Apple Ipod vs Creative Zen

[Pooh93]

I need help! I want to purchase MP3 players for my dd's and myself, for Christmas. DD's ages or 11 & 9.

I keep looking at these 2 brands. Does anyone have any opinion on them one way or the other? My have a PC, so I didn't know if and Ipod would be more difficult to download to, set up etc? Also, are you just paying for the Ipod name? It seems I can get better memory for less money on the Creative Zen players.

Any thoughts, comments are appreciated.

 

[SandraVB79]

I bought an iPod video 30 GB while in the US last month (and I smuggled it into Europe, woohoo!) (I also smuggled a 60 GB one for my brother) (but that is off-topic)

I like my iPos, my brother likes his. Only problem I have, is that I have Windows ME on my PC, and so, I can't install iTunes, and I have to use my brother's pc to upload songs and recharge batteries.
because of that, I'm planning to buy a new pc. I did look at the box it came in, and I don't think it said somewhere the minimum requirements, but I can be wrong though.

I chose iPos over zen because of iTunes and podcasts and so...

 

[Frantasmic]

I've had both. We first purchase a Creative MuVo about 2 years ago.

These were easy to set up and a breeze to copy current CDs to MP3 format and put on the MP3 player. I did not try to purchase any music or download stuff from the Internet however.

It was less expensive than the Shuffle and IPOD I will discuss in a bit. However, the sound quality was not even close to the Apple products.

The Shuffle and IPOD are somewhat easy to set up, but ITunes itself, the software you need for Apple items, is not always intuitive and it doesn't "automatically" work as advertised. That said, once you figure your way around it, it is pretty easy to get on the IPOD store and download stuff. Uploading your current CD collection is fairly easy too.

The sound on the Shuffle and IPOD are GREAT compared to the other MP3 player.

The problem is that you are only allowed a certain number of Apple devices per ITune software package. I don't remember the number. If you want to copy your purchased Apple Store music to another non-Apple MP3 player, you have to do a really convoluted process.

Because of the quality and relative ease of use, I will stick with the Apple products.

 

[mickman1962]

It depends on which models of each brand you are looking into. I have the Zen Vision M and the sound quality far exceeds the similar Ipod version. Has a longer battery life, much better screen. Don't need a computer to recharge. FM tuner, I still listen to radio a lot. Voice recording. Plays almost all major audio and video formats.

 

[Fitswimmer]

I bought Dell's version of the IPOD a few years ago and initially it was fine. However, over time I found that the Musicmatch software became more difficult to use and I found creating playlists difficult. It seemed like everytime they updated the software it got less user friendly.
So, as a present to myself last month for getting into Law School, I bit the bullet and bought the 60g IPOD. Wow, what a difference! The sound quality was far superior and I found Itunes really easy to use. Updating the Pod is instantaneous, downloading is easy and uploading my CD's was a snap. I also have a very easy time creating playlists. I'm getting into the world of Podcasts now too, they're very easy to work with and a lot of fun!

 

[Brianne]

It also depends on how you're going to use it. Are you planning to rip music from CDs or purchase music online? If you're using your own collection, either would work fine.

However, if you're planning to purchase music online, you should really study the various online music stores before deciding on what you want to do. If you buy an iPod, you'd stick with the iTunes store more than likely. iTunes is a pay-per-song but you own the song. Other sites have you pay monthly for unlimited downloads but you're "renting" the song. If you stop paying the monthly fee, you can't play the songs, from my understanding of it.

I ended up going with Apple mainly because I purchase most of my songs. I'm kicking myself for upgrading my Mini to the Nano a year ago though because the new Nanos are exactly what I wanted my Mini to be! That is the downside to going with Apple---they're constantly upgrading & coming out with new models, which gets to be a bit ridiculous sometimes.

 

[Jennifer S]

My first MP3 player was not an iPod (it was an iRiver) and it was OK but over time it drove me nuts. Eventually I got an iPod and I LOVE it. It is much better. I feel like I wasted $ on the first one. I'd just go right to iPod. They have a newer Nano now that has less memory for only $150 which is fine for kids. Also they have discounts on the apple site for teachers, etc.

 

[Magickndm]

My daughter has the Zen Neeon and I have a 5 Gen Ipod, 30 gig. Her Neeon has permanently frozen, I've looked online for help, and it seem to be a common problem, with no fix.