Why carry a smartphone & an MP3 player? http://tinyurl.com/ll4sh6

Agreed on the battery life point. While I could listen to music on my iPod all day, if I tried to do the same with my smartphone in addition to play any videos, use data, and make phone calls, my phone's battery life would be gone by noon if not sooner.

You nailed it. All three points.

When I primarily used a WM phone I carried an iPod as well. At the time, I couldn't carry more than 8GB on a single memory card and my music collection is much larger. I also found the media sync experience with WM to be awful, with random disconnects, etc. It was too frustrating to try and take my music on the WM device. Now that I have a 32GB iPhone there's no need for a separate MP3 player, and I happily carry one device.

I also carry a Zune and a Smartphone, for all of those reasons (mainly battery life). Very well done overview.

In addition I prefer to have more music with me then I could fit on a MicroSDHC card since I like a very ecclectic shuffle. Plus, I just love the Zune interface and since I use the desktop software as my main music player in the office, it makes for one-stop syncing. Drop a new album into my Zune directory, it can be played easily at my desk and is automatically synced to my Zune. Simplicity itself.

Why carry a smartphone & an MP3 player?:
Yesterday this post by adamzea on Twitter got me thinking because most.. http://tinyurl.com/ll4sh6

What Adam forgets is that most media players don't play just music. While I seriously doubt many people need even 8 GB of music, if you watch video on your devices, the storage numbers change dramatically.

Regarding battery life, I take a different tack. I carry my Omnia and a Redfly (when I carry my gadget bag). The Redfly allows me to have a better computing experience and can charge the phone if I connect with USB.

Steve

P.S. Why isn't Disqus allowing me to log in here?

Interesting post – I carry both too. A couple more thoughts on why:

1. My MP3 player has surface-mounted controls, so I can skip, pause, stop without looking at the device

2. My MP3 player has better storage capacity than my phone

3. My phone is a blackbery 8830 that has a stupidy-small headphone jack, so the only headphones I can use are horrible to listen to.

I have to go with the battery thing. My smartphone battery life is dicey enough some days (not often but sometimes) that I don't need to add to the drain. Like you said, I can live a day without music. Plus with proprietary plugs or having to use A2DP bluetooth, there are just too many extra steps to get the smartphone cranking out the tunes.

I guess I’m really old fashioned. I carry a digital camera, a PDA, an MP3 player, and a cell phone.

I guess I’m cheap (the cell phone is free from my service, sentimental (I won’t give up my Axim until either it or I die) and a picture snob (I haven’t seen a smartphone camera yet that can compare with my digital camera).

I’ve never liked convergence devices. You pay a lot of money for a product that is almost but not quite as good as the medium-quality single purpose devices. I’ve spent more overall, but I get better quality all around.

Julie — You are so right — on all counts!
If I frequently downloaded new music, I would encounter the problems you describe. And Windows Media Player is simply not that robust.

For podcasts, the player I have found pretty helpful is Audiobay Podcast Player v. 4.1 . It is a bit clunky, and is limited a bit in that it is a shell for WMP, but it is easy to download, manage and listen to podcasts with it. I can get by with my Fuze as an MP3 player because I am not constantly getting new music. Otherwise I would be forced to pony up for a Zune or another player.

I must also say that most phones (though not all) sound awful. even cheap mp3 players have much better sound quality than most phones. the only thing i listen through my phone is podcasts.

I agree with you, even though phones have the capability, they aren't as dedicated as the iPod or Zune. I do put music on my phone since the battery can handle it, but I only use the phone when my Zune is dead. It's a backup.

Very good points. I've got an iPhone and a zune 80 and both serve their purposes well. But honestly, the iPhone is pretty bad as a media player, and the media experience seems to come after the need for a multi-featured phone. Plus iTunes is an absolutely terrible piece of software.

you left out memory. ipod classic (120gb) vs. a phone (max around 40gb).

I agree with all 3 points plus one more. I bought a flash memory type Zune specifically for working out, doing yard work, etc. It can take a beating plus the form factor is sweet for for these type of tasks.

While I really like my Windows Mobile phone, its media player is unusable. I carry my Zune around for all of the above reasons you mentioned and more. Here's hoping Microsoft brings the Zune experience to their Windows Mobile platform.

battery
mp3 usability
multi-tasking (phone is for data/email/websurfing/texting/lastly, calls)
storage
battery

battery
mp3 usability
multi-tasking (phone is for data/email/websurfing/texting/lastly, calls)
storage
battery

The sciatic nerve is the longest nerve in our body. The nerve starts at the back of the pelvis and runs downward through the hip area and buttocks into each leg. Sciatica is pain along the sciatic nerve. It usually results from compression of nerve roots in the lower back.

The most common symptom of true sciatica is posterior thigh, lower leg or foot pain that can be much worse than the accompanying lower back pain.

The sciatic nerve is the longest nerve in our body. The nerve starts at the back of the pelvis and runs downward through the hip area and buttocks into each leg. Sciatica is pain along the sciatic nerve. It usually results from compression of nerve roots in the lower back.