Detroit Free Press: iPod Mini is Gadget of the Year
Detroit Free Press: iPod Mini is Gadget of the Year
by , 7:30 AM EST, December 10th, 2004
Writing from his pulpit at the Detroit Free Press, technology columnist Mike Wendland has named Apple's iPod mini as the Gadget of the Year for 2004. Mr. Wendland has often commented on issues pertaining to Apple, and is no stranger to praising the iPod. In his newest column, Mr. Wendland tells his Detroit readers that the iPod mini is slick, delivers high quality sound, and is hot, as in popular. From the column:
The Apple iPod mini, at $249, is my choice as 2004's hottest high-tech gadget.
All of the iPods are awesome. But this little package, weighing in at 3.6 ounces, a half-inch thick and the size of a business card, is so slick and so sleek that all I can say is: Sweet.
There is more in the full column, including comments Apple's [lack of] quality competition.
The Mac Observer Spin:
More good press for Apple, just in time for Mr. Wendland's mainstream readership to buy something with an Apple logo on it for the holidays. That's always a good thing.Observer Comments
Heres a blank template for all these authors, to make the awarding of whatever of the year to an Apple product:
"Well, Apple has out done themselves. The _____ is a fantastic _____, with out a doubt the best ______ on the market. Its starting price of ______ may be a bit steep, but is a great value. It out does _____, _____, and the rest of its competitors. Well designed and only _______ by ______ inches in size, the ______ is among the (smallest)/(biggest) on the market. Steve Jobs and crew have really created a fantasitc ______, which is why we are awarding _____ our _____ of the year award."
Fri Dec 10, 2004 9:13 am Subject: iPod Quality Problems Continue
Fri Dec 10, 2004 10:07 am Subject: Yikes! Massive 0.0006% Failure Rate! iPod is Junk!
Out of the 4.5M or so iPods sold in 2004, RC can come up with reports of defects in 30 or so units. Clearly people should steer clear of this ticking time bomb and get a Dell DJ instead.
Looking at the Dell DJ Support Board makes it even clearer that it is the perfect product with 100% satisfied customers.
Fri Dec 10, 2004 10:17 am Subject: Re: Yikes! Massive 0.0006% Failure Rate! iPod is Junk!
QuoteJohn F. Braun wrote:
Looking at the Dell DJ Support Board makes it even clearer that it is the perfect product with 100% satisfied customers.
I certainly liked the post where a guy says his sister's Dell keeps crashing becuase she uses an iPod.
That certainly shows a strong grasp on the fundamentals of computing.
Looking at the dell support site It seems that you aren't supposed to run or drive without the DJ being 100% cushioned from any bumps or shaking. Hard drive failures are a regular thing for the DJ apparently. I run with my iPod on my belt on a regular basis and it gets shaken a lot. I've never had a problem with my iPod at all.
QuoteGood job. Can be reused for iPod flash in 2005. Seem ok for iPod micro, iPod satellite and iPod telematics too.AFCdtLoeb wrote:
Heres a blank template for all these authors, to make the awarding of whatever of the year to an Apple product:
"Well, Apple has out done themselves. The _____ is a fantastic _____, with out a doubt the best ______ on the market. Its starting price of ______ may be a bit steep, but is a great value. It out does _____, _____, and the rest of its competitors. Well designed and only _______ by ______ inches in size, the ______ is among the (smallest)/(biggest) on the market. Steve Jobs and crew have really created a fantasitc ______, which is why we are awarding _____ our _____ of the year award."
Fri Dec 10, 2004 8:05 pm Subject: iPod Mini Is Indeed Near-Perfect. Only ONE problem with it..
... it should be $199.
I'm sure that'll happen soon enough, since probably even Apple realizes that that's the natural price point for it, but it would've been nice to have seen $199 before Xmas, because then the Mini would've blown everything else off the market with extreme prejudice, and generated an even bigger buzz than it has
Yeah, I know... Hitachi can't make the drives fast enough. Well no, thats mostly in the past, they've really ramped up production in the past quarter.
But yeah, the Mini is pretty much perfect- my last remaining complaint with it was the menus (not as intuitive as on its big brother iPods), which Apple fixed with the 1.2 Update for the Mini about three weeks ago.
I guess I could cry about how some mini-HD players on the market are 5 GB instead of the Mini's 4 GB, but I can't- Apple's design just blows those other players away, and the Mini should be getting a 5 GB drive soon enough. Oh wait, the Mini's COLORS aren't all that great- silver's nice, but most of the other colors look too 'pastel', even the blue. Yargh.
So, ok, Mini needs:
new, less pastel colors (keep the silver though)
+ 5 GB drive
+ $199 price
_____________
= Perfect. ![]()
Sun Feb 13, 2005 2:17 am Subject:
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