2010 iPod + iPhone Buyers' Guide

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Ask iLounge 3-13-09

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By Jesse David Hollington

Contributing Editor
Published: Friday, March 13, 2009
Category: Ask iLounge

Ask iLounge offers readers the opportunity to get answers to their iPod-related questions from a member of the iLounge editorial team. We'll answer several questions here each week, and of course, you can always get help with more immediate concerns from the iLounge Discussion Forums. Submit your questions for consideration using our Ask iLounge Submit Form. We reserve the right to edit questions for grammar, spelling, and length.

The most asked question at iLounge.com:

How do I copy music from my iPod onto my computer?

Click here for the answer.

The second most asked question at iLounge.com:

How do I put DVDs on my iPod?


For converting DVDs, web video, TV shows and home movies to your iPod, iPhone or Apple TV, we have a three-part series outlining the best formats, settings, and various tools to use for converting all types of video content for use on these devices.

The Complete Guide to iPod, Apple TV and iPhone Video Formats

The Complete Guide to iPod, iPhone and Apple TV Video Conversion (Mac)

The Complete Guide to iPod, iPhone and Apple TV Video Conversion (Windows)

Top five questions most recently asked by iLounge readers:

Q: What are the best speakers to use with my iPod? (15, 76-79, and 90-92)

Q: What are the best headphones to use with my iPod? (10, 72-75, and 90-92)

Q: I really want to get a nice case for my iPod. Do you have any suggestions? (36-37, 54-67, and 90-92)

Q: How can I connect my iPod to my car stereo? (14, 32-35, 68-71, and 90-92)

Q: Are there any batteries that I can use to extend my iPod's battery life? (82-83 and 90-92)

A: Answers to these and many other questions can be found in two places. Our Free iPod Book 3.3 provides a complete report card to all of the iPod accessories we've reviewed as of summer 2007, as well as over 125 iTunes and iPod tips & tricks. Further, our new 2008 iPod & iPhone Buyers' Guide has accessory tutorials at the page numbers listed in parentheses above. These and other publications in our Library are free downloads, developed by the editors of iLounge!

And now, for this week's Ask iLounge column:

Q:

I really want to get an iPod touch due to the applications, the look, the touchscreen, the video, the power and so on. However, there are two things I’m wondering about: Firstly, what things does the iPhone have that the iPod touch does not, and when is the next iPhone and iPod touch going to appear for sale?

- Will

A:

For the most part, the major difference between the iPod touch and the iPhone are the phone features themselves. The iPhone itself obviously has the ability to make and receive phone calls and SMS text messages. Further, with a data plan the iPhone can be used over the 3G or EDGE network in addition to a Wi-Fi network, whereas the iPod touch is confined to Internet access only on a Wi-Fi network. The iPhone also includes a camera and built-in microphone that the iPod touch does not, and also includes actual GPS support whereas the iPod touch is limited to trying to determine your location based on nearby Wi-Fi access points.

However, the second-generation iPod touch released last fall is not without its own benefits over the iPhone. Firstly, it is available in a 32GB model, whereas the highest capacity iPhone is only 16GB. Current trends thus far would seem to indicate that the iPod touch will continue to be available in higher capacities than the iPhone in future models as well. The iPod touch is also a much slimmer device, and includes built-in support for the Nike+ Sport Kit, a feature that does not work at all on the iPhone, even with the dock connecting sensor. The second-generation iPod touch also offers a few benefits that were previously exclusive to the iPhone, such as a built-in speaker and voice recording capabilities through a microphone attached to the headphone port.

More importantly, the iPod touch is available for a reasonable price without having to sign a contract for cellular service; While the iPhone may seem cheaper on the front, the longer-term commitment with most cellular carriers will make the longer-term cost much higher than the outright purchase price of an iPod touch.

In terms of release dates, there is no way of knowing for certain when new models are going to be released. Based on past history, however, Apple has had a tendency to release new iPhone models in June or July and new iPod models in September or October.

For more information on the specific features of each device, be sure to check out our comprehensive reviews of the Second Generation iPod touch and iPhone 3G.

Q:

I have a 120GB iPod classic. I have loaded about half of my CD collection into iTunes and I am now running out of space on my PC’s hard drive. How do I get all of my collection onto the iPod if I don’t have enough space on my hard drive?

- Anonymous

A:

In this situation, you can set your iPod to manual mode and then transfer the content onto your iPod without leaving it on your computer. To do this, simply connect your iPod to iTunes, select it in the Devices listing, and ensure that you are viewing the “Summary” tab. You should see an option labelled “Manually manage music and videos.. Check this option, and click the “Apply” button in the bottom-right corner.

From this point on, your iPod will no longer automatically sync music or videos with your iTunes library; instead it will be treated as a completely distinct library of its own. You can then add content to it by dragging it from your iTunes library to your iPod icon in the Devices list in iTunes. Once you have transferred the content to your iPod, you can safely delete it from your computer and it will remain on your device. In fact, if you have audio or video files on your computer that you want to transfer directly to your iPod, you ca. even drag them from a Windows Explorer or Mac Finder window and drop them directly on the iPod in your Devices list. This will save you the trouble of importing them into your iTunes library first.

In manual mode, you manage the content on your iPod directly, as you would in your iTunes library. Click the small triangle to the left of your iPod in the Devices list, and it will expand to show you the categories and playlists on your iPod.

Clicking on a category or playlist will show you the content in that category and you will be able to manage it from there, including modifying track information and even deleting tracks directly from your iPod.

It should be noted that in manual mode, you can still choose to sync podcasts automatically from your iTunes library by configuring the settings on the “Podcasts” tab, and other information such as photos, contact/calendar info and games will continue to sync automatically regardless of the “Manual” setting, so you will need to leave this information on your computer so that it is not removed from the iPod during the sync process.

Note, however, that we do not recommend using your iPod as the only place you keep your content. The iPod is a portable device and can be easily lost or damaged and you would therefore risk losing all of your content in the process. Always back up your music somewhere else. Consider that external hard drives are relatively inexpensive, and you can always purchase on to use either as a backup for your iTunes songs, or in fact move your iTunes library onto an external hard drive by following the instructions in our iPod 201 article, Transferring your iTunes Library.

Q:

I rented some videos from iTunes and tried to sync to my iPod touch. However, I’m not getting error 5103 when I try to do this. I have done this many times before and it has worked without any problems. Everything else also seems to be working fine. Can you help?

- Ali

A:

The usual cause of this problem is that iTunes cannot authenticate your rentals against the iTunes Store. Unlike normal purchased content, iTunes must update your authorization keys whenever you transfer a rented movie from iTunes to another device or back again. This means that you must not only be connected to the Internet when you attempt to transfer a rented item, but must be actually logged in to the iTunes Store with the account that was used to rent the item in question.

Check your iTunes Store page and ensure that you are logged in with the correct iTunes Store account, and ensure that your Internet connection is up and working properly.

Q:

Is there a way to manually manage music on the second generation iPod shuffle so that I can load music onto the iPod from more than one computer?

- Debbie

A:

The first and second generation iPod shuffle models basically use manual management by default. While these iPod devices include an AutoFill mode to automatically fill up your iPod, this is simply a convenience feature for an iPod that is otherwise managed manually. In fact, with iTunes 8.1, AutoFill is now available for any manually managed iPod model.

To add content to your iPod shuffle from another computer, simply connect the iPod shuffle and drag-and-drop the content as you would for any other manually managed iPod. There is no “manual” option because the device is always in manual mode.

Q:

I have a 160GB iPod classic. When I am playng a music track on the iPod and I click through to the lyrics option there are 3 choices - Off, Songs & Albums. If I click on Songs I get the lyrics that were added in iTunes. How can I add notes to the Albums tab (eg production notes, etc)? There is no option that I can see in iTunes to do that. Also if I click the Off option I suppose that I will disable the lyrics option entirely - how would I restore the lyrics option in the iPod later on?

- Martin

A:

Actually, the options you are looking at have nothing to do with the lyrics on the iPod, but are actually used to control the Shuffle modes, providing more convenient access to change your Shuffle settings on-the-fly without having to go back to the main menu and visit the Settings section. In this case, the options for Off/Songs/Albums refer to the three shuffled playback modes which can also be configured under the Settings section from the main menu.

Continuing past this screen takes you to the lyrics simply because that is the next screen in order. Unfortunately, there is no way to store album-specific information in iTunes or on the iPod itself. The comment section could be used in iTunes, although that is still set on a per-track rather than per-album basis, and this information is not available for viewing on the iPod.

Q:

How can I watch the videos on my iPhone on TV? I have an iPod video and I use a A/V cable to watch those videos on my TV, but when I use the same cable on the iPhone, nothing happens.

- Fernando

A:

Unfortunately, the video cables and other accessories made for the fifth-generation iPod with video are not compatible with any of the newer iPod models, or the iPhone itself. Firstly, none of the newer iPod models support any video output capabilities through the headphone jack, so you will need to use a cable that connects to the Dock Connector.

More importantly, however, newer iPod models and the iPhone now require specific video cables manufactured by authorized Apple partners with an authentication chip inside to enable the video output. If this authentication chip is not detected, the iPhone and iPod touch will simply ignore the cable entirely and not send video out through it.

This basically means that if you want to watch video from your iPhone on your TV or another video output device, you are going to need to buy new cables. Apple sells their own Composite AV Cable and Component AV Cable for approximately $50 USD, and third-party cables are available from companies such as Griffin Technology. For more information see our article, Apple locks TV Out in new iPods, breaks video add-ons published shortly after the release of the 2007 iPod models.

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Ask iLounge Archives:

11-13-09: Syncing different contact info with two iPhones on the same computer, iPod shows no content, Syncing music and videos in playlists, Exclamation marks next to tracks in iTunes, Playing podcasts on 3G iPod shuffle.

11-6-09: Storing iPod software updates, Playing an iPod continuously, Transferring play counts to a new iTunes library, iPhone backups, Klipsch S4i earphones

10-30-09: Authorization problems with iPod touch, Changing Grid View background in iTunes, iTunes library and Music Folder are different sizes, Older iPods and firmware updates, Reconciling two different iTunes libraries, Syncing multiple devices to one iTunes library

10-23-09: Using a laptop with an iTunes library on an external hard drive, Transferring YouTube videos to iPod, iPod touch accessibility settings, Disabling Shake to Shuffle on iPod nano, Purchased songs fail to download from iTunes Store, Charging and powering off iPhone

10-16-09: Moving iTunes to a new computer, Transferring contacts from Blackberry to an iPhone, Disabling iPhone Backups, Using AV cables for audio only, Problems syncing photos to iPod touch, Memorex iFlip and iPhone compatibility

See the rest of the Archives...

Next: A Visit to iHome: Alluring New Speakers, From $60 to $300

Previous: Instant Expert: Secrets & Features of iTunes 8.1

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