Anybody actually use that music feature on the DSi? Personally, I already have a nifty little Sony Walkman MP3 player which is tons more convenient to carry around and use as a music player. Then there's the MP3/AAC issue. Am I really expected to convert my entire MP3 album and track collection to AAC before I can use it on my DSi? Maybe it's a contractual thing, but the exclusion of MP3 compatibility on the DSi was dumb. "Hey people! You can listen to all your music on the new Ninty machine (but you'll need to spend hours converting it on your PC first) ... Yay!!"

At this stage, I'll probably convert one album just to see how the music player works, but long term I can only imagine using it perhaps for games that let you use the contents of an SD card for in-game music. I also thought maybe a future firmware update will sort it out, but look at the Wii - it played MP3's from day one until an update DISABLED the feature!

Well I use the DSi Music feature indeed. But that has three reasons:
1. I have no stereo in my room.
2. My computer doesn't have speakers (because I prefer High-Quality Headphones)
3. My PSP is too effing quiet. Seriously I can't hear anything...

So that's why I use my DSi as an alternative-stereo. And the Quality is actually really awesome
But I don't understand the fact that they chose to use AAC instead of MP3 either. But actually it's not that big of a deal since my Music library normally gets 2-3 new songs a month I seldom buy albums so it's not that bad to convert that few songs...

EDIT: Well according to a few sources AAC is better than MP3 and has better quality and was designed to be the successor but it's just not common...
Weird how MP3 is from 1991 and AAC from 1997 and MP3 stands up against AAC even though it's better quality and 6 years younger...
btw: wow I didn't know those formats where that old...

And on another note ... my software doesn't convert to AAC (I've just discovered). Is there any free software that will convert MP3 to AAC (other than iTunes, thanks). I'm still searching . . . so far I can only find software that will convert FROM the ACC format, but not TO.

As a Mac / iTunes user, all my music is already in the correct format, so no issue there. It takes only an instant to drag whichever iTunes folders I choose over to the SD card, and it's quite a nice music player overall -- great visualizers. I also have fun playing with the percussion instruments that you can assign to L/R, although one thing I'd love to see is an expansion of this, either as an add-on or a separate app in the DSiWare store.

Found some MP3 to AAC conversion software: http://www.aac-mp3.net/

It's free to download and free to use and is completely idiot proof (sorry - user friendly). One possible snag - it is a trial version but no details are given as to how long it will work before needing registration. So far I'm using it freely and it works perfectly. If it does eventually need to be paid for it's only £20 US dollars (which is about £13 GBP). I'll be happy to shell out that much - the software is top notch.

Incidentally, if you're going to use it you need to select the 'save as' function that says 'AAC for ipod/itunes'.

I've never used it either. Like the original poster, I too have a Sony Walkman MP3 player. And if you have your music files in AAC format you're most likely to have a super cool iPod so playing tunes on a much bulkier DSi seems a bit pointless .. unless of course you're like Roopa132 and you don't already have some sort of player.
I would like to see how the music player works, and how good it sounds .... but even if it sounds fabulous, I can't see using it over my MP3 player which is about the size of a pack of gum, weighs next to nothing and can run for days before needed a recharge.

IIRC, there's a licensing issue re: MP3 format where makers of MP3 players and decoders have to pay some kind of huge fee to those who own the MP3 patent. AAC format was created by a group of interested parties so that there would be a license-free option for makers of music players, but by that time MP3s were already popular thanks to Napster and the like, so that's why the format didn't really catch on with the people.

The fickle market, huh? Same reason why VHS video tapes beat the Betamax format, eventhough Betamax had the superior quality.

I tried out playing music on my DSi and I much rather stick with my iPod nano. It just feels like the ability to play music is an unnecessarily tagged-on feature, plus the whole portability issue - one of the biggest reasons I never was interested in the iPod until the nano was released.

I'll reiterate that, even though I possess a Nano (mostly used by the ladyfriend currently, though), I do greatly enjoy drumming on top of music while I listen to it. If you take the time, you can even build a little custom drum bank by recording whatever desired percussive sounds and tapping their sound bubbles while your music plays (just edit the sound using the built in truncation tools so that the percussive hit is exactly at the start of the clip).

I don't own a MP3 player or anything, so I do use the music playback thing on here. Its also one of the reasons why I upgraded to a DSi. XD

I'll tell you one problem I've noticed with the music playback.. You have to have the DSi open to play music. That'll never fit in your pocket! (Unless there's some setting you can change - I haven't found one.)

@Sinclair+User

Incorrect, you can shut the lid and your music carries on playing just the same -- but only if you've already plugged in your headphones, which I'm guessing you just didn't test yet. If there are no headphones connected, then of course it will just go to sleep once the lid is closed, since it would be pointless to listen to the internal speakers that way anyhow.

Sweet! Thanks for that, and you were indeed correct - I haven't tried closing the lid with headphones plugged in.

Of course, I haven't read the DSi manual yet, but what man ever does?

pretty much. anyway, i looked it up again, and apparently it's that multiple organizations claim to hold patents to MP3 decoding and encoding in different parts of the world, and there's been all kinds of lawsuits and confusion over licensing rights and patent infringements. in contrast, there's one big license agreement for all patent-holders to AAC technology (they all worked together to develop it), and all the fees for codec developers/sellers are laid out on their website if you're curious. :3

Does anyone know the battery life on a DSi if it's just playing music with the lid closed?

Nope, but I bet it's megalong. It's usually the screens on these types of devices that drink all the juice.

ditto

I don't find it too annoying to put music on the DSi. Before having to go to a meeting, school, work, whatever, just open up iTunes and press CTRL+A then create AAC version. It takes a while but should be done by the time you get home. It's really not much of a problem.
As for listening to music on my DSi, I do it a fair bit. It's also fun to play drums over top of the music as warioswoods said earlier.