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http://www.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=6689Quote:
We all know trainers aren't that cool any more. Not since the Grandparents discovered that they were actually quite comfy. Indeed, it's all about the Converse now, or a nice pear of brogues, or dare we say it... sandals. So has the popularity of the iPod brought on the beginning of its demise?
I would read the article, but an Abit AW9D-Max advert at the right makes that colum cover all the text. The add is the same size as the full sized banner at the top of the page.
:)
EDIT: OK, it's not that advert in particular, it seams the ad software is putting the wrong sized one there whenever you refresh. got the GeForce 7900 GS one now.
Er.. all they need to do is make an iPod 2 that's expensive and remains exclusive for a while and they're sorted.
No such problems for me, Funkstar.
Try clearing your cache just in case.
Can't clear the cache, this system is locked down harder than a very hard thing by Statoil. Actually i don't think there is a cache on here.
Had an ECS advert a minute ago, now got the Abit one again. it's the ad under the Poll. very annoying
Gah! happening on every non-forum page too.
everyone I know who wants one has an ipod..actually, sorry has had a couple of ipods because they always seem to break!
apart from people updating, as they become ubiquitous sales are bound to fall
I have been saying this for ages, and i think it's largely true. It's been happening for a while, it's just the more tech-savvy have been turning their backs on apple, rather than Joe Bloggs. We have not seen an really ipod killer yet, although the Zune might be a serious contender, but Apple's days at the top can't last forever. I really can't fathom why no one has managed it yet though, of all people Sony should have been able to come up with something by now.
Anyway, I hope it is true; Not because i hate iPod's, but because it might force Apple to buck their idea's up and start finally giving us the features that we need and want - WiFi, gapless playback, higher quality music downloads, etc, rather than just a new look every year. Apple began being very innovative, which was a big factor in the success of the iPod, yet now they are looking like one of the most un-innovative players on the field IMHO. If they are going to compete with mobiles, they will have to get with the programme - it wont be long before companies (make that Sony, bitter that the have not managed a decent DAP to rival the iPod yet) drop 20gig+ HDD's into phones.
Personally i smell a failure here - Who the hell want to watch feature length movies on an iPod?Quote:
Jobs is widely expected to announce the most ambitious iPod service yet - the sale of feature-length films via the internet for viewing on the devices
That said, it's probably more likely that Ipods will go the same way as jeans, rather than Trainers - old hat, yet always managing to hang in there as the mainstay of fashion because they are the 'safe' choice (and love it or hate it, itunes is unrivaled for usability). If there is a serious decline in sales (not like for a while yet - every product peaks at some point) i hope Apple reconsiders its stance on being such a closed system, especially after the French episode as people are waking up to the fact that their music library is looked to Apple products.
Oh, and im not sure quite what that article is getting at by listing "Iconic electronics that reached their sell-by date". Those products reached the end of their sell-by date because the technology/formats were superceded with entirely new and better ones - If the ipod dies away, it wont be due to a new format as storing music in digital files are here to stay (when i say format, i dont mean MP3, WMA, OGG, etc - a simple firmware update could do that, VHS players could not be updated to play DVD's). I dont think that listing them has anything to do with the main point of the article.
Who wants those features? People who talk about them on internet forums? 99% of the iPod user base couldn't care less.Quote:
Originally Posted by autopilot
Couldn't care less, or just not don't know any better?Quote:
Originally Posted by Jonny M
People used to say that about online gaming for consoles, then the Xbox360 came along.
I think that what you say is correct to a degree, but thats changing. A freind of mine bought an Ipod a couple of months ago. He knows next to nothing about PC's and has never used a forum in his life. Yet he phoned me up and said he has been loading his favourite dance CD's (mixed) on to it but there was i short silence every coupld of minutes. When he asked what he was doing wrong i told him that there was nothing he could do. He has since taken it back to the shop. I has now got a Sony, which in many ways is not as good (the software is a joke and the user interface is pretty lame, yes we know), yet the music coming from his speakers/earphones sounds better and thats what matters to him.
And before anyone says only small number of people need gapless playback, have you been into HMV recently? Cheesy trance is the mainstream in this country.
As for WiFi etc, players are coming out with WiFi support. And due to the fact that most people now get wireless routers as standard, its a feature that people will quickly wake up to and want to use.
And again, non-geeky, non-forum using people are starting to question the quality of downloads, especially as more and more people use the iPod as their main device, through thier HiFi's etc.
I dont think you can dismiss the argument as simple forum chatter anymore.
And can i just add that i am not an iPod or apple hatter, before the iPod zealots jump on me. We should be grateful for what they have achieved, im just saying that they are going to have to pick their game up, thats all.
they will always bring out something else new that people will want.
On the other hand, what players other then the iPod work with a Mac?
Another flaw in that article is that they did not mention market saturation. It's pretty much a given that people upgrade thier phone every 12 months, but many people i know are still using older gen iPods. So yeah, growth in sales will fall as many people have already bought them and see no reason to upgrade.
Archos units do, even has a plugin to let it work with iTunes :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Jonny M
I really dont get y people dont like the sony interface. I think its great and would choose it over an ipod any day.
Yeah, it's no that bad on the Sony. It what people get used too, like people who are so used to Nokia menu systems they wont concider another phone unless they can use it instantly. That said, i still think the iPod system is probably the best overall.Quote:
Originally Posted by nvening
One thing that annoys me, and confuses people, is that for some reason Sony refuse to use the term 'playlist' and instead call them 'groups'. Coldplay is a group, The Beatles were a group. A selection of tunes from various artists is not a group, its a playlist FFS!