Slashdot Mirror
Toshiba's iPod Competitor
a lonely moose writes: "It looks like Toshiba basically copied Apple's iPod. They got cheap on screen size and unit weight, and without iTunes, it'll be darn hard to handle as elegantly as the iPod. Anyway, check out
MacCentral's article and the smoking forum at the bottom."
I have friends who use PCs, and I can't recommend the iPod to them. This looks like a fine substitute. However, if you have a Mac, I think the iPod is a better choice. My wife has an iPod, and I _really_ like the user interface. The Toshiba's user interface looks like it would be hard to operate while rollerblading, which is when I usually use it.
Main plus on the Toshiba seems to be swap capability on the drive. For upgradability reasons, mostly (which Apple never seems too concerned about). Sure, I can fit my entire MP3 collection on less than half my iPod's 5G drive, but then I filled the rest up with backups, documentation, etc.
The things the Toshiba seems to be lacking are:
a scroll wheel (which really seems like the ideal interface for navigation LONG lists)
recharging from USB cable(?)
The main reason I bought an iPod is it seemed like the first device I could actually use that would really take advantage of the Firewire ports on my computer, which I never ever used. The same seems true for this Toshiba and windows users. w/USB 2.0
You drank my drink, you drunk!
The removable drives are $321!! At the Apple Store, you can pick up the same drive mechanism with a firewire interface for $99! Not sure if this link will work for everyone: http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/A ppleStore.woa/51/wo/0xQ0h03uOCgCTPRvcF2/1.3.0.3.30 . .3.13.13.0
Care about electronic freedom? Consider donating to the EFF!
It is great for navigation, but a click and hold button could do pretty much the same.
The problem with the scroll wheel is that it makes it nearly impossible to create a case that completely encloses and protects the iPod while still allowing access to the controls.
They already have.
Rhythmbox, which "takes its inspiration from Apple's iTunes application", is a direct rip-off of iTunes. It's also what I point at each and every time someone mentions open-source innovation.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but Ogg seems to take significantly more processing power to decode.
You're wrong :-)
I currently have my iPAQ sitting on the other side of the room playing an Ogg file. Ogg playing seems to take around 30% of the CPU time, while MP3 playing takes around 20%. That's with madplay - a high quality integer-only MP3 decoder - playing the MP3, and the integer-only version of the Ogg Vorbis reference decoder. Okay, the Ogg decoding takes more, but I'd guess that the Ogg decoder could be optimised a bit more as well...
Paranoia isn't an infectious condition, it's a way of life
Actually unless I am mistaken the "No electronic Theft (Net)" act passed in late 1997 probably does make your little collection illegal. Intended to close the so-called LaMacchia loop-hole, this law limits the amount of copyright material that can be copied or distributed. If the data copied or distributed has a retail value of $2500 it is an illegal copying. It is also not enough to simply say that "well my CD collection is only worth $500" - assuming you copy it multiple times. If you have a copy at home and work then you have made $1000 dollars worth of copies. If I am not mistaken (and I may be) LaMacchia was distributing software online and when he got taken to court he got off on the "technicality" that he was not making any money off the distribution and copying.