"Firefly" wrote in message
oups.com
Arny said (with a link to Amazon, showing a 20 GB iPod at $300):
...says you're about $100 high for a 20 GB iPod. Trust me, 20 GB is
LOTS!

So I am surmising that right now there really isn't a more
cost-effective route, like my previously mentioned possibility of
upgrading over time.

The only consumer-friendly upgrade route in this category is called buy a
bigger one.

He currently has about 10 GB of songs, and I have
another 6 GB. And he is downloading more every day (through a legal
source in case the RIAA is watching).

Just because you have a zillion songs on some hard drive in a computer
doesn't mean that you have to load your portable player with each and every
one of them.

I also read something about the iPods only lasting a few years, and
the consumer not being able to change the batteries once they die.

There is some truth to these stories.

I don't like that little marketing technique.

It's driven by consumer desire for long running times, small size, and light
weight.

Any other possibilities?

The leading competition is arguably the Creative Zen Touch. I happen to have
an older Creative player and its been just fine for me. It's only a couple
of years old, and it is very large and heavy by *modern* standards. Heres a
link to a competitive price for the Creative Zen Touch.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...76022?v=glance



Or is this one of those things we're going to
have to wait a few years on? By then, we'll definitely need the 40 GB!