For most iPod owners, how to watch Television shows on your iPod is pretty much the same as you would watch TV shows on a normal TV set. This is only in terms of actually seeing the Television shows as aired over normal channels but there are significant differences, too. Indeed, you can say with a certain amount of certainty that how to watch TV shows on your iPod is not as easy as just turning on the TV set and clicking on the remote; a little knowledge of technology will definitely help.

Before you can go into the niceties of watching TV shows on your iPod, first you have to buy and download television shows to a video iPod. There are many sites over the Internet that offers this kind of service, most of them on an unlimited basis for a fee.

Some of these sites offer DVD quality movies and you can subscribe to shows like the suspense-thriller “Lost”, the fast-paced “24″, the overtly sexual “Desperate Housewives”, and other reality shows and sports events.

In actually downloading TV shows, this is where a little knowledge of video technology helps. There are two ways how to watch television shows on your iPod. You can either convert TV shows video files into iPod format or you can record and convert Televison shows to iPod. On the first means, you have to download, install and launch the iPod movie/video converter software. Click the “Open File” button on the TV shows you like to convert, and then select “Convert”. Drag the iPod video files and transfer to your iPod. There are step by step tutorials on this process, if you need them, to actually transfer and convert shows to your iPod. You can then watch your favorite TV shows on your iPod!

The second way on how to watch TV shows on your iPod involves the purchase of an appropriate TV tuner card, which should include a PCI card and a USB external card. You have to attach the cable or antenna and then download the TV to iPod transfer software, which you will have to install and configure. It will then commence transfer of shows to your iPod. Again, there is a step-by-step tutorial for this should you need it.

The emphasis is sometimes on possessing working knowledge of video technology as the transfer can be a bit tricky. However, with practice and diligent adherence to the tutorials, watching shows on your iPod can become as easy as clicking the Televison remote!

As mentioned, there are significant differences between watching TV shows on a normal TV set and an iPod. For one, downloading Televison shows to an iPod is definitely slower than watching real-time TV. It can take at least 30 minutes to download and can take up significant memory space in your iPod. For another, the iPod screen (at just 2.5 inches) can be taxing to the eyes though the portability feature is great. Plus, it is just no fun holding the device all the time. Also, there are problems with video quality in terms of pixilation and color, which can sometimes result in lower-quality videos.

Indeed, starting with installation until actual viewing, watching TV shows on your iPod can be a little bit taxing on your time and knowledge, not to mention your money, but the benefits can outweigh these costs. The convenience of portability and anytime, anywhere availability are enough advantages to offset the trial and error frequently associated with first-time application regarding how to watch Television shows on your iPod.

Whenever a new product is introduced to the consuming public with the almost overnight success that accompanied the introduction of the Apple iPod, it is, for awhile enough just to have that product. But when the initial novelty of iPod ownership wore off, because everybody seemed to own one, the cool cachet which accompanied IPod ownership lost a little of its dazzle as well.

And while no iPod’s owner would dream of doing with without his or her wonder toy for a single day, finding a way to replace the cool diminished by its popularity became almost as essential as getting their iPods in the first place. And Apple, seeing the problem, introduced various accessories which would allow their customers the opportunity to reintroduce the cool factor to their iPods.

iPod Skins As iPod Transformers

iPod skins have become one of the most popular devices in the iPod cool accessories universe. iPod skins, as their name suggests, are form-fitting iPod covers which transform the appearance of the standard IPod casing into the color and pattern of your choice, making your iPod different from any other in the iPod universe.

There are so many choices for custom iPod skins that no iPod owner needs to settle fro a duplicate. Custom iPod skins are available in everything from adhesive-backed stick-ons to complete faceplates.

Types Of iPod Skins

One of the most popular iPod skins is the silicon wrap, which envelops the entire iPod except for its control wheel and screen. The silicon iPod skin is a great alternative to the IPod sock and leather cases which Apple offers, because neither of them allows access to the control wheel or screen.

Another of the early iPod skins was the carbon fiber iPod package, which contained two pre-cut pieces of black carbon fiber to be attached to the front and back of the iPod with the four screws included in the kit. The carbon fiber iPod skin also contains a belt clip.

Those who would like to adorn their iPods with a pop culture look can get on of the iPod skins from Iconz, which offer images of Batman, Superman, the Simpsons, and Tweety Bird, among others. And on the other end of the iPod skins spectrum, for those who want to keep their iPods undercover in the boardroom, is the Marware CEO Classic iPod skin.

The CEO Classic iPod skin is a dual covered leather case; the top cover will cover the interior one, which allows screen and control access. The CEO Classic iPod skin will provide cover for those who do not want their fellow workers to know they are carrying an iPod, and its outer cover even has a pocket in which to store business cards.

If you have a load of DVDs, and have been dying to watch them on your iPod for free well, here’s an answer to your prayers: HandBrake.

HandBrake is an open-source, multiplatform, multithreaded DVD to MPEG-4 converter, available for MacOS X, Linux and Windows.

To use HandBrake and start ripping your DVDs for the iPod you would need the following:

An iPod

500 MHz processor or better with at least 16MB of video RAM

QuickTime 7.0.3 or later

iTunes 6.0.1 or later

Below, are the steps on how to rip DVDs with HandBrake:

1. Download HandBrake and install. Make sure you have the latest version for any improvements.

2. Insert a Standard video DVD (these are DVDs that you would normally play in a DVD player), into your computer’s DVD drive. (Note: HandBrake will NOT be able to convert individual video files saved on a DVD-ROM.)

Launch HandBrake. A screen will ask you to choose a DVD. Choose the DVD you inserted and click Open. (Make sure that only HandBrake is accessing the DVD.)

3. HandBrake will now scan the DVD, which may take up to two minutes depending on the speed of you drive and DVD contents.

By default, the longest title in the list will be selected. This is because; main features in DVD movies usually have long titles. If the selected title is not what you want, just change the selection.

** You can use the Picture Settings button to manually move through several frames of the title to see what it looks like.

4. On the Destination section you can specify 3 settings: file destination, format, and codec . For file destination, make sure that the location has enough disk space to accommodate the ripped file. (1GB is the average size for full length movies.)

5. Select an iPod preset by clicking on the Toggle Presets button on the top right corner.

**For a high quality file that works well on a small iPod screen but with a reasonable file size, it’s advisable to adjust the bitrate lower than the average.

6. Choosing a preset, HandBrake will have synced the picture quality for the iPod. However, via Picture Settings you can offset the grainy, interlaced or compressed-look of the video. Change the Deinterlace option to fast to remove any interlacing (horizontal lines in the video.)

5. Lastly, click on the Rip button to start ripping the DVD. Encoding time depends on the following: video length; computer speed; are there other applications running; codec selected; and whether you chose 2-pass encoding.

An ETA will be posted as you rip the file and may increase if there are other applications running that might eat up processor usage. So, it’s best to rip DVDs either overnight or when the computer is not in use.

After encoding, you may quit HandBrake. Finally, you may now import the encoded video to your iPod via iTunes.

Quick note, however, for the not-so-tech-savvy consumer there are tons of paid software that offer a much easier solution. No need to worry with the codecs and various settings that would make your head spin. You can convert DVD to iPod video in just one-click or provide step-by-step interface in a way that is user-friendly and simple.  Go to DVDtoiPodReview.com to see the latest paid software that convert DVDs to the iPod.

In any case… do enjoy your movie!

If you have already completed converting your free audio books download MP3 files into several iPod track files, you will now need to complete the following steps to be sure your free audio book download can be played on your iPod. These are simple steps to help you ensure your audio book will play correcting and in the right order on your iPod.

Once you have converted the MP3 files, you will find duplicates of every track of the book. You can click on the “Kind” column header to sort out these files by file type. This is an easy way to select all of the MP3 files and delete them. After you have deleted these files, be sure to click on the “Move to Trash” button so you can regain the disk space.
Now select all of the AAC formatted files.

At the “File” menu, click on “Get Info”. You will see a window entitled “Multiple Song Information”. Here you need to enter all the information that is the same for all tracks like the author, free audio books title, and genre. Finish by clicking on the “OK” button.

Select the first part or track of the book. Go again to “Get Info” under the “File” menu. Now you should see all of the individual tracks available for this book. Now comes the somewhat tedious part. You will probably have to rename each track.

Try using the book title followed by the track number and then the number of total tracks. Add an additional zero if your total tracks are more than ten or these tracks won’t sort correctly. (3/32 should be 03/32) Abbreviate the title if it is long or your track numbers maybe off your iPod screen, especially if you have an iPod mini.

Now go to the “Options” menu. Check the line “Remember playback” and be sure to uncheck the shuffling options. This probably would ruin the mood of your book! Now continue renaming your iPod tracks and clicking the appropriate playback buttons for your entire free audio books download tracks.

It may take you a little while to complete this, but it’s better than having to swap out ten to fifteen audio book CD’s. Save your work and you are now ready to sit back and enjoy your new free audio book on your iPod.

If you have ever owned or used any model of the iPod for any length of time, it doesn’t take long for you to discover that iPods can easily and quickly become scratched, chipped used and abused as well. Of all the iPods, the iPod Nano is particularly sensitive to scratching.

Scratches on certain models may not affect usability that much. On models such as the Nano scratches tend to make the screen rather unreadable. Text and photos may look warped just after days of use.

So why exactly do iPod screens scratch that easily? The thing is that most of the iPod models are made from a thin layer of plastic which is known as polycarbonate coating. It can easily be altered by items such as keys and coins. Most users tend to carry their iPods in their pockets where such items are and they get scratched rather easily.

Despite all this, help exists. If you visit your local store and check the iPod accessory aisle, you will see that there are a huge number of products which will help you protect your iPod and prevent it from getting scratched and unusable.

A number of users tend to choose the simple case in order to protect their iPod screens. These cases tend to come in a number of styles as well as materials. Their prices tend to range from the very cheap to the very expensive. One of the most common case materials on the market is leather and leather is versatile and looks good as well. Though it tends to be suitable for most cases, those who are making use of their iPods under harsh weather conditions which are rather severe may require a metal case for some better protection.

For people who require a higher level of protection for their iPods, a number of variations exist, a number of invisibility shields and specialty coating tattoos help to keep screen scratches at bay.

Invisible shields tend to be very tough and resist scratches rather well. A nice benefit of using a shield is that once you have put it on, you can’t see it. This gives you the protection that you need and saves you the inconvenience of having that look of having a cover. A lot of users claim that these sorts of covers are somewhat difficult to put up but when they get on, they stay there.

Protective tattoos are one more option for eliminating scratching and they are rather popular as well. They can be thought of as a second skin for your iPod as they are very durable. They are usually coated with a scratchproof finish and they fit each individual device perfectly as they are custom cut fit to do so.

All the designs are usually printed on a high tech vinyl coating which is also a self-adhesive. They tend to have been both useful and stylish, they have a lifespan about four years or even more, and this makes them a great option if you want to protect your iPod properly.

No matter what type of casing you prefer, the important thing is to prevent any type of damage or scratching to your iPod screen in order to prolong your devices lifespan for years of musical enjoyment.

In October 2001, Apple launched iPod, a brand of portable Media player. The iPod is perhaps one of the best known and loved gadgets of this decade. Currently, the line up consists of hard drive based flagship iPod classic, iPod touch, iPod nano and the low end screen less iPod shuffle. iPod can also serve as an external data storage device. We can say that iPod has changed the way people think about music on the move.

In course of time, iPod speakers came into existence. Companies like Logitech, Zeppelin, Ferguson, Altec Lansing, Chestnut Hill, etc., manufacture various kinds of iPod speakers. Let’s look at the features of the iPod speakers of the above mentioned companies.

The B&W Zeppelin is oblong in shape and houses two woofers, two tweeters and a subwoofer behind its soft cloth non removable grille. The speaker has a loud sound with well defined bass. The egg shaped remote has a silver rear panel with a rubber plug that hides the non rechargeable battery. The controls are limited to track forward and backward buttons, play/pause, volume up and down, power, and a toggle button that pauses the iPod and switches to the aux input and vice versa.

Ferguson Hill FH007 and FH008 sound really good and look very beautiful too. In this speaker the tweeters and the woofers for each channel are housed in separate acrylic enclosures, instead of within one wood speaker block like we find in most of the traditional speakers. They work perfectly with a personal computer or an Apple iPod. Because of its irregular shape, this speaker system will need a little more shelf space than most other speakers. The woofers, housed in clear spheres with the front side cut away, have an eight inch diameter. Since the speakers are so light in weight, a heavy bass rumble produced by the sub woofer could potentially vibrate them enough to cause movement.

The distinctive 8.5 inch wide screen in Altec Lansing iMV712 is its major selling point. The screen, which sits between the speakers, is designed for viewing iPod content or videos from external devices like camcorders. The system comes with a membrane button remote that includes all the necessary functions. There is also composite video cable added with usual array of plastic dock adapters for each and every iPod model.

Apple iPod Hi Fi is a three way combination speaker and can be controlled by two touch sensitive buttons for adjusting the volume. Aside from the power jack, the only port is an auxiliary audio input, which accommodates either 3.5 mm analog cables or optical digital cables. If the personal computer or external USB sound card has an optical output then this digital input is excellent for getting sound.

The iPod Hi Fi comes with the standard Apple wireless infrared remote. The set up of the speaker is as simple as plugging it in or inserting batteries. Placing the speaker in the audio lab about 10 inches from the rear wall and equidistant from the sidewalls keeps the sound as smooth as possible.

The George, an audio system by Chestnut Hill, is meant for fourth generation Apple iPods. It has super cable and puts up unbelievably good sound. The speakers are neither upward angled nor detachable. The left and the right speakers are roughly 6 inches apart.

The Apple iPod is synonymous with mobile audio and music, and with the launching of the video-capable iPod, music lovers not only will enjoy the audio but also video.

Herein lies the problem – the apple iPod screen is only 2.5 inches, and there is no doubt that viewing pleasure can be increased when we can have a bigger video screen.

How then can the iPod have a bigger viewing screen – so as to be considered a mobile TV as well?

To convert your iPod into a Mobile TV, all you need to do is to get a MicroOptical Goggles.

You can wear this goggle over your regular spectacles or eyeglasses, and where you do not feel comfortable, you can do so over your contact lenses.

The goggles is fairly light at 70 g, with a belt clip that holds the iPod and the battery pack of 3 AAA-batteries. A cable connects to the iPod headphone port.

These goggles will deliver the image from two tiny LCDs through a series of lenses directly to the eyes so that you can watch video on what looks like a 27 inch screen TV!

Now, if you are always on the go and travelling, and you need to research or study or to get information from video clips, you can now enjoy 27″ equivalency viewing with the apple iPod.

The only drawback is the cost of the MicroOptical Corp Goggles, which, however is expected to drop with demand. Without the goggles, you have to tolerate the viewing from the 2.5 inch screen from the iPod, or dish out around $269 for the Goggles and start to enjoy Mobile TV using the iPod.

With the development of technology, soon the battery pack consisting of the 3-AAA size batteries will disappear, making it more light weight!

Indeed, there is nothing to hold back the iPod from developing into the music player and mobile TV player if you can afford the cost of the goggles.

The iPod Touch is one of Apple’s hot new products. It’s sort of like an iPhone, but without the phone part. In other words, it’s a handheld multimedia device you can use to play music, watch movies and surf the web.

But it doesn’t come cheap. Prices run from around $300 to $500 plus, depending on how much memory you want (among other add-ons). So with that kind of investment, you obviously want to get the most out of your iPod Touch, and that involves customizing it to suit your needs. In this article, I’ll teach you how to customize the home screen of your device.

Once you take your new iPod Touch out of the box, the first thing you should do is charge it up using the charger cord that came with it. While the device is charging, you can familiarize yourself with the instruction booklet that came with it.

Easily Customize Your Home Screen

Customizing the home screen is one of the first things most users want to do with their iPod Touch. The home screen (as Apple calls it) is what you see when you first turn your device on. It’s the main screen with all of the icons on it. These icons represent the various features of the iPod Touch — web browsing, email, weather, music, etc.

You can adjust this screen in several ways. For one thing, you can rearrange the icons to put the ones you use most often at the top of the screen. To do this, you first need to open the editing feature for the Touch screen. Do this by touching and holding any of the icons. When all of the icons begin to “wiggle” back and forth, this tells you the home screen is ready for editing.

Remember, the key is to touch and hold an icon on the main screen. That’s how you “unlock” the icon editing features of your device. Many people tap, tap, tap away with no success. You have to touch and hold. A good way to remember this is that a tap is like a left-click with a computer mouse, while a touch-and-hold is like a right-click with a computer mouse. Okay, moving on.

Once the icons are wiggling, you can do several things. You can rearrange them, as we talked about, delete them and more. To rearrange the icons, simply touch them (one at a time) and then drag them to where you want them on the Touch screen. Essentially, this lets you prioritize your icons based on the way you use the device.

You can also use this technique to move certain icons to another home screen (you can have more than one), or to delete the icons from altogether. When you delete an icon from the main screen, that does not mean you are removing the program from your iPod Touch entirely … it just removes the icon. In that way, it’s similar to removing a shortcut from the desktop of your computer (it only removes the shortcut, not the program itself).

Customization By the Numbers

So let’s sum up these instructions with some good old-fashioned numbered steps. Here is how you can customize the home screen of your new iPod Touch.

To rearrange the icons:

1. Turn your device on and go to the home screen (it usually comes up first).
2. Touch and hold any icon on that screen (weather, email, web browser, etc.).
3. The icons will begin to “wiggle” back and forth when they are ready for changes.
4. Rearrange the icons simply by dragging them where you want them.
5. When you are done, press the home button (the square) to save your changes.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this guide to customizing your iPod Touch, and I wish you lots of enjoyment with your new device.

The release of the iPod Nano was an enormous hit for Apple, but also sparked controversy among its loyal followers. Customers began calling in record numbers about broken screens on the iPod Nano. Apple quickly discovered and fixed the problem then replaced the faulty players for free. Although iPod screen repair isn’t an epidemic, screens still break, crack, or scratch for one reason or another and must be replaced. Should you find yourself in this situation, you’ve got two different options; to do the repair yourself or send it to a repair specialist.

Do it yourself iPod Screen repair:

For those who feel comfortable poking around the inner circuitry of their iPod, a do-it-yourself iPod screen repair kit might be an option. For about ten bucks, you can purchase a set of iPod-specific tools you’ll need to unscrew the casing and pry apart the two halves safely while the screen runs between $89 and $149 depending on the model.

While the process can be fairly straightforward for some, there is room for error when doing your own repair. In order to remove the screen you’ll need to detach some of the pieces and pull the broken screen away from the logic board and attach the new one.

Send your iPod to an iPod repair specialist

Perhaps the most attractive benefit about sending your iPod off to a specialist for the screen repair is that they can troubleshoot the iPod to ensure that a new screen will in fact solve the problem. Often a broken screen is caused by a trauma, meaning the possibility of additional damage.

Some repair shops like iPod Mods don’t charge any more for professional installation than the cost of the screen itself. Although you will pay a few bucks for shipping, you’ll be able to have a full diagnostic run and the screen replaced by a professional.

Isn’t iPod screen repair covered by my warranty?

Apple considers a broken screen misuse or accidental damage. Apple’s service repair page specifically states that “If your iPod’s LCD display is cracked due to accidental damage, do not send your iPod in for service.” The repair is not covered under the iPod’s Limited Warranty or the AppleCare Protection Plan.

Every day life is just more fun with a soundtrack which is why the iPod has quickly grown to become America’s favorite gadget. The iPod has proven fairly tough in light of the amount of use most endure on a daily basis. However, should your iPod ever need repair there are do-it-yourself kits and iPod repair specialists that can help you get your iPod back on track in no time.