It'd be nice to see some capacity updates..

[paranoidxe]

Apple is falling behind in terms of capacity....

Creative for example upped their Shuffle Competitor (Zen Stone Plus) to a whoopin 4GB of CAPACITY! Yet the shuffle still stays at 1GB...pathetic.

Nano competitors are at 16GB..while the nano is stuck at 8GB.

Classic is the only capacity monster left for apple.

[ben7337]

also the touch is at 16GB while creative is at 32 GB.

one person said it is huge because of the capacity, but 16 GB SDHC cards exist for like $60, 2 of those inside a touch wouldn't cause much of a size increase if any, at the most apple might need to make the touch a few mm thicker or something for 32 gb, but that would be no big deal.

[rootbeersoup]

You should know by now that this only happens around September

But it'd be a real shame if they didn't release a 32GB touch

[Germansuplex]

Originally Posted by ben7337

2 of those inside a touch wouldn't cause much of a size increase if any, at the most apple might need to make the touch a few mm thicker or something for 32 gb, but that would be no big deal.

I don't think the word "thicker" exists over in Cupertino.

As for the Zen Stone, that also has a small screen, does it not? The bottom line is that the iPods are selling so well it doesn't make much sense to go with a huge capacity for something that small, or a screen. The shuffle is designed to be an alternative to a nano or full-sized iPod, or for people who just want a few songs with them and don't necessarily care what they hear at any particular moment. Increasing the capacity too much could result in it's purpose being skewed. If they add more capacity, then a screen comes next. If a screen comes next, then people will start wanting more. Then you'd have people wanting 60 gigs and movies playing on a screen the size of a thumbnail.

Perhaps I'm being a little over-analytical, but Apple has hit a certain perfection of sorts in regards to the Shuffle-Nano-full-size lineup, and I think changing the Shuffle too much could compromise that.

[mnhnhyouh]

Sony Walkman.
Sony Diskman
Sony Minidisc.


End.

Evolve or die.

h

[ben7337]

Germansupplex, meeting the demands of the people is how technology improves, and no one would want a screen that can play video on the shuffle, though some seem to want photos to be an option for some reason. However they do need a capacity upgrade, there is a serious problem with apple if you can pay $79 for a 1GB shuffle or a 2 GB zen stone plus for under $60, or for $60 a sansa clip 2 GB or even for $80 a 4 GB sansa clip. Apple does generally have a high markup, but at the very least they could sell a 2 GB shuffle for $79, and generally people who but a tiny nearly invisible clip on mp3 player probably don't give a damn about going with a brand like apple anyway, after all they just need a small thing to shuffle through music, right?

[Germansuplex]

Originally Posted by ben7337

Germansupplex, meeting the demands of the people is how technology improves, and no one would want a screen that can play video on the shuffle, though some seem to want photos to be an option for some reason. However they do need a capacity upgrade, there is a serious problem with apple if you can pay $79 for a 1GB shuffle or a 2 GB zen stone plus for under $60, or for $60 a sansa clip 2 GB or even for $80 a 4 GB sansa clip. Apple does generally have a high markup, but at the very least they could sell a 2 GB shuffle for $79, and generally people who but a tiny nearly invisible clip on mp3 player probably don't give a damn about going with a brand like apple anyway, after all they just need a small thing to shuffle through music, right?

Well, I agree with this. I'm not saying a slight upgrade here and there and small, incrimental storage capacities is an issue. I'm just saying that making a 4gb or 8gb shuffle with a screen seems like it may clash slightly with the nano, at least at this point.

Of course technology should meet demand, but I'd consider demand to be when people stop paying for the shuffle or the sales slow down. Right now, with the current lineup, I think it's a nice compliment to the other iPods.

[Surf Monkey]

Originally Posted by mnhnhyouh

Sony Walkman.
Sony Diskman
Sony Minidisc.


End.

Evolve or die.

h

As I just said in another thread, it's important to consider the idea that Touch and iPhone aren't iPods at all. They're Apple Touch platform devices that happen to include iPod software applications. iPod's evolution is focused on the Nano and Classic. The Touch platform will grow and become distinct from dedicated media players like iPod. It's not a media device. It's a tablet PC/Newton. It's a platform, not a player. This will become VERY evident when the SDK hits next month.

[paranoidxe]

Originally Posted by Germansuplex

I don't think the word "thicker" exists over in Cupertino.

As for the Zen Stone, that also has a small screen, does it not? The bottom line is that the iPods are selling so well it doesn't make much sense to go with a huge capacity for something that small, or a screen. The shuffle is designed to be an alternative to a nano or full-sized iPod, or for people who just want a few songs with them and don't necessarily care what they hear at any particular moment. Increasing the capacity too much could result in it's purpose being skewed. If they add more capacity, then a screen comes next. If a screen comes next, then people will start wanting more. Then you'd have people wanting 60 gigs and movies playing on a screen the size of a thumbnail.

Perhaps I'm being a little over-analytical, but Apple has hit a certain perfection of sorts in regards to the Shuffle-Nano-full-size lineup, and I think changing the Shuffle too much could compromise that.

Not asking for a huge capacity update a 2GB update to the shuffle would be nice...and its not that apple is smart it was that they were to busy with other things they rather not worry about the bottom of the ladder product because it makes them the least amount of money.

The shuffle cannot be selling well with only new colors (ugly) and the same capacity for the last year and a half..it needs a real update.

[Surf Monkey]

Why does everything "need" an update all the time? There are plenty of products that practically never get updated and sell just fine. It's very possible that Apple sees the Shuffle as such a product. Updates in terms of colors are to be expected. Capacity is bound to go up at some point too. Anything else? Why? The Shuffle has a solid industrial design. There's nothing about it that screams "dated" or that hinders its functionality.

[Germansuplex]

Exactly. It's not like the Apple TV or something that would require lots of development to create a decent update. If Apple wasn't pushing enough units, they'd easily be able to add to it. The fact that the shuffle has seen some minor updates here and there on a frequent basis (and the fact that I see lots of people working out with them or walking to work with them clipped on their collar) indicates to me that they are selling well and Apple sees no need to do something radical with them, but that occasional upgrades and small updates is enough to keep a steady flow of them rolling out.

[mnhnhyouh]

Originally Posted by Surf Monkey

There's nothing about it that screams "dated" or that hinders its functionality.

Well, except for the lack of a screen, of course.

h

[Surf Monkey]

Originally Posted by mnhnhyouh

Well, except for the lack of a screen, of course.

h

It doesn't need a screen. Adding one would corrupt the elegance of the design and wouldn't add any significant functionality.

[rootbeersoup]

Originally Posted by Surf Monkey

As I just said in another thread, it's important to consider the idea that Touch and iPhone aren't iPods at all. They're Apple Touch platform devices that happen to include iPod software applications. iPod's evolution is focused on the Nano and Classic. The Touch platform will grow and become distinct from dedicated media players like iPod. It's not a media device. It's a tablet PC/Newton. It's a platform, not a player. This will become VERY evident when the SDK hits next month.

Yup yup but I consider it more of an all-in-one device. People constantly make iPods more than what they are (See: Jailbreak) or what they're intended to be and Apple is somewhat satisfying the want.

Also, I wish the shuffle would go back to its old flash-drive-like design. I liked it much better as it doubled as a flash drive and a music player. Like, you could use it solely as a flash drive and maybe put an album of music on it for convenient listening.

[paranoidxe]

Originally Posted by Surf Monkey

There's nothing about it that screams "dated" or that hinders its functionality.

Maybe to you but I see everyone else around it evolving with capacity updates, new designs and more features while shuffle just stays the same.