Probably like most people, I tossed my dead ipods into the drawer and they haven't made it to the landfill yet.
I have a pile of them. I don't want to part with them because I paid a fortune for them. Our first two Ipods even have engravings on them (one for my wife, one for me). We were fools back then to think that our engraved players would last and they didn't.
History.
I have always been interested in music players... all the way back to the mid to late 90s. I have some MP3 players that would be considered antiques.
I remember Napster and how it scared the music industry to the point of paranoia and how Apple negotiated the deal of the century and were able to convince them to sell their music and make lots of bucks for both Apple and RIAA members. Competitors to Apple were still too afraid and only half heatedly released their own players. Of course, they all faded away.
The heart of Apple's business is the player. And oh BTW, it has a phone too. And yes, it can play games, too. The “player” has allowed Apple to maintain a captive market — first: because of familiarity; and second: customers have a lot of money invested in their iTunes music and games (which will only play on an Apple device). I should know. My family and I have hundreds or maybe even a over a $1000 in Apple music. Do the math — 1000 songs at X$ each.
Actually, Apple have recently made it easier to convert the protected and proprietary formats to mp3 versus having to burn it to a disk and then convert it to mp3. They must have convinced RIAA that it is all safe now. Or maybe the consumer's appetite for digitized music has been satisfied and sharing it on the Internet is no longer interesting or worth the risk. Who knows.
Anyway, kudos to Apple.
Now for the negative...
Unfortunately, the player/phone looks pretty much the same as the first models. Yes, the screen is better and the processor is improved for playing videos. But it is pretty much same old same old. Heck, isn't the screen size about the same?
Yes, the Ipad is relatively new but I don't like it. An Ipad is not ideal for a serious computer user. That is where a laptop fills the space. And even a desktop.
I chuckle when parents give their college bound son or daughter a tablet. They'll soon find out that it is completely inadequate. I have seen it happen many times.
And then there is the battery issue....
BTW, Apple still cannot compete in the laptop and desktop area — as usual, Apple hardware and software is double the cost of a windows platform.
Like many loyal Apple customers I continued to buy the Ipod family of players after the previous version either died or was obsoleted by Apple. Not anymore. I have learned my lesson.
“BTW, Apple still cannot compete in the laptop and desktop area — as usual, Apple hardware and software is double the cost of a windows platform.”
They appear to be competing just fine - selling huge numbers.
Double the cost? Sure, if you value your time as an unpaid Microsuck tech at $0. If you don’t care about the risk of malware, viruses, etc.
I’ve gladly bought multiple Macs. I intend to never go back to Microsuck - having suffered greatly by owning many Windows machines for 13 years.
My Mac works. It has never had malware or a virus. It installs system software without having to reinstall drivers. Every time I upgrade, it works. I spend less time fixing my system on an unpaid basis and more time using my computer for what I want to do.
Best.