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Sunday, April 23, 2006
Before You Buy Your iPod…
[ZOMBiE CyGiG] ranted at 12:55 AM --- Post#114572594791612684

When it comes to music, many may think of the iPod. But the question is, is the iPod really that good??? Maybe Singaporeans can use their kiasu and “go for all sale and discounted items” spirit when it comes to choosing their mp3 player.

Yes, I know iPod is sleek and slim and cool and blah blah blah. But there are actually a lot of other mp3 players that does as well as and even better than iPod, summore, at the same price sia! Ahhh…are you thinking of some cheapskate mp3 player you find in those hyper markets? No lah! There are some brands like iAudio, iRiver or MPIO that isn’t very popular in Singapore, but they sure have their place overseas. Some people dun even know that Sony makes mp3 player sia! Actually if you go Japan, iPod is considered as one of those more ulu brand lor.

So you may say “AIyo, later spoil liao how sia!”
Dun worry, as long as they have an authorized dealer, they will fix things up for you. Like my iAudio, if there is any problem, I take back and they replace a new one for more without asking much questions. Superb service!

Further more, when iPod first came out, its something nice, classy, fabulous. But now iPodders are filling Orchard road, its no longer special to have an iPod. Its becoming more of a cliché lor. When all the zhar bo is chio, there will be no such thing as a chio bu anymore!

Also, according to a lot of people, the sound quality of iPod is just average. Since its an mp3 player, it must sound good mah! For me, I find that the bass is not deep enough. Not shiok enough for those disco dance hits! The earphone that comes with the iPod can is errr……. Wait…not asking you to buy those $10000 DJ headphones. For $20-$30, you can get the Sennheiser MX400, 450, 500 and 550 series earphones le! There are good and cheap. Or maybe the Koss KSC75 for $40+, even better and value for money! Google them and im sure you can find tons of positive reviews. Remember, not all expensive earphones are good, as some are really a waste of money. Changing earphones can really make iPod sound a lot better!

Ok, I need to clarify, im not saying iPod is no good. But rather for those who want to be more hip and try something else, there are a lot of other alternatives around. Ok I had found 3 mp3 players to rival with iPod.

They are:
Creative MuVo s200
iAudio 6
Samsung YH-J70SB

iPod Shuffle VS Creative MuVo s200

Features	iPod Shuffle	Creative MuVo s200
Audio Format Support	MP3, AAC, Audible, Wave	MP3, WMA
Video Format Support	N/A	N/A
Image & Text Format Support	N/A	N/A
File Transfer	iTunes in Windows and Mac for music	Drag and Drop, recognises as removable storage in Windows
Storage	512MB, 1GB	256MB, 512MB, 1GB
Battery (company claimed)	12 hours on built in battery	17 hours audio on AAA battery
Charge Time (company claimed)	4 hours	Depends on battery
Screen	N/A	PLED (Orange) 96x36px
Enhancement	N/A	1 user definable EQ 4 preset EQ
Navigation	5 way navigator	5 way navigator
Sound	20Hz ~ 20KHz Rest Unknown	unknown
Other Features	N/A	Voice recorder, FM radio with recorder, lyrics display
Pricing (SGD, 1GB model)	~$160	$199

For just $40 more, you get a whole lot more from the s200, but the design is not as small and as sleek as the Shuffle. The Shuffle might support more audio formats, WMA is nevertheless one of the most common format available.

At this price range, the s200 is definitely a better buy than the Shuffle. Though the audio quality is not tested, base on the rest of the Creative model, their sound quality should be comparable.

iPod Nano VS iAudio 6

Features	iPod Nano	iAudio 6
Audio Format Support	AAC, MP3, Audible, Apple Lossless, Wav, AIFF	MP3, OGG, WMA (with DRM10), ASF, FLAC, WAV
Video Format Support	N/A	XviD MPEG 4 (15 fps, 160x128 max)
Image & Text Format Support	iPod viewable format, no text format support	JPEG, .txt
File Transfer	iTunes in Windows and Mac for music	Drag and Drop, recognises as removable storage in Windows, Linux and Mac
Storage	1,2,4 GB Flash	4GB 0.85” HDD
Battery (company claimed)	14 hours audio, 4 hours music slideshow	20 hours audio
Charge Time (company claimed)	3 hours on built in non user replaceable battery	3 hours on built in battery
Screen	1.5” colour LCD with backlight	1.3” 18bit colour 160x128px OLED
Enhancement	20 user definable EQ	5 user definable EQ BBE Mach3Bass MP Enhance 3D Surround 10 jetEffect settings
Navigation	Click Wheel	Swing Touch
Sound	20Hz ~ 20KHz Rest Unknown	16 Ohm earphone : 30mW + 30mW 95dB SNR 20Hz ~ 20KHz
Other Features	N/A (some via external dock connection)	USB Host, Voice recorder, FM radio with recorder, Line-In

The Nano has a cool and shiny look, and the sides are so slim! It has a colour screen but not being able to play video is a real pity. Like the rest of the iPod family, it comes with a dock connector that can be plugged into external devices like microphones or radio. It has the same Mac glossy buttons and UI which adds on to the visual appeal. It is lighter than the I6 by 20 grams and uses a flash skip free memory

iAudio 6 gives choices of more common audio codec like WMA with protection, the open source format Ogg Vorbis and the lossless compressed FLAC. It adds on as a video cum picture viewer and text reader. File transfer without any other software is an added bonus, to all Windows, Mac and Linux users. The BBE jetEffects boost the audio quality of the player. BBE makes vocal clearer and bass deeper, Mach3Bass amp the bass without affecting the vocal, MP Enhance compensates for lossy audio while 3D surround produce dynamic sounds. USB Host enable user to transfer files from some other USB-interfaced devices such as digital cameras or card readers. I6 did not do as well when it comes to storage, it uses a 0.85” HDD while might not be as durable as Nano’s flash. When it comes to the UI, I6 look quite professional with the 3D icons and vivid colour.

iPod 30GB VS Samsung YH-J70SB

Features	iPod	Samsung YH-J70SB
Audio Format Support	AAC, MP3, Audible, Apple Lossless, Wav, AIFF	MP3, WMA, OGG, ASF
Video Format Support	MPEG4, H.264	DviX MPEG4
Image & Text Format Support	iPod viewable format, no text format support	JPEG
File Transfer	iTunes in Windows and Mac for music	Mass Storage
Storage	30/60GB HDD	20/30GB HDD
Battery (company claimed)	30GB 14 hours audio 3 hours music slideshow 2 hours audio 60GB 20 hours for 60GB 4 hours music slideshow 3 hours audio	25 hours audio 7 hours video
Charge Time (company claimed)	4 hours	Unknown
Screen	2.5” 16bit colour 320x240px TFT LCD with backlight	1.8” 18bit colour TFT LCD
Enhancement	20 user definable EQ	20 preset EQ 1 user definable EQ SRS WOW WOW Optimization
Navigation	Click Wheels	Buttons and rocker
Sound	20Hz ~ 20KHz Rest Unknown	25mW + 25mW output Rest Unknown
Other Features	Calendar Contacts To-Do list Games Screen Lock	Voice recorder FM radio with recorder Line In Calendar Games
Pricing (SGD)	~$450	~$300

iPod’s calendar, world clock and to-do list function comes in handy to handle our everyday chores. Not only that, the large LCD screen is an eye candy to most people. Samsung does not have a 60GB model, which I think is a significant advantage in the iPod. The size, weight and volume of both models are almost the same in both 30GB model.

The SRS WOW effect on Samsung amplify sound image and better define bass, similar to some of the BBE jetEffects. Together with the powerful 25mW per channel output, sound quality should be in the top range. Its equipped with the usual line in, voice recorder and radio that the iPod always miss out. The pricing seems a lot more value-added as compared to the 30GB despite some of its disadvantages

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