“Although it scarcely seems possible, we think the Apple iPod Mini’s design surpasses even that of its photogenic older sibling. Its stylish, anodized-aluminum shell is so tough that we felt as if we could stand on the device without consequence. Apple constructs the body by hollowing out Mini-shaped aluminum tubes so that there are no seams in the construction, then applies the color during the anodization process so that it can’t scratch off,” Eliot Van Buskirk reports for CNET.
Van Buskirk reports, “The tastiest design treat to our palate is the revamped scrollwheel. The play, menu/back, fast-forward, and rewind functions that the white iPod assigns to four touch-sensitive buttons are now located on the scrollwheel (or, rather, the clickwheel). We prefer this approach because it offers physical feedback when a function has been activated. In addition to the new functionality, the touch-sensitive clickwheel still works perfectly for scrolling through lengthy song lists with speed and precision. As with the white iPod, the unlabelled button in the middle of the wheel functions as Select. The only other control on the player is the sliding Hold key on top, which locks all functions.”
“Apple claims the internal battery takes three hours to rejuice and lasts eight hours on a single charge. Our tests outperformed this rating, usually by about an hour. The battery is nonreplaceable, but if you’re unhappy with its resiliency after a couple of years, Apple will swap in a new one for $99,” Van Buskirk reports.
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Van Buskirk gives Apple’s iPod mini a rating of 8.7 out of 10, noting the lack of FM tuner and “nonreplaceable” battery as issues detracting from a perfect score. One question, though, if the battery is supposedly “nonreplaceable,” as Van Buskirk describes, how can Apple “swap in a new one for $99?” The only way the battery could be considered “nonreplaceable,” Elliot, would be if you had to throw out the iPod mini when the battery no longer held a charge. But, you know this, don’t you Elliot? So why did you include the word “nonreplaceable,” when the battery is indeed replaceable? Please, let us in on your addled thinking and twisted reasoning.
Let them whine and fuss all they want. The fact remains that the Mini is steamrolling over EVERYTHING near the price range and these Apple hating idiots can’t stand it! ;o)
I could really care less what any of them think about the product nor how many points they give it on their “Average Moron’s Ccale of Value”. I ordered one the day they were announced because it filled a niche I wanted for my portable music player needs. That need being a smaller, lighter iPOD that still offered the same great user interface as my 40gb (actually improved click wheel over the current larger iPOD design) and that unbeatable seamless integration with iTUNES and my Macs.
iRIVER? Who gives f*ck! The thing and all the other also-ran brands were not even a consideration in my decision. None of those can touch an iPOD period.
As far as the battery is concerned, I am sure I can figure it out IF the need ever arises. My girlfriend still owns my original series 20 gb iPOD that is approaching the 3 year old mark and the original batteries are still going strong.
R.V.: Two words: anger management.
I think you feel self-conscious about running out and buying a little pink boutique-item to replace the perfectly functional one you already had. Is that why your so adamant that everyone is buying them, not just you?
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A guy at a bar showed me his Rio Cali Sport which he had upgraded to 1 Gig Flash. The total price ended up at around 300 USD cuz of the high cost of another 256 MB flash. The user interface was clunky and the capacity still 1/4 of the Minipod but the one thing that did seem kinda cool was that he said it was shock proof and water proof. Any anecdotal stories about how tough the ipod is? I am always treating mine very nicely cuz I don’t want to break it.
I’ve never really mistreated mine, but then I’ve never been particularly carefult with it either. It’s pretty scratched up, but it’s never missed a beat. It’s one on the first 5GB iPods.
My question is this if i have 1000 songs why do i need a fm tuner to listen to the news? not having a fm tuner is a poor excuse for not giving a better score .. why not list the truth i work for CNET there for I don’t like Apple or Apple products!
umm, so here’s my question. people complain about the $99 battery replacement program. but seriously, how much would the battery itself cost? lithium ion batteries don’t come cheap, especially tiny ones. also, the labor to replace one probably isn’t the easiest. my experience with battery covers is that usually they (because of added parts to the overall design) break or fall off at some point. do you really want to have to tape your ipod battery in? yuck. and if the cover screws on? who wants an ipod to have screw heads showing? also, what if you lose a screw? that’d be a pain…i’d rather pay apple $99 after a few years of good hard use. (note: I’m not bad with machines, i’m an engineer, but it’s just not worth the hassle)
“I think you feel self-conscious about running out and buying a little pink boutique-item to replace the perfectly functional one you already had. Is that why your so adamant that everyone is buying them, not just you? “
Kenny, three words…
Learn to READ!
I don’t expect you could understand why someone with a 40gb would buy a Mini as long as you hold to your pathetically weak argument that the Mini and the regular iPODs are the same product with the same customer base. Once you come to grips with reality, it should become clear as crystal why I and millions of other iPOD owners will be owning both.
Here…
Since you seem unable to do this for yourself, here is a bit from the sales pages at AMAZON.COM. Notice the sales ranking? Why on earth would I need any convincing when it is so obvious to anyone that can read that the Mini is selling like pop corn?
iPOD Mini: SILVER
Amazon.com Sales Rank: 49
ASIN: B0001A99MO
Item model number: M9160LL/A
Date first available at Amazon: January 7, 2004
Now lets compare shall we?
15gb iPOD
Amazon.com Sales Rank: 488
ASIN: B0001A967W
Item model number: M9460LL/A
Date first available at Amazon: January 7, 2004
iRIVER 256 mb
Amazon.com Sales Rank: 55
ASIN: B00008N6VM
Item model number: iFP-190T
Date first available at Amazon: February 20, 2003
The Mini is doing a good job of smoking the 15gb model, which is the one all the boneheads always claim everyone will/should buy instead. Next comes the iRIVER 256 meg player that sells for $100.00 less and offers a fraction of the capacity. Still, unable to beat out the Mini in sales even though same boneheads claim the Mini is too expensive. We are just talking about one color here by the way. If you add in all the other colors, the sales volume is considerably larger for the Mini.
What part of this don’t you understand?
Is it me or did everyone have to much coffee today?
$$$99$$$ for a battery!!!?????
Sheesh….
OK EVERYONE. PAY FOR THE MUSIC AND LAY OFF THE SODDING PEPSI. YOU ARE ALL TAKING IN TOO MUCH CAFFIENE AND ARE NOTICABLY GETTING ANGRIER IN YOUR POSTS AS A RESULT.
The drink should come with a health warning. Why couldn’t Apple link with Evian?
It’s funny that the same people who come to the defense of apple and say “sure, the battery is replacable, you just have to be ultra careful, and even then you might break the iPod” are the exact same people that buy apple products (over others) because they are so intuitive and easy to use.
You can get your battery replaced at this site for $79.00 US {24hr turn around) http://www.ipodresq.com/detail.php?prodID=P010068 . I have a 5gig Ipod that is over 2 years old and still going strong. By the way, most of you would consider a car battery non-replacable because it is so heavey and hard to get in and out. You might even destroy your alternator if you don’t do it right. And the labor to have it installed is about the same as for the Ipod.
The Amazon ranking is your argument? Interesting. If those numbers hold, they will prove my point. The iPod mini has replaced the iPod as the music player of choice. Followed closely by the iRiver.
What makes you think this is evidence that iPod and mini appeal to different markets? Because the mini’s number is closer to the iRiver’s number than it is to the iPod’s number?
If those numbers persist, the mini will soon be the only music player Apple offers. The iPod will morph into something else, with a different purpose. Then you can say they definitely appeal to different markets. Right now, the markets overlap so much as to be called nearly identical.
How long before Apple ditches hard-drive technology and provides some solid state memory for the joggers among us?
Hard drives skip. Plus, with repeated shaking can’t be good for their long-term health. Tiny moving parts, you know.
If you are running, solid-state players seem the way to go, but I would never buy one unless I had an ipod as well. I have a rio flash player, and the sound quality is poor. With my ipod, i notice the difference as a crank up the bitrate. For the rio, everything over 160 or so sounds the same. Poor circuitry.
What makes you think this is evidence that iPod and mini appeal to different markets?
Every marketing article I have read about the product’s sales and demographics, the people I know who have bought the Mini even though they already have an iPOD, the people who have bought the Mini that were previously not interested in the larger model… I could go on, but why?
I’m not the one in desperate need of a clue.
the iPod/mini battery is not CONSUMER replaceable !! … notice the word consumer … the price benefit doesn;t outweigh the risk of replacing it
…
i think it would be possible to make the battery consumer replaceble … it is done on other products [powerbook] without sacrificing the design. i know powerbook is not really comparable … what about digital camera like Olympus … it is really easy to switch, and the whole camera is weatherproof, which iPod, despite nonreplaceability, is not. in my experience with all olympus cameras of this design I owned .. there was no problem of battery doors breaks or simmilar.
the same with cellphone batteries … if your cellphone doesnt fall on the ground on a regular basis … no problems …
…
i you would treat your iPod in a way that you could possibly break some battery door, chances are that you would damage the harddisk of the iPod sooner.
…
I love my iPod anyway …. in two or three years .. who cares .. maybe I buy a new one when it dies … by then the headphones will be bluetooth driven and remotecontrol as well
the digital camera i meant was Olympus Stylus Digital
You can do the battery replacement yourself:
http://www.popsci.com/popsci/computers/article/0,12543,588084,00.html
I think apple should offer a higher capacity battery for the 99$ price tag . I am sure there are higher capacity battries now for the same size .
bonjour
Good share.
I think the best cccam are those from getiptv.org
I would like your feedback
Thanks