Perspective: MP3 insider: iPod beats satellite radio any day

In the early days of digital music, we optimists looked forward to the day when we'd have instant access to every song ever recorded from a wireless, portable device--called the "celestial jukebox."

Since then, just about every step forward in digital music--MP3 players, online music stores, P2P, ring tones and so on--has led us toward this vision.

Last month, XM and Delphi took us even closer to the celestial jukebox with the release of the Delphi XM MyFi, the world's first handheld satellite radio receiver.

The phrase "never say never" became a cliche because it's often good advice. But when you're talking about technology, it's practically an axiom, especially if you're a tech executive addressing the press.

There is one place satellite radio makes sense to me: the car.

To wit: I attended the first XM announcement at the 2001 Consumer Electronics Show, where the company unveiled the Delphi XM SkyFi Radio. It consists of a small receiver module that can be swapped between a boom box, home and car kit but can't be used on its own.

As CNET's portable-audio guy, I had only one question for the XM official who made the announcement: When would they make one small enough to fit in my pocket?

The XM exec told everyone at the press conference that handheld satellite radio was impossible, because pulling in the signal took more power than a portable could ever supply. Less than four years later, I have the Delphi XM MyFi sitting right here on my desk. Like they say, never say never.

We are all narrow
Granted, you can't pick any song you want using the MyFi, but the "celestial" part of "celestial jukebox" is in full effect, since the MyFi broadcasts music that's bounced off satellites. But although our national waistline is off the charts, we are all still very narrow in terms of our musical taste. Broadcasting music doesn't work anymore; narrowcasting does.

How am I supposed to know what Ethel sounds like?

I tried time and time again to find something I wanted to listen to on XM's 68 music channels but never found "my" channel. Instead, I ended up listening to stand-up comedy and news. One reason for this is that XM's music channels have names like "Fred" and "Ethel" (seriously). How am I supposed to know what Ethel sounds like?

Another reason I didn't rely on the MyFi for music is that, like most people, I have fairly specific taste in music. Not even the most ingenious programmer could come up with a station that's perfect for me.

Actually, I take that back--I can and have programmed such a station. It's called my iPod, and it has exactly what I want to hear on it.

More like 'WhyFi'
I took the MyFi around San Francisco for a day, testing various environments to see how the reception stacked up. Not so good, it turns out. Here are a few of the places XM's channels turned into a moment of white noise, followed by more than a moment silence (digital signals are either 100 percent there or 100 percent gone):

• The subway

• My living room

• Parts of my hallway

• Most of the CNET Networks headquarters

In addition, it appeared to interfere with my cell phone, so every time I wanted to make a call, I had to turn off the MyFi (this happened only a couple of times, so it admittedly wasn't the most scientific test in the world).

Either the dodgy reception or broad programming would have been enough to make me prefer my MP3 player, but once you add the fact that XM's compression sounds worse than a 128kbps MP3, there's no way I'd switch to XM.

There is one place satellite radio makes sense to me: the car. Highways have an unobstructed line toward the sky, so the reception's perfect. Plus, I'm in more of a mood to troll around programmed channels on a long road trip than I am on a short commute.

I know this for a fact, because I've rented cars with satellite receivers, and it's always worked out great. Factor in Howard Stern's switch to Sirius in 2006, and there's a good chance I'll opt for a satellite receiver in my next car.

As for the portable MyFi receiver, perhaps that XM executive should have stuck with his original thinking and stayed out of the portable market entirely.

Biography
Eliot Van Buskirk is an editor at CNET MP3.com. He is the author of the book "Burning Down the House: Ripping, Recording, Remixing, and More!"

More Perspectives

Eliott's opinion of Myfi

Gee, Eliott, you certainly seem hard to please!!!
Could it be because ripping MP3's is about to become as archaic as using a rotory phone and you are going to have to find a new raison d'etre?
Some people like to listen to music they have never heard and therefore have not copied. They also don't find MP3's to be a very good source of News or other current events.

Why didn't you point out the MiFi cannot do your laundry in a BART tunnel? LOL!

your must be rich

I mean xm mgt is obviously stupid so you must have seen 6 million subs at ye 2005 back then (as those dummies new would happen)

and you obvously bought a ton of stock in the low single digits as I did--congrats and why are you still writing a web site that maybe 5 k people a day read (i saw the link on a message board so count me out as a reader)

well at least you are an "Editor"

lol rflmao--my 16 year old likes an ipod better too--do you have all of brittany spears cd's too

[Mindthread]

Sr. Editor @ MP3.com...can u say bias?

You disappointed me Eliot. I find it hard to believe that someone who's income is dependent on mp3 could ever write an objective review of a competing technology. What I find more interesting is that such an 'in-the-know' industry insider would author a dozen or so inches of text without even mentioning the most obvious points. CONVERGENCE of these technologies is the future! You will be able to access your precious mp3 or WMA collections as well as tune in to the innovative and unique programming that SatRad has to offer.

Reading this article was like reading a Steve Jobs review of Windows XP or an MS review of Linux. This guy is painfully transparent and self-serving hack.

BTW...doesn't the author have to actually hear the music somewhere before he decides to purchase it? What a moron.

Amen to that!

I was so excited about getting satellite radio (I have Sirius), but was intensely dismayed to see the record labels have invaded it too. Just like normal radio, I hear the SAME songs every time, every day!!! iTunes has decent radio stations for now - I hope it stays that way.

[Jahntassa]

Re: Amen to that!

Not to be a nag, but you bought Sirius, i'd almost half expect that you'll hear many of the same things over and over.

As I always tell my customers at Circuit City, XM is for music, Sirius is for sports. End of discussion. XM's playlist is simply better in terms of music.

As far as the article goes, gee, aren't you a bit jaded? The MiFi is the world's "FIRST" portable satellite radio unit. I suppose you're going to compare a landline to an analog brick cell phone next, right? Of course it's glitchy, and i'm not going to even comment on the "issues with the Subway" part. I think most people understand that satellites are in the sky, and the Subway is NOT.

As for in the house, it depends on what your house is made of. Simple wood and insulation will probably let in better signal than a metal frame.

Your review is definitely jaded. I have no problems with MP3's. But I'd rather spend $9.95 a month to get current and past music rather than handpicking the same songs from a very finite MP3 collection (about 23 Gb). Thank you for doing your best to continue the ethics of journalism.

Btw, Ethel is Alternative Rock Hits, and Fred is 70's/80's Alternative Hits. I guess part of journalism is not being able to read the program guide. You know, because TNT on television automatically means "Drama".

[03Beagles]

Wasted Space...

How do you compare the two? They are totally different pieces of equipment that perform two totally different functions. It's like comparing my pickup truck to my lawn tractor. They both have a steering wheel, four tires, an engine and a break pedal. How'd you get this job? Where does one apply?

[DustoMan]

I use both

I have both an iPod and a MyFi. I recently took them on a trip. I ended up using the MyFi a lot more then the iPod.

The iPod was great in the airplane where really a device like the MyFi isn't allowed. I used the MyFi when I was waiting for my next flight and in the rental car.

The only point I will agree on with this editor, is that signal reception is pretty poor when compared with my car installed Sony PnP unit. It's not uncommon to loose the signal even with the external antenna it comes with suction cuped to the car window. I think that the unit would be just fine if I used it with car cradle and the magnet mount antenna installed on my car.

I had to wait at two airports when I was on my trip, Minnieapolis and Atlanta. XM happened to have installed ground repeaters at these airports so I was actually able to listen to it while at the terminal and on the tarmac waiting to take off. I loved being able to listen to Fox News. It made time go by faster, and you CAN'T listen to that on an iPod.

[Dwaine]

I don't always WANT to program my own music selections

I like rock and roll music of all sorts from 50's oldies to new wave and alternative stuff. I find XM has many music channels that I enjoy. I also have over 100GB of MP3 files to choose among. And various ways to listen to them. And I use both. But sometimes I don't want to program what I hear from my MP3 collection. Sometimes it's nice to hear what someone else has programmed, and I can get different varieties of that on XM. And as has been mentioned by others, if all you ever listen to is your own collection of files, how will you ever hear anything new that you might also enjoy, and wish to add to your collection? I certainly think there is room for both.

Ouch!

Dude, you're getting pasted! And all these people are right, which kinda makes it a double-ouch. You've got some good points about the shortcomings of the device itself, but your criticism of the programming is assinine. You didn't mention even once the fact that the MyFi can record up to 4 hours of programming- great for those times when you're stuck underground, on an airplane, or charging your iPod battery. And not everybody enjoys sitting in front of their PC or Mac for eons creating playlists or ripping tunes. There are times for that, but there are definitely times when it's awesome to hear something you've never heard before.
Yes, the playlists can be somewhat limited, but definitely less limited than your iPod- no matter how many gigs you have! There's absolutely no comparison between satellite and regular radio- each satellite station on Sirius has a bigger rotation than any station in the metro DC/Baltimore area, for sure. Maybe you were having a bad day, but I think you missed the point entirely.....

[SatRadFan]

iPod is nice, Satellite is better.

You seem to be missing the point of the Myfi. This opens up a whole new realm of future convergence. The Myfi is a breakthrough for satellite radio. It may be far from perfect, but it's a step in the right direction.

The iPod is a very LIMITED music source compared to satellite radio. How many times can you listen to the same old playlists over and over and over again before they get boring. How many people LEGALLY own 10,000 MP3's and/or have the TIME to convert their cd collection over? The iPod is reigning now, but satellite radio will crush the iPod in just 2 years without even an afterthought....especially when a hybrid multiformat/satellite receiver comes out.

I find it funny that you mention that the Myfi "didn't work in my garage, office, etc, etc",...well DUH! You're using it indoors. You use the recording feature, and play it back for indoor use! Couldn't find what kind of music you were listening too?....you could have gotten a channel lineup sheet straight from XM's website, or better yet, read the back of the Myfi's box...not too difficult. I also find it odd that, with 68 music channels, you couldn't find a channel that's "right" for you. I find that amazing, because as an owner of XM and Sirius, I can find plenty to listen too (and not just music, there's sports, news, and comedy to boot). So much in fact, that it's difficult to stay on one channel, they're so good. The sound quality in my trial is much better than you stated...but definitly not cd quality. The fact that the Myfi comes with car/home docking units was also ommitted...this makes the value much more appealing...unlike the iPod which costs quite a bit for the almost necessary accessories.

YOU may have "narrow" tastes in music, but for most people, satellite provides far more music, news, sports and comedy that you could ever hope for on your precious iPod.

Ipods

Why would you need a satelite radio when you can get an iTrip. Then you can listen to your iPod in your car. Also i doubt yuo can check your email with those radios....you can with your iPod and do much much more. Look here http://brandon224.blogspot.com/

Check your email...REALLY? How?!? <sarcasm>

I've owned a 1st generation iPod, a Mini, and now an iPod
Photo... you may be able to upload email messages as "Notes"
onto the iPod, but I'm SURE that you can't "Check your email"
with it. I love my iPod... but it has it's place. I also love the XM
Radio that is built into my car stereo, my SkyFi connected to my
home stereo (and it's boombox), the add-on Pioneer XM radio in
my wife's car, and my MyFi unit. Yup, four XM units for two
people... I'm addicted. I can't check my email on any of em' (and
neither can you on your iPod), but I also get to listen to
commercial-free music, record live music and comedy shows (on
the MyFi unit) to enjoy later, and don't have to upload playlists
that I get bored with after I have listened to them twice. Just like
my DVD collection... I have lots of DVDs, but I still watch cable
and Satellite TV (and will still watch a movie on HBO, even if I
own the DVD). 160gB of music (all legal), yet I still love the
randomness of radio.

How Much Did they Pay You??

Really, how much money is Apple giving you? People don't understand. Satellite radio is RADIO, not CD. You're not supposed to KNOW every song. And so what if you don't know what Fred, Ethel, and Lucy are? [sarc] Because I knew exactly what VH1, TLC, LifeTime meant when I first saw them. [/sarc] Signal problems? Try using more than the built-in *******! They gave you an antenna for USE idiot. And indoors. It's called a cradle, and it's got a home antenna! And you could record almost nine hours of music! (Yes, it fits NINE, not five.) And even so, this is the FIRST portable Satellite Radio. Portable MP3 players have been around for YEARS.

Sound quality: You got us. But average Joe-idiot who doesn't do his research wouldn't know that XM can only transmit a limited amount of data. This is because if XM could use any frequency they wanted, it would interfere. As they add channels, the others get smaller. But eventually, a CODEC will be developed that will fix that.

But some people want a boring, impersonal, repetitive, no live content, money wasting iPod. Enjoy.