Sometimes, the most popular apps are not always the best choice. For instance iTunes, which may be too big a download for someone who just wants to manage the songs stored in their iPod. If this is your case, take a look at this little app.

Its name is Yamipod, an acronym that summarizes this program’s main function perfectly well: Yet Another Manager for iPod. That’s it. Without even needing to install it on your system, Yamipod will take care of your iPod content management, providing you with a clean interface and simple, easy-to-use tools.

Once you copy the program to your PC, you can run it straight away, although it won’t really work until you plug in your iPod. Yamipod will then scan its contents and list all your MP3 folders and files on its interface. Also, the program does not launch automatically when you connect the iPod to your PC, which may be a nuisance for some but certainly a relief for others. I prefer to take control over when and why my software starts up.

Yamipod’s simple interface displays a list with all the songs stored in the iPod and allows you to perform different managing tasks. For instance, you can browse through your music by artist or album, check the playlists you’ve created or view extended information about each song. You can even listen to music with the built-in player. However, we should note that we had some problems testing this as the player didn’t seem to work properly.

Perhaps the most interesting function is the possibility to copy both MP3 and AAC files to and from the iPod, which makes it very easy to update your music library. If you want to copy music to your PC from the iPod, select the songs and click on the “Copy song to...” option in the context menu. To copy them back to the iPod, just drag and drop the files from the Windows Explorer onto the program’s interface.

Finally, another very interesting tool is the “Remove duplicates” utility. No matter how careful you are, you’ll end up having duplicate songs in your iPod, especially if it’s a large one. Yamipod will find them by comparing ID tag data and file sizes, showing a list of possible candidates before actually deleting them.

Yamipod is certainly no serious competition for iTunes but still, it’s a very interesting option for those of us who own an iPod and need a simple, neat and easy-to-use file manager.