Really? iPod owners want FM tuners?
According to the results of a recent web poll survey of 25,000 respondents, 43 percent of iPod owners want the next model to include an FM tuner. And who conducted this survey? Jacobs Media, “the largest Rock radio consulting firm in America” who also “created the Classic Rock format, and works with Alternative, Active Rock, and Triple A formatted stations.”
Whoa! A company that provides research and consulting services to major radio broadcasting companies found that iPod owners want to have built-in radio capability! So maybe instead of headlining the results “iPod Owners Want FM Tuners,” they should have written “FM stations want iPods to have FM tuners so they won’t keep losing listeners.”
Their findings note that “Of course, FM radios are available in Microsoft Zune’s and SanDisk players, for example, but they are not built into Apple branded products, such as Nano, Shuffle, or video iPods.”
So if 43 percent of iPod owners want an FM tuner, why haven’t the Zune and SanDisk players been successful?
“Clearly, this is a great opportunity for Apple to better serve its millions of iPod customers, while keeping ahead of its growing competition.”
So Apple can keep ahead of its competition by adding in features that its competitors already have? The logic is making my head hurt.
Also note the reference to the iPod nano and shuffle. Considering how large the Zune and SanDisk players are that include an FM tuner, wouldn’t this added hardware make the nano and shuffle larger than customers prefer? Yet that doesn’t stop Jacobs from noting in the first paragraph “But iPod owners – in particular – want an FM radio in that next Nano or Shuffle.”
And they also found that “The best settings to use an iPod-like device are while working out (61%), walking (42%),” which are the types of setting best suited to an iPod nano or shuffle.
“It’s a no-brainer,” notes Jacobs. “If Apple truly wishes to make the most versatile, user-friendly personal mp3 devices, an FM tuner should be standard equipment.”
I’m starting to think that Jacobs should look in the mirror if they’re looking for a no-brainer.
They’re not the first critics to point out the iPod’s lack of built-in radio tuner, but according to Steve Jobs, customers aren’t making much noise about it. “We don’t get a lot of customers asking for it,” he said to Macworld in September 2005.
Although there are certainly those who have wanted the iPod to gain FM tuner capabilities, I thought those voices would be silenced after Apple released the iPod Radio Remote in January 2006.
Wait, what? Apple has an official FM tuner for the iPod already? Yes, if you have an iPod nano or an iPod that supports video, you can “listen to FM radio on your iPod and control everything with a convenient wired remote. You also get a set of earphones with a shorter cable that’s a perfect fit for the remote.”
All this for only $49. Plus, it’s integrated with the iPod’s built-in software (check your Settings to see the hidden functionality) and doesn’t require any batteries because it’s powered by the iPod.
So if iPod users really want an FM tuner, why aren’t they just getting it?
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Actually, what I would really prefer is an AM tuner. I don’t listen to much FM when I do listen to the radio, but the iPod Radio Remote is FM-only, and therefore mostly useless to me.
“43% of Radio fans want an iPod tuner.”
Terrible statistic
Seen as these stats will be from people who actually listen to the radio surely.
I only listen to one radio show, and you know what thats downloaded off a torrent site in .mp3 format with the terrible music and adverts edited out of it.’
Two of the radio shows that actually had me using my car stereo to listen (one on AM, so no iPod radio remote) are now available via podcasts, so that negates almost any need for an iPod with radio for me.
FM Radio SUCKS!!!!!! That’s why I have an iPod. Not the other way around.
I’m sick of the crap the record companies have been force feeding us for years. Forget them and their DRM.
The KCRW, and KEXP podcast are the best way to find great music.
Don’t forget about Pandora. The days of the Shock jock are over. Die top 40 die!! It’s the best thing that could happen to music.
Who actually PAID for them to study this? Given the number of local radio anti-iPod ads I’ve seen in Sacramento, this looks like a larger marketing plan for radio to me, as the writer suggests.
I bought the FM remote, works great….I keep it in the event there’s urgent news I need to grab on Public Radio!
Radio. Heh heh. That’s so cute.
The iPod is about choosing what you want to listen to, and avoiding that which you do not want to hear (annoying DJs, annoying ads, annoying static from bad reception). Radio is a tired old medium built around what advertisers want.
I get my fill of radio listening to the news in my car. Aside from that, I have no need for terrestrial radio, and I’m not alone in that sentiment.
actually, i’m one of those people who wants fm. why? because i like listening to sports radio. because of this, i did go out and get the fm tuner accessory. i like how it works, but the design is far from perfect. what you are missing, dear author, is the added mess that the accessory gives you. the cord is ridiculously long, and then there’s the who shuffle-sized remote that is attached to the cord. it works, but it’s not the best idea when they could just as easily have included it like other people do. in fact, the cord is so long that i have it spooled up with a twist tie. another inconvenient aspect to this setup is that by utilizing the dock connection, one cannot use the nike kit while listening to radio broadcasts.
if you don’t want it, don’t use it. nobody is forcing you. i know i skip out on using the crap i don’t care about – like uploading contacts or having a pocket constitution or bartender drink guide.
Actually I haven’t listened to FM in years! My car radios are all tuned to the local AM sports radio stations. At work I’ve noticed the companies cars are usually on AM stations upon entering ranging from news, commentary, or sports.
The only place this would be nice is working out in the gym. The televisions have an FM broadcaster attached allowing you to listen in if you wish. Not sure this really warrants compromising my ipod’s design however. A small FM receiver to stick in my gym bag wouldn’t break the bank.
Steve is probably right.
Don’t burden my iPod with a useless feature. There isn’t any radio worth listening too in my area. I’m much happier with podcasts and music I put on my iPod thanks.
An FM tuner would be completely useless to me. It’s not a selling feature and I don’t understand why so many people want one.
I half wonder if the people surveyed are confused and think that’s the FM transmitter feature they’re asking for instead of receiving radio signals.
I think your posting was unnecessarily snarky. A radio receiver does not take that much additional real estate to be installed in a unit, nor is it a big expense. That’s fine that some, or even most, people may not use it. But most of us don’t use a lot of the features iTunes/iPod has, does that mean Apple shouldn’t make the features available? As for who would use it and why – I listen to NPR (radio) on the way to work in the morning and my music (mp3′s) on the way home. At the gym, if I want to watch TV while working out, the sound is broadcast on FM radio. Also, what about the emergencies that you WANT and NEED to get news? Why should I have to have a separate radio for that? So, Apple nicely offers the radio connection as an accessory – AT $49.00! What portable radio costs $49.00??? That’s more than half the cost of a Shuffle and a third of the coast of a Nano…