Oh, Apple iPod Nano, how I adore you... let me count the ways....

I have been resisting the siren call of MP3 players for a while. After all, I rarely buy CDs and never download music... why in heaven's name would I want to purchase an MP3 player? What? To play the Frank Sinatra CDs I own? I can do that just as well on my CD player at home, thank you very much. Then my father comes home from a technology conference and lets me know that he received a free 2 GB, Second Generation Silver Apple iPod Nano for registering and he wanted to know if I'd like it.

Free? Yeah, sure, why not?

What I use it for

I had recently started running around 6 miles a week and the long stretches were starting to get a little boring just listening to the music (not to mention voices) in my head. The iPod Nano would be the perfect thing to add to my run to make it a little more enjoyable.

Item Specs

The iPod Nano is a sleek little sucker. At a tiny little 3.5 inches in height, a little over an inch in width and just .26 inches in thickness (it weighs a little more than an ounce), it really fits just about anywhere, easily. The screen is 1.5 inches in length and is 40% brighter than previous models (so Apple's website tells me). The dial on the front of the iPod allows you to control everything from volume to song selection and responds to even the lightest touch. The iPod comes with ear bud pieces and a USB cable to connect it to your computer. The iPod only charges through a USB port, whether one on your computer or a seperate USB dock. I believe you can purchase some sort of car charger for it, but I haven't researched that yet since my computer does the job just fine.

Specifics
*2 GB model can hold up to 500 songs and thousands of pictures
*Sleek, anodized aluminum
*Needs: iTunes 7.0 or later, USB 2.0 port, Broadband connection and Windows XP Home or later as an OS
*Comes equipped with games (Brick, Music Quiz, Parachute and Solitaire.. HEY, where's Snake?!). Can be used as a stopwatch, clock, notepad, calendar, and contact list.
*Battery comes with 24 hours of life
*Automatically syncs with iTunes on your computer
*Comes in five colors and can be etched if purchased on Apple's website
*Many accessories are available
*1 year warranty on all parts from Apple (including the cable and ear buds)
*USB cable requires a powered hub (2.0, I believe)
*You can purchase the iPod Nano and accessories for it in many places, from Apple's website to Target to internet stores. The 2 GB model (me) is $149.00, 4 GB is $199.00 and the 8 GB is $249.00. I believe you receive free shipping and laser engraving if you purchase through Apple's website. The 2 GB model is only in silver, the four in silver, green, blue and pink and the eight model is black. I believe there's a new red version out as well, but don't quote me on it.
**For FULL technical specs (including pixel size, etc), check out: http://www.apple.com/ipodnano/specs.html

At first

I loved my iPod. The only issues I had were with the ear buds because they kept popping out of my ears. I've never been able to wear the "ear bud" style of headphones, so I'm not really surprised this happened. I purchased an inexpensive set of ear phones that actually attach to the ears and they worked just fine ($20). You can use any headphones, as long as they're equipped with a standard stereo jack. It was relatively easy to set up (once you understand how iTunes works) and synced automatically with my computer. I could easily add and remove songs from the iPod and the charger never gave me any problems.

I did have an issue finding a place to store the iPod when I ran, but there are quite a few solutions for that. Tucking it into your sports bra (with the hold button on), putting it into a pocket or purchasing the Apple iPod armband ($30) were all options and I ended up purchasing an armband for maximum ease. I just found out that Nike is starting to manufacture jogging shorts with a built-in area for your iPod Nano, so that's always an option (just look for the Enabled logo). In any case, the iPod worked seamlessly. The sound quality was excellent (even when I switched to the Sony headphones) and it was easy to to operate. The dial is extremely responsive and the "hold" button is a nice addition (it allows you to freeze the dial so an inadvertant movement doesn't switch songs). The screen is very easy to read, even in direct sunlight. While there is a learning curve with using iTunes, I never found it difficult to operate the iPod.

Problems Begin...

After a good month of using the iPod, syncing it with my computer and transferring songs, I get an ominous error message when plugging my iPod into my computer... "A malfunctioning device has caused a power surge through your USB port. The port has shut down. Please disconnect your device and restart the port."

What?

Um... Ok... I check my Device Manager and sure enough, it caused the USB hub to malfunction. So... I check another USB port. And another. And another... and so on until I check every port on my computer. Every single one gives me that same error message. I check out my USB ports by connecting other equipment (like my printer and camera) and it works fine. Huh. I take my iPod over to my dad's house and check out both my father's computer and my brother's Dell Laptop. The Dell Laptop gives the same error message as my Dell desktop while my father's Toshiba desktop simply refuses to recognize there's anything plugged into the port.

Huh.

I check through Apple's support website and try their 5 R's to repair (it does nothing)... I try searching the web for my problem and I find it's a common issue with Dell computer users. There is, apparently, a patch that will help avoid the error message. I download and install it only to find, while it did get rid of the error message, that the computer and the iPod now completely refuse to recognize each other. The iPod will not acknowledge it's plugged in and the computer will not acknowledge the iPod is plugged in to it. Fantastic.

I call Apple's support phone number. I slog through the numerous menus to finally reach an option where I can talk to a live person. I then wait on the phone for over 20 minutes while the Apple system continually tries to get me to just listen to a computer instead of talking to a human being. Anyway, I finally talk to the woman. She talks me through the 5 Rs of repair (which I've told her don't work) and ... SURPRISE... they don't work. She tells me to do x, y and z to my computer and it doesn't work. She tells me to go to iTunes and click on the iPod button, to which I advise her that my computer still doesn't recognize the iPod. She then puts me on hold for 10 minutes because she has no idea what's going on.

When she finally comes back she tells me to send it in, completely free of charge. Apple has a great warranty program where they send you a box, you put your iPod in it and send it back to Apple. They'll send it back when they are done. The only bad thing is that you can only send your iPod, not your cable or ear buds... so if there is a problem with the cable, they won't be able to find it out (you'll see why I say that in a second).

A few days after I send it, I get it back. They performed diagnostics and rebooted it. I plug it in and...

It does the same freaking thing.

Great. So now my iPod, which doesn't have any songs on it anymore because of the reboot, is completely useless. It won't connect to the computer and it won't charge and there's no music on it anyway, so I can't listen while I run. I am tempted to bash the iPod into the wall repeatedly but I hold back and attempt to figure out if there's something wrong with my computer. Nope. So I make an appointment to meet with my Apple iPod guru to see if there's something else we can try.

I get to my Apple Guru appointment and wait for His Exaltedness to help me. After some chatting, he plugs my iPod into his computer (with his cord). Works fine. Huh! He then takes my cord and plugs it into his computer and... bingo, same error message. Well, now, that's why it was happening... my cord broke. I asked him why Apple doesn't have more information on this possibility (I have scoured half of their online help site and found nothing about the cord potentially malfunctioning) and he wasn't sure.

They then give me a brand new cord and send me on my merry way. If there's one thing I like it's that Apple warranties everything that comes with the iPod for a year, so not only was my iPod covered... the earphones and cord were as well. How fantastic! I was expecting to pay another $30 for a new cord but was handed one for free. Rock on.

Ok... I love my iPod again

So, I take it back home and it works just fine. I upload my music to it again (effortless, let me tell you) and I've been running with it since then. I have to hand it to iPod, their stuff might have a few bugs that need to be worked out, but they make some of the most user-friendly electronics on the planet. My mom could figure out the iPod in a few minutes and she's one of the least electronically-inclined people I know. The extras are easy to access and use (especially the games). The calendar is easy to access, but I've never tried to add anything to it (it's just not what I use the iPod for). The stopwatch is easy to use. The settings are simple to change -- from the equilizer style to the backlight timer, just go to Settings and adjust to your heart's content.

I can't attest to the 24-hour lifespan, but it seems to last forever. I rarely have to recharge it. In addition, it comes with a litium ion battery which means you don't have to worry about the "memory imprint" that can damage old nickel ones (meaning that you don't have to worry about charging the iPod if it's not completely dead). You can charge your iPod for however long you want, whenever you want. It only takes about 3 hours to fully recharge your iPod. This little monster is also durable. I can't tell you the number of times it's been dropped, flipped or thrown (the dropped by me, the thrown courtesy of my son) and it still looks brand new. It's also remarkably easy to clean (which is a godsend when you run with it and get it all sweaty and gross).

I also can't talk about the accessories enough. There are so many to choose from, in every category, that you could spend a fortune buying even the least expensive option for each category. There are iPod enabled jogging shorts, docks for home, every type of headphone imaginable, belt clips, arm bands, the Nike + receiver (which fits in your Nike shoe and tracks workout information) -- heck, you can even sync it with your car!

It's relatively inexpensive, easy as pie to operate and completely portable (plus it doesn't skip!)... the only thing that could make it better is if it could pick up FM stations.

The last word...

There have been a few blips on the radar for Apple, but I'm inclined to give them a few passes. The cable malfunctioning is a tough one to call and while the phone call mess was just that, the people in the store more than made up for that snafu. The iTunes was a bit tricky to learn (check Apple's website for CPU requirements, by the way) but it's been smooth sailing since the first time I used it. It doesn't skip, it doesn't fail, it syncs every time, it's a breeze to use -- I see why the iPod is the standard bearer for all MP3 players.

I give my 2nd Generation Silver Apple iPod Nano, 2 GB model a bold Five Stars on the appreciation meter... and a Go Ahead and Give Apple a shot on the recommendation!

Happy running

PS: I strive to write the most helpful reviews possible but electronics isn't really a comfort zone for me... so if I've left something out, can you please let me know? I'll be happy to include it :)