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I saw this link on Engadget and even though I can't read it, it has some pics that demonstrate why the iPod is still on top: ?? ??????????. The site has side by side pictures of the new Creative MP3 player with a current and 1st (or 2nd) generation iPod.

Yesterday I had two different office-chit-chat conversations with people about the iPod and it is remarkable how capable it is. You'd think that some clever people out there would have come up with something better, but the unbadness of the music management software, the magic of the scroll-wheel, and the relative open-ness of the device itself are a winning combination.

It will be interesting to see how Apple manages the current DRM (digital rights management) challenge by Real. It is kind of a pity that Apple feels a need to respond at all, since it doesn't seem like Real has an actual shipping product. And whenever Real does ship something, you can be certain it will be some nightmarish advertising engine that makes iTunes look really good.