IPod Adds Windows Format, So All Music Fans Can Enjoy

By WALTER S. MOSSBERG

Lovers of digital music who use Windows PCs have been grumbling since last
year that they can't use the finest portable digital music player on the
market: Apple's small and stylish iPod. The original iPod was meant to work
only with Apple's Macintosh computers.

Last week, however, Apple announced that starting in late August, it will
sell Windows versions of all of its latest iPod models at the same price,
and with the same capacity and core features as the Mac versions.

The Windows iPods look identical to the Mac ones, but the hard disk inside
them is formatted as a Windows disk. The Windows iPods synchronize with the
music on your PC using a special iPod-aware version of MusicMatch Jukebox,
the best digital music software available on Windows, instead of Apple's
Mac-only iTunes software.

The Windows-format iPod

I've been testing a near-final version of the iPod for Windows, and it
works well. But it has one big requirement: Your Windows PC must have a
high-speed FireWire port, also known as a 1394 or iLink port, to connect
the iPod to your computer.

If your PC lacks such a port, as many Windows models do, you can install a
FireWire card for as little as $50. You will also need a version of Windows
no older than Windows ME.

Just plug the Windows iPod into your FireWire port, and Windows will
automatically recognize it and launch MusicMatch. The MusicMatch program
will, in turn, launch a special Window that shows the contents of the iPod.
If you choose, MusicMatch also will automatically synchronize the music on
the iPod with the music on your PC.

This process is very similar to the way the iPod works on the Mac with the
iTunes software. In my tests on a Windows XP machine, it worked perfectly.
Synchronization was very fast, though not quite as fast as on the Mac.

As on the Mac, you can choose to manage the music on your Windows iPod
manually, instead of via synchronization. Also, as on the Mac, Apple has
blocked the Windows iPod from being able to transfer its music library to a
second PC. This is done to appease the piracy-obsessed record industry. But
there are already free utilities for the Mac that allow such transfers, and
I expect similar Windows utilities will appear.

If you have a Mac-formatted iPod and want to use it on a Windows PC,
Apple's new Windows offering won't help. But you might try a $29 program
called XPlay from MediaFour (www.mediafour.com). This program allows a
Windows PC to recognize a Mac-formatted iPod. With XPlay, you can either
synchronize your music via your Windows music folders or via Microsoft's
Windows Media Player. I have tested XPlay and it also works fine.

Windows compatibility isn't the only new feature on the iPod. Apple has
announced a bunch of other changes. The company has cut the price of its
existing 5-gigabyte iPod, which can hold about 1,300 songs, to $299 from
$399, and has slashed the 10-gigabyte iPod, which holds 2,600 songs, to
$399 from $499. It has also added a 20-gigabyte model, which can hold over
5,000 songs, at $499.

In addition, all of the models now have a fixed, solid-state,
touch-sensitive scroll wheel for navigating through lists of songs, artists
and albums. You just run your finger over this virtual wheel to scroll
through the lists. Earlier iPods had a real wheel that moved.

Also, the iPods now have slightly different widths. The 10-gigabyte model
is a little thinner than the 5-gigabyte model and the 20-gigabyte model is
a bit thicker and heavier.

Apple now bundles with the 10-gigabyte and 20-gigabyte versions a wired
remote for controlling the iPod and a slip case that allows you to clip the
iPod to a belt. These cost $39 each as add-ons for older or cheaper models.
The iPod's menus now feature the ability to scroll through albums, genres
and composers. And, in addition to optionally storing your address book on
the iPod, you'll now be able to store your calendar on the device.

Finally, there are a couple of new features available only on the Mac
versions of iPod, because they depend on Apple's iTunes software. The Mac
iPods can now play back talking books or periodicals in the Audible format.
And they can also play Smart Playlists created in iTunes. These are lists
of songs that the software creates automatically based on criteria you
choose, such as the years the songs were released.

The iPod just gets better and better. No other digital music player comes
close. And now, it works with Windows, too.


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