Before I go about making a major purchase ($100+), I generally ask myself two questions:

• Why do I need the object of my desire?
• How will said object change my life?

Today I find myself drooling over portable mp3 players, unable to decide whether I really need one, or if it is just an object of desire…sometimes it’s just so hard to tell.

Yesterday I told myself that the only reason I would ever need something like an iPod would be to carry around my entire music collection, otherwise my CD player works just fine. Then today I was running and realized that it sure would be nice if I could have 4-5 gigabytes (a few thousand hours) worth of music docked on my bicep. Music sure does make the run go faster, and as I begin training for a marathon I realized that it might be a good time to purchase an ultraportable music player that will hold a good amount of music.

The two objects of desire are:

1. Apple iPod Mini
2. Creative Zen Micro

The iPod Mini is great because they sell so many accessories for it, including the iPod Mini Armband which will allow me to attach the machine to my bicep, just like I wanted. Also, Apple claims that this device has 25 minute skip protection, which is the best in the business, I think. Also, the iPod’s interface is quite clearly the best in the business, which does mean something to my HCI/Designer sensibilities…is it possible that I would go with a lesser quality product just because it has more features?

The Zen Micro has damn near a million features, some that I would appreciate, including FM radio, a removable 12 hour battery (compared to the iPod’s 8 hour non-removable), and a 5GB hard drive (compared with the iPod’s 4GB). However, I can’t find an armband made for the device and the website makes no mention of skip protection.

If anybody has advice about these, please fill me in!

So, to answer my questions:

Why do I need a portable mp3 player?
Simply because it will make my runs all that much easier, plus it will be nice to carry around a sizeable chunk of my music collection when I’m bopping around campus, going on road trips, or flying about the country.

How will said object change my life?
This question is a little more difficult to answer. It won’t affect my day to day life in a meaningful way…I’ll be able to carry around more music, but to be really honest, when I’m at school I’m generally either in class or sitting at a computer, which allows me to simply stream music from the ‘net. It will help me when I’m not at a computer, and may motivate me to continue running, which is meaningful. Perhaps I can give myself some incentive to buy one of these for myself…some goal which, once surpassed, will free me to give myself a gift. If I could only think of a good goal…

By the way, am I an idiot for ruling out the iPod 20GB? It also has skip protection and is only $50 more. I’m not sure if I could strap it to my arm, however. Perhaps I’ll save some money and try out a *brand new* iPod Shuffle. It may turn out that that’s exactly what I’m looking for…