Electronics: Attack of the Anti-iPods

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Apple, of course, isn't just resting on its market share while everyone else catches up. In February, the company announced price cuts for the iPod mini (to $199 for the 4-GB model) and the iPod photo. Meanwhile, the company that makes the microprocessor brains for the iPod started shipping a new chip last month that consumes less power--meaning that iPod's bugbear, its mediocre battery life, may soon be banished. Advantage, Apple. "There's a gap between understanding what users want and being able to provide it," says Susan Kevorkian, an analyst at market-research firm International Data Corp. Apple's main edge, she says, is the iPod's sophisticated software and "deceptively simple" user interface.

The anti-iPods still can't match Apple's ease of use. But they're getting closer. "In a device category as young as digital-music players and services," says Kevorkian, "no lead is insurmountable." There's more than one way to peel an Apple.