Eric Bangeman has written an article for Ars Technica that compares the iPod mini to small disk-based and high end flash memory-based music players. Bangeman finds that the iPod mini compares favorably to the Crative MuVo2 and the Rio Nitrus, and is more economical by many measures than the Sony Network Walkman and the iRiver iGP-100 Bangeman said:
While I think it could have been a lower-priced alternative to the 4.0GB model, the price difference between 1″ 2.0GB and 4.0GB drives is not much, and likely would not have translated into a significant price difference. The targeted market is obviously there, if 20% of the digital music players currently being sold fall into the high-end flash category. Apple seems to be counting on three selling points to convince that market segment to buy iPod Minis over similarly-priced flash alternatives….
The iPod Mini is arguably a better value than the high-end flash-based MP3 players. Sure, you can get better battery life with a flash-based player and you do not have to worry about moving parts. However, if your budget is keeping you from snapping up a larger player, or you do not have much of a digital music library to speak of, then a smaller-capacity hard drive player like the MuVo2 or iPod Mini is a better deal than a flash player. With smaller and smaller hard drives becoming available, the price/performance ratio is only going to get better.
In earlier articles, I’ve suggested that the iPod mini will find an audience because of its size, style, and user interface. But now, Eric Bangeman has done some research and put together a competitive analysis confirming that Apple is price-competitive in the small portable audio player market. I’m not surprised. [ via Slashdot ]