Apple iPod Photo 60 GB MP3 Player: No Wonder They're So Popular
Written: Nov 27 '07 (Updated Dec 01 '07)
Product Rating:
Sound:
Ease of Use:
Durability:
Portability:
Battery Life:
Pros: Works well, nice sound quality, good battery life, excellent software, multiple charging options
Cons: A little expensive
The Bottom Line: The Apple iPod Photo 60 GB MP3 Player is perfect for the music and picture lovers. Store your entire music library and your memories. I highly recommend it.
noangels's Full Review: Apple iPod photo 4th Generation (60 GB) MP3 Player
My freshman year of college brought the need for many lifestyle adjustments. Besides the obvious change in diet (pizza daily) and sharing a bathroom with 40 other females, I was relegated from a normal bedroom to living in a virtual closet that they nicknamed a “dorm room.” This change in quarters required other adjustments, such as no longer having the space for my 3-disc changer, 5-speaker stereo. The horror!
I tried to play my CDs on the computer, and while my speakers were great, I couldn’t be bothered putting each disc in, waiting for it to load, etc. Please don’t fault me for the impatience of my generation… blame broadband internet.
So I set about digitizing my music collection. Using iTunes, I ripped every CD, which was a painstakingly slow endeavor. It took me about one month to get all of my albums on my external hard drive, but it was worth it. I never went back to CDs.
Purchasing Decision
Even after returning home from school, I stayed with my digital music. I had a great pair of speakers and felt no need to switch back to my stereo. I started thinking about what else I could do with my music, since I had a nice library of it on my external hard drive. I decided I wanted an MP3 player. The Apple iPod seemed like an obvious choice. I was very attached to iTunes, so an MP3 player that worked with that. Also, the fact that I had an entire library on my computer, rather than a few CDs, made a hard drive-based MP3 player, like an iPod, well suited to my needs. I purchased by Apple iPod Photo 60 GB MP3 Player in 2005.
Design
The design of this iPod is very sleek, though not as much so as some of the smaller hard drive models. It has a white exterior and relatively small, though large enough to hold comfortably in the palm of your hand. It is 2.4” W x 4.1” H x 0.69” D. It fits easily into any purse or pocket. The back is a chrome color that inevitably picks up fingerprints. I purchased a skin for the front to spice up the boring white color. I had my name engraved on the back of the iPod; a free perk I received for buying it directly from Apple.
The iPod is controlled by a circular button on the front. Tracing it with your finger allows you to scroll through menus, and a button in the center allows you to select. It is easy to use once you get the hang of it. The buttons are large enough that both my tiny fingers and my fiance’s bigger fingers have has no problem using it.
A 2” color screen is situated on the front of the iPod, for controlling your iPod; viewing song information, album covers, and viewing your photos. The screen is very bright and sharp, especially for an MP3 player’s display. I was impressed by the quality. The screen’s coating collects finger prints very easily so I highly recommend a lens cloth to keep it free of prints and streaks.
There is a headphone jack at the top of the iPod, for the included white ear buds to plug in to. I have yet to find a standard pair of headphones that did not work with this player. Next to the aforementioned jack is the hold button; perfect to ensure the iPod doesn’t play in your bag while you’re on the go. The bottom of the iPod features a rectangular port for the included USB cable. This model can connect via USB or Firewire using the same port.
Usage
This iPod is very easy to use. Most functions are self explanatory and intuitive. You won’t be consulting the manual often. All of the features are easy to use and its main function, playing music, is even easier.
The iPod organizes music in a variety of ways. You can choose playlists you have made on your computer or browse by artist, genre, album, or song. Shuffle can also be used for playback. It is very easy to skip through songs, fast forward, rewind, and adjust the volume while listening to music. I found the sleep timer to be a great setting. It was easy to set up and great for those of us who enjoy falling asleep to music.
This iPod also allows you load and view photos. The photos can be viewed in galleries or in slideshows, and are just as easy to navigate to as the music options.
Capacity
This iPod holds a little less than 60 gigabytes (GB) of music, as some of the capacity is used for formatting. It’s perfect for the user who plans to upload their full music library to their MP3 player, as opposed to a few albums which will fit on an iPod nano with its smaller storage capacities. I have every album I physically own, in addition to a number of downloaded albums, loaded on my computer and iPod. They total over 6000 songs, 15 days of music, and 26 GB. Apple says that this iPod will hold up to 15,000 songs. I’d say that is about correct, depending on the quality, format, and size of your music files. Don’t forget pictures take up space too! I have approximated 100 photos on my iPod as well, and I still have not exceeded half of the available storage.
Compatibility
This iPod is compatible with MP3, WAV, AAC, MP3 VBR, and AIFF music files. I have been unable to find information about its photo compatibility, but I’ve had no problem uploading and viewing my JPEGs and BMPs.
The iPod can play music that has been purchased from iTunes, along with your own music that has been downloaded or ripped from CDs, in compatible file formats.
Sound Quality
I have found the sound quality to be very good for a portable device. I know the included earphones will leave most audiophiles ripping their ears off, but I think for the average music lover, these are just fine. Songs can be set with individual equalizer presets or you can set your equalizer to any predetermined setting. It does not allow for the manual settings that iTunes allows on the computer.
Battery Life
I have been satisfied with the battery life of this product. Obviously it varies by use. If I’m flipping through songs and spending a lot of time playing with the settings, I’ve had it die in as few as 2 hours. A little over 9 hours is my average battery life on this iPod, usually divided over a day or two. The battery is rated to last up to 15 hours, which I’m sure is possible if you did it straight or two days apart without playing with it in between. I was most impressed after using it during a 5 hour flight (used it from take off to landing), left it in my bag without charging it for a week, then used it again on the 4.5 hour flight home.
There are many charging options for this iPod. It came with an AC Adapter for charging, which connects to the same port as the USB and Firewire cables. The AC Adaptor seems to be the fastest charging method, taking about 2 ˝ hours from full discharge to full charge. The USB and Firewire cables are also capable of charging it, but I’ve found them to be significantly less efficient. My iPod only came with a USB cable and hours of playing it plugged into my laptop often result in only a fraction of a charge. The AC Adaptor is small enough to be portable, so if possible, I highly recommend relying on it as your preferred method of charging.
Software
The Apple iPod Photo 60 GB MP3 Player, like every other iPod, must be used in conjunction with iTunes. I happen to love iTunes. It is a user friendly media player, with some of the best organization capabilities I’ve seen. I have used it to organize my entire music library. It has an endless number of options and settings. You can add tons of information about your music, including notes. You can set each song to have its own equalizer preset. You can uncheck any songs you don’t want it to shuffle through (great if you have Christmas music or other music you don’t want to hear year-round). You can even include the album art to show on your iPod when each song is played.
This program makes it easy to collect all of your music and even increase your digital library by provided an easy method to rip CDs.
It is easy to synchronize your iPod to your iTunes. You can do it manually or automatically. Either way, you have the ability to transfer songs with one click, along with any playlists you have on your computer. Even when you don’t have access to your library, you can plug your iPod into any computer and use iTunes to play the music on your computer directly from your iPod.
Another well known fact is that iTunes allows you to download music legally, for a fee, for your personal use on your computer and/or iPod. All of the latest hits are available for purchase, along with some obscure stuff.
It is possible to replace the operating system of the iPod with third party software, to make it compatible with other media player programs. I do not recommend this at all. Try to get to know iTunes. It is a very well designed program that deserves the attention it has gotten.
Accessories
Accessories for the iPod certainly are not in short supply. You can find replacement ear buds, travel cases, skins, and much more. I have used several iPod accessories with this iPod. The first was my Monster FM Transmitter, which charged the iPod (in my car) and transmitted my music to my FM radio. This was a good idea in concept, but wasn’t as well executed. Often interference would cause too much static in my car speakers.
I also used it with my fiance’s Altec Lansing inMotion IM7 Docking Station. This model of iPod is too large to fit in the charging dock, but it hooked up fine to the auxiliary port using a male-to-male audio cable. I now use this method for hooking it up to my car stereo; I plug the iPod into the auxiliary port with an audio cable.
Price
The Apple iPod Photo 60 GB MP3 player was $499.99 on Apple’s website at the time of purchase. It was a little expensive, but it has performed well since and I have been satisfied with the purchase.
Recommendation
I highly recommend this iPod for anyone who is looking to store an entire music collection and doesn’t mind spending the extra money. This MP3 player has survived being beat up in my bag for over 2 years and certainly deserves some praise for that.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 499.99 Recommended for: Music Lovers - High Capacity Storage for an Entire Album Collection
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