The iPod's Achilles' heel

Before all the diehard Apple and iPod fans get out their flamethrowers and torch the hell out of me, let me start by saying: I'm with you, the iPod rules, it's great, I own one, I bought one for my wife, and I plan to name my next baby Apple--and not just because Gwyneth Paltrow did. OK, so I'm lying about the baby part, but the rest is true. I like the thing--a lot. But at the same time, it's not totally for me.

First off, I'm pretty lazy when it comes to organizing my music. Or, more accurately, I just don't have the time to deal with it. Sadly, I recently resorted to having someone else rip the remaining half of my CD collection--about 200 discs--for me. I used a new service called Awaken, which sent me a preaddressed FedEx box. I dumped the discs into the supplied cake boxes and a few days later got back three DVDs filled with my MP3-ified tunes and all of my CDs neatly organized in a giant binder. Awaken, like several other companies that provide this type of service, charges around $1 per disc for its deluxe package, which gives you those little extras such as the CD carrying case.

If you have a substantial CD collection, you'll easily end up paying as much for ripping as for the iPod itself. But if you're strapped for time, it's money well spent. But the fact that such services even exist exposes a dirty truth about Apple's little white music player: a lot of iPod owners fail to use their players to their fullest potential. You know the whole line about how we only use a fraction of our brain's power--the same goes for the iPod. I don't have any hard numbers, but I would bet, judging from the informal polling of friends and coworkers, that only about a quarter (or fewer) of iPod users are really getting the most out of their iPods. I meet plenty of people who have 20GB models and only have a couple of gigabytes worth of tunes on them. Their iTunes databases are a mess, they don't make use of playlists, they couldn't care less about podcasts and audiobooks, and they end up listening to the same songs over and over. These are the same people who tend to ask me, "How do I get my friend's collection off his computer onto my iPod?"

The long and short of it is that the iPod is a great device, but it's wasted on a lot of people. As easy as it is to use, it's not for everybody--particularly not for lazy or ultrabusy music lovers who can't afford to impulsively download new albums from the iTunes Music Store at $10 a pop. (An unnamed CNET vice president reports that he's particularly susceptible to this phenomenon--especially after a few glasses of wine--and that iTunes hangovers are nasty, even for VPs).

Ironically, the biggest chink in the iPod's seemingly impenetrable armor is users' failure to take full advantage of it. And that's exactly why I'd venture to say that ultimately the way for any manufacturer to truly challenge Apple will require both an elegant hardware solution as well as a revolutionary, new music-delivery system.

Last year, when I reviewed the XM Satellite Radio-enabled Delphi MyFi, I was pretty intrigued by the concept. In addition to being the first truly portable, Walkman-style satellite radio (previous "mobile" models required bulky battery sleds and antenna rigs), the MyFi includes a flash memory buffer that let you record as much as five hours of programming for later listening. Combined with the device's go-anywhere portability, the ability to have daily content refreshes from any of XM's dozens of mostly commercial-free stations (spanning music, news, talk, sports, and other entertainment) delivers a compelling alternative to the iPod/iTunes duopoly. That said, the first-generation XM2go devices, which also include the Tao TXM1020 and Pioneer AirWare, have some drawbacks: the players themselves are hefty compared to iPods, the sound quality of the XM music you record doesn't measure up to MP3s ripped at moderate bit rates, say, from 160Kbps to 192Kbps, you can't save certain standout songs for relistening (you're limited to one- or two-hour-long chunks of airtime, rather than your own custom playlist), and the players can't store and play back MP3 files.

Those drawbacks may be short-lived, however. As you might have heard already, Samsung and XM are teaming up to bring out a flash-based portable MP3 player with XM Satellite Radio capability by year end. While exact specs aren't available yet, the player will have a new chipset; be at least half the size of existing XM2go products; and will offer improved battery life, MP3 playback, and other new features. But size has its trade-offs--word on the street is that they won't be able to receive live XM broadcasts unless the portable unit is plugged into a home or car docking station.

I know what you're saying: big deal. For a monthly fee, you can already buy into an all-you-can-eat online subscription service such as Rhapsody or Yahoo and listen to thousands of songs. And while these services used to require you to stay chained to your PC to enjoy the music, a growing number of compatible devices let you take your music on the road or stream it to other rooms in the house. Isn't that a better alternative to the Samsung/XM music offering?

Enter XM+Napster. Just one day after the Samsung announcement, XM trumpeted a deal with Napster that promises to offer users an integrated, full-service music service. XM's press release fleshes out the details, which includes the ability to "bookmark" songs heard via satellite to be purchased later on Napster. There are, to be sure, a host of details that need to be addressed, but XM seems clearly intent on letting you have your digital music cake and eating it too.

So, can the combination of a much sexier and more feature-rich version of an XM2go device (Samsung's portable player) paired with an online music tie-in (an XM-linked Napster account) deliver a one-two punch to the iPod/iTunes juggernaut? I think for the more passive type of iPod user--those who find it a chore to rip dozens of CDs and create intricately detailed playlists--it makes a lot of sense. A lot, of course, will depend on price and ease of use. Because XM Satellite Radio service costs $12.95 a month, the device will have to cost the same or a little less than an iPod--I'd say in the $200-to-$250 range--to attract buyers in big numbers. And it remains to be seen whether users will be able to get XM service and a full Napster subscription for one discounted monthly charge.

I've been told that Apple has been approached by XM, but so far the Samsung deal is the only one announced that adds satellite radio capabilities to a portable MP3 player, whether it be flash or hard drive-based. Of course, with the recent addition of podcast support to iTunes, Apple's already taken one small step toward having "pushed" content available on the iPod. Add a premium content provider--are you listening, Sirius?--and Apple could offer a viable subscription-based service that offers enticing features to lazier or time-strapped users.

I, for one, hope it does.