iPod or Pocket PC?

[peterac]

I was recently discussing with a friend that if they are going to spend $300+ dollars on an iPod that they should really consider getting a Pocket PC such as an iPAQ instead. If the quality of the sound they will experience is an important feature to them, am i steering them wrong?

Thanks,
Pete R.
New York

[Darius Wey]

Nope. ;)

A lot of Pocket PCs come with sound enhancement features built into the Settings page of the OS. In addition, many media players that can be installed on there have other sound enhancement features you can activate, as well as EQ settings that you can manipulate.

My thumbs-up for the Pocket PC. :way to go:

[Kati Compton]

The primary "downside" of the PocketPC vs. an iPod is just the amount of storage. In terms of on-the-fly playlist creation and file format support, the Pocket PC is superior (though you may need a 3rd party player to get that file format support, depending on the format you prefer).

[bigkingfun]

I have an iPod in addition to my Pocket PC. I used the PPC as my MP3 player for a long time and was quite happy with it. I bought the iPod because I got a deal I couldn't refuse and now that I've got it, I prefer it to the PPC.

The biggest difference I've found is convenience. I find the iPod a lot easier to control with one hand so it's better suited to the places I use it, mainly in the car and at the gym. Even with a skin with large controls, I found it difficult to work the PPC for changing songs, albums, etc. without having to pull out the stylus.

I also use Audible content (www.audible.com) a lot and I find the iPod synchronization MUCH better. I never had much success with the Audible Player software on the PPC but on the iPod it integrates into iTunes and seems to work much more reliably.

I also like the way the iPod syncs automatically when it's docked. It works much the same as Activesync for calendar, contacts, etc. but it keeps my MP3 library always up to date. If the Pocket PC has a way of doing this, I must have been missing it. The only thing I don't really like about the iPod isn't so much a problem with the hardware but the fact that anything bought from the iTunes Store comes in the Apple format and can't be played anywhere but iTunes or the iPod.

[Sven Johannsen]

I also like the way the iPod syncs automatically when it's docked. It works much the same as Activesync for calendar, contacts, etc. but it keeps my MP3 library always up to date. If the Pocket PC has a way of doing this, I must have been missing it.

You didn't miss it. It wasn't there yet. With MP10, PPC and PC, we are there, not only for music but for videos as well, both plain video and recorded TV, with built in conversion on the fly. Well, on the crawl actually, because it isn't all that fast.

I guess it is a matter of do you want 20, 30, 40G of music, or up to 4G of music, video, pictures, and PIM, and Games and Office, and maps, and web, and........

[Anthony Caruana]

I posted something about this on my blog just last night (www.thepdaguy.com).

In summary, it comes down to storage and convenience. Plus, there are so many cool looking accessories for the iPod.

Another plus for the iPod is that you can also use it as an external hard drive.

Also, the sound quality from my iPod is better than my iPaq 2210. I used Conduit's Pocket Player and it was great. Buit the iPod is far easier to control and the sound is just better.

[dunos]

It very much depends on how you want to use it and how you listen to music. I personally wouldn't have much use for an ipod since I tend to listen to music in places where i am not moving relative to my seat - the car (built in mp3 player), the computer. I also tend to only listen to a few albums at a time rather than wanting my entire music collection with me.

Other people I know listen to music on the move, while walking around, etc. They also tend to like having their entire music collection with them and see music as the soundtrack to their lives.

Dan

[IpaqMan2]

I am going to take a different approach and say..

Yes, I think yo are stearing the person a wrong.

There are Computere people and there are non computer people.
There are gadget lovers, and those who just use gadgets.

In my opinion and iPod (even though I hate iPods) is a better music player for the mass audience. It's simple, it stores a large amount of music files, and it's an icon in society today.

Though Pocket PCs are so far beyond anything an iPod could ever hope to be, it doesn't hold near the amount of storage the smallest iPod can with out paying through the nose for a 4 gig flash card if they even make one, let alone 10 gigs, 20, 40 and so on.

Second, Pocket PCs are a bit more delicate than iPods. Pockets PC or for that matter a Palm PDA could be confusing for non gadget lovers and non computer users. Where the iPod has that big Wheel... Weee, that even a 4 year old could figure out.

And last the iPod is a social Icon. Many people want one because the iPod is just populare. They want to be like everyone else or to believe they have the best (poor blinded people). Most people I know who have iPods want it just for music, something that takes no more than 2 brain cells to figure out. The iPod also has itunes which does have a lot of music just for the iPod.

So I figure if thats what your friend wants than let them get it.. No point trying to convince them that a Pocket PC is so much better. If your friend just can't see the beauty and versatile of what Pocket PCs can do, than neither can all the tea in china do a thing to change his mind.

And last.... I think it would be insulting to a Pocket PC to use it in place of an iPod. Pocket PC are so much more than just an Mp3 player.

[Deus]

Here is a good thread. http://discussion.brighthand.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=109665&highlight=ipod