iPods! Yay!

[Mr_Misanthropy]

Well I got an iPod for my 25th birthday (which is today, Monday 1/7 ). The black iPod Classic 80GB model to be precise. I've been playing around with it for a couple days and I see why they're so popular. I feel like I'm a few years behind. I used to have a Creative Zen Touch, but it, among other things, got stolen when my apartment was robbed in the beginning of December. So I'm now on the iPod bandwagon.

There's only one album of CDs left to load into iTunes. Phew...

I'm not using this thread to tout the wonders of the iPod or anything, I promise. I was really wondering if any fellow iPod owners out there had any cool links or accessories to share. Also please share any of your favorite Podcasts!

I know there are all sorts of little fun things to do with them and ways to use them. I mean, there are books about it even. I know there is the Art Deco iPod Accessories thread, but this is a much more general inquiry.

Thanks for your input! :cool2:

-Mr. Misanthropy

 

[Midnight Palace]

Congrats on your new iPod! I have the white 30gb model. I love mine. But even with the 30gb, I can't fill it! I think it's because I have a problem loading it up with stuff I know I'm not really going to listen to. Also, I get bored really quickly with listening to the same music. So, I might have a couple of albums on there and then 2 days later, they're gone and replaced with something else.

 

[pigeon toe]

This American Life is a great podcast, as are Science Talk (from Scientific American) and The Skeptic's Guide to the Universe. There are also a few podcasts that specialize in vintage radio shows which are fun too.

 

[Mike in Seattle]

Congratulations on both your birthday and the new iPod. I treated myself to a new Nano a few weeks ago, which now with the third generation, also plays videos, so I've got some classic Bugs Bunny cartoons on it along with several albums and playlists. I'm liking the size (larger) and features a lot better than the original Nano.

 

[Mr_Misanthropy]

Thanks Pigeon Toe! I subscribed to American Life and the Skeptics Guide. I have no idea how I'll fill 80 GB, unless I start putting movies on this thing.

 

[zaika]

welcome to the dark side. hehe
i have an 80gb ipod as well...and it's my baby. it goes where i go. i am currently uploading the rest of my CD library. it only took me three days.
as far as podcasts go...you MUST subscribe to Boxcars711 Old Time Radio Podcast. It's the best out there.
i don't have much in the way of gadgets to go with it, but i really want the cable you can get to hook up the ipod to your TV so you can watch the movies and tv shows you have stored.

 

[Jovan]

Thinking of getting one of these, since I traded in my Zune present for some classic science fiction.

This reminds me of the Spring 2007 issue of Classic Style, which featured leather iPod covers that looked strangely at home with a classic suit or dress. I really want to get one of those if I get an iPod. (Thanks, MK!)

www.dlo.com is the website.

 

[Mr_Misanthropy]

welcome to the dark side. hehe
i have an 80gb ipod as well...and it's my baby. it goes where i go. i am currently uploading the rest of my CD library. it only took me three days.
as far as podcasts go...you MUST subscribe to Boxcars711 Old Time Radio Podcast. It's the best out there.
i don't have much in the way of gadgets to go with it, but i really want the cable you can get to hook up the ipod to your TV so you can watch the movies and tv shows you have stored.

Well if I MUST! Consider me subscribed. That cable does sound like a good idea. I wonder how the resolution would be. I've been meaning to rig something up so I can view video from my computer on my TV as well.

Jovan, thanks for jogging my memory on the Classic Style article. I'll have to check the archives and find my copy so I can check it out. Also thanks for the link, of course!

 

[Mike in Seattle]

Well if I MUST! Consider me subscribed. That cable does sound like a good idea. I wonder how the resolution would be. I've been meaning to rig something up so I can view video from my computer on my TV as well.

The MacHead in this household recently did research on the topic - and apparently, an iPod or iPod Nano version of a TV show or movie comes out incredibly well on a TV, be it regular or something along the lines of a widescreen plasma. Alas, I said while the idea intrigued me, blowing $50 on a cable plus $3000 on said widscreen plasma screen in order to determine the validity of these claims was more than I was ready to spent in order to cure my curiosity.

 

[SamMarlowPI]

i have the new gen 80 as well, in black. i had the little shuffle which works great for running and stuff but i wanted a larger one to back up my itunes. i admit i only have like 1500 songs, 5 movies and a couple games which leaves me with like 69G left that i will probably never fill all the way up but its a great little machine. i bought a Griffin iTrip for my car. for those not familiar, http://www.griffintechnology.com/, you plug one end into the cigarette lighter and the other into your ipod and then match the FM radio frequency on your stereo to a little control box thingy and voila, the ipod plays over the car speakers...fantastic gadget...

 

[Quigley Brown]

I won a Shuffle at my local grocery a while back and I have yet to get that thing to work. Maybe they were giving away the bad ones. [huh]

 

[zaika]

Well if I MUST! Consider me subscribed. That cable does sound like a good idea. I wonder how the resolution would be. I've been meaning to rig something up so I can view video from my computer on my TV as well.

Jovan, thanks for jogging my memory on the Classic Style article. I'll have to check the archives and find my copy so I can check it out. Also thanks for the link, of course!

Gooood. You will not be disappointed in that podcast.
And the cable is fantastic. My brother has one, and the resolution is DVD quality. But bear in mind that the quality does depend on the quality of the show uploaded into your iPod. All of the movies and TV shows that I downloaded from iTunes work great. But the cartoons I downloaded from my vintage 'toon podcast don't always work so well. It has something to do with...well, something I don't know much about...like encryption and bits and stuff. lol Sorry. But the cable IS a great little "gadget" to have.
Also, I second SamMarlowPI about the FM transmitter...that one specifically is a gem.

 

[SamMarlowPI]

I won a Shuffle at my local grocery a while back and I have yet to get that thing to work. Maybe they were giving away the bad ones. [huh]

charge it maybe...? which shuffle do you have?

 

[Samsa]

I received the silver 80gb classic for my 25th birthday, back in September, and I love it. I'm afraid I don't use any accessories for it (not even a case), but I do use the thing all the time. Not sure it counts as an accessory, but I do have last.fm installed on it, so that tracks all of the songs I play (along with the songs I play on my computer) and from that generates my top artists, as well as links me with other people who have a similar taste in music.

 

[Riposte3]

I just upgraded from a 1st gen 4GB Nano to an 8G Touch. I have to say I love the touch interface. Apple really put a lot of thought and work into it. The built-in wi-fi was really what tipped the scales for me.

One absolutely essential accessory for any iPod is an AC power adapter. My one major complaint about the iPod has always been that you have to buy this separately. I find my battery usually starts to get low at about the same time I'm ready for bed, and it was always irritating to have to decide whether or not to leave the computer on overnight just to charge my iPod.

I also found a set of Phillips earphones at the same time. They fit my ears more comfortably than the default iPod earbuds, and they came with a pouch that also has a place for the dock cable.

There are a couple of podcasts available through the iTunes store that have episodes of the old "The Shadow" and "Dragnet" radio shows. (My favorites).

-Jake

 

[SamMarlowPI]

I just upgraded from a 1st gen 4GB Nano to an 8G Touch. I have to say I love the touch interface. Apple really put a lot of thought and work into it. The built-in wi-fi was really what tipped the scales for me.

One absolutely essential accessory for any iPod is an AC power adapter. My one major complaint about the iPod has always been that you have to buy this separately. I find my battery usually starts to get low at about the same time I'm ready for bed, and it was always irritating to have to decide whether or not to leave the computer on overnight just to charge my iPod.

I also found a set of Phillips earphones at the same time. They fit my ears more comfortably than the default iPod earbuds, and they came with a pouch that also has a place for the dock cable.

There are a couple of podcasts available through the iTunes store that have episodes of the old "The Shadow" and "Dragnet" radio shows. (My favorites).

-Jake

i was thinking about getting The Touch but the 8G for $299 pricetag kind of discouraged me...might get one later..

 

[Lola Getz]

I won a Shuffle at my local grocery a while back and I have yet to get that thing to work. Maybe they were giving away the bad ones.

Congrats (on the win, not the potential lemon)! My best friend gave me a Shuffle for my birthday and I love it so much. It goes with me everywhere.! The Apple site is pretty helpful if you still haven't figured out what's wrong with it. I e-mailed them a question about mine and they were super fast and thorough when getting back to me.

 

[Mike in Seattle]

I won a Shuffle at my local grocery a while back and I have yet to get that thing to work. Maybe they were giving away the bad ones. [huh]

If you've had it awhile, skip installing the software on the CD that used to come with it. Just go to Apple.com and download the software. Once that's installed, connect the iPod and that should take care of updating the iPod's insternal software as well.

And RE: the Griffin and other FM transmitters for the car. Most car stereos made in the last decade or more had an auxilliary input that you can plug the iPod into using the headphone jack, or newer car stereos can connect with the iPod jack itself for more flexibility. It's probably not on the face of the stereo itself, but there's probably a jack on the back of the unit that you can plug the iPod in with a $5 or so connector from Radio Shack. The iPod connection cable runs more, but again, more flexibility.

I had the factory am/fm stereo in my Chevy replaced with an am/fm/cd stereo 5-6 years ago. When I got my first Nano a year or two later, I found out a $49 iPod-specific cable from the manufacture let me plug in the iPod via the iPod dock socket. To the stereo, the iPod "looks like" a CD changer, so I can access play lists, albums, individual song from the stereo itself, with teh iPod & cable coiled up in the center console.

 

[Rosie]

My favorite accessory is the wired remote http://www.amazon.com/Apple-M9128G-iPod-Remote-Earbuds/dp/B00009KO14
(I got mine free with my ipod) you can control volume, pause, fast forward, etc without taking your ipod out of whereever it is. Living in NYC, where people sometimes get beat up or worse for this little gadget, that is a huge plus.

 

[Riposte3]

And RE: the Griffin and other FM transmitters for the car. Most car stereos made in the last decade or more had an auxilliary input that you can plug the iPod into using the headphone jack, or newer car stereos can connect with the iPod jack itself for more flexibility. It's probably not on the face of the stereo itself, but there's probably a jack on the back of the unit that you can plug the iPod in with a $5 or so connector from Radio Shack. The iPod connection cable runs more, but again, more flexibility.

Good point. I've used a similar setup for a few years. The mp3/CD-R stereo I bought a couple of years before I got an iPod has a set of RCA inputs in the back. My XM runs to that, and when I got my first iPod a couple of Y-connectors and a miniplug-to-RCA cable to my dash at the spot where I have my iPod holder mounted gave me a dash mounted, easy to use, easy to see setup. The whole setup for the iPod cost less than $10 when I set it up for the Nano, and the new holder for the Touch only cost $10.
If I get a new stereo, I'll definitely have to look at the iPod specific connection.

-Jake