The Magic Within Apple's iPod player

There are so many digital music players available.So why is Apple's iPod so special?We used one and discovered that it has a lot more to offer than just music.

Every now and then a technology comes along that promises to change our lifestyle.The Sony Walkman (launched in 1979), the video cassette recorder (in the 1980s) and the internet (mid-1990s) are vivid examples.The most recent technology fascination is a small digital music player called iPod.No bigger than a pack of cards and a slim as a cigarette lighter,the little wonder can owner as many as 10,000 songs!that lets you carry your whole Cd collection in your back pocket!.

But the iPod is much more than a digital music player.In fact it has so much to offer that it's fast acquiring the same status of the Walkman.Here are some features that we discovered.you will find them under the 'Extras' menu on the iPod.

Feature 1 : An address book

One of the iPod's most unknown features is its potential to store and display addresses,phone numbers and other text-based data.If you have a collection of phone numbers that you want to access easily,you can store textual information from website articles and e-books.The number of data you store is little only by the ready space on the iPod's hard drive.

If you are a Mac Os X user,you'll use two application to exchange this data to the iPod:
Address Book and iSync.Address Book installs with Os X and iSync is a free download from the Apple website and will sync Mac,iPod,Pdas and Bluetooth devices.

In other operating systems such as windows,you use any application that will export your data into the vCard format (for e-mail addresses).Then connect the iPod to the Pc,and in the software drag the vCard file into the 'Contacts' portfolio of the iPod.

Now,let's say you want to use the iPod to store a large document.Though the iPod technically does not allow it,you can work colse to the qoute by simply typing the name of the file first where you would commonly type the name of the person.Having done that paste the text file into the 'Notes' or 'Comments' field of your address entry.Then,when it gets transferred to the iPod,your entry will show up as just other address entry and the text file will deployed under the 'Notes' section of the entry.

This is a handy way to take important information and text files on the road with you.You can add driving directions,Wap stumbling logs,notes,just about anything that you can imagine.

Feature 2 : Calendar

The iPod can also function like a Pda (Personal Digital Assistant) and you can store your daily program in it.It has a calendar that can store your forthcoming events.

To access the calendar simply corollary the patch 'Extras | Calendar' and you will find your daily to do schedule.Navigate straight through days by using the scroll wheel or straight through months by pressing the 'Forward' and 'Back' buttons.Selecting a day will bring a list of all events scheduled for that day.Selecting a exact event will bring up exact time information and a description of the appointment.

How does one go about putting their calendar onto iPod?Luckily Apple has used the acceptable vCalendar format.This means that one can export calendar information from application such as Microsoft Entourage or Palm Desktop and put it level into the iPod while a Sync operation.

Apple has developed its own clarification for adding vCalendar files via iCal.If you don't want to use iCal,then use the Palm Desktop or Entourage to export your calendar information.Once you have exported it,simply drag it to the 'Calendar' portfolio on iPod.It will automatically be updated and recognized.

Feature 3 : Games

The iPod also together with some uncomplicated games like Music Quiz,Solitaire,Brick and Parachute.There are web sites from where you can download more games and put these in your iPod.The games and put these in your iPod.The games are the uncomplicated kind,so don't expect as you will get on Pcs or the most recent phones.

Feature 4 : A secret storage device

Here's one thing an iPod can do that a Pda or paper notebook can't.It can be used as a hard disk drive.That might have safe bet advantages if you're involved about safe bet files or information being discovered on your computer.

With storage capacities ranging from 5 Gb to 30 Gb,there are lots of possibilities for use as an external storage device for your laptop when you are on the field.

If there are some applications that you want to use,but for some imagine you don't want to install them on your laptop,you can run them off the iPod.You can also use the iPod as a boot drive if you have an Os installed on it and if your computer supports booting from an external Firewire device.Most modern day computers allow that.

An iPod can be associated to any Firewire-equipped computer and be used to share and swap files as needed.On an iMac computer,the iPod will automatically show up on the desktop as an external drive.With any other ideas you'd need the Firewire drivers to be installed.

iPods connect to iMacs using Firewire cables.This,flexible Firewire cables are now ready that are much best for field use,that the acceptable thick cables that most Firewire devices ship with.To connect an iPod to the Pc you would need an iPod Dock Connector to Usb 2.0 + Firewire cable (see http://www.apple.com/ipod/accessories.html )

Feature 5 : Storing your photos while traveling

The new iPod photo allows you store all of your pictures on the contraption.Truth is it costs a bomb.Perhaps it will come down in few months.

Until then though,if you are saddled with an earlier version of the iPod,fret not.Though you can't view pictures on it yet,there's nothing to stop you from storing them in the device.

A 40 Gb iPod can hold up to 24,000 photos (captured on a 3 megapixel camera ).Want to exchange pictures from your digital camera? Well,then here's what you could do.Get yourself a card reader that connects to your iPod.

The card reader will simply act as a bridge between your digital camera and the iPod.It reads the pictures on your camera and transfers them to your iPod.At a later date,when you get back home,you can pull out the pictures from your iPod and transfers them to your computer.However you may have to spend some money to get this kind of capability.A card reader commonly costs less than 0.

Belkin (www.belkin.com ) has a pretty decent card reader that does a good job.
The advantage of going in for a card reader if you have an older version of the iPod is that you get full functionality for cheaper than what it would cost you to buy a new photo iPod.

Feature 6 : Storing audio files

Storing music is the primary function of the iPod.The fourth-generation models have a 40 Gb hard disk which can store up to 10,000 songs!The 20 Gb iPod can hold about 5,000 songs.

Apple offers an online music store (called iTunes) from where you can buy and download songs for the iPod.
And don't worry about the batteries getting over.The ipod has a long battery life - up to 12 hours.And with the 25 minutes of skip protection that iPod provides,you can listen while playing basketball,and the music will keep playing A word on the batteries though.It is possibly the iPod's Achilles Heel.After 12-18 months of sustained use.It starts running out of juice.Once that happens,you'll have to spend a packet on getting a new pair of batteries for the iPod.Unless you decide to go for a third-party battery pack that isn't quite as sleek as the original,but does the job nevertheless.

Feature 7 : Lots of accessories

There are fullness of accessories that strengthen the functionality of the iPod and make it more useful.Check out the 'Accessories' section on Apple iPod store (www.apple.com/ipod ).

There are external speakers,a remote control,a stereo association kit,an add-on voice recorder,a radio and kits for using the iPod while driving.

You can also pick up an inexpensive cassette tape adapter and listen to the iPod in your car straight through your car stereo.It seems everyone wants to make accessories for the iPod these days.

The Magic Within Apple's iPod player

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iPod Touch - 32 Gb Music Player

Kane Kramer can be termed as a pioneer in the field of digital audio players. He designed one of the earliest digital audio player named as Ixi in1979 that had a playback time of colse to 3.5 minutes. Mpman is regarded by many as the first digital audio player that went into mass yield in 1997 designed by SaeHan facts Systems and it had a capacity of 32Mb. Similar players came in the shop from 1998 till 2000 with solitaire Multimedia, Compaq and Creative releasing their own versions of the Mp3 player. By 2000, all the players that had made their way to the shop were whether too big or they had poor ability playback or plainly a terrible user interface. Apple saw the opportunity and came up with their own version of an Mp3 player by the name of iPod on October 23, 2001.

Tony Fadell can be termed as the father for iPod because it was he who came up with idea and wanted to make a great Mp3 player and then found hold for his project with Apple. He with the help of Steve Jobs changed the procedure of media distribution with the unveiling of the Apple iPod. Steve Jobs always knew that he had a winner in hand and said "The coolest thing about iPod is that your entire music library fits in your pocket"

It was its ultra-thin make that made iPod massively favorite among the masses. At first, there were mixed reaction with the critics lambasting the price tag, the unconventional scroll wheel and lack of windows compatibility. Despite all of the allegations, it went on to become a major hit surpassing everyone's expectations and revolutionizing the field of portable media players. The rest as they say is history.

The first iPod only worked on Mac but Apple soon realized that if they had to jab the shop even added they had to come up with something different. As of now the line up of Apple's goods contain iPod Classic, iPod Touch, iPod Nano and iPod Shuffle. Apple's iTunes software is required to exchange files to your iPod.

The iPod Touch is a portable media player designed and marketed by Apple. It was launched in September 2007. Currently it is in its third generation and is ready in capacities of 32Gb and 64Gb. The iPod Touch adds the multi-touch graphical user interface to the iPod line. It is the first iPod to have wireless passage to the iTunes Store and the App Store. The 8Gb second generation had features such as external volume controls, a built-in speaker, Bluetooth support, and the ability to associate a microphone and was unveiled on September 9, 2008. The third generation iPod Touch was released on September 9, 2009. The third generations is faster in terms of hardware, voice operate and light sensors.

The iPod Touch has a slim shape with glass touch screen display and a home button at the bottom. The display functions are similar to those implemented in the Apple laptops. The touch features of iPod are based on technology advanced by FingerWorks. The 32Gb edition was added to the iPod Touch line on the 9th September 2009. All iPods have a inescapable applications such as Music, Videos, Photos, iTunes, Safari, Contacts etc. Some later models also added Mail, Maps, Notes and other similar stuff. All iPod Touch models are equipped with Wi-Fi 802.11b/g. One of the features that it lacked was the camera. On June 11, 2008 a Software update was released. This allowed the first generation iPods to download third party applications, beneficial in solving and removing a lot of bugs. Other update was released in June 2009.

The iPod Touch and the iPhone share roughly the same hardware. The iPod Touch lacks some features of the iPhone. Ipod Touch was always belief of as the predecessor to iPhone. Apple has also received a lot of commentary for their differential medicine they've shown to iPod Touch and iPhone. Despite of all the criticism, iPod continues to be the best-selling digital audio player in the shop right now.

iPod Touch - 32 Gb Music Player

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iPod Nano 4th Vs Creative Zen X-Fi - Which Mp3 Player is Better?

iPod nano 4th:

In contrast to last year's compacted design, the Nano has been stretched back to the candy bar footprint of its first and second generations. Apple's fourth-generation iPod Nano returns to the original long, light, and slender formula that put the series on the map.

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Creative Zen X-Fi:

Creative's newest flagship product is the Zen X-Fi, a high-capacity flash-based digital media player that adds Xtreme Fidelity (X-Fi) sound technology. But with added wireless features and X-Fi sound enhancement. Will this be enough, though, to satisfy the Zen fans who have been patiently waiting for Creative's latest addition to the family?

Quickly look: iPod nano 4th vs Creative Zen X-Fi

iPod nano 4th

1.Size:90.7 mm x 38.7 mm x 6.2 mm

2.Weight: 1.3 ounces (36.8 grams)

3.Capacities: 8GB - 9 or 16GB - 9 flash drive2

4.Screen: 2" (diagonal), 320x240-pixel

5.Rated Battery Life: 8 hours or 16 hours of video5

6.Transfer Protoco: USB flash drive

7.Video Formats: H.264 video, .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats, MPEG-4 video

8.Audio Formats: MP3,WAV,MP3 VBR,AAC,Audible,AIFF

9.Photo Formats: JPEG, BMP, GIF, TIFF, PSD,Mac only and PNG

10.Other Features: Genius playlist tool, a tilt sensor, and accessibility features for the visually impaired, cover Flow browsing.

Creative Zen X-Fi

1.Size: 83mm x 55mm x 12.8mm

2.Weight: 68g

3.Capacities: 8GB (no Wi-fi) - 9, 16GB - 9, 32GB - 0

4.Screen: 2.5", 320x240 pixel, 16.7m colors

5.Rated Battery Life: 36 hours audio, 5 hours video

6.Transfer Protocol: MTP

7.Video Formats: WMV, MPEG4-SP, Divx 4/5, Xvid, and MJPEG

8.Audio Formats: MP3, WMA, AAC, WAV, and Audible 2,3,4

9.Photo Formats: JPG (Software will transcode BMP, GIF, PNG, and TIFF)

10.Wireless: IEEE 802.11 b/g with WEP, WPA-PSK, or WPA2-PSK security

11.Other Features: Built-In Speaker, X-Fi Sound Enhancement, FM Radio, Calendar, Contact, Task List

Features comparision of iPod nano 4th vs Creative Zen X-Fi:

iPod nano 4th Key Features

1.New Genius feature
you can create an instant 25-song playlists based around the musical characteristics of a single song. The Genius feature is easy to use, and the results are fun, provided your music collection holds enough songs to make interesting connections.

2.Adds the same tilt-sensor
It allows for some interesting control tricks. Giving the iPod Nano a vigorous shake, for instance, puts the music player into shuffle mode. Causal shaking caused by running or exercising isn't enough to trigger the Nano's shuffle mode, and you can always deactivate the shake-to-shuffle feature under the iPod's setting menu or by engaging the hold switch.

3.Cover Flow music view
iPod's Cover Flow music view when turning the device on its side. We found it a little confusing to use the iPod's scroll wheel controls while holding the player sideways for video playback. You get accustomed to it, but it seems like an inelegant design solution coming from a interface-savvy company like Apple.

4.Easier to make voice recordings
Apple makes it easier to make voice recordings on the fourth-generation iPod Nano by allowing microphone input through its headphone jack. You'll have to shell out for an Apple-approved headset.

5.An unprecedented feature
It is the capability for vision-impaired users to hear menu, selection, and playback information read to them in a synthesized voice.
You can enable this feature through iTunes, which generates the synthesized voice information and transfers it to your iPod Nano. capability for vision-impaired users to hear menu, selection, and playback information read to them in a synthesized voice.

6.Convert DVD to iPod nano 4th
Any way, the ipod nano 4th also can play movie and video. You can put DVD to iPod nano 4th with DVD to iPod Converter, it can be free download. DVD to iPod Converter is software which can exerts itself to convert DVD to iPod video formats MP4 (MPEG-4),M4V, and convert DVD to iPod audio format MP3, AAC, M4A with great quality and super fast speed. I prefering using Daniusoft DVD to iPod Converter, it is professional and easy to use DVD Converter for iPod, for all iPod.

Creative Zen X-Fi Key Features

1.Photo Viewer
Nothing has changed from the previous Zen players on the photo viewing side. You can easily browse photos in folders, lists, and thumbnails. You are also able to create and view slide shows to music.

2.Radio
Radio reception is poor. The autoscan feature is great, but it only picks up three stations where other players will pick up more than eight. A radio station I am only a few miles away from has static at times, which is totally unacceptable.

3.Voice Recording
Voice recording is the same as what is found on the Zen; files are saved as low quality WAV files. To use this as a voice note taker, you can easily map the short cut button to record quickly.

4.Organizer
The organizer feature remains the same as the previous Zen organizers. Using the Creative's media player you can sync your contacts, calendar, and to-do list with Outlook or Windows Contacts.

5.Wireless Features
This section applies only to 16GB and 32GB Zen X-Fi models.
The Zen X-Fi is Creative's first player ever to have built-in wireless features (802.11b/g with WEP, WPA-PSK, or WPA2-PSK security). The capabilities are rudimentary compared to other wireless-enabled DAPs with web browsers, but it's nice for streaming and downloading content from the Creative media server (Creative MediaBox) or one you have at home.

6.Convert DVD Video to Creative zen X-Fi
As you know, zen is creative mp3 player, but it can also play movie and video. So you can convert DVD to creative zen with DVD to Creative Zen Converter, the same as DVD to iPod Converter, it's a software which can convert DVD to Creative Zen video including AVI, WMV, MPEG that fits for Creative Zen and also convert DVD to Creative Zen audio MP3, WMA, WAV with excellent quality. To convert DVD Video to creative zen, please go here.

Creative Zen X-Fi Box contents

Zen X-Fi, short USB 2.0 cable, mini software CD, quick start guides and other paperwork, and Creative EP-830 noise-isolating IEMs with three sizes of silicone tips. Additional accessories, such as an armband, leather case, and TravelSound speakers, are available separately.

iPod nano 4th Box contents

iPod nano, Earphones, USB 2.0 cable, Dock adapter, Quick Start guide

Conclusion:

Zen X-Fi is marketed as "the sound of perfection". It is the company's best-sounding player to date and it does sound undeniably great, but really only when X-Fi, its most lauded feature, is disabled. Most of the other features unique to the Zen X-Fi are gimmicky at best, and the new controls do nothing but clutter an otherwise attractive player.

The iPod Nano 4G's Genius playlists, shake-to-shuffle, and improved voice recording compatibility are fun features to have, but they're not worth 0-0. But if you've filled up your 4GB third-generation Nano and want some extra room or if you need the additional accessibility features such as enlarged screen font and text-to-speech, the fourth-generation iPod Nano is an ideal choice.

iPod Nano 4th Vs Creative Zen X-Fi - Which Mp3 Player is Better?

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