Apple ipod summary
Pros;
Best software, itunes
Coolest design
Simplest to use
Always gets top marks in any MP3 player reviews (have a look at the magazine rack in any newsagents)
Read somewhere that apple have approx 70% of the market so everyone makes stuff to be compatible with ipod
Cons;
Generally most expensive
No fm radio
Need to convert music to .acc files before can play on ipod
No removable battery (battery may need to be changed after approx 500 charges - but if you only charge 2/week, then that is 5yrs and by then there will be something better anyway.
If you want to use in the gym, then you need a player with Flash memory as the hard drive players can get damaged by all the jumping about.
This means the ipod nano - go with the 4gb as you get double the memory (1k songs) for an extra 50euro.