Re: Re: Re: iPod? Bah!
Originally posted by Ervino
USB 2.0 *AND* FireWire connection kits are optional and out soon.
So I have to pay extra to compensate for Archos' design mistake? USB 1.1 is not sufficient for this application by any stretch of the imagination.
Hmm, have you really used the Archos Multimedia Jukebox? It took to me about 5 minutes to learn the controls. And I'm a computer journalist , so hardly a rocket scientist... ;-)
Obviously, else you might have noticed I didn't say it was hard to learn how to use the controls. What I said was that Archos adopted a fairly arbitrary and uninspired set of buttons for their jukebox with no particular attention to usability. There's a difference between the difficulty of learning an interface and the convenience of using it under real-world circumstances.
I tried out a lot of MP3 players before the iPod arrived, including offerings from Archos. I chose not to get
any of them because I didn't like the compromises I had to make in quality, capacity, size, battery life and so forth. The iPod was the first player I found that didn't make me compromise.
4.5x3x1 inches is HUGE for you? I pity your girlfriend! (Ooops, sorry, but I can't resist! ;-)
For something I expect to be able to carry around in my pants pocket, yes that
is huge. Perhaps you just have more free space in your pants pocket area than I do.
Well, on this point I haven't anything to object: design tastes are subjective.
That's an easy cop-out, isn't it? You could make a shallow appeal to the subjectivity of taste to argue that there's no substantive difference between a Picasso and a three-year-old child's crayon drawing. But it's the iPod that wins the design awards.
Hem, have you read attently the specifications? The Archos Multimedia Jukebox include the output and cable to see the Mpeg4 *on a TV* with vhs resolution. And it work as a charm, I can assure you!
I read the specs. I already have plenty of ways to show video on my TV.
Beside all this, the Archos Multimedia Jukebox have an integrated microphone, and, being modular, it can be integrated with a camera module that shot photo and REAL TIME ENCODED ***MOVIE***!
And is this ***MOVIE*** you speak of going to compare in any way to the video I can shoot on my existing DV camcorder? Or the pictures I can take with my existing digital still camera? Is there any reason I should believe that this camera is anything but a toy?
And it is both Mac AND Pc conpatible at the same time, and it cost THE SAME as the equivalent size HD iPod, and it has a *REPLACABLE* battery (so you haven't to throw it away when the battery die, or pay Apple $$$ to replace it...), and no, I'm not paid by Archos... ;-)
Really? Because Archos' site doesn't list a replacement battery in their accessories and spare parts section. And in fact, the FAQ says:
19. Can I replace the JBMM batteries?
No, we hardly recommend you not to replace the batteries.
Now, I admit their English is about as clear as yours, but that "No" seems pretty clear to me. And for that matter, if my iPod's battery were to expire, the first thing I'd do is go to the Apple Store and try to get them to sell me a replacement battery, which I could, in fact, replace quite easily myself. Opening the case would violate the iPod's warranty, but if the iPod were still
in warranty, they'd have to replace the battery for free anyway.
What's your problem with Archos? Hmm, OK, now I understand, they are: 1) European, and 2) with way less money than Apple to spend in pumping they products, so they are, by definition, inferior, right? Why give their stuff a real look, when you can much more easily go with bias...
First, I didn't even realize Archos was a European company until you mentioned it today. Second... do you have some delusion that Americans have a problem with people from Europe? Where would you get that idea? I've never heard such a thing. Since you're the one who seems to be operating under this assumption of cultural bias, could it be that you're pushing Archos products
because they're European?
