When it doesn't have to be an iPod...

If I had a dollar for every device I've heard desribed as an "iPod killer", I'd have more than enough to buy one of these $400 music players/vibrators.(Of course, I'd prefer to buy an iPod and spend the rest of the money on a full featured "back massager")

But it massages to the beat! Put on some gabber techno and massage those ... muscles.I don't have it bookmarked or anything but I'm pretty sure they have some vibrator add-ons for the iPod, too. If that's your cup of tea.

I don't think anyone really thinks "iPod Killers" will outsell the iPod, but it seems there are better MP3 players than the iPod. Years ago when I bought my first jukebox MP3 player, I narrowed my decision down to an iPod or the iRiver H120 and a lot of reviews stated the H120 was better (better sound, in-line recording, fm tuner, cheaper, etc). I find it funny that so many "music snobs" are so proud about their music knowledge yet immediately buy the iPod with little to know research about other MP3 players. I'm leaning towards a Samsung K5 for my next MP3 player.

It's fanboyism at its finest! I have to admit to using a video iPod a bit more lately than my iRiver 340 - between the thin form factor and the more pleasing interface of the Apple (control wheel and screen display) the iRiver might just get relgated to recording duties (which it excels at).I have about half a dozen flash players I'd think about buying. The Zen is nice and simple, the SanDisk "R" player integrates well with the latest Rhapsody, the Samsung is pretty (but a fingerprint magnet) ... if there was a Nano in dark purple I might pick that up. The newer Sony looks nice too.And I like the Zune just to watch some corporations battle it out.

I only just recently got an iPod, and I got it on a big discount since someone I know was buying a new mac and they were doing a promotion.I'm all for competition, but for Mac users, I'm not sure there IS any competition. So far as I've seen, every one of these so-called iPod Killers requires software that doesn't run on a Mac. Couldn't use another player even if I wanted to. And even if I could, I LIKE iTunes... I used it for years before I even got an iPod. When price and features of other players are compared to the iPod, they generally never address how good the required software is compared to iTunes. The word "software" doesn't appear ONCE in the article linked above, which seems like a pretty big oversight. Between the way the iPod syncs up with software I already use and the nice touches in the interface, I'm very happy with my purchase. I'll keep an open mind though!

[...] A few weeks back Eric Solomon blogged about alternatives to the iPod. One of those alternatives is the YP-K5 MP3 player that was just released from Samsung. Here are some of the features that might have we go with this over the Zune and iPod. Slide Out Stereo Speakers (”Engineered to produce a sound comparable to your home stereo system, this tiny device packs high sound fidelity.” - Samsung) [...]