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iPod Mini Mini-Review

My wife has occasion to listen to an iPod more than I do (she drives a lot, and also works at a quiet little retail shop where she has plenty of time to listen to music), but I didn’t like sharing mine (10gb 3rd Generation) because I might need it sometime. So the only logical solution was to order one just for her. So we did.

As you can see, not only is my wife really, really hot, but the iPod Mini is really fuckin’ small! Sure, when you read the specs a 1/2 inch may not seem like much, but when you hold it in your hand it really does feel Mini. I’m totally jealous.

Obviously the only drawback is the lack of storage (in comparison to the other iPods anyway. 4 gigs is still a hell of a lot of space for a device that small). I have about 8 gigs of music, so I need to stick with my 10 gig model for a while, but if they release new Minis with say a 8 or 10 gig hard drive soon, I will definitely sell mine and go for the smaller size.

Not only is the iPod Mini fiendishly small and cool looking, it’s also a lot more functional than the “big” iPods in my opinion.

Controls

As you may know, the “big” iPods feature four buttons across the top of the device that control the menu, play/pause, and next/previous tracks. They are also extremely sensitive, and can be pressed on accident just by trying to pick up the unit. It’s also easy to press the wrong button when trying to find it by touch with your thumb. There is no click when you press the buttons, they are instead activated as soon as you lightly touch them.

The iPod Mini has the buttons built into the scroll wheel itself due to size constraints (it’s really small!), but they also make an audible and “feelable” click when pressed. The scroll wheel is still touch sensitive, but all of the buttons click when you press them. This makes it a ton easier to navigate and use the iPod Mini without looking at it.

The hold switch (on the top of the unit, to keep the buttons from being pressed) is also much easier to use than on the “big” iPod in my opinion. On the big one you have to slide the switch with your fingernail or press down really hard to get it to move because it is almost flush with the surface of the iPod. But the hold switch on the iPod Mini sticks up a little more and has sharper edges, allowing you to easily “catch” the edge of it with your thumb and operate it.

Casing

The case of the iPod Mini is much nicer than it appears in pictures. I was a little unsure about all of the wacky colors when the Mini’s were first announced, but when you see it in person it is actually quite nice. (I still don’t like the looks of the gold one though!) The back of the case is the same material as the front, so it doesn’t scratch and show fingerprints like the shiny chrome backing of the original iPods. Since we ordered directly from Apple, we got free laser engraving on the back as well, which looks like it was done with the same machine that does the etching of the Apple logo and other wording, so it matches perfectly and blends right in with the rest of the design.

Software

As far as I can tell the software for the iPod Mini is exactly the same as the originals. One difference I noticed is that when the iPod is ready to be disconnected from the computer, it shows a big check mark on it saying that it’s ok to disconnect it. I don’t think the originals had that.

One irritating thing is the reset controls of the Mini though. According to Apple, you have to plug in the iPod to a wall socket in order to reboot it, which seems a little silly. My wife’s has gotten stuck once since we’ve had it, and we couldn’t figure out how to reset it. I’m not sure if she ever figured it out or not yet (she’s out of town so I could only walk her through it over the phone while she was at the airport). Hopefully the lock-ups will be very infrequent, or we may be calling up Apple to see what the problem is.

Extras

The Mini comes with a nice belt clip, which is easy to slide on and holds the device pretty tightly. You of course still have to be careful not to brush up against something when it’s on your belt and scratch the screen or metal casing. It also comes with a Firewire cable, as well as a USB 2.0 cable which most Windows users will use. The original iPods only came with the firewire cables, forcing you to either by a firewire card for your PC, or buy a USB 2.0 cable at an extra cost if you had a Windows machine.

There is also a wall-plug included in the box. You just plug the firewire cord into the little power adapter, and plug it straight into the wall to charge it. You can’t plug the USB 2.0 cord into the power adapter to charge it, so if you use that cord to sync to your PC, you’ll have to carry the firewire cable as well if you want to charge the iPod without plugging it into a computer.

Value

A lot of people complain that the iPod Mini is too expensive in comparison to the 15 gig model that is only $50 more. This is a valid concern if you have 10 or 15 gigs of music in your collection, but if you are just a casual music listener, or don’t mind manually managing the songs on your iPod rather than storing your entire collection on it, the iPod Mini is definitely an option to consider.

The size difference is significant, despite what you may first think after reading the specs on the Apple web site. If possible, look at an iPod Mini in person before saying “Oh, it’s just a 1/2” or so smaller than the original iPod, that doesn’t matter”.

The iPod Mini also comes with more accessories than the 15 gig model, including the USB 2.0 cord, and the belt clip.

Overall this is a completely incredible little device, and is worth every penny of that $250.

Leave it to Apple to make something as incredible as the original iPod look obsolete and “huge” in comparison to the new iPod Minis.

>I have about 8 gigs of music, so I need to stick with my 10 gig model for a while, but if they release new Minis with say a 8 or 10 gig hard drive soon, I will definitely sell mine and go for the smaller size.

Is one of those numbers in there supposed to be 15? Or am I just going insane? Good review all the same.

No, I have the 10gb model. Now the low-end iPod is a 15gb though.

Screw the reviews…more pictures of the wife!

Seriously though Derek, this is a good review. I’ve been thinking about getting one for my wife for when she goes to the gym. I was just wondering how sturdy they are, being smaller than the originals. I’ve dropped mine a few times and it’s held up well.

Well I’m not going to drop it to find out how sturdy it is, but just by holding it it seems very solid. It’s also a whole lot lighter than the original. And you can always get the armband holder, which would be ideal for exercising.

Nice review Derek :) Let me guess though, the wife will be wearing pink all 2004?

She wears pink pretty frequently anyway. It’s her favorite color. :)

I think this review has pretty much convinced me to get one for her. It’ll make a nice anniversary gift.

Even though I only have 3.5gb of music, I think I am still going for the 15gb iPod. I have a ton of different files that I will be carrying around to transfer to my friend’s computers, but this review almost convinced me to get the mini! Very nice review derek, helped out a lot.

I’m over in Greece working on the Olympics and I miss mine. Seeing yours really makes me wish I brought mine. They’re just so handy and nice to have around even if you don’t use them all the time.
I’m thikning about buying an iPod too.
(My wife says yours should have bought clothes that fit instead.)

I think I’d probably stick with the 4gig, I don’t know how often it is three days that I’m away from my computer anyways. You can always upload more music to it.

http://freeipods.dyndns.com

Oh yea, use this link and you can get yourself a free iPod mini. You can use the ancestry.com deal, it’s a free trial, and you can just cancel.

Can’t beat that price for an iPod mini.

http://freeipods.dyndns.org