If the Apple iPod shuffle gets any smaller, they'll have to start selling/dispensing them from Tic-Tac containers. The new shuffle is now 1.8" tall x 0.3" thin, smaller in length than the average household key yet still offers 4GB of storage, making it a gym rat/runner's serious choice. But the biggest addition to the shuffle's feature is the VoiceOver tech, which gives audio notification of the song being played, which playlist you're accessing and when you need to recharge the batteries...
The new shuffle looks minimal and sharp and is available in two colour options: black or silver. We're also very pleased about the decision to move the shuffle's controls to the earbud cord, including the VoiceOver feature. $79 doesn't quite make this an impulse purchase (though we feel the impulse to upgrade already), but from out experience with our older white gum pack shuffle, these should last ages and be a great choice for those of looking for the smallest option for music on the go and exercise.
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Comments (11)
Not a fan - still overpriced (why not a little LCD instead of the tedious voiceover, which will no doubt work with very mixed results?), and consumers are still tied to the meh quality of the apple earbuds.
This is clever, but dumb.
I don't know how many times I've plugged my shuffle into computer speakers. Can't do that if there is no play/pause button.
Hmmm, I'm not a fan of being forced to buy Apple earphones if/when I smash or lose the ones it comes with...
Also the design really isn't iconic at all. If anything this is a step forward in size and capacity (to a point,) but a step sideways in design, usability and the like...
The old Shuffle is much better. I don't know a single runner, skater, or cyclist that would purchase this new model because of the necessity of using Apples earbuds; which hurt, constantly fall out when exercizing, and can't deal with sweat. Everyone I know that purchased the older shuffle has purchased different ear buds for them. Now it's not an option. Bad choice Apple.
How is moving the controls to the earbud cord better?? Now I HAVE to use the Apple earbud to listen to it? Earbuds are awful. I prefer something like the Nike Flight (I think they're called) headphones for running/etc.
having had the first two generations of shuffles (512mb and 1gb), i don't think the 3rd gen is anywhere near as nice as either of them. what use is 4gb on a shuffle? really? most people use this for working out and similar activities and 1-2gb is more than sufficient. plus with such a small storage capacity, the user creates a playlist and should know what's on it; no need for voice over.
while apple will be offering an adapter to use other headphones with the shuffle, that's another $20-30 on top of the initial $80 for the shuffle; so why not spend $50 more and get a nano with much more features?
now had this had touch sensitive controls on the face (simple play/pause, forward, backward) and maybe an iphone-like rocker on the side for the volume, now that would have been great; and worth the price!
good in theory, bad in execution.
Apple forcing you further into the Apple ecosystem?
Say it isn't so!
Look at it this way... this is only the second iPod that's capable of being used by the visually impaired. The current iPod nano also has some voice functionality, but it also includes many features (video) that are less useful for them.
Paladin, you're telling us that the visually impaired will be able to take advantage of this? My blind friend could use the buttons on the last shuffle just as well as anybody. The capacity of the shuffle is so small that only a person with complete memory loss needs the ipod to tell you what song it is. (it is your music after-all, not a radio station playing songs you've never heard of). Voice over is only valuable for the visually impaired on the bigger ipods where there are complex browsing menus. poor, little, worthless ipod.
This is just smallness for smallness's sake. Was the old shuffle really too big? This takes away functionality that I like, thank you very much. I don't use Apple earbuds, and resent having to use Apple headphones. When my current shuffle breaks, I will get a non-apple small MP3 player to replace it. I only use the shuffle for running anyway, so no big deal to convert running songs to MP3s to use on any player.
For iTunes Plus, it's about 500 songs, and less than that for home-ripped MP3's at the 320kbps setting. That's not massive. Just a recognition that iTunes with higher quality takes more room.
For the design...it's a cheap way for Apple to test the waters on very different input management concepts with the public in ways that no one else would dare.
Besides where else could you actually innovate on the older Shuffle? You could incrementally grow, but that's a suckers game in a commodity market (low end MP3 players). This gives them differentiation in a direction no one expected. It's great!
And yes, I think the complaints are legitimate about the headphone control, but I don't think it will impact sales as much as the nearly doubling of the entry price.