Apple iPod Classic Third Generation Review – iPod With Better Battery Life

MP3 Players — By Ricky on December 2, 2009 at 2:27 am

Sum and Substance:

Thumbs Up:

Sleek, thin, easy to use interface, huge storage space, genius play list feature, better battery life.

Thumbs Down:

EQ presets are bad, you need a latest version iTunes and it may not be compatible on your old computer, no scratch resistant glass screen.

Inside the Trunk:

Included accessories – Docking station adapter, Cable included USB cable – External.

The Whiz Kid Speaks:

Digital player, Hi-Speed USB, Built-in 160 GB Hard disk drive,
4.9 oz, Dimensions 2.4 inch wide, 0.4 inch thick x 4.1 big, Body material Aluminum

Supported digital audio standards
AAC, WAV, Audible, Apple Lossless, MP3, AIFF

Playback modes
One track repeat, Playlist, Random play/shuffle, All tracks repeat

Response bandwidth
20 – 20000 Hz

Supported bit rate
8 – 320

Additional features
MPEG-4 playback, Variable bit-rate compatible, JPEG photo playback, ID3 tags support, External hard drive function, Digital graphic equalizer, Notes , Battery level indication, Playback speed control, USB 2.0 compatibility, Upgradeable firmware, Genius technology, Volume limiter, Built-in games, Photo wallet, Date display, Hold button, Phone book, Cover Flow, Calendar.

Display menu language
Czech, French, English, Finnish, Korean, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, Polish, Japanese, Danish, Italian, Hungarian, Greek, Russian, Norwegian, Portuguese, Chinese (simplified), Dutch, Chinese (traditional), German

Head phones
Binaural Ear-bud wired headphones, Stereo sound, Response bandwidth 20 – 20000 Hz, Impedance 32 Ohm

Connector type
1 x Docking station, 1 x Headphones Mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm

Battery
Lithium ion Rechargeable Player battery integrated, Battery life 36 hours for audio and 6 hours for video.

Operating system
Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Windows XP Professional SP3, Apple MacOS X 10.4.11 or later, Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition SP3

Apple ipod classic review

Razzle Dazzle:

When it comes to looks, the two most important features of Apple’s products are the sleekness and aluminum shell. We are used to these two features but we can’t get enough of it. It has now become synonymous with Apple. We thought that the sleekness that Apple’s MP3 players have couldn’t be replicated in a computer because of the hardware inside. But then Apple blew us of our feet with Mac Book Air. The company rightly claims that it is the world’s slimmest laptop. The third generation Apple iPod Classic it is still thin and sleek with the sexy aluminum exteriors. We won’t call the third generation Apple iPod Classic light because of the presence of hard drive which adds up to the weight. But it looks very pretty.

Inside Dope:

We all know about Apple’s prowess when it comes to making MP3 players. They are far ahead of the nearest competitors, we reviewed Zune HD before this and we couldn’t help compare every single aspect of Microsoft’s product with Apple iPods

The third generation Apple iPod Classic sports a 2.5 inch screen which is quite good for watching videos. It will give you a resolution of 320X240 and can play files which are encoded at 640X480. You can also purchase a cable from Apple to hook up this player to your LCD TV for viewing pleasure. Videos look better when watched on an HDTV but we guess this screen is also good when it comes to portable video players.

You will have to take good care of your screen because it doesn’t have the scratch resistant glass screens and such scratches will ruin the look of the player as well as give you a bad viewing experience. Mostly all companies making LCD screens in players and mobiles have moved on the to the glass screens, we don’t know why Apple is still shy to adopt this technology.

If you want a good reason to upgrade to the third generation Apple iPod Classic it has to be the enhanced battery life. Apple boasts that this player can play about 36 hours of music on a full charge and about 6 hours of video. We were pleased with the video time of the player and with the extended music playback you can go without a recharge for about 12 days with moderate usage of about three hours. We guess a flash drive would have extended the battery life but a 160 GB flash drive would make the player more expensive.

When it comes to video playback formats, iPod refuses to entertain files other than MP4.

The player only plays videos of H.264 or MPEG-4 video in MOV, MP4, or M4V file formats. We have thrown tantrums in Apple’s face for quite a long time about this and we have given up, since they have fallen on deaf ears.

If you have video of any other format and you want to play it in the third generation Apple iPod Classic you will have to go through those boring video converting soft wares. We consulted the internet for converters and we were impressed with the number of soft wares made by various manufactures for converting the videos for iPod. We would have also appreciated if Apple bundled free software for converting to MP4 format videos.

But there is always iTunes, which gives you ready made MP4 format files and we are all aware of the millions of songs and videos which are purchasable on the iTunes store. You can buy latest movies, videos and TV shows on the store.

The audio quality of the third generation Apple iPod Classic is great but it is nothing spectacular as compared to other players like Sony, Samsung and Creative offer. The head phones of the third generation Apple iPod Classic are plain jane, just like other Apple’s MP3 players and we would have liked a better sounding headphones since these products are a tad costly than other players, which offer similar functions. If you want a better experience then you will have to shell out some more to buy a noise canceling headset or alike. We tried the player with some of the better quality head sets that we had and the sound quality was awesome.

The third generation Apple iPod Classic has a huge 160 GB storage space which lets you carry your entire collection of songs and videos with you on the player. There have been earlier players from Apple which have a 120 GB and a bigger storage space means more media. This player also lets you carry your data files because it also doubles up as a mass storage device.

The only way you can put media in Apple iPods is through iTunes. Initially we threw tantrums at this feature too but later we realized that media management is better when you do it through the iTunes. This is a two way deal, wherein you get a great media manager and Apple keeps it pockets jingling because the soft ware has a built in store which is bound to tempt you to buy music and videos. The third generation Apple iPod Classic needs you to download latest version Apple iTunes on the computer. If your computer is too slow or is not compatible with the latest version then you might get stuck. Check with your computer before purchasing this product.

The third generation Apple iPod Classic has 20 presets for equalizer, just like other Apple iPods but these presets are not very helpful in changing the tone of the tracks. In fact they are useless and the music is not affected much. These presets seem like a cheap imitation of other PMPs, it seems Apple’s put the feature just to show “Duh, we can do it too” Apple claims using the equalizer will tax the battery more so we recommend you to switch it off if you don’t need it.

The third generation Apple iPod Classic, just like previous iPods has the genius play list feature where in Apple clubs up to 25 songs looking at a single song that you have selected. The feature needs a big enough collection of songs on your iPod, you select a song and tell the player to find more songs like this and the iPod does it for you. This feature was also seen when we reviewed Apple’s iPhone all we had to do was to tell the gadget “play more songs like this” and the phone did the job well.

There is a catch though; you won’t be able to use the feature if you haven’t enabled it in your iTunes software. Some may balk at privacy invasion because Apple takes a note of what you are listening. But if you don’t mind this, go ahead and use the genius play list feature.

The iPod is now one of the few iPods which still has the divided screen look. There are two parts one which shows the selection which you are making and other shows the picture like album artwork of the song. This mode is also available when you are viewing the photos on the player, it will give you a ‘preview’ when you surf through the list. We found this feature really attractive and the divided screen doesn’t feel like clutter.

The third generation Apple iPod Classic can record voice memos for you but you will have shell out money for using this service. There are a few head sets which are from third party manufactures and they can work well this feature. You don’t have to go digging in to the iPod to change songs, videos, etc. Apple makes it own set of headset and you can use it with the iPod.

Nitty Gritty:

The third generation Apple iPod Classic still features simple interface that made us fall in love with it in the first place. There is just still a click wheel with four buttons in four directions and the middle button. It is still easy to use and there is no fuss. This player has an increased battery life and it has a big storage space which is yet not matched by other players. If you haven’t bought an iPod till now and have been thinking of buying one we would recommend you to go for it now but if you already own an Apple iPod (which plays video) and are thinking of upgrading we would tell you otherwise because this is not much different from the player that you already have.