Does anyone else think the iPod Shuffle is really DUMB?!?

[animaloverboy]

Please choose the appropriate forum for this topic. Thank you. Holy Wow! How could able be so stupid. I heard about the all new iPod Shuffle this morning on the Today Show. It holds like 200- songs, has 4 buttons, no sreen, and looks like a bomb detanator! Too, the darn thing costs nearly $100 bucks. If you want a quality mp3 player, save up for an REAL ipod but i think this cheap piece of crap is just that. CRAP. Anyone else agree? Disagree?
Hope I didnt offend anyone :)

[animaloverboy]

Oops! Long list of errors:
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[xianfox]

I wouldn't buy one myself, but I don't think it's a bad product, here's why:

In 3 years, Apple has sold about 10 million iPods, and is presently selling 1 song for every iPod sold every 8 days.

I don't believe Apple just got lucky with the iPod; I know they spent a great deal of time and energy making sure this fit the demographic they were going after.

I think they feel they're approaching a saturation point, and before they reach that, they're making the iPod Shuffle available for those that don't fit this first demographic. I think this will be perfect for some customers, and a transitional device for others.

Most of the people on this board are the early adopters, and it certainly wasn't built for us. It's kina natural that we feel a bit disappointed by it. I bet there's a whole slew of people out there who haven't tried an mp3 player yet because they're intimidated. That's who they built this for.

Just my $0.02US

[meandthesea]

well I am not going to want it, and I agree that design is dumb, their should have been at keast a little anrrow pee of crap screens like creative or rio makes, and its justoverall dumb looking in my oppinion

Bu its a genius buisness move, its the iPod for A. People who dont ahve alot of music, and B. People who can't afford an iPod.

we knew it was only a matter of time, but I'm disspaointed with the apple design team on this one

[studogvetmed]

Originally posted by animaloverboy
Oops! Long list of errors:
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You can use the edit button to your post to fix errors instead of making a second post about your errors. Please do so in the future :)

Many people thought the mini would fail too and see where it is. The iPod shuffle will have it's place. Apple is just asking use to continue to think different. In the right situation for the right people this is going to be a great product.

I don't look at the iPod shuffle as something for "People who can't afford an iPod" it's for people who want a flash player that doesn't skip, is easy to use, and very very protable for jogging/exercise. The iPod shuffle could never compare to a full sized iPod, it's not meant too. It's a companion to the iPod line, not a successor.

Stuart

[GADGETGEEK]

"Oops! Long list of errors:
Apple*
Screen*
Detonator*"

EDIT works much better then listing your goofs in another post. :)

It's not dumb.

A) it had to be simple to keep it cheap AND durable. If it would have been a micro mini w/ screen,etc then you are talking 512mb for $175-200. And then you have durability issues with a screen getting scratched/cracked. You have weight issues for people using it a gym.
Remember,this is NOT a 'budget' ipod. It's a EXERCISE/ONTHEGO ipod.

B) yesterday I went out with just a pull over sweatshirt and I had my 3G in the belly pocket. With its weight I had to keep my hand on it all the time and was afraid it'd drop out. If I had a shuffle I could have hung it around my neck and inside my sweatshirt and would have never had to think twice.

C) No screen? My mp3-cd player has a 2 line screen that is worthless. all it tells me is the current track...duh,my ears tell me that. on my iriver sorting through a playlist was so cumbersome the 3 line screen was almost usless and I just skip anyway til i hear my song of choice start to play. With less than 250 songs a screen is not worth the extra $20-40 per unit it would cost Apple to include it.

I'd rather save the cash.

The shuffle is not dumb,it is either something you can use or it isn't.
I know plenty who were waiting for a shuffle type player. It will be usefull to many and to the rest,buy something else.

[DPUMA8]

Hmmm. You think that the shuffle is a dumb idea, but to me, spending over $200 for a player that can hold 1000 or more songs seems dumb to me. My friend has a 20GB iPod and he says it is overkill

[xboxman]

Have an iPod? Want a iPod shuffle? Then why not make one yourself! OOOOO, AHHHHHHH what will it play next?!;)

Jokes aside, I wanted a player for School and didnt want to take my precious 40gb around so this is kinda perfect for me. Might pick one up as soon as I get ??70 (512mb)

[stinkiedmb]

awesome bang for the buck.

it's a great way to sway non-ipodders and non-DAP'ers into the iTunes/iPod world that have been riding on the It's too expensive excuse

[iPodoholic]

For $99 I'm going to buy one, strictly for cycling.
I won't have to beat up my new 20gb now. ;)

[joakod]

Hello.

Just my thoughts.

When they presented the Shuffle yesterday I had mixed feelings. Definitely there are other flash DAPs that have a screen and other features for just a little bit more money.

But then I started to think on how I use my iPod. About 80% of the time I'm randomly listening to the whole library. And if suddenly appears a song that I don't want to listen I just press "next" on the remote; I don't need to look at the display to press next.

I think this is the idea behind the Shuffle. A screen is a must if you are going to browse on a large library, but if you are only listening to a single (an limited) playlist maybe the screen is not that necessary.
What I mean is that you don't need to know the name of a song to decide if you like it or not.

Maybe the Shuffle is making more sense to me now.

[Wolffe]

I don't think it is necessarily a dumb idea, but I can't understand the excitement behind it. Besides having the Apple brand backing it, and it's ability to play DRMed AAC files, it doesn't really introduce anything new.

I also find it a little arrogant that Apple would try to sell the "shuffle" capability as its major feature. This clearly shows that they had little else to go on to differentiate their product from the others... and as far as I know, even this feature doesn't differentiate it since I imagine many other flash-based players have some form of shuffle feature as well.

The price may be decent for the amount of storage you get -- although I can't really say since I have never paid any attention to flash-based MP3 (my first MP3 player was a Creative Nomad Jukebox). Regardless, is it priced so well to deserve this kind of attention? I dunno.

I don't think this product will stand out enough to be attractive to anyone who is really shopping for an MP3 player and doesn't care about the Apple brand. While the normal iPods looked elegant, they also offered some decent features...

I think this one will just get lost in the shuffle... ba dum bum!

[Drooling Dog]

Sorry to be so negative, but if it works the way I think it works, I think it's a dumb idea.

Do I understand correctly that it basically holds one big playlist? You can't select what you want to listen to, other than FF and RW through. Awfully strange for a 1 GB unit.

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

With that said, I'll probably buy one anyway. :(

[Drooling Dog]

Just browsed some more.

One of the things that really turns me off is the $29.99 price for an armband, when most other sport players come with them.

I'm also under the impression that it doesn't come with a charger, meaning I'd have to leave it plugged into my computer to keep it charged. Not an idea I'm terribly fond of. Or I could pay another $29.99 for a stand-alone charger.

All of a sudden I'm paying $157 for a 512 mp3 player with an armband and charger.

[jhollington]

Well, I stated this elsewhere, but I think the iPod Shuffle would have been perfect for my wife. I bought her a 20Gb 4G about two months ago, loaded up our entire music library on it, and I've watched her listen to the exact same playlist (in shuffle mode, in fact) for the past two months.

Let's not forget, as well, that the combination of the Shuffle and iTunes makes for a great arrangement. Create a Smart Playlist in iTunes that syncs to your Shuffle, with criteria such as "not listened to in the past x number of days" and you've got a music library that refreshes itself automatically every time you plug the device in. I don't think there are too many other MP3 players in this class that can boast of that particular feature.

IMHO, about the only thing the Shuffle is missing is a way to rate your songs, but I realistically understand that this would probably have been too complicated for the average Shuffle user to deal with.

[Boilerblues]

Originally posted by meandthesea
well I am not going to want it, and I agree that design is dumb, their should have been at keast a little anrrow pee of crap screens like creative or rio makes, and its justoverall dumb looking in my oppinion

Bu its a genius buisness move, its the iPod for A. People who dont ahve alot of music, and B. People who can't afford an iPod.

we knew it was only a matter of time, but I'm disspaointed with the apple design team on this one

Anyone else find this post ironic?

[-James]

I don't think it's really dumb. It's perfect for people with active lifestyles who want to use their iPod at the gym, and is actually very cheap. I mean, ??100 for 1GB is very good value for money, very good indeed.

It's also great for people like me who need to transfer quite large files too and from school. Previously i used to have to take in my 3G and its massively long USB + Firewire cable in order to transfer files. Now all i have to do is take my tiny little iPod shuffle (when it arrives) and plug it straight into the USB port of the school computers. I'm certainly buying one.

[-James]

And btw, for anyone who says its for people who can't afford an iPod, you are wrong in some senses. I have a 3G iPod and can certainly afford another one. However, i want the iPod shuffle because its so much smaller and more portable than my 3G.

I can so easily slip it into my pocket and play a set of 120 of my favourite songs, anytime, any place, whereas my 3G is a lot bigger and therefore less portable.

I'm intending to keep my 3G as the thing i use for power-using my iPod, such as car journeys and plane flights, where i have a lot of time and require a lot of music. But i'm intending to use my iPod shuffle for everyday use, when i simply want to play some music when i have the opportunity.

[tysoh]

I am a current owner of ipod gen 3 and ipod mini. And I think I will probably get the iPod shuffle soon. The design is simple and easy to use, and I like the idea of Shuffle here, as sometime I dont really want to look at the screen at all, and I would switch to shuffle mode. And some more its light to carry around. Most importantly, its quite cheap for a Flash player like this. Its certainly a good buy.

[MartyMcPod]

I want a flash player, and I don't necessarily want a Shuffle, but I really can't find anything else that is as good for the price, and the ease of use. By ease of use, I mean, not having to convert my entire AAC library (which I view as a bad mistake by myself) into MP3.

I want 512 minimum, and I would prefer a gig, and the other players just get too expensive. 200 dollars, for one gig starts to push in to Mini pricing.

I'll probably get one, unless something else with the same price point comes out soon.

[archurban]

first time when I saw it, I thought that it was joke. I mean that ipod shuffle was too much minimal, simple of the way. it was really looked like USB stick nothing more. no screen issue just gave me thums down. but I tried to take a look at it more detail. it was not crap! traditionally, Apple product has been kept unique simple way to use for complex techology without worry. just look through from Mac OS X, imac, powerbook, ibook to ipod. you can get it. but even they are so simple, they have every function just inside. I think ipod shuffle, too. the whole battery indication concept is beautiful like laptop computer charging adapter, which changes color, so that you know that it's full or recharging. so the same thing you see in ipod shuffle. although it doesn't have the same mechanism of 4G ipod clickwheel, you can still control rewind, foward, Volume up and down on the front, and change shuffle function, or just play from beginning, turn it off. ipod shuffle idea actually is stem from itunes party shuffle feature. if you look at that feature, you can change options in bottom line like recently play songs, upcoming songs, source. only different thing is that it doesn't have screen. how it is simple!

therefore, I really can read how Apple applies its design philosophy into the products all the time. other companies really hard to follow that way.

I'm appreciate for what Apple does for people.

maybe whatever it releases new stuff, I will buy because I've used only mac 15 years now. so I am Apple nut.

I ordered 512MB ipod shuffle, and dock yesterday. it will be arrived January 19th or 20th before Apple store will start to sale it on January 22th.

[MeTaL]

Not having a screen. How is it being simple ?
Wait for a few months, they will come out with ones that have screen.

[baggss]

Bet they won't.....

[Doug Gilmour]

Originally posted by MeTaL
Not having a screen. How is it being simple ?
Wait for a few months, they will come out with ones that have screen.

Seeing that most flash players don't have a menu system to scroll through songs from a list, and only show the current song playing, then that really isn't very simple either, is it? If you're going to be putting 120-240 songs (theoretically) on a shuffle you should really know which songs are on it, and that would really exclude the use of a screen, and cut the costs.. By keeping it simple it allowed Apple to keep the prices very low, and hopefully appeal to the masses...

If they were to make a screen in a few months, it would not only drive the cost upwards, but also make the last quarter of Job's keynote an absolute farce.. Not happening!

-Dan

[jessica.]

You forgot an option....
"How many people would like to beat an already dead horse?"

[Todd5050]

I am not sure about it, yet. When I heard it on the Today show, I was surprised. I liked it for the most part. Compact, light, and easy to carry. Perfect for the person on the go. One thing that I am not sold on is the shuffle feature. Along with my 20GB Ipod, I have a small 512mb flash player(Best Buy $29 day after Thanksgiving) with a screen and it is smaller than the Shuffle. I love that. I can scroll through the songs and see what is next. I am sure it will find it's place, but the market is getting tougher.

[toedtoes]

I think this will cater to the "kids want an iPod but parents don't want to hand out $250+ for it" category. That's what I've been looking for. I want a minimum 1gb player for no more than $150 for each of my nieces. The 256mb won't hold enough music for them and the mini is too expensive. The shuffle is the inbetween market. Heck at 8 and 12, my nieces just want to hear the music, they're not picky about the order, etc. Apple heard my moaning all through the holidays.

[MeTaL]

The only problem without a screen is if you want to get to a particular song.... If you are listening non-stop it won't be a problem. It also means more time making playlists...paying more attention to making playlists.

And trust me, apple will have to come out with a screen. Flash is getting cheaper, and it is the future of daps. Not hard-drive.
Hard-drives maybe for videos.

Having a AAA battery support is better. Get a rechargeable AAA battery for godsakes... You'll get 4 of them for $8.

If you already have an ipod. And would like one for workouts, this is a very good alternative. Who the hell looks at a screen while doing something else.

[TheDoctor]

I think you will probably find that the new iPod will be a great addition to the "family".

The iPod is now turning from a product and into a range, give it a few years and it may become the defacto name for any music player, much the same way that vacum cleaners are called "Hoovers".

Good to see the rest of the iPod range is helping the bottom line.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4170111.stm

[TBrock]

Not dumb. Here's why: This is the only flash based player that can play protected songs bought from the iTMS, or AAC files at all. I use both an iPod and a MuVo flash player. Why? I don't like jogging with a $600 iPod photo strapped to my waist. And since the MuVo won't play AAC files of any type, my entire library is MP3.

With an iPod Shuffle, I can get rid of my MuVo, and I'll actually be able to buy songs from iTMS now.

(Not sure I would want to re-rip all my CD's as AAC, though...) :)

[Tarmac]

shouldnt it be a little smaller? Seems a little too big.

[Wolffe]

This is the only flash based player that can play protected songs bought from the iTMS, or AAC files at all.

Doesn't anyone find this at all scary? If someone has significant money invested in iTunes music, their choice of playback hardware has been taken away from them... and better yet, it's now being sold back to them as a feature! It would be a different story if AAC were generally supported but...

I have been so tempted at times to buy music online, but I just can't accept that kind of control. I know it might be all fine and dandy today with iTunes and my iPod, but I just know it will come back to bite me in the future.

[jhollington]

While I realize that it's a huge hassle to do, you can burn your protected AAC files to a CD, and then re-rip them back as unprotected AAC or MP3 files.

While I don't worry about doing this right now, the fact that I can means that I'm not too concerned about the usability of these songs for the future.

[jngrossmann]

Originally posted by MeTaL
The only problem without a screen is if you want to get to a particular song.... If you are listening non-stop it won't be a problem. It also means more time making playlists...paying more attention to making playlists.

And trust me, apple will have to come out with a screen. Flash is getting cheaper, and it is the future of daps. Not hard-drive.
Hard-drives maybe for videos.

Having a AAA battery support is better. Get a rechargeable AAA battery for godsakes... You'll get 4 of them for $8.

Would you happen to be an owner of a flash player? I don't think you have an iPod.

[baggss]

Originally posted by Wolffe
This is the only flash based player that can play protected songs bought from the iTMS, or AAC files at all.

Doesn't anyone find this at all scary? If someone has significant money invested in iTunes music, their choice of playback hardware has been taken away from them... and better yet, it's now being sold back to them as a feature! It would be a different story if AAC were generally supported but...

AAC IS generally supported, Apple DRM'd AAC's are not.

There ARE ways to get around DRM without burning CDs etc.....

[TheDoctor]

AAC is part of the MPEG4 standard, so you will see more and more support for it as it becomes adopted.

It IS NOT an Apple format.

http://www.vialicensing.com/products/mpeg4aac/standard.html

[thecrookeda]

I would say this is not a dumb idea, depending on who you are. I think the shuffle NOT having a screen makes me want to purchase it more, because thats one less thing to break. I am getting my 4th gen repaired currently for a broken screen, and will no longer use it for physical activity. This player is perfect for activity, and a great convenience for some.

The less there is, the less there is to go wrong