iTunes and iTunes Store - they're number 1 for a reason (iTunes)

Member Name: jmarko

Product:	iTunes
Date:	09/08/08 (109 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A massive selection of music, video, audiobooks, podcasts and applications at reasonable prices

Disadvantages: DRM still evident on some stock - although it's slowly disappearing

iTunes is two things. Firstly, it is a piece of software that allows you to sort and play your music and video files. Secondly, it is also used as a shorthand for the iTunes Store which sells music, video and applications for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPod as well as renting out films.

---iTunes Software---

iTunes is available for Windows and Mac operating systems and can also be run on Linux using WINE. As at the date of this review (9 August 2008) the latest version of iTunes is 7.7.1.

iTunes works primarily as a jukebox for your music and video files. It can deal with a wide range of audio formats including MP3, AIFF, WAV, MPEG-4, AAC, and Apple Lossless. WMA files can also be played natively in iTunes for Windows but Mac users need to download a codec that will allow them to be played.

iTunes can also deal with video in a range of formats including .mp4, .m4v, and .mov.

It also allows you to rip music from CDs to add to your collection and, conversely, to burn CDs and DVDs with audio and video.

In addition, iTunes allows you to create playlists through drag and drop, which let you play music in a particular order or by a particular genre, as you decide.

The other main use for the iTunes software is to sync your music, video and application collection with your iPhone or iPod. This feature was first introduced way back in iTunes 2.0 but has become a fundamental part of the iTunes make up as the iPod has redefined the mp3 player market. Interestingly, for legacy reasons, it is still possible on the Mac version of iTunes to use it to sync with the following non-Apple mp3 players:

The following Creative Labs players:
Nomad II
Nomad II MG
Nomad II c
Nomad Jukebox
Nomad Jukebox 20GB
Nomad Jukebox C
Novad MuVo

The following SONICBlue/S3 players:
Rio One
Rio 500
Rio 600
Rio 800
Rio 900
Rio S10
Rio S11
Rio S30S
Rio S35S
Rio S50
Rio Chiba
Rio Fuse
Rio Cali

The following Nike players:
psa]play 60
psa]play 120

The following Nakamichi player:
SoundSpace 2

One departure in iTunes 7 was the disappearance of the internet radio that had been with iTunes in one guise or another since version 1.0. There is still, though, an option to pick radio as an option in preferences and there are many manufacturers of iTunes plug ins that allow you to add excellent internet radio features. This seems something of an odd decision on Apple's part.

As you can see, the iTunes software is pretty comprehensive and the success of the iPod family of devices has made it pretty ubiquitous. It is a very stable piece of software that covers almost everything that you would want to do (and there are plug ins available for everything else) and best of all it's free.

It is a five star piece of software. At least!

---iTunes Store---

iTunes Store has been around since version 4.0 of iTunes and is often also known as iTunes. The Store contains a mass of downloadable audio, videos and now applications.

If the iPod family have defined mp3 players, iTunes have defined the legal downloadable music market. By June 2008, iTunes had sold 5 BILLION tracks averaging a billion a year since launch. It has approximately 8 million tracks available.

In the UK, the Store generally sells tracks for 79p each - some with DRM (Digital Rights Management copy protection) and some without (known as iTunes Plus). The move has very much been towards increasing the range of iTunes Plus material available.

There is also a lot of free content in the Store. From the weekly free track, you can also download many thousands of audio and video podcasts for free in topics ranging from comedy to sport to technology and languages. In 2007, iTunes U (standing for University) was launched. The section includes hundreds of lectures on a wide range of areas including politics, economics, astronomy and other sciences. Again, these are free.

The introduction of the iPhone and iPod Touch and the 2.0 firmware upgrade in 2008 led to the addition of an application section to the Store. This allows users of those devices to download application (some free, some paid for) directly without the need to sync with iTunes. Indeed, they also led in 2007 to the addition of Wifi iTunes to the stable - allowing iPhone and iPod Touch users to download content directly to their devices over a wifi connection. Interestingly, Apple struck a deal with the iPhones mobile carriers that allowed small applications from the Store to be transmitted via the EDGE network - something that is not possible for music or video.

The iTunes Store is, not surprisingly, ranked as either the number 1 or number 2 music retailer worldwide. The success of the iPod range, iTunes and iTunes Store has led to many people re-evaluating Apple and the 'halo effect' has also led to a resurgence of their computers.

iTunes Store is a remarkably well put together place in which to buy music or video or applications. It was the missing part of the jigsaw and has really allowed Apple to corner a market that it would never have envisaged being 10 or 15 years ago.

Using iTunes Store, like using anything of Apple's, is a dream. It is simple, intuitive and just works. If you have any problems, I experienced a lost file once (and yes, it was my fault!), customer services are incredibly helpful - they even added the file back into my account despite it being my own fault! If only everything online was this much of a pleasure to use.

iTunes Store can only be given 5 stars.

Summary: Your first port of call for music is no longer the high street

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