iPod?????????????

[Petrograde]

ok,.. who here has an iPod? I have questions:

Do you like it? How do you have it hooked up to the car? what kind of holder or mount do you have? Pros? Cons?

I'm thinking about getting one. I'd like to hear some comments from current owners.

Thanks!

[Rider90]

-POST DELETED-

[Dark_Knight7096]

I have an iPod as well. I have the 20 GB U2 special edition. One of my main reasons for purchasing the Special Edition U2 version is because it is black and red and matches my car rather well. Plus everyone and their brother has the normal ones so i wanted to be a little bit different. You can fit approximately 5000 songs on the 20 GB version and 10,000 on the 40 (which by the way they don't make anymore). I forget exactly what it is but i think the 30 and 60 GB iPod Photos kinda made the 40GB iPod obsolete, you can probly stll find them but not on apples website anyway, unless i was lookin the the wrong spot. I imported every CD I own (and a few of my sister's and friends' as well) to my PC and i already had 500 or so songs on there, i also downloaded the "Complete U2 Collection" approx. 500 U2 songs and my iPod is still only about half full. I used to use the iTrip for my iPod but i quickly stopped liking it. The signal wasn't very clear, it was slightly tinny, changing stations was a PITA, it sucked battery life like it was going out of style, and then all of a sudden one day it stopped working. I went to the apple store in NYC and i asked them what they recommended and i was pointed to the Monster iCar Play. It is an 80 dollar unit, BUT, it is very worth it. It has a built in FM tuner that takes the direct digital output from the docking connector, the FM tuner has 3 presets so it is easier than easy to change the stations on they fly, also it is not powered directly from your iPod, it plugs into the 12V power outlet in the center console so not only does it not sap battery life from your iPod, it actually charges it while you use it. I don't have a holder for mine or anything, i just set it inside of my center console and if i dislike the song that is playing, i open it up and change it. You could actually drastically reduce the need for that buy creating some kick arse playlists before you head out though. I love my iPod, although the amount that i spent on it could have gone towards more "go fast" mods for the car, i don't regret the decision at all. WOW, that was lengthy, i'm gonna slink away from this thread now, i've said too much already. If there's anything else you wanna know PM me, i'll be more than happy to help you out.

EDIT:

I get no fuzziness or off sound from the iCar Play, but it is a little on the bassy side, i just turn the treble up by one or two bars when i have it on and it sounds perfect. I did get a lot of feedback and problems from the iTrip though. It's touch and go with those things, some people will swear by them, others will swear they are garbage, i guess it's luck.

[Gunslinger]

I've got a 20G also. The thing is great! I've got the Monster brand car adapter that broadcasts the signal over FM and charges the battery at the same time. I also leave it in the console signal is strong and clean; no distortion. I would highly recommend this as an addition to our car.

[Captain Steve]

I've got a 40gig. I've got a Belkin cigarette lighter adapter that plugs in to the bottom and a tape adapter that plugs into the Belkin unit. The Ipod sits in the passengers cupholder.

I also tried the FM transmitter route, but I found that it was too weak of a signal for my area. It just never worked right.

The only things I would change if I could are that the player doesn't start and stop with the cars ignition and that you can't skip foward hitting the "next" button on the wheel.

[MENINBLK]

Monster makes an adapter that integrates your iPod into your car's Audio system.
Its called the iCruz...
http://www.monstercable.com/icruze/configurator/default.asp
Translates iPod to Automotive and back so your iPod and your sound system
can communicate to each other...

Its currently sold in CompUSA, and all you need to make it work
is a remotely mounted CD Changer...

[Petrograde]

Thanks for the replies so far. I have 32 gigs of MP3's on my computer right now, so I think the 60 gig would be a good choice for me.

I was looking at a new head unit with MP3 capabilities today when my Broter-In-Law suggested the iPod. So far it seems it's exactly what I'm looking for.

This iCruze looks promising. A bit pricey, but if I'm reading this right it should plug in the back of my stock head unit where my CD Changer would be. (I don't have the changer)

[Rider90]

-POST DELETED-

[Rider90]

http://midwestpanthers.net/ipod.jpg

Just wanted to show you guys my new iPod mount...no holes drilled.

[dwasson]

iRiver makes a FM adaptor that looks like a good idea. I'm considering a Creative Labs juke box unit. How do you navigate the I Pod? Is it easy to find a specific song?

[Rider90]

iRiver makes a FM adaptor that looks like a good idea. I'm considering a Creative Labs juke box unit. How do you navigate the I Pod? Is it easy to find a specific song?
That was one of my main concerns before taking the plunge before buying it but I was able to test one and I could not imagine it being any easier.

[Gunslinger]

iRiver makes a FM adaptor that looks like a good idea. I'm considering a Creative Labs juke box unit. How do you navigate the I Pod? Is it easy to find a specific song?
Everything is very organized. Sorted by Artist, Album, Genre, etc... you choose how you're going to find the song you want. Terribly easy to use even while driving. You also have the ability to create your own playlists on the computer before heading out. A little bit of time here will save you from having to do it in traffic. Head down to a retailer and try one out for yourelf. They also have excellent customer service. I've never had a problem dealing with them; despite their crazy Mac culture. Don't be thrown off by the customers in the apple store, lost of tree huggin beatniks. Just brush them aside.

[Dark_Knight7096]

I agree, head to any apple store and just ask one of the associates. They are a tad bit strange but more knowledgeable than you could ever know. I stumbled onto the iCar Play on accident because i was just looking for a black car adaptor to go with my black iPod, black iTrip, and black car, and was pointed to that direction and it infinately better than my iTrip so i didn't even replace it (it broke). Plus you can test them all out and get to see how easy they are to operate. They are very simple and user friendly. I didn't think the click wheel would be as easy to use, but after i used it for a day or two it is the most amazingly simple thing in the world. You can also store outlook express VCards on the iPod, this way all your contacts are right at your finger tips. It has a few games on it, nothing too intense. I can't really remember what they all are but you can play the games while listening to music. It has a "Music Quiz" on it where it randomly selects a random portion of a song and plays it and gives you 5 choices, you have to guess which song it is, but as time passes the choices diminish and you get less and less points for getting the correct answer.

Wow, i thought i said i was gonna not post again. I so just violated my own mandate, that's it, straight to my room, no dinner for me tonight, do not pass go, do not collect 200 dollars.

[dwasson]

Do you have to load the whole thing at once or can you load a few songs now and a few later?

[Rider90]

You can load them all now or later, whenever you have a new song, you can put it on the iPod, or take old ones off, or reorganize into playlists. Tons of stuff. Also int the program iTunes that you used to manage the iPod, you can go directly into the online store and download any song for $.99 after you start an account.

[dwasson]

I guess I better look at an Ipod. They do come in black right?

[Rider90]

I guess I better look at an Ipod. They do come in black right?

Only the limited U2 edition that comes in Black & Red. It looks pretty sharp, but I don't know how limited they are. Other than that it's Apple's white :)

[Dark_Knight7096]

The U2 edition is labelled the "Special Edition" not limited, they are still very plentiful and i have not heard any news from apple about them cutting the production on it. It is 50 dollars more expensive than the normal ones, however, which some people may want to consider before purchasing. Another thing, some people don't know this, if you are, or know anybody who is, enrolled as a student in college, they get discounts. Log onto http://www.applestore.com/ and then scroll down to the bottom of the page and look at the left side of the page and you will see something that says "education discounts" click that then enter your info. You get 30 dollars off all iPods, except the U2 edition you only get 20 off that. The 20GB ones are 299 for the regular and 349 for the U2 (269 & 329 with the discount) and they hold 5K songs. The 30GB iPod photo is 349 (319 with discount) and that holds 7.5K songs. The 40GB iPod photo is 449 (419 after discount) and holds 15K songs. Other pluses to the iPod photos is that they can play photo slide shows of pictures that you have uploaded to them. The screens are bigger and in color so they are easier to see, and their battery life is much longer. But the only iPod in black is the U2 edition, all others are white and grey. Also it could not be easier to put songs onto the iPod. It comes with the iTunes software. All you have to do is plug your iPod into the computer and the program will automaticall scan the memory on your iPod and your hard drive and then will sync the two up. This goes both ways, if you delete a song off your hard drive it will delete it off the iPod, if you add songs to your computer it will add them to your iPod. This process requires no work from the user whatsoever just plug walk away, come back in a few minutes and it's ready.

[cyclone03]

Ok I know nothing about this stuff,but I'm looking at about 350CD's just to my left.

Do ipods have a shuffle feature where it will just play or do they start here and go there?

I understand about being able to pick songs you want from a play list,I just want my own "radio station" in my console.

What I'm getting at is,can I just load my CD's album style,then hit shuffle play and the ipod play everything in random order on it's own?

[Rider90]

Yep, it shuffles.