Death of the iPod (Everyone's buying vinyl)

[BFrank]

So you can't even drag and drop in Windows Explorer?!

That's all I ever did with my old players.

I wish! The OS doesn't recognize the Zune at all.

Wow, brother. That's as lame as it gets.

I found this on the Microsoft support site, and wondered if you had tried it: " Installing the .NET Framework 3.5 actually kickstarted the Zune Installation."

Thanks, Dolan, I'll look into that. But the process of "Installing the .NET Framework 3.5" kinda scares me. Messing around with the OS usually results in more problems than I need.

[Scott Dolan]

From what little I know of it it's a highly stable application. It's also proprietary, which makes it a far safer bet than third party software.

But no big deal. Simply make a restore point real quick before installing. If you have any problems afterwards, then go back to that point and be done with it.

[BFrank]

From what little I know of it it's a highly stable application. It's also proprietary, which makes it a far safer bet than third party software.

But no big deal. Simply make a restore point real quick before installing. If you have any problems afterwards, then go back to that point and be done with it.

I found another possible workaround, too. Apparently there's a way to run pre-Windows 8 programs, but it's a little complicated. Might be worth it, though.

[kinuta]

I've never been tempted to buy an IPod but have made good use of the Samsung Galaxy tab my nephew gave me earlier this year.

It's a tad cumbersome to tote around but the rather good camera and video playback make it worthwhile. I use it at home for quick internet access.

[Brad]

With the discontinuance, people are looking to make a quick buck. My son's iPod was stolen so we looked around this weekend until we were informed it had been discontinued. I have one but haven't used it much lately. I looked online at Amazon and eBay and sellers (speculators) went out and purchased remaning stock and are trying to sell them at $400 to $500. That's a joke. As I don't use mine much, I gave him mine. If I feel the need to replace mine, I will wait a few months until the fever dies down.

[xybert]

For me the storage size was the only advantage to the old iPods. I prefer the iPod touch in every other way.

[Scott Dolan]

Agreed, xybert!

With a Wi-Fi connection, the iPod Touch is like having a miniature computer in your hands.

Even without it the Touch is pretty astonishing.

Edited September 15, 2014 by Scott Dolan

[BFrank]

The Nano is actually better than I thought it would be. It doesn't have a huge capacity, but it's VERY small - a little taller than a standard Post-It. Yet, it still has a usable interface..........and an FM radio. My only fear is that I'm going to lose it.

[RogerF]

As the technology marketeers move the goalposts every 6 months or so I am always a couple of generations behind - at least. Whenever I hit upon a good solution, things change or "improve". I have my collection on vinyl, CD and a large proportion of the entire collection (but by no means all) on a "back up" iPod Classic. For mobile listening I use my iPod Nano (8gb) or my iPhone 4S (again 8Gb). But going on holiday I take my "collection" on the iPod Classic. For me this represents an ideal solution. So yes the only other way to improve this for me would be an iPhone with a 500Gb storage capacity (iPhone # 10?). Otherwise this is all fine as is. But the technologists aren't going to stop there. You do know that within 10 years we'll all have to have implanted receivers to pick up our Spotify library bluetoothed to a cochlear implant in our ears. I personally can't wait!!!

[BFrank]

As the technology marketeers move the goalposts every 6 months or so I am always a couple of generations behind - at least. Whenever I hit upon a good solution, things change or "improve". I have my collection on vinyl, CD and a large proportion of the entire collection (but by no means all) on a "back up" iPod Classic. For mobile listening I use my iPod Nano (8gb) or my iPhone 4S (again 8Gb). But going on holiday I take my "collection" on the iPod Classic. For me this represents an ideal solution. So yes the only other way to improve this for me would be an iPhone with a 500Gb storage capacity (iPhone # 10?). Otherwise this is all fine as is. But the technologists aren't going to stop there. You do know that within 10 years we'll all have to have implanted receivers to pick up our Spotify library bluetoothed to a cochlear implant in our ears. I personally can't wait!!!

Agree. What makes the 'technology' so frustrating is not completely the constant parade of new stuff, but the fact that the "old" stuff (2 or more years 'old'!) becomes obsolete and unusable for any number of reasons. It's like the old concept of planned obsolescence has come back to haunt us.

[Scott Dolan]

The Classic is 13 y.o.

I'd call that a pretty nice run.

[BFrank]

The Classic is 13 y.o.

I'd call that a pretty nice run.

A rarity, for SURE.

[David Ayers]

Strange to think the iPod itself has gone the way of the home stereo...

[Scott Dolan]

But it hasn't. They just have it the ability to make and receive calls and now call it an iPhone.

[.:.impossible]

Exactly. Putting all of your music files on their iCloud makes your entire digital collection accessible at all times if connected to a cell or wifi network. There are recurring costs associated with this, and that is why we are being pushed in this direction.

[Scott Dolan]

What do you mean by recurring costs? ICloud is free.

[A Lark Ascending]

I imagine it is obselete because not enough people want that capacity.

Usually some non-major firm arrives to plug the gap and accommodate the minority market. Hard to do with something tied right in with Apple.

I'm going to have to experiment with using the iPhone connected to Spotify, Amazon etc whilst on the move. If it's anything like mobile internet/e-mail signals then its going to mean constant interruptions.

Not to mention the poor battery life of the iPhone. Nothing like the iPod which is remarkable.

Edited September 19, 2014 by A Lark Ascending

[psu_13]

iTunes match, which is the Apple service for making music that you did not buy at the iTunes store available to you online, is not free. It doesn't cost all that much compared to owning a few $400 large iPods ... but it's not free.

Edited September 19, 2014 by psu_13

[BFrank]

Amazon makes MP3s available when you buy CDs from them, and that IS free.

The only problem with listening to the streaming services through your phone connection is that it uses it up very quickly unless you have an unlimited data plan.

[Bol]

I have a 6G 160gig IPod Classic that I love very much, especially when I travel, and it's been having some problems that led me to think that I may need to replace it soon. Then 2 days after the recent Apple announcements, I found out that iPod Classic was discontinued. I panicked and scoured the web and local stores. Most places said they no longer have any, but a kindly manager of a local Radio Shack found one 7G 160gig at a distant store and requested that it be sent to her store. Meanwhile, I ordered another one on the Best Buy website. (Apparently, some guy had been driving around the SF area and buying up all available 160 gig iPod Classics, presumably to sell on eBay or such.) I thought at best, I would get one of two in, and in fact received a message from Best Buy shortly after my order saying that they no longer have it. But both arrived in the last 2 days. Now, I have a big dilemma. Do I return one of them? (I hadn't realized that the 7G is so much thinner than the 6G.)

Edited September 19, 2014 by Bol

[JSngry]

As the technology marketeers move the goalposts every 6 months or so I am always a couple of generations behind - at least. Whenever I hit upon a good solution, things change or "improve". I have my collection on vinyl, CD and a large proportion of the entire collection (but by no means all) on a "back up" iPod Classic. For mobile listening I use my iPod Nano (8gb) or my iPhone 4S (again 8Gb). But going on holiday I take my "collection" on the iPod Classic. For me this represents an ideal solution. So yes the only other way to improve this for me would be an iPhone with a 500Gb storage capacity (iPhone # 10?). Otherwise this is all fine as is. But the technologists aren't going to stop there. You do know that within 10 years we'll all have to have implanted receivers to pick up our Spotify library bluetoothed to a cochlear implant in our ears. I personally can't wait!!!

Agree. What makes the 'technology' so frustrating is not completely the constant parade of new stuff, but the fact that the "old" stuff (2 or more years 'old'!) becomes obsolete and unusable for any number of reasons. It's like the old concept of planned obsolescence has come back to haunt us.

It only becomes unusable if the hardware breaks or if you lose the supporting software. That's why I'm still using iTunes 10 for my Classic, at some point I started hearing about changes/eliminations/etc and I just said, ok, here's where I hold it, right here where everything works how I like it. For what I need it to do, it ain't broke, so I an neither fixing nor replacing it. Unless the device breaks or Apple's installed some stealth self-destruct thingies in the code, I'm good to keep on keepin' on As Is unless and until.

[.:.impossible]

What do you mean by recurring costs? ICloud is free.

The best things in life are few.

https://www.apple.com/icloud/

And I'm not just referring to iCloud. Spotify and other subscriptions require recurring monthly payment, along with constant data transfer courtesy of megaton telecom.

But yay for progress.

[Jim R]

We've been Apple customers for about 25 years, but I want nothing to do with geniuses choosing songs for me, or imaginary clouds, or being a lemming who has to pay a monthly fee to listen to my own fucking music. I began to realize that trouble was brewing when iTunes went steadily downhill and started adding useless features and taking away the good ones. I used to automatically upgrade all my Apple software, but I finally learned my lesson after downloading and installing iTunes 11. It was a bitch to revert back to version 10, but I managed it.

I'm not much of a phone guy, and have never had an iPhone (my wife and our daughter and son have them). I have two 150 gb ipod classics and a 2nd generation ipod touch (which I rarely use anymore, since getting an iPad last Christmas). I can't sync my iPad with my outdated version of iTunes, and it's somewhat less useful since I'm not participating in the cloud thing, but I love it anyway for e-mail, web browsing and games (my eyes were getting too old for the ipod touch anyway) when I'm away from the iMac.

If and when the cloud becomes necessary for all Apple customers, I'll find another way of doing things, even if it means going back to my MiniDisc players, writing letters, and using paper maps.

[Scott Dolan]

What do you mean by recurring costs? ICloud is free.

The best things in life are few.

https://www.apple.com/icloud/

And I'm not just referring to iCloud. Spotify and other subscriptions require recurring monthly payment, along with constant data transfer courtesy of megaton telecom.

But yay for progress.

Spotify is also free if you don't mind the commercial breaks and lower streaming bitrate.

At the end of the day if you want something better than the free service offered, then you have to pay. I'm not sure why that is so outrageous.

[Shawn]

I've been using Spotify since the original trial started in the US, most of the time I've used the free version, I've upgraded a couple times to the paid version but it wasn't a significant improvement...and hearing an ad occasionally doesn't kill me...so I just save the $9 a month and use the free version.