Originally Posted by travelmad478
--If I already have a bag full of adapters for use in every country on the planet, do I need to shell out for the iPod's $39 set of international adapters? Is there a power cord that I can just plug into my existing adapters? (And: even the iPod set does not include a plug for South Africa and their nutty outlets--what do I do for these trips?)
I've traveled with my iPod (and the rest of my travel gear) to different parts of the world and never had the need to buy the $39 international adapter set from Apple. I just use of the adapters in my grab bag of wires and cables that I've collected over the years of travel. And if I don't happen to have the appropriate one, most decent hotels have adapters to loan out during your stay. The Apple adapter set sure looks cool though.
Originally Posted by travelmad478
--For playing the iPod in the car, the NY Times Circuits section recently recommended the Sony cassette-player hookup, which Apple sells as an iPod accessory. Is the $20 price from Apple decent, or can I get this cheaper elsewhere?
You can probably get it cheaper at Radio Shack but not by much.
Originally Posted by travelmad478
--I want to listen to the iPod while running. Should I buy the in-ear headphones? (My head, like the rest of me, is small and I often have problems with headphones being too big and falling off. Will the in-ear headphones stay in place any better?)
--I want to listen to the iPod while running, part 2. Should I buy the $39 belt clip carrying case or is there a better and cheaper option for this purpose? Like the belt pack I already own, for instance?
I've used my iPod while working out outside and in the gym and it works fine. But I'm probably in the minority because I think it's still too bulky for that purpose. I use a flash memory-based MP3 player instead.
Originally Posted by travelmad478
--Do I really need that $79 kit to attach the iPod to my stereo (which is so lo-fi that a Monster Cable would laugh at it), or will any old connector wire do the job? Is the output jack for the iPod unique enough to require a proprietary cable?
Thanks to the experts for your help!
The iPod output jack is standard mini-RCA (I think that's what it's called), no different from the outjack jack of a Sony Walkman. So you need whatever cable to connect a Sony Walkman to your stereo. In my case, it's a Mini to RCA Stereo Y Cable that looks like
this .