Apple iPod classic 160 GB Silver (6th Generation) OLD MODEL
by Apple Computer
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Our Price: $349.88 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $144.99 (click here) Category: Network Media Player See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Apple iPod classic 160 GB Silver (6th Generation) OLD MODEL
Customer Review: What's the point of upgrading to an inferior version?
Summary: 1 Stars
I purchased the 160GB version as an upgrade to my 5th generation Ipod Video with 60Gb of storage. Sounded reasonable at the time. I purchased a $340 Harman Kardon Go & Play to use as not only a sound system, but to use in the classroom when showing videos I purchased from Itunes and other educational sources. It was very nice having my library of videos for class on my Ipod. I figured the additional storage on the new unit would be extra nice. So, imagine my surprise when the 6th generation Ipod is no longer compatible with the HK Go&Play because they've disabled the Video Out feature. Now mind you, Apple is still advertising the Go & Play on their website as being compatible. Ipod compitable logos are misleading. Don't assume. . . I contacted Harman Kardon and had an opportunity to speak to one of their techs who indicated that Apple decided to share the design changes just before releasing the new 6th Generation Ipods, leaving their engineers absolutely no time to process or adjust to the changes. Intentional? I guess if it boosts Apples sales of proprietary cables and docks, then probably.
I also noticed the sound on the 6th generation wasn't quite as refined as my 5th generation Ipod playing through the Go&Play. More research online talks about sound compression modifications. For anyone who has the Go&Play, you know what an amazing sound system it is. It picked up the changes in the 6th Generation very clearly. What a disappointment. I also need to mention that having the video capability on the very costly Go&Play helped me justify the steep price and sold me on it. . .not much good now though. . .
I've owned every generation of Ipod that has come out and I'm amazed they would do this to their line. What makes things worst is they've kept things very quiet to the point that their own technical suppport people are unaware of the changes and handle people like you and me who think the unit is broken, as just that. . .a defective unit. You'll spend a fair amount of time on the phone with their people trying to figure out what's wrong with your unit when it basically amounts to Apple's irresponsible design change. Until you do the research online, you won't know any better. They released the 6th Generation sometime around early Fall. It's now almost February and it's amazing how few staffers know how to deal with the issues when customers start to complain. There stores continue to sell you items that don't work with the 6th Generation Ipod because they haven't a clue. . .One additional note, if you've enjoyed the ability to fix minor things with your Ipod, like battery replacement or hard drive replacement, those days are also gone. It wasn't so much an issue of getting rid of the white color of the Ipod, but designing a case that would have to be destroyed before it could be openned by someone like you or me. Rumor has it that when it does need something as minor as a battery replacement, you'll need to take it to an Apple store where they'll exchange it for a "refurbished" unit. My loyalty to Apple ends as of now. I've taken back the Ipod and will continue to do what I can to maintain my 5th generation. . .which will be a very sad day when it finally goes to rest. In the meantime, I hope that people initiate a class action lawsuit or the open source community makes it a mission to put Apple in it's place. I'll be first in line to contribute to the cause.
Customer Review: Best Thing Since The CD Invention...The iPod is Revolutionary!
Summary: 5 Stars
All I can say is that I found my music collection again and then some...it even sounds better than what I remember. I don't know why others are having so many problems but I have 80+GB of mp3's and it's still growing. I'm guessing I'll have around 100GB of mp3's by the time I'm done organizing them. I have the majority of these on this iPod and do not have the problems others are stating here. Hummmm...Oh well, don't know. Mine works just fine and SOUNDS GREAT! The headphones are the BEST I've ever had! I don't know whether the iPod is re-sampling my music or whether it's the headphones, but this thing sounds pretty damn good! I can even make out lyrics that I never understood before...loving it! It puts my car stereo to shame.
This is the first iPod I ever owned and just love it! It offers a lot and has all the features you need for a music lover; shuffle, podcasts, games, photos, to the nice bright and clear display. You know, the 3 features I like the most are the pause, shuffle, and touch handle wheel. If you pause a track it will stay paused FOREVER!!!...man, this is probably the BEST feature for sure...about time someone did that! I was so sick of CD's and other mp3 players starting my music over. Not here. If you pause a tune, turn it off, come back a week later to listen it's in the exact same place to the minute and second of where it left off.
I'm from the tape, vinyl, and CD generation and it finally feels good to have my collection, family collection, friends collection, downloads, and everything all in one place. I'm re-discovering my music collection again! All those tapes, CDs, records, and albums sat in my boxes and other places for too many years collecting dust and now it's all in one "great sounding" compact place. That's revolutionary!
Another reason I probably don't have any problems is because I JUST DON'T USE iTunes...I use other software to sync and load my mp3s, podcasts, and everything to my iPod. Give it a try if you have iTunes issues. I don't like iTunes myself...it's to clunky and annoying. It's very limited too.
NO COMPLAINTS HERE...absolutely perfect product!!!!! It could be a little cheaper though, but I can't complain on that either because the price dropped $50 bucks since I bought it and Amazon was really good at refunding the price difference (which they do not do anymore - why did they get rid of the "Price Refund Guarantee"? Maybe they were losing too much money!?). But I have to compliment Amazon on this! Bring that back!
I'd give this product 10 stars if I could and also give Amazon 10 stars for customer service which was very courteous, friendly, quick, and VERY REFRESHING for once in this day and age of crappy customer service...(those companies know who they are).
I'll tell ya, if you are unsatisfied after getting one of these...go listen to an 8 track or tape system for awhile and you will never complain again! Or you will just have to do it like the "good ole' days" and listen to the whole album from beginning to end (not including flipping the tape over or fast forwarding to the one you want to hear again or listen to next...it was easier to just listen straight through); and would just get use to it. You're obviously spoiled. This machine is a real treat for those of us that listened to tapes, vinyl, and CDs for years! Cheers!
Customer Review: Hooray for my first "real" iPod!
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought an iPod Nano last year because it was pink. The full size iPods came in what I thought were boring colors. As the Nano was only 4 GB, I filled it up pretty quickly. Everything had to be ripped at 128 kbps and I could only store the things I really liked. I believe I had about 820 songs on it.
I decided to upgrade to a "real" iPod this summer because I will be traveling soon. Being in an airplane for 13 hours means that I will need a good mix of songs to listen to. I did a lot of review reading before I decided to take the plunge and add this iPod to my cart. I didn't want to go through the nightmare of dealing with Apple about getting it repaired/replaced. And I need to leave the country soon with it. No time for it to be sent in to a repair shop. I hesitated a bit before clicking the "Place Order" button, but I don't regret my decision now.
I love this iPod! It is quite a bit larger and heavier than my Nano, which is a drawback, but I still love it. I was so afraid when I bought this that it would freeze, the screen would go black, it would not be able to be synced, or the click wheel would malfunction. None of that has happened to me. It charged quickly. It synced around 19000 songs in maybe an hour. I didn't really keep an eye on it. I just set it to sync, and by the time I came back not too much later, it was done. I also had no problems with the most current version of iTunes on my Windows Vista PC (yay Vista!).
The menu is pretty familiar. It's got a split screen format that I find mildly annoying, but it is just different than my Nano. I like how many additional features you get on this iPod. I never had games and a stopwatch on the Nano! That is cool. I can't recall how many times I have been looking for a stopwatch and unable to find one. I don't like the Cover Flow setting at all. I am glad you don't have to use it. I have no album art on my iPod, and I like it that way. If you have a small music collection, then I guess it makes sense to use it. For me, it's just time consuming.
The battery life has not been personally tested by me. I haven't left the house with it yet since I didn't have a case. But, this iPod is awesome. I love how much I can fit on here. My 19000 songs = ~110 GB. But, that is because I have things at different bit rates. Some are 320, which is much higher quality than most people use. I don't know what I'm going to do with the other 35 GB I have. (The formatted size is 146 GB, approximately) I don't think I will ever fill this up.
I highly recommend this iPod to people who have extensive music collections, people who like to watch movies on a tiny screen, and people who just love having expensive electronics. For a teenager, someone who wants to use this to exercise, or someone with a small music collection, I recommend the Nano, or even the shuffle.
Customer Review: Don't rush to upgrade
Summary: 3 Stars
I received my iPod classic as a gift. This is my 5th iPod and I had high hopes. After a few days my reaction is mixed.
Sound Quality
-) My 60 GB iPod with Video had much better sound quality than this version. I listened to both with my Bose QC-3 headphones, a pair of Bose earbuds and a pair of regular earbuds. I had someone hold the iPods out of sight so I coudln't tell which I was listening to during my "blind" test. The sound quality on the new iPod Classic is a bit muddy. That's the best description I can come up with for the sound. It wasn't so bad the new iPod should be returned but there was a difference that I couldn't describe as a good thing.
I could hear less of a difference in quality between the two devices on the standard iPod headphones. Since my other headphones are both mady by Bose, it is possible that there is some problem with the Classic and those headphones. I listened to both in my car, which also has Bose speakers. The sound was different but not as different as it seemed via the headphones. Nevertheless, try it (with your headphones) before you buy it. Sound quality is very subjective and you may prefer the classic.
Interface
+) Cover Flow is really a nice feature. It makes me stop and listen to albums that I had forgotten about over the years as they get burried among all of the newer music. I have had no problems with freezing.
+) The ability to search is a wonderful improvement. I am not one of those people that knows every artist name, album name, or song name. It's nice to search on one word. The more ways the iPod can allow you to find what you want to hear the happier I am.
-) The click wheel on this version seems less sensitive. While it may give you more control, it isn't as smooth and easy-to-use as previous iPods.
+) The finish on this iPod (silver) doesn't show every finger print the way my 60 GB black video did. You'll still see every print on the back, but at least the front of the device isn't a mess the moment you pick it up.
Display
+) The display on this iPod is better than every other iPod I've owned. It's beautiful to look at and movies and music videos look great!!
All in all, I'm happy with the new iPod. However, if it wasn't a gift I would return it. There aren't enough improvements versus drawbacks for me to part with my 5th generation iPod. If you need something new because of a break or this is your first iPod, it's fine. If you have a working device that you love, don't rush out to buy this.
****Update March 2008****
The latest software update for the iPod (not iTunes) has really improved the sound quality. I don't notice the difference between the two models any longer and I'm very happy with the Classic at this point.
Customer Review: I've got one!!! Size matters..
Summary: 5 Stars
Ok guys, I just picked up my silver iPod classic 160gb from the Apple store on Regent Street in London so I can give an actual review on it.
I've had an 80GB video iPod for a year and it's already full, so I was really hoping Apple would make an iPod big enough for me. Presently I've got 110GB (and counting) of music, so this iPod is for people like me who have a large music collection, and who like to be able to take it anyplace.
The 160GB iPod is the same size as the 80gb, but costs less than the 80GB did when it first came out.
With a brushed aluminium front finish (similar to the 2 and 3G Nanos), it should be less prone to scratching, though the back is the same smudge magnet, and I don't know how resilient the screen is. The front is curvier than that of the last 2 video iPods, with the screen slightly depressed from the rest of the casing.
Additional features are extra long battery life (40 hours for music, 7 hours for video; I've tested this and playing music non stop without much fast forwarding, etc, it's about right), and cover flow (a fun way of scrolling through for music using album cover art, though it is a bit sluggish).
The new split-screen interface lists functions to the left half of the screen, and symbols (or previews of content such as cover art, videos or photos shown as a slide show) to the right as you scroll through the functions. Neat!!
During music playback, after being idle for about 80 seconds, the screen goes gray and displays a clock, and battery power. Viewing tracks in an album also gives you, at a glance, the track times. Same for video. A nice touch. To my hearing, the sound quality (without equalizers, mind you) is improved; more bass and a bit more treble. The iPod turns off in about 2 seconds, much faster than previous models.
It's still got the other regular features; album track lyrics (new, nicer text font, and it also shows the album art), can play video and games, store photos, contacts, calendar, notes, stopwatch, and screen lock (which allows you to lock the screen with a password), and it can be used as an external hard drive. It shows up in windows explorer as an external drive. The search feature allowing one to type in album/song/artist titles (introduced in the last video iPod) is still there, but relocated to the "music" menu. I didn't spot it at first. In fact, the menu has been reshuffled to make it better, and (under settings) one can now view number of songs, videos, photos, etc graphically just like in iTunes.
If you need loads of space for your music collection, you can't go wrong getting this. Judging from the crowds in the store, Apple's got another hit here. Now if only the iPod touch had this much memory...