Agang579

I'm thinking of getting my daughter an ipod for her birthday.. Do you have to have an apple computer for it to work? Also, is there anything else (software, cables, etc) I would need to buy along with it? I want her to have everything she needs to get started. I remember birthdays with a great gift but no batteries. Thanks in advance

caz

You do not need an apple computer for the ipod to be compatible. It works fine with a PC. I would sugesst getting the car adapter for the ipod (recomend the Belkin one) It enables you to play it wirelessly on a car stereo or any stereo for that matter with excellent clarity. Great Gift

Redlemon

Apparently, I'm not allowed to just drop a quote in, so I'm writing this as well.

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maleficent

The Ipod works right out of the box, but whatever PC you hook it up to, you want to make sure that you've plenty of space for the music that you will be copying to the IPod.

While they aren't required, there are also a lot of fun accessories that go with the IPod, carrying cases, rubber skins (it protects it a little bit) and other stuff, including speakers...

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Agang579

Thanks for the information, always great response on this site.

superiorrain

I know that this is about what you need to run an I Pod, but if you wanted to save a little bit of money you could look at getting one of the many similar (and in my opinion better) but cheaper mp3 players.

Creative touch would be my choice, cheaper and battery life is longer to boot plus other benefits.

Check out this thread before you definately decide on one or the other click me

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jonjon42

I love my ipod
you need to have either a firewire card or a usb2.0 adapter (if your computer supports usb2.0)
itrip is nice for cars (I can't stand the belkin one)

GET A CARRYING CASE!!!!
I suggest something from http://www.iskin.com
which they now do sell at the apple stores
They are the best.
otherwise the ipod tends to get scratched and dirty easier..and the inlcuded carrying case kinda sucks.

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ergdork

Have to say - I have a LOT of trouble regarding the radio adapters for the ipod. I live in Boston and the radio stations are packed. The radio transmitter is pretty come and go.

he_haha

iTrip is probably the best radio transmitter that you can get for the iPod. It is also on the same price level as most other high quality transmitters.

hambone

you don't need USB 2.0, it is just that with 1.x it is super slow. That is all I have so it took awhile to get all the music on, but I LOVE the iPod. Great gift idea!

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jstory

Itunes works great with a PC now so you should be fine.

ianthegoat

When I bought my semi-old-school IPod, you needed to specify that it was for a Windows machine. You also need an IEEE 1394 (firewire) port.

The transfer/playlist software I prefer is X-Play, but many others work well, and many others don't.

Original battery life was ~10 hours, but that has decreased.

I just wish you could create playlists "on the fly"

Billy Ocean

How do you erase music that is already on your ipod without formating? Can you download music off your ipod to a friends PC or mac?

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zhevek

You can only download off your iPod to other computers with err, hacks that you can find out there.

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tres

Do you have to buy their music, or can I use the mp3's already on my system?

Redlemon

Existing MP3s are fine.

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Billy Ocean

Can you re-format your Ipod?

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Redlemon

Errr.... why do you ask? There is an "iPod Updater" available from Apple, which can either (1) install a new OS to your iPod while keeping all the songs on it, or (2) reformat and do a fresh OS install. If you use some other software to reformat the iPod, you might never get music out of it again.

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Bratwurst

Don't know if you can get this deal elsewhere right now or not, but Microcenter is selling 4 Gig Ipod Mini's for $179 right now. Check it out - http://www.microcenter.com/

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Billy Ocean

there's bunch of music on my ipod I want to get rid of and it would be easier to just start fresh.

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Redlemon

OK then, here you go: Apple - iPod - Download.

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Billy Ocean

Thanks. I'll give it a try.

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zizdog69

My U2 version iPod works awesome with the Alpine deck with iPod controls. I just plug it into the deck, and it charges and lets me control the player through the head unit. Best investment for music ever!

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Cycler

Exactly what I want to do. My Alpine deck just screams for me to get one everytime I go anywhere.

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Billy Ocean

Okay, since installing that on my laptop my CD/DVD drive no longer recognizes any of the CD/DVD's I place in it. I have not installed anything else (or even used my laptop at all for the past week+ as I was on vacation). Anybody else have this problem or have any advice on how to fix this? I've tried everything I know... no luck.

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Redlemon

Sorry, my knowledge of PC hardware problems is weak. Hope someone else can step up to help you on that.

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1slOwCD8

So will the iPod mini work with a usb 1.x? Like will it transfer and charge, cuz ive been reading different things, and i dont want to spend an extra $30 an a ac adapter. Im asking because i have no idea what i have, im figuring 1.x cuz my computer is fairly old. Is there a way to find out?

FloydianOne

I always wondered if these ipod transmitters play at the same quality as the ipod itself... does anyone know the actual specifics?

And on a side note, could a radio station transmit at better quality than they actually do? Ive always heard that radio is the equivalent of 128kbps, could they transmit at something like 192kbps if they wanted to?

mercury-hg

you're comparing apples to oranges here. using an FM transmitter, the best you can hope for is quality similar to that of a strong FM station. if your source (mp3 on the ipod) is worse quality than that of an FM station, it'll sound like crap. if your source is better than FM-quality, you'll get psuedo-FM quality on your car/home stereo.

asuming you don't want technical details on FM transmission....

1slOwCD8

Nevermind, i found out both of my questions. I guess ill have to buy a USB hub.