It's true that Ipod will integrate nicely with BMW cars, but controlling it is still very limited (I wouldn't exactly call it control when only 5 or 6 playlists are available). The only "real" control function that is available with the Icelink integration is really just the Forward and Reverse button. I have hundreds of albums and would like to be able to jump between them quickly if necessary. Therefore, I will have the player at hands reach anyway. Thus, integration to my car, either through a device such as Icelink or the AUX input wouldn't make much of a difference to me. The only real advantage that I can see with the Icelink interface is that it will charge your Ipod at the same time, but I'm not sure what it will do to the built in battery life (subjecting it to all the unnecessary charge/discharge cycles). Personally, I will only want to recharge a battery when necessary in order to prolong its life span, thus I'm not sure that I want this automatic "recharging" function.

My biggest beef with the Ipod is iTune. If you're not careful, your whole music collection on your computer can be wiped out in an instant. Beside, I'm just plain lazy and don't really want to learn another software if I don't have to My brother-in-law has an Ipod and comparing the sound quality to the IAudio X5, the X5 totally blows it out of the water (I'm comparing the same mp3 file using the same headphone)! At this time, I'm not sure if I want to settle for an Ipod just yet. If anyone has any recommendations, I'm all ears