SmartMoney publishes compendium of iPod FUD
Thursday, May 11, 2006 - 10:34 AM ESTSmartMoney.com's Noah Rothbaum has penned a complete collection of iPod FUD all in one convenient article. We'll pick them off one-by one.
Rothbaum covers the following in his "10 Things Your iPod Won't Tell You" article:
1. iPod's reign may be coming to an end (MacDailyNews Take: 2006 edition. See previous 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, and 2001 editions. According to Rothbaum, the end is near supposedly because of the proprietary iPod+iTunes symbiotic relationship that, by the way, continues to gain market share. Remember, in FUD-land, Apple's solution that works on both Macs and Windows PCs is "proprietary," but all other stores and players that use Microsoft's Windows-only WMA format aren't.)
2. Customer Service isn't what it used to be (MacDailyNews Take: If you don't pay Apple — consistently rated tops in consumer satisfaction by leading purveyors of such surveys — $59 for the AppleCare Protection Plan which allows you two years of unlimited calls, you have to pay $49 per call after getting one free in the first 90 days. Yeah, so?
3. If you drop the iPod it might break (MacDailyNews Take: As opposed to those also-ran players from Sony, Creative, etc. that just Bumble bounce right back up into your hand unscathed. Oh, yeah, iPod screens scratch, too. Get a case.)
4. It's easy to load your iPod with music, but to appease music labels, Apple's made it difficult to get music off of iPods (MacDailyNews Take: iPodRip or any number of other similar utilities. It isn't hard. Do also-ran players let you copy music off of them by default?)
5. iPod battery's don't last forever (MacDailyNews Take: But rechargeable batteries in every other device on earth never wear out.)
6. iPods will make you go deaf (MacDailyNews Take: But every other device on earth that makes sound makes it so pure that you'll never harm your hearing, no matter how far you crank it up.)
7. iPods are updated too frequently, making them "out of date" too soon (MacDailyNews Take: Rothbaum would perhaps prefer a total lack of innovation and stagnation? He must use Windows.)
8. iPods spark crime (MacDailyNews Take: As opposed to wallets, purses, watches, vehicles, expensive sneakers, jewelry, etc. that are just the innocent victims of crime.)
9. Apple "nickel-and-dimes" you any chance they get (MacDailyNews Take: Apple charges separately for accessories that people might want instead of charging everyone more by including them all in every box - even though many don't want or need them. If your iPod fails out of warranty, it'll cost a lot to fix - again, supposedly unlike those from the also-ran player makers or the makers of any product of any sort that comes with a warranty.)
10. Once you go iPod, you're locked in for life (MacDailyNews Take: That's fine with us. This is how locked in we are: we can play iTunes Music Store-purchased songs on Macs, Windows PCs, iPod models for every budget, and burn them to CDs to play in CD players or import into other computers and/or music players. If we join a subscription service or use another à la carte service (Windows-only) with some "soon-to-be-discontinued, won't-intgrate-with-my-vehicle, has-no-accessories, parent-company-is-hemorrhaging-cash or reorganizing" digital media player, do we get less lock-in or more?)
Full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader "Arthur" for the heads up.]
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Apple must be becoming successful again - it's now chic to bash them.