1) I'm completely addicted to podcasting--both sides of it. Listening and providing. Like my home video collection, I now subscribe to more content than I have time to watch/listen to.
2) I still have no problem with the "tiny" screen. My desktop is already quite busy with other devices and toys and such, so a bigger screen would actually require more rearranging.
3) Battery life is superb--even with my new AirClick for the 5g. I have yet to break out my Belkin external battery pack yet.
Now for the cons:
1) Had to buy a skin for my iPod from DecalGirl.com that was supposed to be removable. It's not--when sliding it into my Belkin kickstand case (which is awesome, btw) the top right corner of the skin hooked onto the top portion of the kickstand and started to peel off. I saw loads of sticky go left behind on the iPod and since then the skin has lost it's ability to stick to the top corner giving the skin the appearance of a billboard that has been advertising the same movie for two years.
2) [http://thepete.com/remind-me-to-never-ever-ever-ever-ever-upgrade-firmware-for-anything-ever-again/|Crappy firmware upgrade aside] I still feel like the OS needs an overhaul. I organize my shows by album title yet can't access the shows by album inside the video menu. I've recently discovered that there is a show heading that is embedded in the mp4s by iTunes but there's no way to access it on the iPod. This is retarded, plain and simple--and by this I mean: slow--very slow. Do IT, Apple, what are you waiting for??
3) The scratches are really out of control. When I carry this thing from one room to another I make sure to put it back in it's Kickstand. It's just too easy to get scratched. The only good news in regards to the scratches is that iLounge.com has [http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/news/comments/newertech-polish-kit-restores-scratched-ipods/|reported] on some polish that you can get to get rid of those scratches. There are also other polishes out there that claim to do the same thing--I've tested none but have found [http://playlistmag.com/reviews/2005/08/scratchremove/index.php|this review] at Playlistmag.com from September of last year that compares a number of the polishes. Alas, the general consensus is that, at best, most polishes take a long time to work and, at worst, no polish will work at all.
4) While I like the Belkin Kickstand a lot, the clear vinyl windows to access the clickwheel and see the screen attract a lot of lint and debris. I have to remember to wipe both with my finger every time I slide my iPod in there or else the video screen will be dotted with distractions.
5) Playlist support SUCKS. First, in iTunes, I created a bunch of so-called smart playlists that will put all the TV shows, episodes from my favorite shows, etc, on my iPod in one playlist but the damn things never seem to display the episodes in order even if I have track numbers assigned to the episodes. When you've got as much video on the iPod as I do, playlists are a must.
6) What's even worse is that when I play podcasts in the podcasts section (this is true for either audio or video podcasts) after each episode of a given podcast plays it doesn't move on to the next episode. In the case of audio podcasts it just plays the single episode over and over. In the case of video podcasts it just bumps you back out to the video podcast menu. This is idiotic--I want it to play all the episodes of a podcast automatically--why stop after one? Makes no sense to me. I mean, it actually seems that someone had to program the iPod to work this way instead of treating the podcasts section like a series of playlists with one for each podcast.
OK, these last two cons are just me wishing for my ideal ipod and/or accessories.
6) The lack of recording ability. There still is no 3rd party accessory that is available for the 5g iPod for recording audio. I would also like to see some way to record video, but I am not entirely sure the 5g's hardware can support it. Regardless, the fact that this thing can't record at all seems to be a case of intentional hobbling of an otherwise capable device. This is especially true when you realize that any pair of headphones can be used as a stereo microphone just as easily as a microphone can be used as a microphone--so why do we need some 3rd party device???
7) What about affordable external displays for the ViPod? iLounge.com [http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/articles/comments/wearable-ipod-video-displays-compared/|reviewed three different models] and none quite meet my wants. Check out MicroOptical's MyVu to the right there--it's one of the models iLounge reviewed. It looks like you are going to block all of your sight just to use it. There's a reason those old skool VR goggles never took off. I think they're just impractical--plus you look dumb with them on. Even though the models iLounge reviewed are more minimal than the old VR goggles, they still look kind of dumb.
Have a look at that pic to the left of Angelina Jolie from Tomb Raider 2. That's what I'm looking for. Something that I can see in front of me while not having it obscure my view. Sure, there may be some issues with the image not being terribly visible against anything but a white background, but I'd still rather have the world around me visible to the world around me being cut off from view entirely.
Granted, the device in the movie looks completely computer generated, but just look how plausible such a device is:
Hell, something like this could be built into a pair of glasses. Of course, I'm not expecting something like this to be cheap, just in existence. One of the excuses Steve Jobs gave months before releasing the iPod 5g with video was that no one walks down the street watching video on handheld devices--it's just not practical. Well, a display like the one I'm suggesting would be perfectly practical. You could wear it anywhere while you do anything. Granted, driving with it wouldn't be safe, but washing the dishes, walking the dog, having sex...ooo, damn, that's a GREAT use for it!! ;)
You get the idea. Like the Nintendo DS, there is still a lot of potential for this device that is being ignored by Apple and 3rd party developers alike. As with the DS, I have high hopes that both Apple and 3rd party folks catch a clue and start ushering in the era of James Bondian gadgets for everyone.
UPDATED 2/14/6:
Just thought of something else that bugs me about the 5g. The clock--yes, it's cool that you can have multiple clocks, but they don't are too small on the screen and when you're charging the iPod, they disappear to be replaced with the giant "CHARGING" icon. This is stupid--give us the option to make them bigger and give us the option to make them stay on the screen. Which do YOU think is more important? Being able to tell the time without having to press anything or know that your iPod is CHARGING?
Also, when I first got my 5g I used to sync it to my iCal. However, I stopped doing that after a few days because I noticed that it was getting the times all wrong. It would display my 10am wake up call at 6 in the evening. It would warn me it was time to have my 1pm lunch at 8pm. There was no rhyme or reason so I just stopped using it. Very odd, though I'm sure it's just a problem with my iPod.
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