PPC or Ipod

[shawnc]

One of the most used features of my PPC is listening to MP3's/WMA's. So much so that I came very close to requesting an Ipod for Xmas. However, after playing with the 4150 I simply could not pass it up.

Which leads me to my question.......storage capacity aside, what makes a dedicated music player better for playing music than a PPC?

And, is there some type of 3rd party app that I can buy to narrow the performance/feature gap.

As always, thanx in advance for any feedback.

[jeremyweisser]

I faced the same dilemma. I could not settle on a solution so I decided to just buy both. Though cumbersome to carry around it is tough to replace the cool factor of the iPod or the iPaq.

[Vulcan]

A PPC with a set of decent headphones is the way to go. I use mine all the time to play MP3s via WiFi from my server. I have owned several digital MP3 players and found the sound no better but the smaller size was nice for outdoor activities.

[shawnc]

jeremyweisser & vulcan,

Thanx for the feedback. I somehow had the impression that organizing things like playlists were much easier on a dedicated player. Also, I didn't know if the sound quality was better as well.

[yslee]

Size or capactiy; 256 and 512mb flash based players are very tiny nowadays. Going closer to PPC size we get the HDD based players like the iPod which carries gigs of songs.

That said I'd rather buy a huge memory card for whatever PDA I carry; more devices = more mess in pocket.

[Janak Parekh]

I faced the same dilemma. I could not settle on a solution so I decided to just buy both. Though cumbersome to carry around it is tough to replace the cool factor of the iPod or the iPaq.
Ditto. ;)

I somehow had the impression that organizing things like playlists were much easier on a dedicated player. Also, I didn't know if the sound quality was better as well.
I personally consider a PDA easier in setting up playlists, as you have a full touchscreen to help you. Audio quality-wise, the iPAQs are near the top of the heap -- they easily rival my iPod and I think the DSP makes them a bit better. I wouldn't use either of them as criterion -- size, capacity, battery life, and availability of remote controls are four main considerations I'd keep in mind.

--janak

[ctmagnus]

I somehow had the impression that organizing things like playlists were much easier on a dedicated player.

I find CEPlaylist (http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=1596) works much better than my Nomad Jukebox 3 for playlists. But I also find the NJB3 to be better than WMP9 on the Pocket PC for this task.

[tanalasta]

Comparisons between pocketpc and dedicated mp3 players:

1. Pocketpc's can do many other things. However, an mp3 player is dedicated and designed for music (and perhaps portable storage if it has a plug/play USB port).
2. Transferring music to the ipod is hell quick if you have a firewire port ;) But if you have a CF/SD card reader anyway.......
3. Pocketpc's are quite a bit longer (though thinner if you have a new IPAQ) than most mp3 players.
4. Battery life positively sucks on some pocketpc's when playing mp3's but if you have a dedicated program like pocketplayer (or others) then you can save by turning off the screen etc etc... And whilst we're on software - this makes it easy to change playlists etc etc... Plus the screen is a lot nicer on a pocketpc.
5. Here's a big one: IPOD's have gigabytes of storage. Pocketpc's don't. And if you have enough money to buy a 1Gb card.... haha... don't know about the microdrives but they consume batteries very very quickly.

If you already have a pocketpc don't buy an ipod unless you got the cash! If you don't want a pocketpc (or a new one at that) then go with the ipod. It's a very very good device and pretty much the benchmark for all the others. Only thing is... its pricey... :P Your decision though! But then again, i'd probably buy both if i could afford it. Oh, and make sure you buy a decent pair of headphones too though the ipod ones ain't bad... some others are terrible...

[Tom W.M.]

Disregarding storage space, the biggest difference is in battery life. Also, some MP3 players allow you to use normal alkaline batteries as a backup.

[Wiggin]

Disregarding storage space, the biggest difference is in battery life. Also, some MP3 players allow you to use normal alkaline batteries as a backup.

Echo!
The iPod was a decision based upon two simple factors that the PPC can not address. Disk space (30GB!!) that provides room for my entire digital music collection and a battery that lasts long enough (+8 hrs) to listen to a large amount of that collection between charges.
Icing on the decision cake would be the design factor of the iPod. Let's just admit it, shall we... Apple makes some very impressive technology from a design perspective.
When a PPC provides those two factors as built-in features with NO need for memory cards and extended batteries, we will have reached a very good place in the handheld world! :way to go:

[Vulcan]

When I am at home I listen to my music via WiFi from my server...I have about 200 cds ripped there so I have a lot of choice. When I know I will be away from home I have a 256 CF card that I use only for music as I have a 256 SD card for my data. While the 256 CF card is not 30 gb like the ipod it is enough for a days listening. I do like the fact that I have one less device to pack around.

[shawnc]

I think I'm where Vulcan is (minus the WiFi server). If there is no discernable difference in sound quality, I would just as soon load my music to my 512 SD card (1 Gig if they ever release them :evil: ). That leaves me with one less device to worry about.

No doubt the ipod carry's significant "WOW" factor, but the lack of WMA functionality makes it a more difficult sale for me. I was more willing to live without WMA when I thought sound quality was an issue.

Janak - sorry for such a uninformed question, but what does DSP stand for?

Thanx to all who posted. I really appreciate the advice/information.

[Falstaff]

Janak - sorry for such a uninformed question, but what does DSP stand for?

It stands for Digital Signal Processor. They are used to work with digital audio & video. I am in a class now (high school) where we get to play around with them. Basically it just acts as a dedicated processor for the multimedia applications.

[Janak Parekh]

Falstaff is right on the money. The iPAQs have such a secondary processor to do bass and treble boost, and IMHO it sounds better than any software mixer I've heard.

No doubt the ipod carry's significant "WOW" factor, but the lack of WMA functionality makes it a more difficult sale for me. I was more willing to live without WMA when I thought sound quality was an issue.
There are hard drive-based players that handle WMA, such as the Nomad, the Karma, the iRiver unit, etc. :) The key criterion is if you need/want to carry all your music with you.

--janak

[blusparkles]

There are hard drive-based players that handle WMA, such as the Nomad, the Karma, the iRiver unit, etc. :) The key criterion is if you need/want to carry all your music with you.

--janak

Absolutely. I have every CD I've ever owned as well as every MP3 I've downloaded on my iPod and I don't have to give a second thought as to whether I've got enough memory to hold the music. Rather than having to delete older music to make room for new stuff, I just add it on to my existing music collection. I love having all of my music in one place! The 30GB iPod I have should serve me fine for another year or so I think 8) (at which point I can get a 60GB one or whatever).

I have a Pocket PC that I use constantly - but all of my music goes on my iPod. It's sleek, sexy and does its one allocated function extremely well. Go the iPod! :lol: