Since I own 2 iPods (the 2GB nano that came with my new Passat, and a 20GB I bought myself), I hope to dissuade him from a non-Apple music player purchase.
He wants something to use during his workouts, and he wants a radio tuner. He’s put off by the cost Apple’s music player offerings. I haven’t looked at the Apple Store website in awhile, so I completely missed the re-pricing of the iPod shuffle. The 512MB one is just $69, while the 1GB is $99. While this doesn’t solve his desire for a radio tuner, it should meet his price.
Looking around for competitors to the iPod shuffle, I came across Dell’s DJ Ditty. It’s small and light, and manages to integrate an FM tuner. It’s $84, $15 more than the iPod shuffle of the same capacity (512MB). You’d also have to use MusicMatch Jukebox instead of iTunes.
Searching through PC Magazine revealed another option: the Samsung Yepp YP-T5. It’s an old review, but this player includes a screen, an FM tuner, and voice recording for under $60. The catch: it only has 256MB of space for music. Samsung has similarly sized (i.e. larger) offerings to the iPod shuffle that cost around $100. None of the ones I’ve seen offers more capacity than the 1GB shuffle, and some offer less capacity at a higher price.
I’ll keep hoping he goes with an iPod instead of something else. So far I’m underwhelmed by the iPod’s competition.
Apparently, you’re not up on the latest iPod accesories from Apple: iPod radio Remote
And I recommend the iPod Nano 1GB for $149.
BTW, the radio remote doesn’t work on the Shuffle.
Also most of us with long time iPod addictions always comment that people who want the FM tuner don’t usually have an mp3 player, and people with mp3 players don’t really use the (usually limited) FM tuners.
Except for weather and traffic, the music on your iPod tends to be much better than what’s offered on the airwaves.
I was aware of the FM tuner and knew it didn’t work on the shuffle, so I didn’t mention it in the post.