Poll: Are you considering buying a iPod Mini?

[MacRumors]

Vote: Poll: Are you considering buying a iPod Mini? (http://www.macpolls.com/?poll_id=353)

[Doctor Q]

I'll consider getting one once Apple introduces the iPod Mini Mini (let's say $149, 2GB, 500 songs). Not the current iPod Mini, which doesn't hit a price/capacity sweet spot.

[Nermal]

Ditto.

[Gymnut]

Unlikely so after I just bought a 20 two weeks ago. Had I not, possibly. I like that arm band option and it would be perfect for my workouts.

[Flowbee]

I was withholding judgement until I got to Macworld today and held one in my hand. Well... this new mini does nothing for me. As strange as it may sound, it has no character. Even with the pretty colors, it looks cold and sterile. I would have preferred a mini version of the current 'full-size' iPod. Anyway, I hope I'm in the minority and it's a successful product for Apple.

[redAPPLE]

i think once people COMPARE that rio thingy with the iPod mini, then people will MAKE THE RIGHT DECISION.

what most people did the last couple of days was, look at the iPod mini, then looked at the price, then looked at the next best iPod.

IMO this is not what SJ wanted. we Apple users would not even look at another mp3 player, right? we would automatically look at the best, which is the iPod.

that is why it irritates (all of) us to see the price and we start to shake our heads...

[Bunzi2k4]

I have a 15 gig (and i'm very ticked off about it too! $370!! and a week after i got it, the 20 gig came out!! AAAHHHHH!!!!!!) so i'm not considering one, and even if i didn't have an ipod, i would seriously consider the 15 gig or 20 gig.

[joost538]

I fear we're about to witness a classic Apple marketing mistake here. And that is to keep going after the high-end market and Apple getting absolutely, and severely crushed by the competition. The competition WILL come out with a lower quality, lower capacity and lower price item and own the market hands down.

I mean 250 for an mp3 player? That's absurd. That should be the entry level for an iPod, it's the premium price people are willing to pay for a premium product (I got a first gen). Then there's this other HUGE market of people that just want an mp3 player, see the difference in quality but will never ever spend 250 dollars on it. And in the end, WMA players will win, WMA stores will win and Apple will again be a 5 percent market share (or less). So sad.

[edesignuk]

62.99% currently have voted a resounding, no. Considering this place is full of Apple freaks, it's not looking good...

[notmenotyou]

no, still waiting for the 60G iPod coming out. :D

[AllenPSU]

Originally posted by edesignuk
62.99% currently have voted a resounding, no. Considering this place is full of Apple freaks, it's not looking good...


The poll is misleading. It should have had other options...

No. Already have an iPod but would consider the mini if I didn't.

No. Already have an iPod and would consider the full size if I didn't.

[mac15]

Considering one , I have a while to look around since they don't hit Australia's shelves until April. I think by that time, I will have made the right choice.

[Stoffel]

I will probably buy a pink one the next time I will be in the US. My daughter loves this color.....

[SilvorX]

i would buy one if it were $100 less, but since it isn't, i'll probably be getting a 15GB model if I save up enough money soon

[Sir_Giggles]

Originally posted by edesignuk
62.99% currently have voted a resounding, no. Considering this place is full of Apple freaks, it's not looking good...

If you are going by a poll to do any serious scientific analysis of buying trends, you are nutz.

These sort of polls are very misleading because

a) Depending on how the poll is worded, it may influence the type of response

b) Only people with a strong opinion are likely to vote, so it isn't a true random sampling

c) People voting obviously have not seen, touched or even used the thing, so it's likely they are under-informed. [iPod - 2 years, mini - 2 days]

It would be silly and plain dumb to fate the doom of the Cube to the mini. I personally think the iPod mini will be a hot seller for Apple, because

d) People buying the mini ain't concerned with capacity so much as portability and size.

c) the Mini is targeted at the high-end flash market, not the HD mp3 player market.

So everyone, please stop your whining, if you want more capacity, get the 15GB iPod - thank SJ at least for upping it 50%, you ungrateful dimwits.

[Fahd]

Not at the currently ridiculous pricing! But if and when the pricing becomes more reasonable, I plan to get about 5 of them.

All those complaining about the pricing, might want to send apple your feedback via http://www.apple.com/feedback/ipod.html :D

[amnesiac1984]

I still don't get it. Look at the competition at this price point and the iPod mini wins hands down! You just can't get an mp3 player with anywhere near that capacity and style and size for that price. Okay so its not mcuh cheaper than the 15gb, but its a lot smaller and fits into a different market. I understand why you think its too pricey because so did I when I first saw the keynote but after some thinking I realised it made sense.

[MoparShaha]

As many here, I do wish it was $50 cheaper. That said, it is a great product in of itself. I don't think anyone here has an actual problem the with the device itself. The only problem is the price. That said, it is either equal to or cheaper than its main cometitors, and of better quality. It is only when compared to the 15 Gig iPod that people become upset. The iPod mini is directed at a different audience than the the iPod. People who want a small device will want the iPod mini. I've held one and played around with it, and I think it's a very solid and well built device. Stop comparing it with other iPods, and look at it for what it is--then you will appreciate it.

[edesignuk]

Originally posted by Sir_Giggles
If you are going by a poll to do any serious scientific analysis of buying trends, you are nutz.
I'm not saying that the poll is scientific fact, I'm saying that judging by this poll they aren't very popular. http://upload.edesignuk.net/uploaded_data/smilies/wtf.gif
you ungrateful dimwits.
Am I calling you a dimwit because you actually think these are good value? No, so there's no need for you to either. http://upload.edesignuk.net/uploaded_data/smilies/tard.gif

[abdul]

WHY?????? pay £50 more and get 11GB more. i dont thin it is worth it at that price. i really dont see Apple's logic, if a person is gonna save £200 and get a ipod mini, they might as well save another £60 and get a proper ipod.

if it was for £100-150 that would be a different story, i might consider it.

[wordmunger]

I would consider it if I was in the market for a portable player--which I'm not. I'm seriously considering the 40 GB iPod to replace my home stereo CD player, though. I'm just not a 'carry your music with you' kind of person. But if I was, the iPod mini strikes me as more convenient than the regular iPod. Much more portable, much less of a lump in your pocket. The regular iPod strikes me as something that would get a bit annoying if you had it in your pocket all day.

[Stella]

Buy one?

Yea right...

Like other people mention, I can spend $50 more and get a whole lot more disc space.

The Best $50 extra I could spend on a media player.

[grouse]

I would SERIOUSLY consider, in fact, darn it, just go out and buy one, if when then hit these shores in April, the price reflects the weak dollar.

On today's rates, we'd be looking at about £135 or so, which would blow the competition away, in a more high-end price sensitive market (and less developed market) like the UK.

Though, we know that, it'll come out at £199! Which makes it bad value in every sense.

And can someone answer me whether keeping the dollar-sterling price differential, which happens on nearly all US manufactured items, makes any extra money for Apple? Do they just think, we'll make up the exchange rate (based on a fictional long-gone price index) and pocket the change? Or does it really cost them more some how?

Thanks

And I reckon they look cool as a very cool thing in Coolsville, Alaska.

[Sir_Giggles]

If I had started over again and was about to look at buying my first iPod, I would have chosen the iPod mini over the regular iPod, because

a) I don't need to store my entire 14GB collection on my music player, because I've found that I only listen to about 5% of it at any point in a month. I hardly if ever search by song name, and like alot of iPod'ers, we use playlists. I'd prefer to keep my entire music collection on my Mac. Firewire transfer is so fast but you'll only ever use it when adding new songs, which doesn't happen alot.

b) In exchange for the lower capacity, the mini iPod is so much lighter and smaller, that it's the perfect size for using the clickwheel as well as working out/jogging.

The iPod mini would fit my needs better as a portable music player, whereas someone with a regular iPod, I see it being used as a portable digital jukebox to replace the home stereo system.

So for my needs, I think the iPod mini is the perfect device, form factor and price included.

Currently the owner of the 2G 20GB iPod ($499).

[stefman]

I like the physical size of the iPod mini, but don't like the HD space. I'm looking to replace my 1st gen. 5Gig iPod and would have considered the mini if there was more room for songs.

I guess I'll also wait for the 60Gig iPod :D

[IndyGopher]

The iPod mini is not supposed to be competing with the regular iPod, and I think comparisons between the two miss that point. The mini is mini. The size of it is pretty much the entire point. We went through this about 15 years ago with the credit card walkman. It was the same price as one of those 8 D-Cell shoulder-mounted boombox monstrosities, and people used that as their point of contention. All it did was play FM radio, why buy that when you could have dual tapes, it was too expensive, blah blah blah. Totally different use. Totally different marketspace. How silly would you sound if you said "Why would you get a Corvette for $58K when for $5K more, you could get a Hummer?"
I paid $400 for the first 5gig iPod before they were even shipping, and I still use it daily. Of course it doesn't hold all my MP3's (not much does, I have 42,683 of them at 163.54 gig 117.5 days) but it holds enough for a few days worth of listening without getting totally bored. I think the mini will find its market, where size and form factor are the prime concern, and it will do just fine.

[scottlee]

I would have considered it if I did not already have a 40. But I have talked my mother to go with a new 15gig.

[Viv]

I have a 30gig IPod so I had to vote no, but I would have been tempted by the mini.

Viv

[jayscheuerle]

So.... Now we have a choice between an overpriced glorified Walkman and an overpriced glorified mini-Walkman?

$250 minimum to carry some music around? That's nuts. Especially when portable CD players start at around $25 these days, $45 if you want it to play a disc with 10 hours of mp3s.

This market hasn't matured yet and people are paying a premium to play. Remember when portable CD players, with no buffers, were $200 for the low end? I'll wait a while thank you...

[Viv]

Well when it gets to the UK that $250 for the mini IPod will be probably £199 but it is still a small fraction of the price of the music in most peoples music librarys.

My library is over six hundred albums and at UK pricing for CDs thats a fare wedge of cash, that makes my 30gig IPod cheap as chips in comparison, a 40Gig would still be worth it.

The same argument can be applied to the IPod mini

Viv

[DOUBLEADESIGN]

I have a 30. My wife has a 10. We are both getting a mini. 100% of the reason is for working out and running. The current sizes are just too big and cumbersome for a workout. As cool as they are they really are just impractical for a good run. They really do run out of buffer in about 20-25 minutes. The mini will be perfect. We'll most likely sell the 10 but between hte two of us we'll own 3! SILVER for me and PINK for her. Also, what other player out there will play AAC files? ......my, my the audience is quiet.

[Laslo Panaflex]

I voted no, I was at macworld on Tuesday and I can say that not many people we impressed with it. I really liked the small size, and it was very light, but it also felt really fragile compared to my 3G 15gig. The wheel is not solid state like the 3G and it was weak and didn't seem as responsive as mine.

That being said, they are really small and pretty cool to look at, but do no interest me. Maybe when my current iPod breaks and the 2G mini's are out that have different capacities and price points I will consider it, untill then. . . no thanks.

P.S. I have video that I took at Macworld on Tuesday that I edited and encoded to mp4, the only problem is I don't have any place to host them. They are:

Me holding and playing with iPod mini
1:07 long and 7.3mb

iPod mini and iPod, live comparison
35 seconds long 3.9mb

g5 Xserve shown on the show floor
1:41 long and 10.9mb

ATI Radeon9800 256mb mac special edition running Unreal Tournament 2004
43 seconds long 4.6mb

I also have footage of me running all the iApps, except itunes, running on a powerbook. If any one wants to help me host the above files I will edit and encode the iLife footage as well. If anyone could help me out with suggestions of hosts are want me to send them to you for you to host that would be fine to.

Please PM me

Thanks,

[jayscheuerle]

Originally posted by DOUBLEADESIGN
I have a 30. My wife has a 10. We are both getting a mini. 100% of the reason is for working out and running. The current sizes are just too big and cumbersome for a workout. As cool as they are they really are just impractical for a good run. They really do run out of buffer in about 20-25 minutes. The mini will be perfect. We'll most likely sell the 10 but between hte two of us we'll own 3! SILVER for me and PINK for her. Also, what other player out there will play AAC files? ......my, my the audience is quiet.

Well, now we know who spent $29,000 at the ITMS... :D

[MattG]

Cute looking but no way I'd buy one. For a price cut of $50 I might consider it, but when I can spend $50 more and get over 3x the space, I'd have to be crazy to buy a mini.

[Kid Red]

Well it seems the majority of you get it-

The mini is for those who wanted a RIO- a FLASH PLAYER-an iPod ALTERNATIVE!! The mini is not meant as a new product for mac heads. This was for those who had $250 (not $400) and were looking at a flash player or other dorky little small mp3s that flooding the market going after the iPod. NOTICE THE RIO COMPARISON DURING THE EXPO!?!?! There was no comparing it to the 15g iPod, because that's not it's competitor!!

Yes, the 15g is only $50. "Wow, that sounds like a good fricking deal!!" says Joe Shmoe who 3 minutes ago was going to buy a Rio, then saw the mini at the SAME PRICE (not expensive, it's the same price as it's COMPETITION!@!) and then saw the bigger iPod at $50 more and thought, what a deal!!

Are you people that blind to not see the bait and switch!? We not only got a sale that was going to go to an iPod flash alternative, but we may end up getting a bigger sale on the bigger iPod upgrade!! It's the trojan horse on steroids coming in the back door.

Sorry for my aggression, just a little perplexed at the lack of vision here.

[Kid Red]

Originally posted by MattG
Cute looking but no way I'd buy one. For a price cut of $50 I might consider it, but when I can spend $50 more and get over 3x the space, I'd have to be crazy to buy a mini.

The mini was obviously not meant for you then :eek:

[Le Big Mac]

Originally posted by AllenPSU
The poll is misleading. It should have had other options...

No. Already have an iPod but would consider the mini if I didn't.

No. Already have an iPod and would consider the full size if I didn't.

Yep. I already have an iPod (15 gig). Probably a high percentage of people on this site do, too. No compelling reason for me to get another one for $249. Now, if they had introduced a 2gb model at $100 (or even $150), I might have considered a purchase for workouts/pocket sizedness, etc. But not at $249. For that much, I'd buy another 15gb.

[noxes]

Originally posted by Bunzi2k4
I have a 15 gig (and i'm very ticked off about it too! $370!! and a week after i got it, the 20 gig came out!! AAAHHHHH!!!!!!) so i'm not considering one, and even if i didn't have an ipod, i would seriously consider the 15 gig or 20 gig.

Same here, went and took the dive with 15 gig, 4 days later, bam, apple has replaced the 15 gig ipod with the 20 gig. And now at MacWorld my 15 gig is the low end iPodBiggie.

[ITR 81]

Originally posted by edesignuk
62.99% currently have voted a resounding, no. Considering this place is full of Apple freaks, it's not looking good...
So??

37-40% means a lot of people are considering one.

Apple is only looking at gaining another 30% of the market share.

Either way Apple win's. You either buy the iPod mini for it's small factor or you see a better deal at 15GB and Apple just gets another $50 bucks out of you.

Perfect marketing strategy.

My friend just bought one for himself and his GF. Both PC users.

Another one my friends bought one because he said it looks like his Nokia phone now.

I'm going to buy one in about 3 months or I'll wait until the 6 month mark and just order it with my new G5 PM.


$500 Microdrive in a $250 iPod package is a great deal.

I already own a 40GB iPod.

[mara]

I admit that it could be 50 bucks cheaper. However I really don´t understand your comments about that people shoul by the 15 Gig version for $ 50 more. I for example have over 24 Gigs of music. If I want to place my entire library on Ipod I should by the most expensive version.

But the point is that I don´t have a portable music player at the moment. iPod mini is small, looks great and not THAT expensive. It is cheapest iPod. All I want is a nice small mp3-player and of course it must be Apple =) 600 hundred songs is enough for longer trips as well and it is very easy to change the music on your Pod. Plus at the moment problem is that I haven´t built many playlists so I´m looking for music and changing songs all the time when listening. And that wouldn´t be nice on an iPod.

4 Gigs is enough and is chaper than other iPod´s. And most importantly it is cool (especially the green one) and no one has it yet =) You can see quite many iPods here in Finland too...

Oh, and any ideas which store sells iPod minis and delivers orders to Europe? I´m not going to wait until April. And with the current exchange rate if toll and VAT are added plus the delivery it shouldn´t be much more than 250 euros... below 300 is sure. And the 15 Gigs sells for 350 euros here in Europe...

[wdlove]

Voted no, because I have no interest in the iPod. Still enjoy my Walkman, listen to FM talk.

[themadchemist]

One iPod is more than enough, thank you very much. Don't get me wrong, but I don't need another one. I have a first gen 5 GB iPod (I think that makes me an early adopter--i.e., very cool and trendsetting) and I can't fill it with music. I use it a lot of file transfer, etc.

[Flowbee]

Originally posted by jayscheuerle
$250 minimum to carry some music around? That's nuts. Especially when portable CD players start at around $25 these days, $45 if you want it to play a disc with 10 hours of mp3s.

It must feel really nice to be so much smarter than the 2+ million of us who have purchased an iPod. I hope you're putting all that brain power to good use. :p

[Gimzotoy]

To add my (rather useless) opinion. I voted 'No'. Although, after finding out these things use the CompactFlash MicroDrives, I can understand the price issue. However, I would have GLADLY paid $249 if they had somehow made that drive removeable. A 4GB iPod mini when you're walking around, and then you could trade it for the spare 256MB CF card you have lyin around when you go for a jog. Seems like the best of both worlds.

[rueyeet]

I'm seriously considering a mini, for reasons of size. But I probably won't be able to quite convince myself to buy one unless they go down to $200 (or my 10 GB dies :) ). Yes, I know that it's the better choice between the Rio and miniPod, but I wouldn't have been able to quite stomach plunking down that much on the Rio, either, especially when $50 more will STILL get you the 15 GB iPod. In other words, the Rio's overpriced too! When you can get a 15 GB player of ANY brand for $300, why pay only $50 less to get a third the capacity or less?

Of course, this is all speculation until I can hold one and try it out. That's the real deal-maker or -breaker: Is it small enough? Do I like the Click Wheel? Do I want accessories, and can I afford it all?

Originally posted by edesignuk
http://upload.edesignuk.net/uploaded_data/smilies/wtf.gif http://upload.edesignuk.net/uploaded_data/smilies/tard.gif

Love the new and expressive smilies....I quoted this just to see how you did them. Too bad it's an outside link.... :(

[mrsebastian]

as i said yesterday at macbytes... the minipod is beautiful of course and at the right price would sell like hotcakes! this is reminiscent of the cube fiasco. heck, apple would have been better off keeping the form factor of the ipod and just making a 2-4g ipod for $100-150.

i think apple just misses the point sometimes. it would make more sense to me, as a stock holder, to create a cheaper/smaller capacity ipod and get it out to the masses! i want everyone and their mother to have an ipod! then when you've got everyone sucked in, you bring out ipod 2.0 with a color screen and whatever form factor changes. you gotta build up your client base and then you keep 'em coming back... seems like business 101 to me.

[Balin64]

I like iPod mini: I think it advances Apple's strengths: design, innovation. I hope the majority of digital music player consumers buy one this year. But I doubt they will. I am not buying this offering since it makes no sense: I need way more than 5 GB for all my music and extra storage space. Now, if I was a person with a smaller music library, no need for extra space, or a parent buying for a child, I probably would not buy one either. If you meet one of the three criterias you either do not have the budget to afford the iPod mini, or you don't gice a rat's ass about design, quality, etc. All you would care about was the price: besides, if you're one of these people, you probably already have an uninspired and buggy Windoes box. Why not get a player to match it? Anyway, I rarely post lately, and never this much, but while I am at it, here's a feedback e-mail I sent to Apple. Please do not blast me if you disagree. Everyone is entitled to voice their opinion in a forum.

Dear Apple:
Considering that Apple has once again tendered to a high-end market and not the HUGE mass of people that make up the mp3 market in the next year, the iPod mini needs an incentive to sell. Offer 20-30 free downloads from iTMS to sweeten the deal: it may draw some of the parsimonious people to buy. Otherwise, 250 dollars is too much for your avearge, suburbanite dweller in this country. Most people buy electronics not with longevity or quality in mind, but based on "the best deal." That is why most home offices in America sport a classless, boring, low quality Windows plastic box. The last twenty years has taught us that most people DO NOT GET IT. Some of us do, and we're Mac owners, and iPod owners. If you don't drop the price or add incentives for these iPods, people will snatch up the competing lower quality, less feature, lower capacity WMA players at Best Buy: you know the type: Sunday ads for Best Buy, offering Mail-In rebates, that is how they move stuff. And trust me: they will outsell the iPod mini: they will whoop the cute colors off the aluminum casing. Apple as a at a crosspoint: join the mass-product market, or continue making high quality products for our niche market. Why don't you go for both? a lá Nikon? They make top-tier Professional Gear, high-end items rivaling Leica quality, and still manage to produce point & shoots for Martha and Tim of Suburbville, America: AND, they have a great reputation for quality. The majority of Americans (and the emulating international market) are hard-core cheap bastards. No matter how much little Cindy wants the pink iPod mini, she's getting an underachieving WMA player. The iPod mini cannot compete: add an incentive, or take a profit hit until they DO become successful and Hard Drive prices drop. Good Luck: I will be holding on to my first generation 5 GB until I can get a 250 dollar normal size iPoid. I will not be recommending the mini to anyone at the time; I know you are getting similar e-mails from fellow Mac users (in my case, life-long: from 3rd grade to the present). Listen to us: we have been your best marketing strength right along with the 1984 commercial: noy only do we stay with your products through good and bad times, but we are always trying to convince family and friends to give the Macintosh experience a go. I for one have convinced countless people (especially in college) to buy an Apple computer. Listen to us, because for some twisted-wrong reason, we care about Apple computer like a cool older friend. We want you to be around to provide excellent products our grandchildren can use, and their friends, teachers,etc. End of unsolicited advice.

[MacFan25]

Since I have already iPod, I won't be buying one, but I think that if I were in the market for a portable music player, I would seriously consider the Mini iPod - because of its size, and since I only have about three and a half gigs of music.

[Snowy_River]

Originally posted by joost538
I fear we're about to witness a classic Apple marketing mistake here. . .

And in the end, WMA players will win, WMA stores will win and Apple will again be a 5 percent market share (or less). So sad.

Gee down on Apple a bit?! The iPod is a far cry from being 5% market share, and there's no indication that it's heading in that direction. iTunes currently hold 70% of market share, and shows no indication of heading toward 5% either. With the new HP rebranded iPod and iTune perinstalled on every HP/Compac computer, we're seeing even more market penetration. I really don't see the cause for being so negative. Really.

[Snowy_River]

Originally posted by jayscheuerle
So.... Now we have a choice between an overpriced glorified Walkman and an overpriced glorified mini-Walkman?

$250 minimum to carry some music around? That's nuts. Especially when portable CD players start at around $25 these days, $45 if you want it to play a disc with 10 hours of mp3s.

This market hasn't matured yet and people are paying a premium to play. Remember when portable CD players, with no buffers, were $200 for the low end? I'll wait a while thank you...

While it's fine for you to choose to wait a while, I don't think that your comparison is quite fair. There is a world of difference between an iPod and and CD player. Having the ability to carry my entire music library, plus any audio books that I might be listening to at the time, is incredibly valuable to me, and a lot of others. I find that most music stations don't play the kind of music that I like.

Further, before I bought an iPod I did buy one of those MP3 disk playing CD players for about $75. It claimed to have a 5 minute buffer cache for MP3s, but it still skipped and lost its place when I was simply walking from my office to my car.

So, of course the products in this market will be forever maturing. But, if you're always waiting for the mature product, you'll never buy anything.

[Snowy_River]

P.S. I voted 'No' because I already have a 2G 20GB iPod. However, truth be told, I wouldn't be interested in the minis even if I didn't, as I'm someone that uses my iPod as an external hard drive, so the extra disk space is very valuable to me.

[Chip NoVaMac]

I would consider one if it were 10gb at $249. I guess I will join others for the 15gb iPod, or wait till Spring for the 30 and 60gb models.

[mrsebastian]

i never mentioned how i voted on my earlier post...

i voted no, because i recently got a 10g ipod. however if i hadn't, i still wouldn't get a minipod for same reasons as so many have mentioned. to me the ipod and minipod are both beautiful pieces of engineering and the smaller physical size doesn't make much difference to me. it comes down to, more bang for the buck and in that case the minipod makes absolutely no sense! this whole thing just gives me a "cube" dejavu.

[rolnif]

Alrfeady have a 30GB iPod. Don't need a mini.

[Stinkysteve]

I voted no.
There is not enough space on them. I'm planning on buying an iPod when they come out with larger capacity drives so I can use it as a player and an external hard drive.

[pimentoLoaf]

If I didn't already have one, I might be tempted if it weren't for the 15gb model, which, BTW, is the one I own.

Had Apple put a $150-less pricetag on the mini's, I think they would massively destroy the remaining MP3 player market. They didn't, so regular iPods will probably, in the long run, destroy the mini's appeal.

[noel4r]

i already got a 15Gb, have no need for a second ipod, my ipod is portable enough...

[warcraftmaster]

this is just like the ibook 14 and the power g4 12

[Trekkie]

Where's the 'No, I have an iPod' answer? ;)

Seriously I have a 20 gigger, why would I want a mini too?

[pdt]

I have been in the market for a flash MP3 player and I will seriously consider buying an iPod mini after 6 months of early adopters' reports. I think it's very competitive with other options for small mp3 players suitable for running. My concern is the hard drive skipping as I've heard reported for the iPods.

[Trekkie]

Originally posted by warcraftmaster
this is just like the ibook 14 and the power g4 12

Give me the Powerbook G4 any day. My brother got his wife teh iBook for christmas. I like the powerbooks feel/look better and I'd pay more for it.

[billyboy]

Originally posted by edesignuk
62.99% currently have voted a resounding, no. Considering this place is full of Apple freaks, it's not looking good...

I havent read alll posts, but Apple are after 30% of the interested market, which seems to be how the vote is panning out

[Centris 650]

I voted no. I already have a 2G 10gig that I got for ~$170 of the Apple Deals section of the Apple Online Store.

Now, do I like the look and size of the iPod? YES! Would I pay $250 for it? NO! Like an earlier poster said I use mine for external storage to move files from work to home so a 4 giger would not be good for me. When the iPodmini's have a higher storage rate or lower price I might conisider one. Until then I would pay the extra for the 15gig.

[Sailfish]

The mini-iPod is supposed to compete with similar priced/size competitors model.

The message is loud and clear to the competitor, "we will match your price"

Since the iPod has more brand recognition than the other player, Apple will win on that and doesn't need to lower the price below the competitor and signal weakness/desperation.

This will eventually force the competitor to lower their price to try to compete and reduce their profit, Apple will then match the price.

Since the profit on the mini is probably small neither wants to lower their price.

So the competitor has a choice between a slow or fast death or get out of the game altogether.

So those waiting for a cheaper mini may want to wait a while and let the competition make the first move, then expect Apple to lower their prices.

This is remarkable change from the old Apple, they are definably playing a different game here. With world domination on their minds.

Way to go Apple.

[Snowy_River]

Originally posted by Sailfish
...
This will eventually force the competitor to lower their price to try to compete and reduce their profit, Apple will then match the price.
...


I think you've missed a possibility. That is that the competition could make a 'cheaper', less reliable, etc., product in order to be able to lower their prices. This could gain them market with the 'deal seekers', but could ultimately backfire, as they'd get the reputation for putting out a cheap product.

[denjeff]

yes, the dollar is cheap and a friend of mine goes to miami... that way i buy it for about 200 euro. if it s introduced in april here, it will be like +250 euro, i think... really hate price policy of apple.

[virividox]

i just want a little price drop.

[howtoplaydead]

no, think value, although it does seem more resistant than the skin of the normal iPods. The normal iPods feel like an expensive glass brick that will get distroyed as soon as dropped. i like the new aluminum construction

[clr900]

I think the new iPod mini is amazing, the resistant aluminum case, the neat colors, and its great size make it a winning product. I already have a 15 Gig iPod and I am seriously considering getting a mini. Like people have already said, the mini is aimed at the market that wants a small mp3 player that they can carry around with them without worrying about it getting damaged or becoming uncomfortable in a pocket. The 15Gig I have right now is great for going on trips where I want my entire music collection and using as a portable hard drive in case I want to transfer some files to somebody elses computer. But on a purely music level, the mini would be perfect for me. I don't necessarily want to listen to or for that matter even like all of the music that I have on my ipod right now and there is no need for me to be carrying around files with me all day when I could compromise these for a smaller form factor. I know right now that I don't really like to carry around my iPod in my pocket as it can get uncomfortable, however my cell phone is fine in my pocket which is what the mini would be like. I think I gotta get one know....silvers nice.

[Flowbee]

I'd like to see this poll done again, now that the minis are out. I suspect we'd see very different results. I know I've changed my mind since they were announced (and since I voted). I'm gettin' one.

[xthree]

If I had nothing else to do with $300 I'd get one... Shame I can hardly fit my music collection on my 30g.



...but they are soo cute :( Damn you Steve, for making such cute and sexy electronics.

[wdlove]

Originally posted by Flowbee
I'd like to see this poll done again, now that the minis are out. I suspect we'd see very different results. I know I've changed my mind since they were announced (and since I voted). I'm gettin' one.

I would still vote No, don't see any real need in my life far an iPod. I agree with everyone that the design is awesome.

[DOUBLEADESIGN]

i think if i didn't ever workout expect for my fingers at a keyboard i would not be interested. i mean who cares how lightweight it is. who cares that it has an optional armband that feels pretty damn comfortable. who cares that it hold 10 times the songs of any other digital music player at that size. who cares that for people who like music while running, rollerblading, biking, exercising, etc. would find this new iPod at the top of their list. who cares that for $250 in the small digital music player area (mainly flash based) you get way more bang for your buck. who cares that this new iPod is sure to win some industral design awards. i'll be happy listening to my music on tape from the local flea market.

[Doctor Q]

A lot of people read CNET reviews when shopping, so I was pleased to see CNET give the iPod Mini a good review. See Apple comes through again with a near-perfect MP3 player (http://reviews.cnet.com/4505-6490_7-30657036.html?tag=search).

[xthree]

Yeah, def change the poll! After I saw it I changed my mind.. I now want one :)