I'd like to buy a compact digital MP3 jukebox that meets the following criteria:

1. Works well with a Macintosh (have OS 9, could upgrade to OS X if I
need to), so it can be managed by iTunes (or some easy-to-use
alternative)
2. Has fast transfer (e.g., USB2 or Firewire)
3. Has a lot of storage (say 20GB or more)
4. Is able to record live music (not just voice) with reasonably high
quality (probably by plugging in a small microphone like a Sony
condenser mic).  The type of music I'm recording is fiddlers and string bands.

An iPod meets the first three requirements, but not the fourth (I know
this might change over time).  A Creative Nomad Jukebox 3 misses the
Macintosh requirement although it hits the other three.  The Archos
Jukebox Recorder 20 seems to meet all the requirements, but has been
characterized as clunky and slow and is an old model.

What brands/models should I be considering to meet *all* my requirements
well?  Is the situation likely to change in 6 months or so?

Thanks,

Dave

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Clarification of Question by bluegrassfiddler-ga on 14 Mar 2004 17:24 PST

Thanks for your comment.  Unfortunately, I don't think an 8KHz
sampling rate is quite adequate for recording music.   Maybe this
rules iPod out for now.  Any other options out there?

That should be all you need...

http://www.irivernordic.com/products.php?pid=24&PHPSESSID=550fafb5b930481a1a53eec3091b07ee

It's the iRiver (got for the 140 instead of the 120 model) and has a
built-in FM radio too!

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Request for Answer Clarification by bluegrassfiddler-ga on 06 May 2004 07:14 PDT

The only problem seems to be that since the software is currently
Windows-only, browsing by artist, album, and genre is disabled when
songs are loaded from a Mac.  So this isn't yet really compatible with
a Mac...

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Clarification of Answer by mantrac-ga on 07 May 2004 08:54 PDT

I have asked iRiver about this and apparently the only thing you can
not do is SEARCH based on the attributes you mentioned. Browsing by
artist etc. however is possible.

My thought is that this is an issue that's bound to be sorted out in
the near future as the product becomes more popular in the Mac world.

It's miles better and richer than anything else out there and since
you'll be primarily listening to your music through the device itself,
you should perhaps try to think of how much this temporary shortcoming
really affects you.

Comes very close to meeting my requirements, still some issues about
Mac compatibility

Belkin is coming out with a iPod mic later this month. Don' t know if
8kHz is good enough quality for you, though!

http://maccentral.macworld.com/news/2004/03/01/belkin/?lsrc=mcweek-0305