Why do people choose iPods

[Maktub]

i have a 30gig video

mines a piece of shit

i constantly have to restart the damn thing because it locks up

That's the one I own and you should use one of the previously mentioned advantages: support. It's excellent. Some friends of mine who ever had a problem with an iPod (just two of them) just sent them to apple, got a brand new one with no cost at all. Maybe shipping but meh. And no questions. Mine's a 30gb video and it has never locked up despite being second hand.

Also, to all of those who said people who get ipod get them for being popular...

seriously, I would feel offended if your statements were based on any actual fact? Just because you know some bimbo who did get an iPod for showing off, doesn't mean that's the reason why people *generally* get them, don't you think? And I guess that's pretty much the point of this post, may the OP correct me if it isn't.

Anyway, I thought long and read some of the posts asking for advice here at GBAtemp for MP3 players (maybe one of them was by you IIRC, Sam? and maybe the other by linki...) and finally decided getting the iPod for the reasons I previously exposed. Popular? crap, I'm nearly afraid showing it off, since streets around here can be pretty crowded with not very nice people, heh

the hard drive concept versus the ridiculous excuse that was flash memory back then

Hehe, I remember my first MP3 player - It had 8MB of internal memory and I had a 32MB SD card: 40MB in total! I could fit around 9-10 songs on there max! I usually ended up re-encoding them at a lower bit rate just to fit more on. Still, it beat burning to CDs!

Hah, I remember when I got my discman, it played something called "mp3". Ye Gods how I thank the internets supplying me with its infinite knowledge and... freeness

 

[kellyan95]

Heh, I thought the poll would have been something like this:

They are ignorant
Other people buy them
They are "cool"
Apple makes them
They got it as a gift
They got a really good deal

 

[FAST6191]

I will see your SD card and raise you a smart media card:


"Also, to all of those who said people who get ipod get them for being popular... :[snip]Just because you know some bimbo who did get an iPod for showing off"

My personal opinion is born from seeing such a situation and similar happen on numerous occasions and as others have mentioned the ipod being the byword for mp3 player (which in turn is a byword for music player/media player......)

 

[djgarf]

i got a cheap 1gb mp3 player cus it gets battered at work and if it breaks i really dont give a shit cus i would buy another cheap one from work lol

 

[JPH]

They look nice and sleek.

It does exactly what you paid 200 bucks for - play music.
Even some play video and photos.

Plus the clickwheel is a plus.
I've never owned an mp3 player that I've enjoyed and liked more than the Apple iPod.

 

[MrDunk]

I think the name ipod is just pretty catchy, also its clickweel is pretty sweet and fun to use



P.S. Oh also you can put games on video ipods do another plus

 

[jimmy j]

iPods are a nice peice of kit. Lots of educated buyers weigh up the pros and cons of various products before deciding to go for the 'pod. That's fine by me, if someone thinks it through and decides that the iPod is best for them, then nobody can complain.
However, Apple have managed to turn iPod into an aspirational piece of kit by using "cool" advertising that speaks to the mainstream, dumbass yoof of today. That is usually enough for the majority of brainwashed media-victims, and that is what gives iPod the edge.


*edit* did I flame? I didn't mean to. I like iPods

 

[Kitsun]

Can run iPod linux and Rockbox.

 

[Maat]

Heh, I thought the poll would have been something like this:

They are ignorant
Other people buy them
They are "cool"
Apple makes them
They got it as a gift
They got a really good deal

I think this should sumarize the reason and in mine personal opinion should have:
"It has a expensive and beautifull apple symbol"

Now let's stop the jokes..... The mainly reason of people buying the ipod it's because it's like something that a friend bought and the other one like it and then he bought and this goes on.... the ipod is famous in ever where so people buy it only because other's people bought it and like it so they do the same thing... the think that spins probably helped too.It's a popular think even if you go to a poor country they know what is a ipod but they don't know what a zen or zune is or other one(in poor country they know what a usb+mp3 is because is really cheap...but if they have money they buy ipod).
The same thing happens with a lot of eletronic devices even video games,probably happened with ps2 too,but the ps2 is really good. Try thinking in any eletronic device that people normally has and you will figure out that there is a lot of common devices with people and sometimes they are good and others know....trey searching for some cases like sony betamax vs vcr,
some old videogames, a good one MP3 and VORBIS or other new audio codec.
To reduce in one phrase: Popularity and Commercial really really matters.

 

[mthrnite]

With all due respect Sam.. the poll concept doesn't really work well in this case.

 

[notnarb]

kick-ass mp4/mp3 player- voice recorder with touch screen controls, 1gig of storage and a 2.4 in screen from dealextreme for $50 vs $80 1gig shuffle or $110(?) 1gig nano. Ipods are overrated (although finding songs on itunes is a lot easier then most other stores, and itunes uses the crappy m4p format)

 

[Maktub]

Ok, so should we who decided it's a good purchase stop getting them just because world's full of idiocy and dumbness? Yay, we may all then stop eating as well - every single idiot does.
Yes, I admit it's a trendy shit. Here in Spain (or at least in Andalucia) I've never EVER seen an advertising by Apple. Not just about iPod, but about ANYTHING Apple ever made so... nay, it ain't working with that here

However, there's a very ilogical hate against these devices just because they're popular and that's equally dumbhead than liking them... just, well, because they're popular.

 

[michaelf]

I have a 30 gig video.

My short answer is that ipods are the least crappy mp3 player on the market.

I wound up buying it because of capacity. It was used not only for music at work, but transporting files which is what it primarily does these days since I'm back to internet radio.

I can't say I'm especially happy with it, however. I hate itunes (and the independant alternatives) as well as the menu flow. What I really want is the ability to drag and drop mp3's without a clunky piece of software in the middle. I also really hate the design of it. The looks pretty slick, but it's always filthy because of the materials they used. I have a case for it, but I don't get to enjoy the ipod's super slim profile. When it comes down to it, I've never heard of an mp3 player that really sounded awesome to me. It's not all bad, though. The screen is a good size, vibrant, and clear. I don't like having to tote around extras for any hardware and that includes memory cards so the built in, giant hard drive is a plus.

One other note is that I hate that I'm buying an Apple product. I only bring that up because of the poll.

 

[Akotan]

I didn't read all messages but if no one said it before, I'll say it now: advertisement and brand power. iPod was released at the right time and in the right way.

 

[roguefan99]

Simply put I chose it because it makes everything easy. All in one program for ripping/podcasts, simple sync when plugged in and it has a reasonable amount of room.

I've found a lot of players have the same low standard quality (including the creative that I have) and the Ipod made it simple with the software, so thats why I went with an Ipod for my 30Gb video.

 

[jimmy j]

Ok, so should we who decided it's a good purchase stop getting them just because world's full of idiocy and dumbness? Yay, we may all then stop eating as well - every single idiot does.
Yes, I admit it's a trendy shit. Here in Spain (or at least in Andalucia) I've never EVER seen an advertising by Apple. Not just about iPod, but about ANYTHING Apple ever made so... nay, it ain't working with that here

However, there's a very ilogical hate against these devices just because they're popular and that's equally dumbhead than liking them... just, well, because they're popular.

Nobody said you should stop buying iPods. Just that a high percentage of iPod sales can be contributed to good marketing.

 

[zi70410]

there the one of the few high storage mp3 players that dont look like a piece of S

 

[Sinkhead]

With all due respect Sam.. the poll concept doesn't really work well in this case.

You're right

Thanks to everyone who voted and contributed, I have enough info to write that bit of my coursework now!
- Sam

 

[suprneb]

apple is just awesome

-sound quality doesnt apply to mp3 players because it depends on the actual mp3 itself
-ipod is purty :]
-ipod is easy to use and anyone can do it
-ipod has plenty of stuff to keep you occupied and its all user-friendly imo
-apple products are nice, especially since they have good tech support and customer service
-price is manageable because theres such a wide range or products
-160gig ipod classic? what more could you want

 

[gigermunit]

apple is just awesome

-sound quality doesnt apply to mp3 players because it depends on the actual mp3 itself
-ipod is purty :]
-ipod is easy to use and anyone can do it
-ipod has plenty of stuff to keep you occupied and its all user-friendly imo
-apple products are nice, especially since they have good tech support and customer service
-price is manageable because theres such a wide range or products
-160gig ipod classic? what more could you want

Um doom out the box

*i seriously hate ipod's and such only apple product i like is the mac"