Malvika's Ramblings

iPod – Why a celebrity?

Does an iPod actually play better?

I don’t know! The buzz certainly gives that impression, but some of us don’t like to like a product unless we really know what goes into it that makes it better. Sure, it looks good. You don’t press any clunky buttons, its just about soft touches. But what about sound quality. Is there a difference? I researched a bit and looks like the iPod is one glorified mp3 player, unless you are an interface design junkie.

While you will get a 1 GB mp3 player at $30 to $70, the cheapest iPod 1 GB is at $159.

I searched online for something to tell me that there is indeed a smarter chip in the iPods or something of the sort, when I came across Mia LaCron, the founder of IpodFunctions.com (on http://ezinearticles.com/?iPods-Unique-Advantages&id=118828) where she gives a list of the following iPod advantages:

--> Size Does Matter! 20 - 40 GB

--> The Shuffle Feature

--> Not Just for Music…
The educational market has now caught on to the advantages offered by the iPod.
For example, take the case of Duke University in North Carolina. University officials provided 1,650 of the 20 GB iPods to freshmen. These sets of iPods came pre-loaded with campus information, orientation notes, and an academic calendar.

None of the benefits meant that the audio quality was better. So, I ask myself, what makes the audio quality in an mp3 player better anyway?

I found that some of the factors that affect the sound quality are

• Headphones
• Design of power supplies
• The chip in the player
• Bit-rate
• Encoder and Decoder

Encoding is the process where a large file is compressed to an Mp3 format. In doing so, either process speed or sound quality or file size has to be cut down on. Decoding is the opposite process.

If you know anything else that affects sound quality please tell me as a comment. Details and simple explanation of the technology involved is welcome.

Nobody said that the iPod actually sounds better. Every person said that it sounded as good as any other mp3 player.

One person, named Equazon on the internet, raised the same concern about uninformed appreciation for the iPod. He asked (on http://forums.cnet.com/5208-7595_102-0. html?forumID=71&threadID=103650&messageID=1187409)

"Who hates iPod's sound quality?

Okay, maybe "hate" is too strong a word. But I had to get your attention somehow.

The real question is this: Do you hate the fact that everyone talks about how great Apple's iPod is because of its sleek looks and controls, while very little attention is paid to the way it sounds?

Worse yet, do you feel like you shelled out $300 for a pretty, sleek little music player that looks nice and makes you feel cool, but doesn't really play music all that well?

While Apple continues to refuse to release the audio performance statistics of the iPod, such as "signal-to-noise ratio" (normally a pretty decent way to measure of sound quality), major reviewers continue to all but ignore what would seem like a vital area of comparison. Sure, sound is fine for the average consumer. But what about us sound geeks? ..."

What I am really looking for is minimal sound distortion, a full bodied and deep sound, sensitivity where each note and sound is picked up and sent across clearly, the pitch of the note should not be shrill or flat. I think I'll buy something modest and good.

In looking for answers I came across details of what an iPod is made up of on http://members.chello.nl/~m.heijligers/ipod/Performance/compared.html. I recommend this link for a review of iPods that is supported by measurements and comparisons with other mp3 players.