iPod shuffle Review

[tarun]

[ Source About.com - http://macs.about.com/od/ipod/fr/ipod_shuffle.htm]
The Macintosh site - http://macs.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ&sdn=macs&zu=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.apple.com%2Fipodshuffle%2F
The smallest iPod yet!
Guide Rating -

Manufacturer's Site

iPod shuffle is Apple’s USB portable music player offering 512MB or 1GB of music storage. Play your songs in order, or mix them up simply by moving the slider to shuffle the track order. Easily play, pause, skip, repeat, shuffle and hold at the touch of a thumb, thanks to the convenient circular controls and one-click slider.


Features
The ultra-lightweight iPod shuffle measures .33 inch thin, weighs less than one ounce and offers skip-free playback. Use the included lanyard to wear the iPod shuffle around your neck or add the optional Armband for high-impact workouts.


Store your music and your files
In addition to storing music files, you can also use the iPod shuffle as a USB drive. Use the optional iPod shuffle Dock to keep the iPod shuffle connected to your Mac or PC for easy syncing and charging. Enjoy up to 12 hours of continuous playback before charging.

Choose your iPod shuffle
The iPod shuffle includes a 12-hour rechargeable battery, built-in USB connector, lanyard and Apple earphones. The 512MB iPod shuffle offers storage of 120 songs and retails for $99 US. The 1GB version stores up to 240 songs and retails for $149 US.

Conclusion
The iPod shuffle offers convenience and portability at a value-price. If you’re looking for a small-sized portable music player, then look no further than the iPod shuffle!

[rohitk89]

nice...finally somin that doesnt burn a hole in the pocket...

[cash_site]

Again, to go with my comments from your Imac Mini thread, another top product from Apple... Flash Based upto 1Gb... however, already some people are commenting on the lack of a LCD screen to see the music details... the agruement here is that the Ipod Shuffle is designed for use when you KNOW what songs are on, or dont care cos you are too busy doing a gym workout or mowing the lawn etc

[GimieGimieGimie]

lol,

I love their marketing angle, they want to save money by not including a LCD screen, so they pretend the player is designed to be random and maybe the player will connect to your mood in some way.

Funny as hell! :D

[tarun]

Again, to go with my comments from your Imac Mini thread, another top product from Apple... Flash Based upto 1Gb... however, already some people are commenting on the lack of a LCD screen to see the music details... the agruement here is that the Ipod Shuffle is designed for use when you KNOW what songs are on, or dont care cos you are too busy doing a gym workout or mowing the lawn etc

Hehe... to be honest, all that caught my eye was 99$ :p
But I agree that the lack of display sucks. No one will buy it based on the fact that it is "unpredictable, exciting". Just people out to buy an inexpensive(but branded) reliable portable mp3 player, who wouldnt want to stretch the budget to buy an iPod.

[r_a_s_10]

i personally think thats sh*t!! I have a lot of friends that own iPods and they all complain about it...like how u have to buy a remote seperately, battery life is sh*t, breaks down easily etc etc!! This iPod shuffle is jus another marketing gimmick from Apple! I reckon the best MP3 player out at the moment is Sony NW-HD1...its 20GB, about the size of a credit card and bout no thicker than 1cm! Only prob is its bit too overpriced...although i did see it going for £200 at a Sony Centre during christmas!!

http://www.epinions.com/pr-Sony_NW-HD1_20_48_GB_MP3_Player

[tarun]

i personally think thats sh*t!! I have a lot of friends that own iPods and they all complain about it...like how u have to buy a remote seperately, battery life is sh*t, breaks down easily etc etc!! This iPod shuffle is jus another marketing gimmick from Apple! I reckon the best MP3 player out at the moment is Sony NW-HD1...its 20GB, about the size of a credit card and bout no thicker than 1cm! Only prob is its bit too overpriced...although i did see it going for £200 at a Sony Centre during christmas!!

http://www.epinions.com/pr-Sony_NW-HD1_20_48_GB_MP3_Player

ATRAC3 is the only audio format listed in the audio format capability details. Does it play mp3 and wma too?

[r_a_s_10]

ATRAC3 is the only audio format listed in the audio format capability details. Does it play mp3 and wma too?

the great thing about this is it comes with the software, Sonicstage. This program alows you to manage your music and all the usual sh*t. As for playing mp3's and wma's...well basically when you are puttin music on to the device the software converts your mp3's and wma's to ATRAC3 which is more compressed....e.g. if you choose 48 kbs as your transfer mode, a file which was about 3 or 4mb as an mp3 becomes 1.5mb when converted hence taking up less space...and no, there isnt a noticeable loss in the sound quality.

so to answer your question "does it play mp3 and wma"...i say, it doesnt but u dont need to worry as it will convert ur mp3's and wma's to atrac3 and then transfer it on to the device.

note: ur mp3's and wma's will remain as they are on ur pc...they wont become atrac3 files on your pc