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Getting Started / Linda Knapp
iPod mini's sound, ease of control make it big improvement over original

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The iPod mini in my hand is indeed smaller and lighter than the standard iPod, certainly small enough to take along on a run and to operate one-handed.

In fact, the mini measures just 2 x 3-1/2-inches and weighs 3.6 ounces. Without the standard iPod's four buttons above the scroll wheel, the mini uses the wheel to control all the usual media play functions.

Available in five colors — silver, gold, pink, blue and green — the mini comes with USB and FireWire cables, a power adapter, ear buds and belt clip. It has 4 gigabytes of storage and costs $249, plus an optional $19 for engraving with up to two lines of text.

Like the standard iPod, the mini works well with iTunes software on a Macintosh or Windows PC for managing and transferring music to the iPod. To buy new music, go to the iTunes Music Store (www.apple.com/itunes/store, or click on Music Store in iTunes), where songs cost 99 cents each and can be downloaded to the computer, burned on CDs or transferred to an iPod.

Those are the facts. Let's find out how well this little iPod works.

I charge the lithium-ion battery, install the software and connect the mini to my Mac; iTunes automatically begins to transfer songs and playlists from the iTunes library to the iPod.

My digital music library includes a modest 350 songs (I've sorted out all but my favorites), which consumes 1.5GB on the mini — not even half its capacity.

With my songs and playlists copied to the iPod, I turn it on and quickly discover the mini is easier to use than the standard model I reviewed last fall. This one moves between categories, playlists and songs smoothly and easily; compared with the standard iPod's oversensitive controls that made things happen before I did, the mini's wheel waits until I click before it acts, enabling better control of the menus and playlists.

Now, the battery. An iPod rechargeable battery is supposed to run about eight hours between charges, but I've generally clocked closer to six hours on the iPod standard and mini. I'd be really happy with a battery that would last at least 12 hours.

Apple's support service is generally exceptional, but there's been some criticism of its lack of iPod support when the rechargeable battery dies after the one-year warranty period. A newer policy now enables iPod owners to buy a $59 extended-service plan that covers the second year, or pay $99 for a new battery after the warranty expires. That still seems a bit steep for a battery.
 
The most important element of a portable music player, of course, is the quality of sound that comes from it. In fact, most portable players that I've tried have excellent sound quality. The standard iPod and the mini produce as good, or better, sound than any other I've used.

To hear the music, iPods come with ear buds noted to render good sound quality, but they always fall out of my ears. Many of you don't have that problem, but many of you do — so for us, I'm trying two alternative headsets from Sony.

The Sony MDR-NC20 ($180) over-the-head set doesn't fall off, it blocks most outside noise, and music coming from the iPod sounds good, though a bit distant if I don't turn up the volume. On the downside, the earphones are a bit large and expensive.

The other model is the new MDR-G94NC StreetStyle noise-canceling behind-the-neck set ($70), which looks cool, is more compact and less expensive than the other model.

Unfortunately, these slide right off my ears without an over-the-head band. Maybe it's just my head that's weird, but if you're interested in alternative headphones, be sure to try them on before buying.

It's time to take the iPod along with me in the car. With accessories, I can listen to music (or audio books) stored on the iPod through the car's stereo system.

There are a few ways to do this, and I decide to use the Belkin Mobile Cassette Adapter ($25). All I have to do is plug the adapter into the iPod and insert the cassette into the car's tape player. The sound coming through the car speakers is excellent.

At the same time, I can use the Belkin Auto Kit for iPod ($50) to plug the iPod into the car's cigarette lighter and run the player (plus recharge it).

Overall, I think the iPod mini is a significant improvement over the standard iPod — it's smaller, easier to control, and though it doesn't store thousands of songs, several hundred is enough for me. Plus, the music sounds great.

Next: Adding audio books to your music player or burning them on CDs.

Write Linda Knapp at lknapp@seattletimes.com. To read other Getting Started columns organized by topic, go to www.seattletimes.com/gettingstarted.

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