The advertising crew at Apple has done an incredible job. They've managed to convince nearly every consumer in America that if they want an MP3 player, they need an Apple iPod. The iPod is synonymous with MP3 players in this day and age, and you can see them all over the place. What makes iPods so great? Do you really need one? Is the fourth-generation 20 gigabyte Apple iPod all it is cracked up to be? Read on to find out.

iPods are very sleek in design and shape, and the fourth-generation iPods are no exception. The front of the unit is made of a sturdy material with a glossy-white finish, while the sides are metallic gray. The top of the iPod is where you will find the headphone jack, remote control jack and hold button; the bottom of the unit is home to the dock connector. The back of the iPod has almost nothing besides the Apple logo and an indicator of how many gigabytes your model is packing. If you are willing to fork over some extra cash, you can get your name laser-engraved on the back. The unit is fairly durable although it is very easy to scratch it by accident.

The fourth-generation iPod has a very nice built-in liquid crystal display screen. Its' size is two inches diagonally, which is fairly large and you will have no problem viewing anything that is displayed on the screen. Unlike the new and overpriced iPod Photo, the screen does not support colors, although a black and white screen is completely acceptable in my opinion. The resolution is 160 by 128, therefore everything is fairly sharp and vivid. The screen has a very nice light blue backlight, which is handy when you are selecting tracks in low-light conditions. The preset contrast is perfect for me, although some people might want to adjust the contrast to suit their preferences.

The lower portion of the unit is where you will find the Click-Wheel. This wheel eliminates the need for the four buttons that were located beneath the screen on older iPod models and was first introduced when the iPod Minis were released early in 2004. The 'Click-Wheel' is a very innovative way to make selections on your iPod. Basically, there is a very touch-sensitive wheel and by scrolling it in one direction or the other you can browse through 1,000 tracks in a matter of seconds. By softly pressing the circle in the middle you choose your selection. On the edge of this wheel there are four buttons, which were previously also touch-sensitive on past iPods but now must be clicked - the play, back/menu, rewind and fast-forward buttons. Since the fourth-generation iPods, iPod Mini and iPod Photo all have a Click-Wheel, I guess it is safe to assume that it will be a staple of the iPod series.

Transferring songs onto your iPod is incredibly simple. Each iPod comes with iTunes software (compatible with both Macintosh and Windows operating systems) and a USB 2.0 and FireWire cable. When you install the software and connect either cable into your iPod and computer, you can begin transferring your songs right away. The iTunes software is extremely user-friendly and since iPods support basically all files (MP3, WAV, etc), you will have your entire music collection on your iPod in a matter of a few minutes. The transfer speeds are blazing fast. If you wish to, you can also create playlists and transfer those as well. The iTunes software is also affiliated with the iTunes Music Store, so you can legally download songs without having to look for an online service such as Napster.

Using your iPod is just as easy as transferring songs onto it. You can easily find what you want to listen to by browsing your iPod by album, artist, genre or playlist. You can shuffle your songs to listen to them in random order, have tracks repeated or even rate your songs on a scale from 1 to 5 to make highly rated songs appear more often when you play them in random order. You can create playlists without even being connected to a computer. The iPod has a built-in clock and alarm, a calendar, a phone book and three games: Brick, Solitaire and Parachute. All of the add-ons are quite useful and/or entertaining. The sound quality on the iPod is terrific if you use a good pair of headphones. The volume is loud enough for me and the sound is very crisp. There are 20 factory-preset equalizers, some of which really bring out the base. Unless you have files that are corrupt in the first place, none of your music will be distorted.

The fourth-generation iPod that I have been using comes with 20 gigabytes of memory, which is enough to hold roughly 5,000 songs. Five thousand songs should be enough for nearly everyone to hold their entire collection of music and still have room for a few thousand more songs. After I had uploaded my entire CD collection, I still had 16 gigabytes of room available on the iPod. This shows you that shelling out an extra $100 for the 40 gigabyte version doesn't make sense, as you will have trouble using all that space. The only upside is that you can store non-music files on your iPod as well, which is a good way to transfer files from one computer to another.

One great thing about the fourth-generation iPods is that their battery lives have been extended considerably. I heard that Apple used different components and new chipsets, which has allowed the manufacturers to extend the battery life from a miserable 8 hours to a respectable 12 hours. This 50% increase in battery life really does make a difference. I actually had this unit play music for slightly over 13 hours at one point, but if you play games then the battery will drain a little quicker. Although the iPod still can't even compete with the battery life of other MP3 players such as my Sony MZ-NF610 MD Player, I commend Apple for addressing this issue. The internal battery is a rechargeable lithium-ion that takes roughly 3-4 hours to charge up the iPod, although once again you cannot replace the battery by yourself.

The only major drawbacks to this iPod are the accessories. The fourth-generation 20 gigabyte iPod comes with an AC adapter, a USB 2.0 cable, a FireWire cable and a pair of ear-buds. The cables and adapter are used for recharging the battery and transferring files onto your iPod, while the ear-buds are standard headphones that are thrown in by Apple. These headphones are stylish and decent sound-wise, although my pair of $40 Sony ear-buds are more sensitive and higher quality, therefore the iPods' sound quality improves.

However, the lack of certain accessories and the price of other accessories are ridiculous. First of all, this iPod model lacks a case to protect the unit. All cases are sold separately, they are all overpriced and this is unfortunate since you really should buy one to protect your iPod. You can find silicone protector for $19.99 at all retail outlets, however I bought the $35 leather carrying case because it is the only case that actually protects the screen. Screen protection is vital, yet the price tag is too hefty. This iPod no longer comes with a free remote or dock. Although a remote isn't necessary in my opinion, the dock is a very useful accessory. Unfortunately, it will set you back another $40. Another essential is the car cassette adapter ($20) that allows you to play your iPod in a car. The iPod website also has dozens of other accessories as well, ranging from voice records to media readers, from FM transmitters to belt clips. The downside is that all of these accessories are terribly overpriced.

Overall, the fourth-generation 20 gigabyte iPod is a dazzling MP3 player if you are willing to pay premium prices for the necessary accessories. I measured the unit and it is approximately 2.5 x .5 x 4 inches and weighs less than 6 ounces, therefore it is extremely portable and will fit nearly everywhere. It is very attractive, has an extended battery life, is packed with features and can hold 5,000 songs. At a $299.99 price tag, it might not be the biggest bang for the buck, yet those that can afford it should definitely pick one up.

Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 299.99
Recommended for: Music Lovers - High Capacity Storage for an Entire Album Collection