MP3 players (updated) ipod owners HELP!

[stormy]

I'm going to buy a hard disk MP3 player, and i have to get it soon, before sping break. I have it narrowed down to the following:

-Nomad Jukebox 3 20GB model for $269 from Dell
-ipod, 10 GB, for $369 from Apple

Common sense says go Jukebox3 but that ipod is so damn sexy, and I don't even have a firewire port, so effectively ipod = $369+$50! My cheap nature will probably prevent that ipod purchase from happening, but maybe someone can convince me why it's worth it.

Give me other models i should look at, where to get the best price, and anything else interesting about HD MP3. Is HD failure a common problem? I've had a few PC HDs die on me before, and a portable could make a few accelerated trips to the floor, so i'm a little worried about this.

*UPDATED*
Can someone with a Windows iPod using Music Match tell me why i can't access my songs by browsing artist and album lists on the ipod? My liberary works fine in music match and all the ID3 tags should be good. Everything only shows in the list of song titles with no further information than just the title. It's seriously pissing me off.

[Captain Vegetable]

Originally posted by stormy
I'm going to buy a hard disk MP3 player, and i have to get it soon, before sping break. I have it narrowed down to the following:

-Nomad Jukebox 3 20GB model for $269 from Dell
-ipod, 10 GB, for $369 from Apple

Common sense says go Jukebox3 but that ipod is so damn sexy, and I don't even have a firewire port, so effectively ipod = $369+$50! My cheap nature will probably prevent that ipod purchase from happening, but maybe someone can convince me why it's worth it.

Give me other models i should look at, where to get the best price, and anything else interesting about HD MP3. Is HD failure a common problem? I've had a few PC HDs die on me before, and a portable could make a few accelerated trips to the floor, so i'm a little worried about this.

To have someone convince you of the merits of the iPod, buy any copy of MacAddict. They love it and seem to squeeze something into every ish about it.

[Diff-chan]

If you can afford it, you would be absolutely nuts not to get the iPod. Its easily the best mp3 player out there. I used it for all of about 10 seconds in my school store and realized just how awesome it was. The rest are just pitiful imitators.

Do you have USB2? If you dont, then prepare to spend a fucking year sending all your mp3s to your Jukebox over the USB 1.1 port.

edit: the Nomad Jukebox 3 doesnt even support USB 2.0, so, yes, you will spend a fucking year sending your files over to the system.

[jaysun]

Get the iPod. You won't regret it.

[stormy]

Originally posted by diffusionx
edit: the Nomad Jukebox 3 doesnt even support USB 2.0, so, yes, you will spend a fucking year sending your files over to the system.

That doesn't really bother me, the first time i can leave it go overnight, after that i won't be transfering anything that would take more than a couple minutes.

[Diff-chan]

Originally posted by stormy
That doesn't really bother me, the first time i can leave it go overnight, after that i won't be transfering anything that would take more than a couple minutes.

Yea, I guess. However you are also going to be indulging a system that reeks of PC shittiness (knowing Creative software and shit, itll crash that night you leave it on), as opposed to the smooth goodness of the iPod.

Im being totally serious here. The iPod is SO MUCH BETTER than everything else its not even funny. They have one on display in the school store, and you can just see how awesome it is, and by using it for a whopping 10 seconds you just know its the best fucking thing out there. The total general crappiness of everything out there that is not the iPod is really blatant and obvious.

Dont look at it like spending $150 more for the iPod - you'd be wasting $270 on the Nomad if you don't get the iPod.

[Lhadatt]

Get the iPod.

Alternatively, have you considered anything from Archos? Their new AV140/Jukebox Multimedia won best of portable video and best of show at CES 2003. Their site says nothing about price, but I imagine you can comparison shop on your own.

EDIT: $390 for the Jukebox Multimedia 20. 20 GB HD, USB 2.0, MPEG 4 video player, other cool stuff. I believe that price puts it in competition with the iPod. Your choice.

EDIT EDIT: Yes, it will read DivX and XviD out of the box. Seems to handle AVI format nicely. Can also output to TV. Composite video out is the only problem I have with the specs.

Get the Archos.

[innova]

Get the ipod you'll love the thing, go and play with it in the store, it kicks ass.

[stormy]

Originally posted by Lhadatt
Get the iPod.

Alternatively, have you considered anything from Archos? Their new AV140/Jukebox Multimedia won best of portable video and best of show at CES 2003. Their site says nothing about price, but I imagine you can comparison shop on your own.

EDIT: $390 for the Jukebox Multimedia 20. 20 GB HD, USB 2.0, MPEG 4 video player, other cool stuff. I believe that price puts it in competition with the iPod. Your choice.

EDIT EDIT: Yes, it will read DivX and XviD out of the box. Seems to handle AVI format nicely. Can also output to TV. Composite video out is the only problem I have with the specs.

Get the Archos.

gateway has that Archos model for $335, which seems like a good deal, but reading user opinions on cnet makes it seem like there are lots of quality issues with Archos (and Creative). I think i am leaning ipod now.

One question about the ipod, are the Windows units the same as a the Mac units? Can i hook the same ipod up to Windows sometimes and a Mac other times, or is the windows version not compatible with a Mac?

[Aurora]

I have that Archos and love it. I've used an ipod for a bit before, and admittedly love it, but the Archos gets the job done almost as nicely and does quite a bit more. Plus it has a nifty colour screen, plays divx stuff, can be hooked up to a tv, supports modules to allow it to turn into a digital camera or digital camcorder, etc.

Archos is very nice.