, because they add up. Let's take the inability to move between albums/artists/playlists: That is one of the privileges of having so many songs on one device, and also one problem that isn't of concern until you have so many songs on one device, either. I don't wake up in the morning being able to anticipate which songs I want to hear during the day, hence no making playlists while the coffee brews. If I could navigate within the music collection like I said - or have a queue function do that - it would be nicer, probably conserve power, and (less likely, but perhaps) protect the hard drive. The same kind of argument we would have for being able to select a song, title or edit during playback.

PC companion or not, it's meant to be taken outdoors on its own, and it can possess a killer interface, but it might be 2010 before Apple comes out with the appropriate software udpate.

edit - I want to add that I didn't give up on the iPod for these reasons alone. Beyond the iPod itself, there are other factors that wrecked the possibilities.