Well, just listen to this... it really works

By PAUL BRISLEN

I've discovered two things in my time with the mini iPod. The first is that if this Apple thing ever catches on, I'm going to be looking for a new job.

What is there to write about when the software and the device just plug in and start working?

The second thing is that I've got shocking taste in music. Sad but true.

The mini iPod is the youngest sibling in Apple's wildly successful iPod family of digital music players.

It doesn't have to be music you're storing, but music is what it's all about for most users.

The mini iPod has a smaller memory capacity than its larger white siblings - 4GB of memory in a device about the size of a cellphone. That's enough to carry 1000 songs.

It's here that the first really sticky issue with the world of digital music arises because there isn't a service available in New Zealand that will allow you to buy and download a range of music.

So I broke the law and stuffed the iPod from my CD collection.

A redraft of the copyright law next year may give us the right to copy our own CDs, but for now, I'm a thief.

One thousand songs is a lot, by the way. I managed a quarter of that with about 20 CDs.

The mini iPod can change the way you treat your music collection. Hoping on a plane? Commuting in the car? Off for a jog? Take every song you own with you.

It's that simple and would encourage me to buy more music, CD or otherwise, just to fill it up.

Installation of the mini iPod is a breeze, even on a PC. The box contains one CD that works with Windows and Macintosh.

Follow the installation instructions to end up with what has to be the nicest interface to a music management application I've seen.

The software, iTunes, may be the secret to iPod's success. It just works.

If you put a music CD in your drive, the software recognises it, asks if you want to import the tunes and then does so. It names each track, adds it to your library and lets you rate each song or add it to your own folders without any fuss.

Plug in the mini iPod and it detects the new songs and begins the transfer to the device. I used my PC's Firewire port for the first time, and it was very quick.

Mini iPod also supports USB 2.0, so if your PC is new you can transfer music even more quickly.

The mini iPod itself is gorgeous. The user interface is a doddle. The revolutionary click wheel has been replaced with an even better solid state version.

To scroll through songs, drag your finger round the wheel. Volume works the same way.

The mini iPod will play for 8 hours off one charge, and will recharge through your computer as you update it.

The iPod appears on the computer as another drive, so dump all kinds of files onto it for shifting digital content other than songs around.

Commuting to work never looked so attractive.

Apple Mini iPod

Pros

* Small, easy to use, attractive

Cons

* Copyright issues.

* "Only" four gigabyte drive

* Price: $489, inc GST

* Rating: 8/10