Microsoft's "iPod killer"
USAToday: "Microsoft: Europe iPod killer will debut in 2004"
OK. So this thing is supposed to be about $200 more expensive (and I thought the iPod was expensive!), almost twice as heavy, twice as wide, and three times as thick. And it's supposed to be an iPod killer? Am I missing something?
And how exactly is this thing going to pump out 175 hours of video playback?
OK. So this thing is supposed to be about $200 more expensive (and I thought the iPod was expensive!), almost twice as heavy, twice as wide, and three times as thick. And it's supposed to be an iPod killer? Am I missing something?
And how exactly is this thing going to pump out 175 hours of video playback?
Comments
As far as the 175 hours of video playback, that's probably using their lowest-quality WMV encoding rate possible. 175 hours of video playback on a 40 GB hard drive assumes approximately 496 kbps video encoding. That's fairly low quality. A good quality QuickTime .mov I have (high-res version of a Red vs. Blue episode) is 1656 kbps. Even a low quality one is 818 kbps. This is kind of like Dell claiming the DJ can hold twice as many songs as the iPod because they compare 64 kbps WMV to Apple's 128 kbps AAC.
Anyway, yeah, definitely just a publicity stunt. How are they going to get noticed and get articles published if they don't mention the iPod?
And that DJ thing sucks too. My friend got one and it took her two days to even figure out how to get music on it! TWO DAYS!!! That's horrible! So she sold it and got an iPod. She plugged it into her dad's new 20" iMac and you should have seen her face. The iPod won't be killed, especially by MS.
Originally posted by Stroszek
twice as heavy, twice as wide, and three times as thick. And it's supposed to be an iPod killer? Am I missing something?
yeah, it will squash the iPod with its bulk
There is definietly iPod backlash in the air lately.
That's what we do in the US. We love to build them up, and then ruthlessly attempt to knock them down,
Originally posted by Flounder
There is definietly iPod backlash in the air lately.
agreed, and from the saturation of mentions in all sorts of media, i can understand why people are getting sick of hearing about how great the ipod is, especially if they can't afford one.
that's why i think apple needs to introduce something just as revolutionary as the ipod SOON to take some of the marketing attention away from the ipod. the ipod has momentum now. keep improving it, but you don't necessarily have to keep ramming the message... especially if some new revolutionary product leverages ownership of the ipod.
then the headlines turn to "can jobs work ipod wonders again on new **fill-in-the-blank**?"
Apple introduces the iPod mini in order to kill another MP3-player market, recognizing that there is a difference.
This thing ain't even in the same market. It's more of a everything-but-the-kitchen-sink market, kind of like the Tablet PC - and those are selling great!
Originally posted by rok
agreed, and from the saturation of mentions in all sorts of media, i can understand why people are getting sick of hearing about how great the ipod is, especially if they can't afford one.
And yet, this thing will cost $200-$300 more than an iPod, coming in at a whopping $700-$800 price tag!!!! Nobody will buy that bulky, overpriced, doesnt do enough for its price? crap.
Originally posted by rok
agreed, and from the saturation of mentions in all sorts of media, i can understand why people are getting sick of hearing about how great the ipod is, especially if they can't afford one.
that's why i think apple needs to introduce something just as revolutionary as the ipod SOON to take some of the marketing attention away from the ipod. the ipod has momentum now. keep improving it, but you don't necessarily have to keep ramming the message...
then the headlines turn to "can jobs work ipod wonders again on new **fill-in-the-blank**?"
Anyone can afford an iPod. A family, while probably can't afford one for EVERYONE, could at least have one. They aren't $3000, they are $300
I think it's good that the iPod is still getting attention, it's pretty amazing! It's been getting attention since it was released, and although it dipped for a while, it seems like more and more media attention is being given to it as of late, even negatively. And really, even if people are saying how every new mp3 player is THE "iPod Killer" it is still press attention which is good. It shows the iPod is number one.
Yep, real iPod killer.
Oh, and the HP iRiver. That really killed the iPod too.
What about the Creative Nomad Zen?
I'm amazed that Apple hasn't gone out of business given the sheer number of iPod killers that have come out in the past couple years.
Originally posted by Luca Rescigno
I'm amazed that Apple hasn't gone out of business given the sheer number of iPod killers that have come out in the past couple years.
How true is that, the hype on some of these "iPod killers" is so unwarranted. 8)
Nothing.
Originally posted by Agent Macintosh
The iPod will kill this. Nothing will kill the iPod.
Nothing.
Except iPod mini
Originally posted by johnq
Except iPod mini
Damn straight
Originally posted by Splinemodel
Damn straight
You are correct, sir.
Originally posted by Luca Rescigno
Remember the Toshiba Gigabeat?
Yep, real iPod killer.
Oh, and the HP iRiver. That really killed the iPod too.
What about the Creative Nomad Zen?
I'm amazed that Apple hasn't gone out of business given the sheer number of iPod killers that have come out in the past couple years.
The thing is the ipod works on mac and windows. While apple's competiters only works on windows. When the competiters make their mp3 players mac compandable things will get interesting. But, I doubt that. Thats why the ipod will never be killed.