1) flash hard drive. virtually indestructable.
2) uhh...techno-wankage? I really don't know.

I think it's the cool/wow factor, and weight/size--and most people don't need 20gigs of music in their pocket, either. (I use my 20gig ipod to take files back and forth from work, besides listening.)

Nano has no hard drive, won't skip.

On the other hand, pre-video iPods can be used to boot Macs over the Firewire cable. This was one reason for tech people to buy one. (Or at least justify it to the business manager...)

Ahh... Flash memory vs. mechanical hard drive. Makes a little more sense. Should have paid more attention to my Google results. iPod s have little spinning things inside them?? Man, am I ever in the dark.... Thanks folks. I'm still open to suggestions if anyone has opinions regarding non-iPod products. I like the idea of flash memory.

Given how much flash memory Apple now buys, and the discount it gets for said memory, you'll be hard-pressed to find something of the same capacity at the same price from another vendor. Further, since you're not getting a Shuffle, the screen issue doesn't apply, either. Unless you need to play WMP or Ogg Vorbis files for some reason?

I bought a 60GB Creative Zen Jukebox Xtra at Fry's Electronics for $210 and have yet to fill it up more than a third of the way. (6,500 songs and counting....) Loading it is like copying files to a drive on your computer. I hope to hang onto this sucker for the rest of my life, or until I find more than 18,000 songs I need to carry around.

It's got a hard drive, but it has slid off into the carpeted floor of my truck several times without incident.

Apple owes you their thanks (as do I). I just ordered the 4GB Nano with some sort of FM radio connector/battery charger for the auto (not the iTrip).

Why on earth doesn't Apple make an MP3 player with FM or a voice recorder? I know you can buy add-ons, but why not integrated FM like so many other companies offer?

I see no use for a standalone mp3 player. I have a Palm PDA which plays mp3s. I got a 1GB SDIO card (flash memory) for about the cost of a shuffle. They have a new Palm out that has ~4GB of storage, and can do e-mail/web/etc. and play movies (though the new iPods will do that, it'll be on a smaller screen) in addition to playing the mp3s (oh, and being a fully functional digital organizer). To me, an mp3 player would be deadweight. YMMV.

The hard drive based players are better bang for your buck (it's what I have), but their longevity will be considerably less. I just read about a guy that put his Nano through the washer. It worked after drying out. Most hard drive iPods are going to be dead in a few years. The only part I replace regularly in my ancient PCs is the hard drive -- and the iPod hard drive is going to be treated considerably rougher.

My wife just got a Nano, mainly because she intends to use it primarily for workouts. In these areas the Nano shines.

Eideteker: I see your point but the Nano is only 1.5 oz of dead weight. I switched to a Treo because I was sick of carrying a Palm and a phone, now I find myself going in the other direction.

teece: Your point describes my thinking. I'm rough on things. I can't see the hard drive in other mp3 players surviving my habits.I need something that has a chance of surviving the wash.

On the other hand, pre-video iPods can be used to boot Macs over the Firewire cable. This was one reason for tech people to buy one. (Or at least justify it to the business manager...)

How? Link me!

How to use the iPod as a bootable drive

Also, with a non-Apple player, you won't have to mess with iTunes. Yuck!