Well, I’m not an iPod guy.  But I have owned three iPod nanos, the latest one a new 2nd-generation basic model, the 2gb silver one.  I picked this one up mostly out of frustration with my recent forays into the flash player world.

My main player is a Gigabeat S60 from Toshiba, which is actually about the first mp3 player I’ve been satisfied with to keep for more than four months or so.  I cherish that player so much that I wanted a little flash player to take running, or to use while I ride my motorcycle, or while I’m mowing the lawn, etc. 

I’ve had an iRiver U10, which I ditched because it was too big a pain to use while in my pocket.  I also have a Sansa e280, which is just quirky and kept locking up on me (the latest firmware may help - we’ll see.  I’m holding out for Rockbox on that one).  I loved the Rio Carbon, but the hard drive thing worried me.  Anyway, none of the other players really fit my needs perfectly.

Let me give you some pros/cons for the nano, from the point of view of a non-apple guy.

Pros:

• Tons of accessories.  I mentioned riding the motorcycle with an mp3 player?  Belkin makes a sweet remote that works for just that purpose.  There are also tons of cases and other options for these things.
• It just works.  Audible files work perfectly with no hassle, it never locks up, it’s easy to navigate.
• It’s sexy.  It’s got a great screen and an appealing interface.  Chicks dig it (I assume - I’ve been married for seven years now, so who knows?). 
• It’s 800x more durable than the previous gen nano.  Great work by Apple addressing all the weird quirks in the first ones.

Cons:

• iTunes.  Non-apple guys will know what I mean.  iTunes sort of likes to take things over.  I try to be very careful with my tags and folders and not let iTunes do any damage.  Anyone who’s tried some of the iTunes alternatives, leave a comment and let me know what you think.
• No FM.  Actually, I don’t really care about that.  I don’t listen to top 40 stuff anyway, and if I’m out when one of my teams is playing, I just record it and watch it later.  Besides, if FM is a deal breaker, there’s a kit for that.

So the nano, aside from the iTunes thing, is a great player for jogging, audiobooks, and every day beat-em-up use.  It’s a decent second player, and with the new, more durable design, it’s one you can toss in your pocket and not worry about.  It’s good enough to make a non-apple guy like me buy one and install iTunes.  Props to Apple on the great design and great interface (licensed from Creative =) ).