Home: Posted 2010

iPod Shuffle: Introduction

The iPod Shuffle was launched by Apple in 2005, and was introduced as their entry level iPod. While the Classic and Nano iPods cost a relatively large sum of money when compared to competitors such as Cowen, Archos and Creative, the Shuffle provided a cheap entry point for iPod ownership

Apple named their budget iPod 'Shuffle' for a specific reason, in that, the first generation Shuffle played songs randomly, the playlist being shuffled like a deck of cards. Apple advertised the original Shuffle with the marketing tag 'life is random'. Lacking the ability to control a playlist may not have been a positive attribute, but Apple did what they could to make it appear so.

The first generation Shuffle was launched in 2005, and the second in 2006. The second generation model was remarkable small, Apple claimed that it was the smallest digital music player in existence. The second generation Shuffle included a scroll wheel, so that users, for the first time, could control their playlist with an iPod Shuffle.

The third generation Shuffle was released in 2009, and the fourth generation Shuffle was released in 2010. Both of these generations remained as small or smaller than the second generation shuffle. The third generation Shuffle was released with VoiceOver technology, which enabled the playlist to be voice controlled.

The scroll wheel was removed from the third generation Shuffle, but reintroduced with the fourth generation Shuffle, which also featured the VoiceOver technology. The third generation Shuffle moved the scroll wheel controls to the headphones/earbuds, which featured a control panel upon the right hand cord.

The Shuffle utilizes flash memory, and, it was the first iPod to use flash memory. The original iPod, now named the Classic, contained a hard drive to store songs. Flash memory allowed Apple to build smaller and lighter mp3 players, and enter the lucrative flash-based mp3 player market. Apple claimed 50% of the flash-based market share by 2006.

In terms of dimensions, it's quite difficult to gage how small the Shuffle is, unless it's compared to something else.

  1st Generation iPod Shuffle

  2nd Generation iPod Shuffle

  3rd Generation iPod Shuffle

  4th Generation iPod Shuffle

The first generation Shuffle only came in white, but the second generation model was released in nine colours. Which were as follows, silver, red, pink, mint, green, turquoise, blue, orange, and lavender. The second generation model also featured more memory, 1GB and 2GB versions, in comparison to 512MB and 1GB versions for the first generation Shuffle.

Another difference between the first two generations, is that the first generation model had a cap at the bottom, which, unleashed, provided a USB plug for connecting directly into a USB port. Due to the size of the second generation Shuffle, this was not feasible, therefore, Apple supplied a docking device with the 2G Shuffle, which was required for both the 3G and 4G Shuffle's.

The Shuffle can be used as a USB flash drive. The battery of the Shuffle is charged when connected to a PC via the USB plug. However, the Shuffle will not charge if it's on sleep mode, power standby, or the hibernated mode.

Unlike the first generation model, the second, third and four generation Shuffle features a clip, which enabled Apple to name the Shuffle 'the most wearable iPod ever'. As shown below, the clip allows the Shuffle to be easily attached to a pocket or T-shirt collar. It makes the Shuffle ideal for jogging or sports activities.

The first two Shuffle's did not support Apple's 'Lossless' file format, although the fourth does. This is probably due to the relatively low storage capacity of the Shuffle. The highest storage capacity that any Shuffle has featured is 4GB.

The sound performance of the Shuffle has been commended by many reviewers. It's sound performance has been rated superior to that of the iPhone, with the Shuffle being described as a great little pickup and play device, especially if all you're after is portable audio playback.

The Shuffle is surprising strong, reports have suggested that it can survive being driven over by a large car, making it easily the toughest iPod to date. Combining excellent battery life (12 hours), it's a surprise Apple haven't made more of a fuss over the Shuffle. The price of the Shuffle has remained in the region of forty pounds sterling.