Not one but two software apps let PC users load an iPod. We compare XPlay and EphPod.

When Apple's vaunted iPod hit the market last November, the market majority was excluded from the party. The revolutionary new MP3 player worked only in partnership with Apple's iTunes and only on FireWire-equipped Macs--no Windows machines. Luckily, entrepreneurial developers took up the challenge and delivered not one but two programs to rescue stranded PC users. Can either app prove as seamless a partner as iTunes?

EphPod
EphPod connects your iPod to a PC with some fun extras, but its lack of major software backing shows up in the rough edges. If you're patient, give it a try, but use XPlay for the quick-and-dirty work.

Mediafour Productions XPlay 1.0
XPlay can't match EphPod for features, but it's much easier to set up and use. If you like your software simple, stick with XPlay.

EphPod

EphPod (pronounced EEF-pod) does just what it says: it makes your Apple iPod work with a PC. Beyond that, this app is a mixed bag. While it includes some worthwhile features that Apple and XPlay do not, including contact syncing, EphPod has a lot to learn about ease of use. If you're a do-it-yourself type, EphPod's intricacies won't trouble you. However, if you want software that works without a lot of fine- tuning, turn to XPlay instead.

Hair-pulling setup
Both XPlay and EphPod require software that lets your Windows PC recognize and mount Mac drives. Whereas XPlay comes with its own solution, MacDrive, built in, EphPod requires you to install either MacDrive or DataViz MacOpener. Although EphPod is free and comes bundled with a 15-day MacOpener demo, a full version of MacOpener will set you back US$39.95 (AU$71), a special price for EphPod users.

Despite the tidy EphPod/MacOpener bundle, the two-part installation caused major problems in our tests. Once we installed the full version of MacOpener, for example, we couldn't get it to load, despite repeated reboots. Once we finally got both EphPod and MacOpener running, we had to adjust several controls in each program in order to sync our iPod and see its songs.

Interface needs improvement
Once you're ready to go, simply plug in your iPod and launch EphPod. Sadly, the EphPod interface looks about as elegant as a spreadsheet. The top of the cramped screen shows the basic iPod menus (Playlist, Artist, Songs, and Contacts, along with a new item, Recent). Click one, and you'll see its contents displayed to the right, in the same window. The lower half of the window lists all the songs on your iPod in a large grid.

Unfortunately, adding songs to that grid is painfully unintuitive. You can't drag songs directly into the playlist; you must click the Add Songs button on the toolbar. If you create a new playlist--and there's no button to do so (you have to right-click in the playlist window, then select New Playlist)--and you want to add several songs simultaneously, you must select the playlist in the top window, highlight the songs you want to add in the bottom window, right-click the songs, then select "Add songs to playlist." Yikes!

Fancy features
Though EphPod doesn't look like a million bucks, it earns big points for features. The software takes advantage of your 5GB or 10GB of iPod space and lets you sync contacts from Microsoft Outlook or hold any contacts in vCard format (in a special Contacts menu option on your iPod), so you can use your iPod as a makeshift PDA. If you're using Outlook, EphPod can automate contact syncing, too. EphPod can also sync the text from any Web page and load the content into contact forms, a bit like AvantGo.

EphPod also includes a built-in function that lets you download music from your iPod to your computer, something that iTunes and XPlay both prohibit. This feature makes sharing music between computers extremely easy.

Sound support
If you need help outsmarting EphPod's hairy interface, you'll find a fair bit online. The EphPod Web site provides help documents, a link to user groups, and a direct e-mail link to the developer, who answered both of our test letters promptly and helpfully.

Despite EphPod's rough spots, we think it could surpass XPlay in the future, thanks to its multiple features. If you're after straight ease of use, stick with the more commercial XPlay. But if you have the patience and own a PC that's dying for some iPod action, muddle through this homegrown app.

Ephpod
Company: Trentsoft
Price: Free via download (requires MacOpener)

Mediafour Productions XPlay 1.0

Formerly known as XPod, a name Apple found a wee bit too similar to its iPod, Mediafour XPlay is the best-known app on the market that syncs your iPod with a Windows PC. And unlike EphPod, its sole competitor, XPlay has a professional, polished look and the backing of a major software developer. However, unlike EphPod, XPlay lacks novel features, such as Web-page syncing. If you simply want to move music and contacts from your PC to your iPod with no hassle, go with the US$29.95 (AU$53) XPlay. If you'd rather expand your horizons, give EphPod a try.

The application that wasn't there
Compared to EphPod, which we struggled with for hours, XPlay installs like a dream come true--in seconds and without a hitch. To launch the program, simply plug in your iPod; XPlay then automatically launches on your desktop. Unlike EphPod or the iPod's Mac software (iTunes), XPlay doesn't display a standard, Windows-style interface. Instead, you click the iPod icon, which shows up as a mounted storage drive in the My Computer folder, to see and access the files inside it.

When you first start XPlay, you can use the autolaunching setup wizard to select folders on your computer to automatically synchronize with your iPod. Thereafter, XPlay will automatically upload any music that you place in one of these folders when you connect. You can also copy and paste music folders directly onto the iPod window to update manually or drag and drop individual songs into the Songs folder. Like Apple, XPlay prevents you from copying songs from the iPod, so if you're using more than one machine to play music, EphPod is the better bet.

Playing with playlists
XPlay mimics all of the standard iPod tricks, including the ability to make playlists with whatever selections you choose. To do so, you can simply select a song or a folder in your iPod's music folder, right-click, and choose Send to Playlist--a nice trick. You can then send the music to an existing playlist or make a new one. To rearrange a playlist's entries, open the Playlist window in the mounted iPod, open the playlist you want, then drag and drop your selections; this is much easier than EphPod's complex process.

Right-click controls
Since XPlay doesn't offer a standard user interface, you reach most controls by right-clicking songs or folders. For example, you can right-click to adjust a song's volume, designate an equalizer preset, or adjust a tune's start or stop times--unlike EphPod, which doesn't let you tweak sound or volume settings. Alas, XPlay overwrites your settings the next time you autosynchronize your files.

XPlay can store contact information on your iPod in vCard (VCF files) format, as do iTunes and EphPod. Unlike EphPod, though, XPlay doesn't sync with any Web sites or offer additional uses for your 5GB or 10GB portable drive. We appreciate that unexpected extra in EphPod, as it takes logical advantage of all those gigabytes.

More, please
With XPlay, Mediafour offers an attractive, straightforward program that will appeal to those who value ease of use. But after seeing EphPod's creative features, we wish XPlay's developers had added a bit more value. Yes, XPlay brings the iPod to Windows users with no hassles. But we'd enjoy a few surprises, too.

Mediafour Productions XPlay 1.0
Company: Mediafour Productions
Price: US$29.95 via download

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