I'm sorry I can't compare the difference between the FSI courses and Chinesepod. I am a fairly regular user of Chinesepod (it sounds like a drug) and I can definitely say that I find it useful.
Again, I can't definitively speak for the FSI courses, but I think the Chinesepod stuff is probably more useful because it is the up-to-date the language you'll hear on the street (at least in Shanghai). The topics are also a little more relevant and contemporary. From the colloquialisms to the broader intonation, I think listening to Chinesepod will probably prepare you the best for coming to at least Shanghai.
To give some background, I studied Chinese in Shanghai at Jiaotong University. While I was there, we had materials from the Beijing Language and Culture Institute. The books and CDs / MP3s that we had were absolutely awful. They were bordering on useless. I had maybe fifty lessons and I never had the desire to listen to them again. From the trite and pseudo-folksy moral lessons to the lame attempts at propaganda (the policeman is your friend), the subject matter and even the vocabulary was a real waste of time.
Mandarin has differences between the south and the north in both vocabulary and accent (probably more than the differences between British and American English).
Anyway, the only way I'd really say you can get better is by talking with people. I'll plug a site:
http://www.italki.com - http://www.italki.com
because I think speaking with actual Chinese is really the best (and maybe only) way to really learn the language. Podcasts are a good supplement, especially if you only have time to learn in the car.
Richard Brubaker, a blogger and consultant in China, lists a few things that he thinks are pretty useful. There are also some good sites in his comments.
http://www.allroadsleadtochina.com/?p=197 - http://www.allroadsleadtochina.com/?p=197
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