Is it me or are ipods getting worse?


Recommended Posts

Like many of you, I am a slave of the Apple corporation. I bought the ipod nano the day it hit the shelves of Best Buy. It suffered a screen crack but was swiftly replaced, and since then - in its new Belkin protective cover - it was a faithful,reliable, durable mp3 player...as it should be so to speak. It was with me from 2005 till 2008 when it was stolen.

Since then, I've owned 4 different ipods, each less durable than the last. One of them performed well but kept locking up so I returned it, got a new one, then lost it at the gym. Next was another nano which locked up in a white screen after I plugged it in one time. Then after that I got the HORRENDOUS fourth gen ipod...it truly is a burden. I actually don't mind going for a jog now without it (unthinkable before). Its battery life is a joke (less than the one before that, whose life was shorter than the one before it - exponentially worse battery life?), its gyroscopic screen orientation thing is incredibly annoying and USELESS, the screen defaulting to the cover-flow system when you leave it on for a while is a terrible feature...it used to default to the SONG screen, on the volume bar, so you can increase it or decrease it just by turning the wheel. Now, whenever I turn the wheel, it just sifts through the songs in the flow...wtf?

I have a theory - and believe me, I have no partisan lean toward Microsoft or anything (I couldn't care less about the rivalry) - but I think Apple have loosened quality control on their ipods (especially on battery life) so as to lower their shelf life and sell more ipods...I might be wrong, but after 2008 my experience with them has been awful....

Edited by include
Link to comment
https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/825426-is-it-me-or-are-ipods-getting-worse/
Share on other sites

I agree they've had issues.

My first gen iPod Touch was replaced only after I used it a few times. The replacement seems to be working since.

My first gen iPhone was replaced 3 times. The last replacement had a terrible screen. Dead pixels galore, but I was out of warranty, I decided to try one more time and upgrade to the 3G in April this year. So far so good, although as of this week it's starting to randomly shut off. I did a restore and it seems to be working correctly again.

Battery life is terrible though. I can't go a day with out charging... under moderate usage.

I don't think my next phone will be an iPhone.

Edited by shockz

Like shockz I have an iPhone, but the 3GS. The battery life is laughable, only giving me a full day per charge, unlike my 2g iPhone that gave me 3-4 days.

As for mp3 plays I've had great success with sandisk sansa player, lasting me years already with no issues, other than the outdated interface and unable to update firmware.

Apple it appears, maybe losing their touch, their last press conference was terrible. Hopefully they pick up their game in 2010 and male better iPods or I can see people like you picking up a zune HD

Still got my classic and last gen shuffle (they can shove their new generation of shuffles straight up their ass). Working decent. I've heard plenty of horror stories though.

Honestly, my next purchase will probably be a Zune. Aside from the fact that they look sexy now and have great features, I really cannot stand iTunes at all, much less the limitations.

i really hope my iphone lives out the life of my rogers contract...it's not under warranty any longer and the battery life is laughable though i'm a slave to the device given the extensive usage in phone + music + apps...if the competition really heats up then i'll definitely try something else down the road.

so far so good though, touchwood.

Hmm I've had the opposite experience. My iPod mini & iPod video broke (both through normal usage). My iPod touch 1g however, has worked since launch date. As for the iPod touch 3g I can't comment its still too new. :)

But I must admit the iPods are starting to lack appeal to me. The Zune HD looks so good while the iPod touch 3g looks like it hasn't changed from the 1g 2 years ago.

Other companies are starting to pull away with respect to features and actual real world performance.

As for Apple, their image is suffering, as much as they fight with the same old ads, the way they're dealing with things is starting to ruin their image.

If Apple doesn't accept Google's apps, which would essentially allow Google to silence the FCC inquiry, then Apple is screwed.

Never ever try to take on Google... the only company that can remotely try is Microsoft due to its sheer size and influence

i really hope my iphone lives out the life of my rogers contract...it's not under warranty any longer and the battery life is laughable though i'm a slave to the device given the extensive usage in phone + music + apps...if the competition really heats up then i'll definitely try something else down the road.

so far so good though, touchwood.

If you're with Rogers, you have much more immediate concerns than your iphone!

Other companies are starting to pull away with respect to features and actual real world performance.

As for Apple, their image is suffering, as much as they fight with the same old ads, the way they're dealing with things is starting to ruin their image.

If Apple doesn't accept Google's apps, which would essentially allow Google to silence the FCC inquiry, then Apple is screwed.

Never ever try to take on Google... the only company that can remotely try is Microsoft due to its sheer size and influence

Really, what market does Google dominate outside of search? :rolleyes:

I think hes right, I had 2 shuffles. the first one was made up of much better stuff than the second one.

I origionally payed 80 dollars for the first shuffle when it came out at Compusa,and then later 32 dollars for the second one at best buy. *you could litterly FEEL the differance in the buttons, and ear phones*

an iphone owner.

A piece of plastic. Would have been much better and durable if they were to use aluminum or some other metal..or carbon fiber :-)

I am just glad MS released the zune hd and I hope they will really provide formidable competition to apple. It will be even better if they make a phone out of it. Competition is always good for you and me (it is even good for fanboys). Do you hear this fanboys?! competition is good even for you guys!

Hopefully my next iphone/zunephone will be made out of carbon fiber, will have OLED screen

and, the screen will be covered with transparent aluminum...hahaha :-)

Include you are right Apple is lacking in its quality control. I've taken so many calls of iPod touch 2nd gens not turning on it isn't funny. I have my 1st gen for over 2 years and works fine. No issues whatsoever.

If you wanted a disaster Apple product, look no further than the iPod Mini. Those HDDs used to crap out quickly.

Really, what market does Google dominate outside of search? :rolleyes:

:/

Advertising

In the UK a big fuss was made recently as Google took the top advertising crown from the TV company that's held it for nearly 50 years (ITV) That's no mean feat.

I replaced the battery myself in my 5th G iPod video after getting less than 5 hours on the original Apple one - yes, I fully charged it before first using it. I wouldn't complain about the actual ever-day use. Just the battery sucks.

I just bought the new shuffle. Its probably the most practical MP3 player I've had for running and working out.

But there's an overall lack of build quality throughout the entire iPod line. I'm not surprised of the iPhone problems. Frankly, its one of the reasons I'm shying away from buying another iMac - I had nothing but HW problems after 3 years. I ain't going to pay $500 for a mainboard.

My first iPod was a first gen Nano. It worked perfectly, battery life seemed to go on forever, never froze. Eventually though, the 2Gb of space ran out, so I replaced it with a gen2 touch.

My touch has been nothing but problems - the battery life is a joke, and the battery will run down quickly when I'm not even using it. It also freezes frequently, and commonly gets this glitch where it doesn't output any sound.

The only reason I've been using iPods was because I had multiple iTunes gift cards, and all of Apple's music was DRM'd back then. My next MP3 player probably won't be an iPod.

I've had a Shuffle since spring 2007 .. it's still works well and looks almost new.. but when using it with Windows 7 & iTunes, it's become really slow and crappy.

I've had an iPod Classic since early this year. I think the build quality of it is good but I am disappointed in two things.

Firstly, the back of it: shiny only looks good when it's in pristine condition, it's a bad idea for a portable object like an MP3 player if you can't make it really hard and scratch resistant. I would blame this on design rather than build quality though.

The second gripe is the wheel, the sensitivity of it blows. It's hard to use and get it to land on the track you want, and sometimes it just doesn't recognise that you are trying to use it at all.

This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Posts

    • Apple raises MacBook and iPad prices as memory costs surge by Karthik Mudaliar Apple has raised the U.S. prices of several MacBook and iPad models, including the MacBook Neo, which it launched for $599 less than four months ago. The company’s cheapest laptop now starts at $699, while some MacBook Pro configurations have increased by $300. The changes affect the MacBook Neo, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iPad Air, and iPad Pro. Apple has not changed the hardware or storage included with these models, so customers are simply paying more for the same configurations. Here is how the new US pricing compares with the previous starting prices: Product Previous price New price Increase MacBook Neo $599 $699 $100 13-inch MacBook Air, 512GB $1,099 $1,299 $200 14-inch MacBook Pro, 1TB $1,699 $1,999 $300 16-inch MacBook Pro $2,699 $2,999 $300 11-inch iPad Air, 128GB $599 $749 $150 13-inch iPad Air, 128GB $799 $949 $150 11-inch iPad Pro, 256GB $999 $1,199 $200 13-inch iPad Pro, 256GB $1,299 $1,499 $200 The updated prices are already appearing on Apple’s U.S. online store. The MacBook Neo increase will probably attract the most attention. Apple introduced the laptop in March for $599, pitching it as a more affordable Mac for students and buyers considering Windows laptops or Chromebooks. It uses an A18 Pro processor and originally undercut Dell’s new $699 XPS 13 by $100. Following the increase, the two laptops now have the same starting price. The M5 MacBook Air has also lost the price Apple promoted when it launched in March. The 13-inch model arrived with 512GB of storage for $1,099, while Apple’s store now lists the MacBook Air range as starting at $1,299. The 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M5 chip and 1TB of storage has gone from $1,699 to $1,999. Apple has made similar changes to its iPads. The recently released M4 iPad Air, which launched at the same $599 starting price as its predecessor, now starts at $749 for the 11-inch version. The 13-inch version has risen from $799 to $949. The iPad Pro increases are larger in dollar terms. Apple’s 11-inch M5 iPad Pro now starts at $1,199, up from $999, while the 13-inch version has moved from $1,299 to $1,499. Both base models still include 256GB of storage. Apple blamed the increases on the rapidly rising cost of DRAM and NAND flash, which provide system memory and device storage. The company told Reuters that it had tried to shield customers from the increases but could no longer absorb them. “We have never seen a component price increase this much, this quickly,” Apple said. Tim Cook had already warned that price increases were coming. Cook said Apple’s existing component inventory had softened the immediate impact, but that higher memory costs would increasingly affect the company after the June quarter. Much of the pressure comes from the construction of AI data centers. Memory manufacturers are directing more production toward high-margin server products, leaving PC, tablet, and smartphone makers competing for the remaining supply. Apple has not said whether the new prices are temporary or whether further increases are planned. For now, the changes show that even Apple’s purchasing power has not been enough to keep the AI-driven memory shortage away from consumer devices.
    • Ventoy 1.1.16 is out.
    • This is a none story - these low volume Chinese models will always get new experimental features first because Apple and Samsung can't produce them in huge volume to meet demand.
    • Nvidia GeForce NOW gains support for Dark Scrolls, Empulse, and more by Pulasthi Ariyasinghe The final update of June for Nvidia's cloud gaming service GeForce NOW is now available, and it is touting support for six more games. The company is also drawing subscriber attention towards the summer sales kicking off across stores, so they can stock up on more cloud-supported titles. Of course, the Steam Summer Sale is the biggest promotion, which is kicking off later today. "Supported Steam games can be streamed across devices with GeForce NOW, making it easy to buy a game once, keep progress synced and pick up where the gameplay left off on PCs, Macs, handheld devices, phones, TVs and more," says the company. "In other words, the Steam Summer Sale brings the deals; GeForce NOW adds the flexibility." Don't forget that the GeForce NOW summer sale is still active as well. This limited-time offer drops the 12-month Performance membership from $99.99 to $64.99, saving members $35. At the same time, the 12-month Ultimate membership is currently going for $129.99, dropping the price by $70 from the original $199.99. Here are the games joining GeForce NOW's supported list this week: Dark Scrolls (New release on Steam, available June 22) SAND: Raiders of Sophie (New release on Steam, available June 22) Deer & Boy (New release on Steam, available June 23) EMPULSE (New release on Steam, available June 24) The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales (Steam) FATAL FURY: City of the Wolves (Steam) With the June expansions coming to an end, Nvidia should be announcing its July GeForce NOW plans next week. Keep in mind that, unlike subscription services like Game Pass or EA Play, a copy of a game must be owned by the GeForce NOW member (or at least have a license via PC Game Pass) to start playing via Nvidia's cloud servers. There is also a limit to how many hours subscribers can use the service per month.
    • Davinci Resolve 21.0.1 by Razvan Serea DaVinci Resolve is the world’s only solution that combines editing, color correction, visual effects, motion graphics and audio post production all in one software tool! Its elegant, modern interface is fast to learn and easy for new users, yet powerful for professionals. DaVinci Resolve lets you work faster and at a higher quality because you don’t have to learn multiple apps or switch software for different tasks. That means you can work with camera original quality images throughout the entire process. It’s like having your own post production studio in a single app! Best of all, by learning DaVinci Resolve, you’re learning how to use the exact same tools used by Hollywood professionals! DaVinci Resolve is the only post production software designed for true collaboration. Multiple editors, assistants, colorists, VFX artists and sound designers can all work on the same project at the same time! Whether you’re an individual artist, or part of a larger collaborative team, it’s easy to see why DaVinci Resolve is the standard for high end post production and is used for finishing more Hollywood feature films, episodic television programing and TV commercials than any other software. Davinci Resolve 21.0.1 release notes: Addressed multiple DNG and Apple ProRAW color issues. Addressed issue with automatic smart bins after deleting keywords. Addressed issue with multiple linked audio in media management. Addressed multiple Resolve FX issues in photo page. Addressed issue with key shortcut to switch viewer in photo page. More consistent creation of new photo albums. Addressed color thumbnail refresh for photo transform indicator. Transcription now honors project settings language. Improved face recognition in IntelliSearch. Addressed exported bins not retaining generator and title properties. Addressed ease control display and sensitivity issues. Addressed keyframe issue when copying clips with Fusion effects. Addressed keyframe refresh for Fusion effects in the edit page. Addressed issue with 3D renders in Linux with non-English locales. Addressed Fusion viewer color issue for some RCM settings. Addressed issue with saturation limits in Fusion gradient controls. Addressed Fusion display issues with dual screen layouts. Addressed issue with non-English character inputs in Linux. Disabling MultiMaster now disables trim blanking controls. Addressed crash in some scenarios with CineFocus. Addressed lag when toggling bypass grades and Fusion effects. Addressed occasional issue with Fairlight loudness meters. Addressed data burn display of good take tag in upgraded projects. Addressed project manager scroll lag for large project libraries. Support for Sony Alpha 7R VI ARW RAW stills. Support for decoding Affinity RGB 16-bit formats. Addressed a color issue with MainConcept H.265 HDR renders. Addressed a color issue with Windows native H.265 HDR renders. RemoveMotionBlur API now uses correct encode parameters. Addressed character limit consistency in GenerateSpeech API. General performance and stability improvements. Download page: Davinci Resolve 21.0.1 | 3300 MB (Free, paid upgrade available) Links: DaVinci Resolve Website | Screenshot Get alerted to all of our Software updates on Twitter at @NeowinSoftware
  • Recent Achievements

    • First Post
      kinowa earned a badge
      First Post
    • Rookie
      krychek57 went up a rank
      Rookie
    • Grand Master
      Jaybonaut went up a rank
      Grand Master
    • One Year In
      Philsl earned a badge
      One Year In
    • Dedicated
      Scoobystu earned a badge
      Dedicated
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      463
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      171
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      134
    4. 4
      Michael Scrip
      78
    5. 5
      Xenon
      77
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!