March 12th, 2009
I generally love everything Apple usually releases, especially their line of iPods which seem to be getting better over time, including new features, larger storage sizes and cheaper prices, but I must put my foot down and oppose the new iPod Shuffle. First of all, how was the 2nd Generation Shuffle not small enough in size? The new version features a ‘much smaller size’, I’m sorry but I don’t think I’d enjoy losing my new Shuffle three days after I bought it because it slipped out of my hands and forever got lost in a sofa. Also, I’m not sure about you, but having a robot voice tell me what song I’m listening to isn’t an appealing feature, in fact I think it completely takes away from the organic experience of having a Shuffle. I had a 2nd Generation Shuffle and loved it. It allowed me to experience my music in a new way, I wasn’t distracted by constantly seeing what song I was listening to, but my music just flowed with my day either via full album or a wonderful mix.
I think in the case of the new version Apple was trying too hard to promote new features without accepting was was already great about the product. I think that in new devices having a voice over command is a good idea, but with the Shuffle, needing to spend 5 minutes to get to an option to change your playlist seems counterintuitive, especially considering that most people would probably be using the device while running. I think the best feature about the new product is it’s upgrade in size, without increase in price, $79 seeming to be the highest most people are willing to pay for something the size of a paperclip. In addition, moving the controls to the earbuds is also a good idea, considering, unlike the iPhone you’ll always be using your earbuds when using the device. All and all I would have to constitute the new generation of the iPod Shuffle as a fail, but as with other iPods Apple will most likely go back and forth between the designs while figuring out what users really want (see the iPod Nano size and orientation between previous versions).
While I feel you’re over-exaggerating your complaints a bit, I will say that the argument of “it’s too small/thin” has been leveled on pretty much every new iPod announcement for as long as I can remember. Yet every time we look at the older iPod’s we think, “man, those were huge!” I come to expect these things to be smaller than I what I expect/need and that’s part of what gives these devices their magic.
I honestly don’t see the problem of the Shuffle speaking information about a track unless it automatically did it every single time… which it doesn’t. If for some reason you wanted to know what the song is, you now have an ability to find out. But you don’t have to. In my opinion, that’s a nice little feature to have.
My only main complaint is the design — it’s just too bland for my tastes.