The Tale of an Apple Classic iPod (Apple iPod classic 120 GB)

Member Name: Nar2

Product:	Apple iPod classic 120 GB
Date:	31/01/09 (725 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great capacity, wonderful sound settings, many features like a musical Filofax, nice design,

Disadvantages: Can be expensive at cost price, a few many glitches - uploading AIFF file problems, Apple support

When Christmas approached at the end of 2008 I was in the market for a new mp3 player and had for some time researched the best of the best to the not-so-best. An earlier purchase of a Sony mp3 player had never played properly and due to its daft Sonic software that couldn't install properly on my laptop, it was a definite no go to Sony. Thanks to the fact that my subject is music and being a teacher meant that I could sample any one of my students' iPods and in my classroom I allow the use of iPods so that the pupils can pick up tracks for analysis. Therefore what better way is there than to be able to sample the latests from older models up to the Nano model which seems to be the more popular of iPods that school pupils have?

** This is a long review based on a duff model initially **

Undaunted by the price and with my ever increasing music files, not just from iTunes but also windows media player; I really needed the largest capacity iPod on offer. And I certainly got this with Apple's very popular Classic 120GB iPod. I thought all was well when I got to John Lewis because all the other high street stockists were sold out of every other type of iPod including the Classic range. At a cost of £130 excluding the "kind" offer of a docking Pure prism like DAB radio (I have a Pure radio bought many years ago and see no need to buy another one) for £49-95 as an added sweetener to the iPod deal. However all I wanted was an iPod and John Lewis kindly furnished me with one. Measuring 103mm by 10.5 mm means that it can be pocket installed and despite its initial diameter, the thinness of its width belies the capacity.


Out of the box came a few additions not just with the iPod, such as in ear headphones, a dock adaptor, a USB adaptor and a couple of quick start guides with other booklets about recycling. Although not exactly daunted by the great quality Apple have gone to in the packaging, I noted that as with everything Apple branded these days, there's a kind of Origami-style packaging to everything it makes, no doubt designed to attract many who approve of this in-style. So the box that this iPod comes in is sturdy, made of thick card and holds everything you get when it's not in use. Although only available in Black or Silver, I couldn't get a Black model of choice when I bought my iPod and had to obviously settle for silver. I'm quite glad I did in that respect having seen how grubby black ones can get from the pupils I teach.


Once the iPod had been charged up (the quick start guide stated 4 hours but mine was three quarters charged just out of the box), I went online to find a user manual which was really a wasteful amount of paper, even though I could have just saved the pdf document on my computer. True to the promise I gave my friend though who had recommended downloading the manual, I'd read the user manual every day to fully appreciate the features the iPod classic has, as well as benefitting from actual all round access against the briefly worded Quick start guide that only gives the basics such as a picture diagram showing what the controls do on its round touch control circle panel. 76 pages later I was slightly clearer about transferring files over from my MAC to the iPod. And the manual itself once printed loves to have large gaping spaces of plain paper between the wordings - Apple should really do something about this! However it wasn't exactly plain sailing when it comes to initial use of this iPod. And although the Classic 120GB has capability of being used as a data stick to store files such as photos or word documents, it dangerously proposes when plugged into a PC that it has to be formatted before it can be used - and if you do that then there's the danger of the PC wiping the entire contents off the Apple iPod - oh - something that Apple fail to tell you at the time of purchase. And there would be other disappointments along the way;


For a start the marketing and advertising behind the Apple iPod Classic states that it has 120GB. Upon plugging the USB cable into my MAC reveals that the iPod shows a clear and simple to use welcome page asking the owner to register, update the iPod if its connected online and then you can view sub categories as well as a line strip to show what has been uploaded in terms of colour differentiated blocks separating video or music files. It also reveals that the iPod has 116GB rather than the true 120GB maximum and the missing 4GB data is reserved purely for the games, graphic settings and components built into the iPod. 4GB doesn't seem like much so I wasn't too annoyed by this. Apple should however state this in their marketing, or at least build 120GB into the iPod with the missing GB added on to compensate for the subfolders and components that take up the excess! This iPod is also supposed to give 6 hours of music playback and 150 hours of video playback. Whilst I can't state that I've watched 150 hours of video playback in one go, I find that the Classic will last for more than 6 hours if you leave it plugged in and the battery icon on the front screen panel is easy to find as it is continually displayed when playback is on. However treat the iPod Classic like a games console for all that it has three games or continually watch uploaded videos and you'll find that the battery power really starts to lose juice early on.


The second glitch was realised when some of the AIFF files where music files from a MAC computer (default files like WMA files from a Windows Media player on a PC) I had transferred to the iPod just wouldn't take. Certainly from Apple's point of view, if they were looking for a buyer who had to re-read the manual and more or less, be one of their own technicians, then they would have found the perfect candidate in me. I tried three times, then I reset the iPod each time, then I reset the system and kept trying all through the day. In the end I gave up and decided that I would check out the games on the Classic iPod, knowing that there are only three available on this model consisting of "Klondike" (Solitaire to you and me), "Vortex" (perhaps the most interesting if not with sounds but excellent graphics) and an "iPod Music Quiz" which I thought was a highly intelligent game absolutely ideal for any musician but dependent solely on the content that you upload to your iPod initially. By the way - word of caution here - Apple state that there are games available to download but they are not free and therefore have to be purchased. Anyway, upon return to the Vortex game meant it no longer played the video game music. On return to John Lewis, the kind after sales lady who had had a Classic model for some time agreed with me that the iPod I had shouldn't have done what it was doing. A quick exchange of receipts and a brand new iPod and a new one year guarantee without question was quickly and efficiently handled by John Lewis.


Onto Classic 120GB iPod number 2 then! Whilst number 1 had been replaced, the number 2 version also had initial problems playing straight transfer AIFF files and it was then that I realised it was definitely me at fault for not doing something, or selecting other options as well as of course, missing something in all of the 76 pages of the A4 user manual.


You see what Apple fail to tell you and despite their "only-allowed-one-incident-call after 90 days of purchase" 0870 premium call, is that if you have files that have AIF in their properties/"get info" root box when individual files are analysed, the Classic iPod fails to play AIF files. They can however handle AIFF files, so the only way around AIF files without the extra F, is to convert the song to something called "AAC." Now between the common man and the computer mad consumer, conversion to AAC has to be done on an Apple Mac and it can be done as quickly and as simply by clicking the right hand explore button on your mouse over the desired song that fails to play on the iPod and after a couple of seconds, the file can then be transferred over to the iPod. It doesn't affect the sound quality or the fact that the file may well be compressed; the Classic model just can't handle large AIFF files or anything ironically from software installed on the Apple Mac which you'd think for an Apple iPod, it could handle. Furthermore the Classic iPod also fails to play m4.v video files despite the fact that these files have been converted automatically to play and display on my MAC book. Conversion gadget software is available to convert these files to an Apple TV version but you have to have a compatible iPod to handle Apple TV and although the Classic has the option to display Apple TV, it still can't handle either converted file once m4.v has been converted - which is very annoying - or for that matter Quick time play videos! It can however play formats like M4V which is different from the dot version (apparently), MP3, WAV, AIFF, AAC, MP4, and MOV files - basically different converted files of music and video as per the system where the music chosen comes from your device of choice!


Now in normal transferring of files, the Classic can handle the process in two ways; you can either put it into "Automatic" sync mode where the iPod will just take every music file off your iTunes and retain it to the memory. However, this means that some files by default will not play whilst particular albums will be put onto the iPod by the album layout you have on your MAC. And if you have rated songs that have had stars, the iPod will detect this and play in that order of the stars rated, no matter how many times you just switch it on and hope for the best that the Classic will play what you want to hear. Before transferring files to the iPod you can settle the sound setting you want for the file to go under before it even goes to your iPod which I have found a great advantage - but this seems to be a sound setting via MAC computer only. Certainly from this point the iPod demands a lot of research rather than the simple swap file assumption that many owners of iPods would have you believe.


Without setting the sound, you can manually select a sound setting from the Classic model - and there are quite a few such as 22 pre-set equaliser sound settings independent amongst nothing selected which then uses your headphones to independently support the sound. As a result I seldom go through the 22 or so many different pre-set equaliser sound settings that the Classic on its own has. And what a surprise, the in ear headphones supplied by Apple with your iPod are crap. Even with the wonderful wall of sound and "virtual" sound added in fails to open up on the default headphones you get. Currently I'm using my Sony in ear headphones and the sound is completely different, full and much more rounded with different settings that give you a heightened difference of bright to muffled tone, heavy or simple bass that touches the songs you are listening to. After the settings you can then take advantage of really customising your iPod such as the "Genius" function that shuffles songs the iPod thinks would go well together and the "Cover Flow," function that gives you simple covers to highlight album cover art work like a virtual old fashioned record box as you select files - both of these options really incur the owner to look at the iPod when this is done but most of the time mine is stuffed into a pocket. Then if the headphone is pulled out by accident, the iPod will stop playing - a MAC built in function that seems to happen on my MAC book sometimes too. The Classic will however return to the last play setting which is a godsend once the headphones have been put back in.


Infact the best way of uploading songs comes from the recommendation from the after sales lady at John Lewis. Manually selecting tracks may to appear to be more time consuming but at least you get to finely pick and convert the songs that can be played on the iPod. Thankfully pop up windows that tell you that the iPod can't play the selected file is very useful although it doesn't always work for everything and choosing the "Automatic," sync option leaves this conversion process out leaving your iPod with files it can't play saved to memory. Secondly, if you leave the iPod to automatically sync songs from your MAC to your iPod, and then try to upload the iPod to another computer, it can erase all the songs on the iPod's hard drive. How's that for protected copywrite? Another downside is when charging the iPod - whilst it can be used via the same transferring file USB cable to charge up, it can't be joined to a MAC when the computer is asleep or in standby, thus the owner has to power up the MAC in order for the iPod to be charged. This is a slightly old fashioned method given that Apple's own charger can charge the MAC book/computer even when the computer is asleep or on standby.


In short yes, whilst Apple have a magnificent product here that has a wonderful sound system, a huge capacity that can play Music videos, sound files, has a great calendar with world time formats and many different languages on offer, I still feel that Apple haven't really worked out its features from the point of a professional who uses software from an Apple Mac computer and then finds that another Apple can't handle the sound files! Seems a bit silly doesn't it? In the end all the iPod does is allow personal choice of music playback and that's all it can really handle according to its design. Many buyers and owners will love the wonderful sound settings, a skip-free playback quality, alarm clock, customising menus and general feeling that what you have here is a musical Filofax! Despite the clarity of digital quality, touch sensitive control wheel, hold and menu function buttons, it's the user involvement that the iPod demands which can be a bit daunting. Over the other models that Apple sell, I assumed that the iPod from initial use would be clear, succinct and very simple.


Ownership isn't helped by a pathetic back up support whose views are agreed by a huge forum of consumers and Apple owners who feel that the Apple support network of Apple technicians aren't available save for taking the additionally expensive protection aftercare service out as opposed to the "one time" only phone call on Apple's premium phone number should anything go wrong. Certainly if I hadn't had consulted a forum support group (and also thanks to Dooyoo member Paulhanton) concerning my iPod's inability to recognise AIFF and AIF files this second iPod would be back to John Lewis and probably ended up throwing in the experience with my money back. If "Classic," means glitches, then perhaps it's a justifiable name but more to the point if the same name means having to download music the "Apple," way then it certainly isn't as fast or as problem free as Apple would have you believe. Somehow though I think there's a twisted meaning in the Classic name following my experience. You've been warned! ©Nar2 2009

http://www.johnlewis.com/230510699/Product.aspx
(John Lewis have hyped the price up again to £175)

www.apple.com

Summary: Classic means a large capacity and a capacity of knowledge to using.

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