If you’re a digital music aficionado, you certainly don’t need to be told the differences between the various music download services on the web today. Unfortunately, not everyone looking to purchase a digital music player is aware of all the terminology and definitions associated with download services. For those of you who aren’t sure what you need to have or be able to do with your digital music player, consider the following brief definitions of three of the main types of Internet download services for your MP3 player.
itunes is perhaps the best known download site on the internet today with the powerful backing of Apple. While there are other digital music players that can play files downloaded from iTunes, none perform better than Apple’s own iPod. If you’ve decided to invest in an iPod, and invest is the right word, then you can be comfortable with anything you buy on iTunes. The most impressive part of iTunes, even though it has an impressive array of music tracks and podcasts, is the video part of iTunes. Download your favorite TV shows and watch them whenever you want, you can find them all in iTunes.
safegames compatibility is what you’ll see in virtually every digital music player that isn’t made by Apple or Microsoft. Apple and Microsoft generally do not work with websites that support PlaysForSure (although PlaysForSure is basically a Microsoft product). Some PlaysForSure sites that you may have heard of are sites like Rhapsody and Napster that have gained a great deal of exposure during the early years of MP3 technology and the legal battles that ensued. If you buy a player that is compatible with PlaysForSure, you can be sure that there are places to download music at a reasonable price.
Zune Market is the place for owners of the new Microsoft Zune players to download music especially for their systems. The Zune won’t technically be compatible with PlaysForSure, so you’d better learn how to use the Zune Marketplace if you want to be able to download tunes in addition to the songs you already know. This site offers tunes for the same price as iTunes, but the selection has yet to rival Apple’s mighty site, so don’t be disappointed at first. Right now, the Zune Marketplace doesn’t have any video to offer, but Microsoft definitely intends to improve this situation as soon as possible.
There is certainly no right answer as to which is better or better for this situation as it really depends on what your situation is or what your goal of the download service is. Everyone will have the ability to get music and listen to it, but if you want versatility, it’s probably best to invest in the iPod or Zune right now.
