Ipod nano-the what is and what nots

I have been enoying the use of my ipod nano, the superior sound quality and also the undeniable 'cool' factor that it brings to its users. The joy of holding it in my hands has not yet diminished. I have been the envy of many friends because of this little gadget. Now, what is it about the ipod that can capture the heart of so many people? In terms of functions, my previous Creative mp3 player had an inbuilt Fm radio and voice recorder,which the ipod lacks. I used to defend Creative quite staunchly,saying that its functional and cheap and looks quite good as well. Alas, I have now defected, how not to? I still have yet to figure out what is it about the Ipod that makes people tick. Ever since Apple's 2001 foray into the digital world, it has taken the world by storm, and competitors have not quite managed to catch up with it. Its so popular that it has become an iconic status.

Lets talk about the nano. I am completely amazed that such a tiny gadget can hold up to 1000songs(via dazzlingly tiny memory chips). It can also store and display photographs on its sharp colour screen. There are also other functions like alarm clock, games,calendar,stop watchand notes. I love the clickwheel and simply love to run my finger over the wheel slowly and hear its clicking sound.

However, I do have a few minor gripes. The chrome back of the nano can be scratched very very easily. On the very first night I bought it, though I treated it with the utmost care, I noticed a few hairline scratches on it,barely noticeable, but still...There arent any nano accessories available in stores yet. I wanted to get the skin, no matter how tacky it looks to protect it against scratches. But it would only be available 2 months later and it costs at least 50 bucks??? It's madness and I still think it looks better au naturale. I had to settle for the protection sticker which costs $10, and it's only 2 transparent stickers, the type that can be found on the LCD screen of new handphones. Daylight robbery? Who ever said that apple stuff comes cheap.

Buying an apple gadget means opening the door to a host of other apple products. You can get the lanyard headphones which allows the nano to be worn around the neck for convenience. And I am drooling over the Altec Lansing speakers and the super kickass Bosse sounddock digital music system, all of which do not come cheap. Oh, did I mention that the ipod nano does not come with a travel adaptor, meaning that it can only be charged via usb cable from a computer? Pretty inconvenient, especially when travelling overseas.

Seems like Apple knows how to milk the most out of consumers,creating in them endless wants and a niche market for followers. Pleasseee take pity on our pockets I say