It’s no exaggeration to say that Apple has defined how people listen to music in the 21st century. Already commanding 75% of the digital music player market, the iPod phenomenon just keeps growing. In the digital-player arena, the iPod is like the New York Yankees — millions cheered when the Boston Red Sox won the World Series last year just because it was cool to see someone else take home a trophy for a change.

The problem with being on top is that there’s nowhere to go but down. And there are always rivals who would love to give you a push. Apple is far from the only maker of digital audio players, and several competitors are fielding iPod “killers” — players that promise more features for your buck (sound quality almost always depends more on the audio compression format, bit rates, and earbuds used than the player itself). We hand-picked four of the latest digital tough guys and lined them up for a throwdown with each model in Apple’s iPosse. But will they prove to be a crack team of assassins or a suicide squad?

Toshiba gigabeat MEGF20 $329

2.5 x 4.5 x .625 inch, 5.375 ounces · gigabeat.com

Target iPod photo

Memory 20 GB (10-, 40-, and 60-GB models also available for $279, $399, and $449, respectively)

Formats supported MP3, WMA, WAV, JPEG photos

Secret weapon By the numbers, the gigabeat’s 2.25-inch (diagonal), 240 x 320-pixel LCD screen straight up outdoes the iPod photo’s 2-inch, 220 x 176-pixel display. And those specs don’t lie — I haven’t been this impressed by a screen on a portable since I saw Sony’s PSP. Fine details in photos — like eyelashes and clothing texture — were clear and colorful, although darker areas sometimes appeared pixelized. The display goes horizontal in photo mode to maximize the amount of screen used (which means you have to turn the player on its side to view your pictures), but it unwisely stays that way for vertical pics, and there’s no way to flip them back. At least slideshows are simple to set up, though unlike its iPod rival, the gigabeat can’t spit digital images out to a TV.

Extra ammo The Plus Touch — that’s the plus-sign control on the front — is a so-so spin on the iPod’s scroll wheel. It’s a little finicky, and I would have preferred a “hard” button in the center, but it’s easy enough to use. And you can bookmark individual songs to create a playlist on the fly.

Weak spot The gigabeat’s music- and photo-managing software, dubbed the “gigaroom,” is terrible! Not only do you have to first tell the player which software you’re using (something it should figure out on its own), but the onscreen interface is almost completely icon-based, so navigating it for the first time is like ordering dinner in a foreign country — just start pointing at stuff on the menu and hope something good happens. In lieu of the gigaroom, you can use Napster’s somewhat more intuitive music manager, or Windows Media Player 10, which makes transferring tunes to the player only slightly less difficult than piloting the space shuttle.

Mission report The Toshiba’s great-looking screen draws first blood in this fight, but its lousy software saves the iPod photo from being totally gigabeaten.

 

Sony Network Walkman NW-HD3 $300

3 x 2.5 x .625 inch, 4.625 ounces · sonystyle.com

Target iPod

Memory 20 GB

Formats supported MP3, ATRAC3, ATRAC3plus

Secret weapons Excellent software and a slick design give the modern Walkman some decent firepower for its shootout with Apple’s champion. Sony, not really known for its computer software, did a great job creating the SonicStage music manager, by far the most intuitive and aesthetically pleasing of any of the programs among the iPod killers here. It interfaces seamlessly with Sony’s Connect.com music store, whose ATRAC3 downloads sound very good, but its selection isn’t quite as extensive as at the iTunes store. The player’s horizontal form factor is a little jarring, but it really grows on you once you get a feel for the design (love those rounded edges!). Its play/pause/skip button isn’t touch-sensitive, which at this point is a welcome relief. Sony offers the NW-HD3 in a choice of red, blue, silver, black, or pink.

Extra ammo As menus go, the Walkman’s are nicely succinct. They don’t mire you with too many options, and you can still fine-tune details like the sound equalizer or screen contrast. Too bad the screen itself is pretty dim.

Weak spot One word — adapter. In an incomprehensibly lame move, Sony chose to make both the USB cord and power cable connect to the player through a single, removable adapter. This small (1.125 x 1.75 x .5 inch) piece of plastic is flimsy and sometimes hard to detach, plus it renders the player unrechargeable and musically paralyzed if you ever lose it.

Mission report The Network Walkman’s smooth skin and friendly software help it take decent aim at the iPod, but that goofy adapter keeps it from scoring a kill.

iriver H10 $250

2.125 x 3.75 x .625 inch, 3.5 ounces · iriveramerica.com

Target iPod mini

Memory 5 GB (20-, 6-, and 1-GB models also available for $300, $280, and $230, respectively)

Formats supported MP3, WMA, JPEG photos

Secret weapon Right off the bat, the iriver takes the iPod mini down a notch by having a color screen. And it knows how to use it: you can transfer digital photos to the player for sharing memories on the move. Its slideshow functions are primitive compared with the Toshiba gigabeat — there’s no way to change the interval time or the transition effect — but at least they’re simple enough for most primates to operate. And the player’s colorful main menu really shows off what the 1.5-inch screen can do.

Extra ammo The iriver stuffs its slim chassis with a seemingly bottomless grab bag of extras. The onboard FM tuner conveniently sets its own presets for your area, and recording from it is easy enough (if not intuitive — it was one of the few functions I had to look up in the manual). You can also record via the built-in mike or the analog minijack in the cradle, which throws in a minijack output for playing music on your main system. Wait, there’s more! The iriver can cue up text files on its screen, though it takes no prisoners when it breaks words between lines. Still, they’re readable in a pinch. And if gray’s not your color, the H10 also comes in blue, red, and silver.

Weak spot If this multitasker is lacking, it’s only because it can’t excel at everything. For instance, the LCD’s 128 x 128 resolution leaves a few pixels to be desired. Many photos, higher-res ones in particular, looked noticeably grainy, with white lines sometimes appearing around the edges of objects. The iriver also relies on Microsoft’s Windows Media Player 10 (WMP10) software to transfer music, which is kind of like relying on Burger King to be your nutritionist. You won’t starve, but it’s definitely not the best choice.

Mission report Target destroyed! The H10 isn’t perfect, but its monumental arsenal blows the iPod mini away.

SanDisk Sansa e130 $135

2.125 x 3 x .5 inch, 1.875 ounces (with SD card and battery) · sandisk.com

Target iPod shuffle

Memory 512 MB (1-GB model also available for $190)

Formats supported MP3, WMA

Secret weapon SanDisk is known primarily as a maker of blank media, so it’s no surprise that it’s outfitted the Sansa with an SD card slot. Cards currently go up to 2 gigs, so if you’re willing to drop an extra couple of C notes on a card, your Sansa’s guts will trounce the iPod shuffle’s, which max out at 1 GB. And that’s no-moving-parts flash memory, folks, making it virtually unskippable. The Sansa also has a screen, the mere existence of which gives it an edge over the littlest Pod.

Extra ammo The 3-inch installation CD can install software from Rhapsody.com for managing music, AudioFeast.com for downloading Internet radio programs to your player, and Audible.com for audio books. But if you want to avoid all the sales pitches, you might be better off using WMP10 — unwieldy as it is — or simply transferring songs manually. The Sansa also packs an FM radio and a semi-extraneous stopwatch.

Weak spot The little Sansa isn’t quite little enough. It’s roughly twice the width of the Pez dispenser-size iPod shuffle and a bit thicker, too. Size is critical for flash players, since they should be inviting to the gym crowd. But even though the Sansa comes with workout-friendly perks like a plastic sleeve and a Velcro armband, its overall design will leave you coveting the perfectly sleek shuffle. Plus its reliance on a AAA battery feels like a throwback to the pre-iPod era.

Mission report Killed in action. The Sansa’s SD card slot just isn’t enough to overpower the shuffle’s unbeatable form factor.