2GB and 4GB iPod shuffles?

Wouldn't be the first time that a price comparison site has jumped the gun and accidentally revealed the existence of an unannounced new product (or screwed up and "announced" a product which doesn't exist), but apparently some listings have turned up on Shopping.com for both a 2GB and a 4GB iPod shuffle. Neither listing includes any extra juiciness like a release date or pricing, but we've been hearing rumors about 2GB and 4GB iPod shuffles since May and supposedly Apple's planning to announce a mess of new iPods at next month's expo in Paris.

[Thanks, Fernando, Daniel, & Justin]

[Pan @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

Somehow I find the idea of listening to the 1,061 songs on my iPod mini while blind not very appealing. I could tolerate it though if somehow Apple worked in a LCD screen where I could see relevant info on the song.

[Jason @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

Well that would be awesome...except for the fact it's completely unnecessary. There's no point in having a shuffle of 4 gigs when there's not even a screen.

[Eric @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

Unless it's a dedicated portable hard drive..

[cedric @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

you guys are missing the point. besides gadget freaks like us, people don't buy new products for their capacity or features. they buy them because they are new.

take the H2 for example. its off-roading capabilities are less than a van, and it has terrible gas efficiency. nevertheless, people still buy it because, well, it makes them look better.

so back to ipods...

lots of kids at my school have 60gb ipod photos with less than 50 songs on them.

how many people do you know have ipods that are actually full?

[Insider @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

Shades of Netflix's Player "mistake" (http://independentsources.com/2005/07/12/netflix-player-exposed-boo-boo-or-brilliant-marketing/) last July? See the parallels here:

http://independentsources.com/2005/08/20/ipod/

[Jeff @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

"take the H2 for example. its off-roading capabilities are less than a van, and it has terrible gas efficiency. nevertheless, people still buy it because, well, it makes them look better."

Well, actually, the H2 was a massive failure and practically ran Hummer out of business. They're betting the farm on the H3 now; if it doesn't work, the whole brand could fold. A few moronic rap star wannabes does not a successful car make.

I don't know if I believe the 4GB iPod mini rumor or not. If it does exist, I predict it'll get a screen. Apple does this thing where they deny and deny and deny their products have any problems whatsoever, and say they're great and perfect and couldn't be any better, then 6 months later they come out with an update that fixes the exact thing they said was not a problem to begin with. Then they talk about how they took a perfect product and just made it more perfect and now anybody who held off buying has no reason to do so any longer. (Sometimes it takes them longer than 6 months to do this, as in the case with the two-button mouse, but they always come around eventually.)

Me, I'm more interested in the 5G iPods. I love my 4G and probably wouldn't upgrade immediately (in fact mine's still fairly new) but this is supposed to be the first major redesign - new color, new build materials, etc. - since the original iPod so I'm just curious to see what they do. And I *will* get a 5G eventually so I'm anxious to see what my next iPod will look like.

[Jeff @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

I forgot to comment on this:

"lots of kids at my school have 60gb ipod photos with less than 50 songs on them.

how many people do you know have ipods that are actually full?"

I know a lot.

The thing is, and what you seem to forget, is that the iPod is just a portable hard drive. If you've only got 50 songs, well then you've still got a 60GB hard drive in your pocket. Who wouldn't be able to fill up a 60GB hard drive? My 20GB is constantly full - in fact I keep taking music off of it to make room for other data. (I actually don't think I actively listen to more than about 10GB worth anyway, but it'd still be nice to be able to keep my entire collection with me.)

Anyway, lots of people do just like to have all of their music on their iPod. It's a backup, if nothing else.

If somebody's got a $200 or $300 iPod and only has 50 songs on it, then they're just idiots to begin with.

[Jason @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

I have a full iPod.

[pujutengineered @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

Apple's updating their products too frequesntly I must say

[Kamil Mytnik @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

Wow, 4gb and no screen. Useless. Completely useless.

Apple is focusing way too much on their mp3 player monopoly (surprising, its like Windows of the OS battles, the most popular is also the worst one). They should quit this trendwhore feeding crap of theirs, and focus back on what they used to do best:

PowerMacs.

Apple is doing as little as possible just to get buy, yet at the same time Steve Jobs is screaming innovation. What innovation? The fact that IBM stopped giving a rats ass about Apple and its G5 which led Apple to running like a sissy bitch to Intel for processors, is evidence enough that they need to get their act together.
G5s have been out for 2-3 years now, and weve gone from 2ghz to 2.7ghz in that time. How unimpressive is that?

Whats worse, is that the most overrated, and overpriced MP3 player ever created courtesy of apple is dominating like microsoft and windows, and Apple continues to push this white peice of shit ahead?

WHERES MY FUCKING G5 LAPTOP?!
WHERES THE DUAL 3GHZ POWERMAC?!

[Rhine @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

Yeah I agree 4 gbs with a screen is kinda of scary to think about

My Mini 1g is full I Keep 100mb aside for backups and the rests are songs...So i am 954 now :/ But I use the HD functions alot for school projects becauase there network isnt accesible through the web on windows machine so I carry my firewire cable with me.

Yes I know alot of ppl that have a large ipod just to say they do....geez >.>

[Insider @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

I have a previous generation 10GB iPod. It's full. It's useless for running which is why the Shuffle is intriqing. Reading the screen comments above however I'm thinking of waiting.

[Brad @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

hey Kamil,

you make no sense. first you give Apple shit for switching to Intel, then you complain about the fact that the G5 has stagnated. hey, do you think that's maybe why they're switching?

as for the iPod being overpriced, umm, that may be your opinion, but generally speaking, a company wants to sell something for as much as they think people will pay for it. and 6 million people a quarter seem to think the iPod is priced just right.

[DrakeGTA @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

I, for one, must say I�d love to have a 4gb shuffle (if the price was right.) Why? Because I like to listen to all my MP3s randomly. I just put them on random in winamp, and if one I don�t want to hear at that moment comes on, I just hit next track. I turned an old shuttle PC into an MP3 player with no screen, I control it via a USB number pad, but it�s not as portable as a 4gb shuffle. I figure, I don�t have time to go in and pick out songs, let it play them randomly, they're my mp3s, so they are all going to be awesome anyway.

[Eddie @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

I would love a 4GB Shuffle because the only time I listen to music is in the car which is never more than an hour drive. I also need a Portable USB Memory Drive. I haven't picked one up becuase 1 or 2GB just isn't enough for me.

[Trilancer @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

Everyone mentioned the screen which I agree is important, but what about battery life?
Sony have the rapid charging batteries in their mp3 player (3 minute charge for 3 hours of playing time) as well as a battery that lasts 50 hours per complete charge.

www.trilancer.blogspot.com

[Adrian @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

First off, I think that a 4 GB iPod Shuffle would be nice. For one, it will keep the price-tag a whole lot under the iPod Mini, because of it using flash memorys instead of a Minidrive.

Then, the reason for Apple switching to Intel was because of the PowerPC's heat issues. In the G5 it worked just fine, but in the laptops it gave them problems. And, as you know, the more products you buy, the cheaper it gets. So it made sense to switch all of the processor purchasing to Intel.

And, I do think that Apple is still focusing on their computers! So, they have a new market. But they're still very good at both things! The fact that the frequency of the processors is low doesn't say anything. Haven't you seen AMD's processors. They clock in much lower than Intel's but they're still better. It's just that the frequency sells, and that way, Intel could lower other things just to get the frequency up, and get more buyers. Which apparently worked on you. It's just like the megapixels in a digital camera, if you got a lot of them but have a crappy-ass sensor you still get bad pictures.

[Sebhelyesfarku @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

I am a troll: [e-mail]

[Hassan @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

This is all bull shit. 4gb shuffle won't be produces this year considering the price of 4gb USB memory sticks. Those cost something like $400 and no body would want to buy a mp3 player with no screen for $400.

[ipodman715 @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

Ah, darn I have the 512 MB one. Hope there's a screen!!

[Derek @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

It would be like hell with 4G/5G storage without display. Yes.. life is hellishly random.. and you don't know anything about it. Ridiculous!

[aprodite @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

I have a shuffle and mopstly use it as a secondary mp3 player (The primary one is a 30GB ipod photo). My shuffle is mainly used for moving data around. The fact that it can play music is just an added bonus, so I don't miss having a screen.

Think about it, if you were making a Flash Drive that also happened to play music, and you owned a powerfull brand like iPod, would't you use that brand to market the damn thing?

[Neg @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

eh, im waitin for the colour mini :)

--neg

[Paul Lakin @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

If the rumour that Samsung is going to lower its Flash prices for Apple (so apple can use flash in the iPod Mini) by up to 40% (iirc) then is this so crazy? After all, that would bring a 2GB shuffle down to the approx price point of the current 1GB (�88). They could have a 4GB shuffle at ~�110-120, and then the 4GB and 6GB minis at their current prices (�139 and �169) but based on flash. Or, drop the 6GB and have an 8GB (which they couldnt do with 1" hdds), giving a nice lead in to the current iPods.

This is all just a guess, but if that Samsung rumour is true, I think they could do it and would be silly not to.

Paul

[Producer @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

"This is all bull shit. 4gb shuffle won't be produces this year considering the price of 4gb USB memory sticks. Those cost something like $400 and no body would want to buy a mp3 player with no screen for $400."

No, No, No. I was in Beijing and purchased a SONY 4G USB memo stick for $20 usd. I wish I had bought more of them. So no BS, huge cheap memory is here dude.

[Blog Jones @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

OK, what I really want: a $50 (or less) 256 MB iPod shuffle. And I only want that so I can sync my podcasts with iTunes. The Zen Touch, as a good as it is, does not sync with iTunes, and I can't get just a standard flash card (for my PDA) to sync either.

But I'm sure not gonna spend $100 on a shuffle. Maybe $50, but not $100.

[my moustache @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

First off, I really hope that the big announcement in Paris isn't anything to do with shuffles, or minis, or ipods altogether.

Because I want my durn new powerbook...

However, I wouldn't mind seeing an OLED display, similar to the nwe507, which would allow a shuffle to have a display without sacrificing the simplicity of the all-white case.

Similarly, they could go the other way, taking the polished metal look of the ipod's back and overlaying a transparent OLED, sandwiched under clear acrylic.

Or something.

New Powerbooks, please.

[tennis guy @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

.
They have to do something to improve the shuffle in order to sustain the existing price points, since Apple rarely lowers the price of anything, so more memory makes sense.

At the same time, I think we'll see a 4GB, flash-based Mini, thinner than the current version and with better battery life. That would be a nice product IMHO. And the HD based Mini will probably get a capacity bump to 8 or 10GB.
.
.

[Eno @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

If you use the lossless format, 4G is not that much capacity.

[Tecca Nina @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

most retarded idea I ever heard. its like playing video games without a screen and relying on sound.

[Matt @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

I, for one, would love a 4 gig thumb drive that could also play music.
Of course I wouldn't put 4 gigs of music to blindly travel thru. It's main use would be to backup and transfer files between computers . . . and then it would also join me on my daily run.
I really need no screen whilst running, just have a nice mix of songs.
quit your bitchin

[TZK @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

Cool, this means the Super-duper Top Tangent ewith 2GB will be out soon that supports more than one file format, has a screen, a voice recorder and an FM radio in case I want to listen to news or something - all for half the price. Priceless! Hahahahaa...

[College Student @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

Any word on the price?

[Bryson @ Dec 19th 2005 12:18AM]

i quote from the leaked review at ePinions:
"Pros: Great capacity for the size, the screen is a great addition.
Cons: Twice as heavy as the old shuffle. Small size means a small screen.

Full review

My new 4.1 GB iPod shuffle is so great! It has enough space for me, and the sound quality is great. The screen is a great addition, even if I didn't mind not having one on my 512 MB iPod shuffle. The screen is a little small anyway, and I mostly use it for the clock. By the way the image you have included for this product is the old version. The new one is slightly larger and got a screen. At 159$, it's really a good deal for such a small MP3 player. The iTunes software is great, though Windows didn't seem to want to install at first, but I later found out that it was because Windows Media Player stops the installer when it runs. Also I found that my new 4.1 GB iPod shuffle is almost twice as heavy as my 512 MB shuffle, but still it's pretty light. I would recommend this product, it's a great deal overall."

Read that again. A shuffle with a screen. Now thats worth having.