Accessory creative mp3 player

Late last year I wrote a column about the Macintosh and its near brush with virus trouble. I received hundreds of e-mails telling me I was nuts (and worse). Buried in that column, though, was a little aside about my admiration for Apple's industrial design prowess. No other technology company's products have elicited as many "oohs" from me—and countless others. I thought the first iMac was adorable, and the second generation with its LCD panel was spectacular.

That said, I do not own a Mac, and with much of my work focusing on the Wintel and PC industry, there's little reason for me to do so. I have some envy though for those who do, especially when new Apple products come out. Most recently I found myself ogling the Apple iPod Mini. It's sexier than the original—smaller and sleeker and it comes in a number of cotton candy colors. I know many people who own the original iPod, and they'd rather die than give it up. So while this smaller device has far less storage space (4GB compared with 20- or 40GB), I thought it might be worth giving it a try.

The first thing I noticed about the iPod Mini is that it's almost small enough to hide in one hand. There are only two edges to the whole thing: the top and bottom. The rest is a seamless aluminum shell that wraps around the body. It weighs (3.6 ounces)—about as much as an Altoids-filled tin—but still manages to feel substantial. It easily slips into my pants or shirt pocket or I can use the nifty plastic clip to attach it to my belt (there's also an arm band accessory).

The beauty of this sultry product is only half the story. Apple has managed to craft a near flawless combination of hardware and software; the software half, of course, being iTunes 4.5.

iTunes is, undoubtedly, the premier digital music application on the market today and, best of all, it's free. I do have my small nits with it, mostly because the player, Apple's QuickTime--like those from other media player companies (Real and Microsoft)--tries to take over all media content on your PC. This is an unfortunate by-product of the tooth-and-nail competition among companies. I just wish Apple would take the high road--simply install iTunes and play MP3s and other digital music file formats within iTunes. If I double click on an MP3 file outside of iTunes, I do not expect to be asked to change the default player for all media types. That's not helpful. Just let me play the one file and move on.

I can live with this minor annoyance, because every other part of my iPod Mini experience has been so splendid. Let's break it down.

Awesome Design Everyone talks about the iPod Mini's buffed casing and overall style, but a big part of its elegance is the interface and controls. The interface is small but ultra sharp and very easy to navigate from one level to the next. The ClickWheel just below the screen responds not only to pressure but to your finger's movement. By gliding your finger around the dial, you can scroll up and down lists of music and increase or decrease the volume. I quickly learned how to use it without looking at the interface. I'd just reach down to my belt, where I'd attached the device, and adjust the settings with a touch and a glide. Most of the other MP3 players I've looked at are so poorly designed that you would think real people don't even test them (check out the review of TDK's wacky Mojo 1). All these buttons are virtually flush with the case. And even when I threw it into my backpack, I had only to set the Hold lock on top to keep the iPod Mini from accidentally turning on. I have heard some complaints about the style and quality of the included stereo headphones. I do not share them. They fit snugly (unlike most every other pair I own) and generate gorgeous, rich sound. I could even pick out the bongo-playing in the background of James Taylor's "Shower the People".

Connectivity and Compatibility iPods are now officially for everyone—Mac and Windows users alike—and the iPod Mini never made me think twice about whether or not I could hook it up to a PC (the original iPods needed a firmware update). The package came with FireWire and USB 2.0 cables. I do have a small issue with Apple's USB 2.0-only stance. No question that version 2.0 of the connectivity option is faster and better for downloading music to the Mini, but I think Apple failed to realize how many PC users have only USB 1.1 ports. (Editor's Update: Apple states on its web site that some USB 1.1 systems will work with some iPod models, but also adds that this is not the most recommended configuration due to speed issues).

Easy, Easy, Easy After installing the iTunes software that ships with the player, I grabbed a stack of my CDs (of course, only those I own outright), and with iTune's guidance I ripped 72 songs onto my hard drive. That process, which took over 2.5 hours for half a dozen CDs is perhaps the most time consuming thing about listening to digital music on any player. Your alternative--and it's a very good one--is to buy digital music at iTunes.com.

Pricing and Value At $249, the iPod Mini is considerably more expensive than flash drive-based players (which also have lower storage capacities) and $50 more than its nearest competitor, the Creative Nomad MuVo2. And for $200 more, you can get 10 times more storage space in a standard iPod. I'd still opt for the Mini, though. The original iPod looks bulky by comparison, and the Nomad is sorely lacking in sex appeal. Four gigabytes is still enough for around 350 songs at full quality(three times more than that at a lower bit rate), and that's an excellent starting point for any digital music newbie. I thoroughly disagree with anyone who says that a 128MB flash drive is adequate for digital music. You can fit just 45 high-quality songs on such a device.

Rugged, Dependable Performance I've already dropped the iPod Mini a couple of times; once it slipped out of my hands and another time I was trying to detach it from the belt clip and after pulling a little too hard the device popped out and hit the floor. Apple needs to rethink that design a little bit. In both cases, the iPod Mini came out largely unscathed--some scratches, but nothing major. I'm also impressed with the device's antiskip technology, which lets me literally run up and down a flight of stairs without even a hint of playback trouble. Anyone who tells you to steer clear of hard-drive–based players and stick with the no-moving-parts flash-drive models because of playback issues on the former is just plain wrong (at least in the case of the iPod Mini).

Hidden Extras I love that I can have the iPod Mini double as a very simple PDA. It can hold Microsoft Outlook contact info (up to 1,000 contacts from any info manager that can export vCards, including Outlook and the Palm OS), schedule information (and sound alarms on due dates and times), and notes. It even has some cute games on it like Brick (a Breakout knockoff), solitaire, and Parachute.

Women Love It The original iPod was a hit with many tech-savvy women I know, and its popularity should only increase since the iPod Mini was designed to appeal to women who may not be very comfortable with digital music and electronic devices. I know Apple got it right, because when I showed the iPod Mini to my wife and put the headphones on her ears, I saw something in her eyes I've never seen there before: techno lust. I could tell she wanted one of these things. Now when a commercial comes on for the iPod Mini her eyes lock on the TV set. She's got a serious itch for one—this from a woman who has never uttered the words "want" and "technology" in the same sentence.

In my estimation, it's time for other music player manufacturers to stop messing around, buy a few iPods (Mini and original) and analyze them top to bottom to understand why they're so good and everything else is so average. Is it that hard for Creative, Dell, and others to hire decent industrial designers?

I do have one small suggestion for this otherwise exceptional device. I would love to have an iPod Mini that supports AM/FM radio. The popular radio disc jockey who I listen to every morning regularly runs 10-minute commercial breaks. I don't want to switch stations. Instead, I'd love to just flip between the radio broadcast and my MP3 play list on the iPod Mini. I understand that it could be difficult to fit the radio antenna and circuitry inside the already compact space, but perhaps Apple can make a slightly larger model, add $25 to the price, and voilà! It's a Combo-Pod.

Now, that's a device I'd buy for myself and gladly give as a gift. Can this maybe happen in time for the holidays?

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Copyright ?? 2004 Ziff Davis Media Inc. All Rights Reserved. Originally appearing in PC Magazine.