Let the hive mind of Engadget get that for you.
"As someone who doesn't reside in the USA, I was wondering what would be the best way to get internet for my computer in the US for a couple of weeks? If it were Europe I know I'd look for some prepaid data. Is there anything similar offered by American carriers? A MiFi or a data SIM that I can tether from would work, but I'm trying to maintain a tight budget. Help!"
But if you're an audiophile, you're not using an iPod/iPhone to listen to music.
Ever heard of Apple Lossless or WAV format? All ipods support these formats. A lot of audophiles also need a setup for portable use as well. Of course with the Iphones/ipod touch it's sometimes a waste to use WAV and any other lossless format unless you love only keeping a few albums on the device. I myself love to waste space and use WAV. 320kbps mp3 is also good enough for portable use at times.
Do you believe Apple fits iPods and iPhones with high-end DAT processors and amps? Running even lossless files through the sub-par components in these iPlayers, you're still getting some quality loss.
I use Apple lossless and I own an iPhone. I do also realize I don't need $400 earbuds to go with my mediocre player.
I understand what you're saying and I agree somewhat, but most people who would fork over the cash for a pair of these would use it with other audio sources as well. They will probably last through several generations of ipods. Using it just for an iphone is kind of a waste. Still though, I don't think that the Ipods are so bad that it's not worth getting some extremely good earbuds for. $400 for a good pair of earphones for just ipod use isn't that big of a deal and not overkill. Of course with 128kbps mp3s it most definitely is! With a good headphone amp and an ipod I still think spending $400 for some good earbuds is worth it and the sound quality improvement would definitely be noticed. You can easily tell the difference between say some $100 Shure headphones and the Triple-Fi's. From day one, i've never felt my combination of the ipod and the Triple-Fi 10's was a waste. Somedays if I don't care about sound quality I can easily get away without using a headphone amp. Of course not everyone needs $400 earphones. Even $50 these days can get something decent. Unlike with some BOSE stuff, for the $400 you really do get what you pay for.
Are UE Triple-Fi 10's even audiophile grade equipment? I always figured that was more like Sennheiser 650's and some of the more expensive Grado stuff. Now what would REALLY be stupid is using some $1000 Grado GS1000 headphones with an ipod mini. I bet some people do. I was tempted to buy a pair of those used, but passed at the last minute. I'm sure glad I did.
You think the iphone is bad? I upgraded to the IE40s (= triple.fi's) from Etymotic ER4s back when I was still using a Jabra bluetooth pendant. You know how BAD the quality of bluetooth stereo is? Apple refuses to implement it!!! Even with this awful sound source the difference was striking - and the ER4s are pretty high end. The improvement in performance was totally worth the money, even if the final result was still limited by bluetooth stereo. The triple.fis/IE40s really separated out the individual instruments and placed them in 3D space, even in really dense production, even with this awful bluetooth stereo source.
Cabled directly to the iphone they're amazing. The iphone has good DATs. You could get better, but it's a case of diminishing returns and sacrificing the convenience of a single device. I think you get more bang for your buck buying $400 headphones than you do getting an MP3 player with better DATs.
Wrong, do some research on the iMod - http://www.redwineaudio.com/iMod.html
Also ever heard of the Pico amp? http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f5/pico-usb-dac-amplifier-headamp-255507/
Pair these two together, like I have, and a pair of comparable headphones (I use sennheiser hd25-1's) and you will be in portable euphoria, just be sure your source isn't 192kbps or worse. Just one tip, this set up probably won't fit in your pocket.