1:04 PM
I actually got one for Christmas a year or two ago, and it's one of my favorite gizmos. It's ridiculous how things like this change the way you perceive media -- I was in Best Buy last night checking out CDs, and found myself putting stuff back until I made sure they weren't available from the iTunes store. Buying music as Mp3s just feels better to me these days -- faster, cheaper, and without all the plastic cases and crap to clutter up your apartment.
As far as tips are concerned... iPods are pretty basic. The shiny surfaces do get scratched up pretty easily -- you might want to pick up some kind of a sleeve for it if you're going to be carrying it around a lot -- but the actual workings are pretty durable. Mine's survived long trips in backpacks, being crammed into glove compartments and even being dropped on concrete.
Good tip! First thing I did when I got mine is put it in my pocket with the little metal remote ... which scratched the heck out of the iPod. I love the design of the thing, but to package it with its own scratch-making device is pretty stupid....
I'm still waiting for a Bluetooth-capable iPod with recording capabilities. Damn, that'll be sweet -- let me change tracks from a Bluetooth remote (maybe built into my watch?), listen on wireless headphones and record ideas that I have while driving... That would be worth the five hundred bucks easy. But half a grand for a 40GB drive with a headphone jack? I'll stick to my weenie little 5GB one for now, thanks.
I'm still carrying my new iPod around with me everywhere. No, I'm not listening to it constantly, I just like having it with me...
Another suggestion would be to carefully weigh getting a direct auiliary input into your car stereo against one of the little FM transmitters. The FM transmitter works (and it's obviously a hell of a lot cheaper than a new car stereo), but audio quality is hit-or-miss.