Where's the nearest Ipod anonymous meeting?

I may as well lay my cards on the table and admit that I am a fully fledged, card carrying Ipod convert.  After holding off for many years I finally jumped on the band wagon and have never looked back.

After moving from cassette walkmans to CD walkmans and Minidisc walkmans all made by Sony it was a foregone conclusion that my first MP3 player would be a Sony too.  I was very pleased with the unit I bought, it had large memory and long lasting battery for the time it was released and lasted me very well.  The software they used was atrocious and the main sticking point, but once I was tied in there wasn’t much I could do about that.

When it came to replacing my MP3 player I was very conscious of being tied in to a particular brand again and although all my friends had and recommended the Apple Ipod I was still hesitant.  Initially I went for a Creative Zen and whilst the unit was of a great size and easy to use, it had specific limits with it’s memory that left me frustrated.  This was soon returned for a refund.

I did some more research online and read numerous reviews and finally decided there was nothing for it but to go for an Ipod classic.  It had large enough memory for my vast music collection, had long battery life, was of a decent size to carry about and looked good too.

My Ipod

I re-ripped all of my music (over many, many weeks) in MP3 format and then converted them to the AAC format Apple use.  This way I could save my music on a back-up hard drive and know if I go to another brand down the line I still have my music in a format I can easily transfer.  This may come across as paranoia, but I was stung so badly with the Sony software I couldn’t face ripping my music a 3rd time if I bought a different MP3 unit down the line.

I have to say I LOVE my Ipod.  It’s a strong word to use, but I adore having all of my music with me at all times, rather than a selection chosen at a particular point in time.  I also like the Cover Flow feature, it’s a small detail but the album artwork is a key feature for me when I buy music and I love some album cover designs as much as more accepted mainstream art.  I have also started downloading podcasts, something I never did before, and I am now enjoying more radio shows than I ever did in the past.  I have an Ipod dock at work and I like the ease of plugging the Ipod into the cradle and accessing my music, whilst keeping the player fully charged.  I also like the counter that allows me to see how many times and when I last played a track.  This may just be the inner geek in me, but I find it interesting to see what I most listen to.  These are all small details, but put together have solidified my love affair with my Ipod.

Even better for me, having all my music together on one unit means I am listening to music that I haven’t heard in years.  I am rediscovering old favourites and obscure albums I never gave enough attention to first time round.  Slowly but surely I am working my way through my entire collection on the Ipod and you will rarely find me happier than when I am plugged in and immersed in a musical world of my choosing.

It may be wrong to love a little gadget so much, but I think what I love is how easy it allows me to access my music and connect with the memories, emotions and rhythms that have shaped and affected me so much over the years.  I feel more connected to my music, in a way that was lacking with previous audio players, and can only hope this continues.