Have ipod Will Travel

Ironically, most of the ipod generation will have never heard of that western.

Up to this point, I have been using my video ipod for music, podcasts, video podcasts, and some audiobooks. I have also uploaded several of my favorite photos in jpeg form.

I decided to try the "video" part and downloaded "Apocalypto" from itunes. All $12.95 of it (now it is $14.95!). Big mistake.

Great movie, but the entire movie is in subtitles. Have you tried to read those little subtitles on an ipod screen? For over two hours? I had to get the dvd after that.

Other than that, watching movies on my ipod is pretty cool. Problem is, I also like to watch them on my big screen. And getting both the dvd and the itunes download can be pretty expensive.

Apocalypto in both formats, $32. Being able to watch someone's heart getting ripped out over and over again, priceless.

Speaking of price, for a bit more than the cost of two movie downloads, I decided to purchase the PQ DVD to Ipod Converter. I have since converted most of the DVD's in my modest collection into MP4 files compatible with my ipod. Very easy, intuitive interface. One-click operation. Definitely money well spent.

Just be sure you only rip videos YOU own.

It allows you to choose the level of compression you want. For 'excellent' video quality, a 4GB movie becomes around 350-400MB. You can carry enough movies for a trans-pacific flight and back.

Or for a trip to the mall with your wife.

The next problem, of course, is having enough juice to run the video for more than two hours. The Maxell ipod battery backup is a nice, economical solution. Sure it adds bulk, but that is really not a problem when I am watching movies on an airplane. And since I have many sets of AA NiMH rechargeable batteries (and Maha charger) for my digicam, I am all set.

Of course, when you get to where you are going, you will need to charge your ipod. AC chargers run the gamut, from less than a dollar on ebay (with astronomical shipping), to the $29 OEM piece from Apple. Take your pick.

Next, for use on a plane, you really need something better than the ipod buds. Invest in a good pair of headphones. I got a pair of Bose headphones a couple of years ago as a gift. Since I tend to set the volume on the loud side, I really have not found a pressing need to plunk down more than 300 bucks for the latest noise-cancelling version.

Last trip, I found myself taking digital photos almost exclusively (as opposed to film), with the RD1. This seems to be a handy ipod accessory to be able to use the video ipod for photo data storage. Transfer rates are supposed to be quite slow, but that can be done while I shower that night in the hotel room, so it really is not a big deal. Like all apple accessories, the price seems a bit steep, however, since it really is just a glorified ipod to usb connector, but with a female usb port. A separate portable data storage device, such as the wolverine, may be a better choice. However, if I will be traveling with something that big, I may as well bring the laptop, and get an early start on the post-processing.

And be able to read the subtitles.