The new iPod shuffle, explained.

[Samboini @ Mar 11th 2009 5:26PM]

Engadget. Dissing Apple?

[STIEN @ Mar 11th 2009 5:32PM]

to play a video-bop it
to play an audiobook-twist it
to play styx- pull it
to play coldplay-...ERRR you lose

[Paul A. Chapel @ Mar 11th 2009 5:34PM]

I don't know why people get so angry when Engadget disses Apple or Microsoft. It's not Engadget's responsibility to be as inoffensive as possible. They aren't the freaking Wall Street Journal. They're a blog. They want to make money just like everyone else. And when you give an opinion, you're going to piss off somebody, no matter what. It doesn't matter, just as long as people keep reading.

Sites like Gizmodo are even more upfront about this. Despite their reputation as Apple Fanboys, I've seen some Anti-Apple posts there that are so unfair and unbalanced, that he Steve Ballmer would say, "Darn, that's harsh."

[Deed @ Mar 11th 2009 5:38PM]

But Coldplay are a DECENT BAND. Don't let your opinion on Chris Martin influence that, I know he's kind of a tit now.

[iHenchman#1 @ Mar 11th 2009 5:40PM]

AHAHAGRABABAGASGJSHSHAHFGHAHADJAKDHSHADADOO!!!!

[Steveorevo @ Mar 11th 2009 5:47PM]

I like my current shuffle just because its light weight when I jog. The only drawback being that I have to fumble with the controls. In my car I have to look down to the screen of my mini to get the playlist I want.

This is worth it to me just so that I can keep my eyes on the road. I want one!

[Paul A. Chapel @ Mar 11th 2009 5:52PM]

@Steveorevo

Exactly. Remember all the pissing and moaning people did when the MacBook Air came out? It happens every time and Apple still ends up selling a bazillion of the things.

Geeks can never predict what ordinary people will like.

[iHenchman#1 @ Mar 11th 2009 5:55PM]

I know that ordinary people like more than 10hrs out of a screenless/equalizerless mp3 player.

[Pretol @ Mar 11th 2009 5:56PM]

To rewind -triple click and hold?

ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?

I though this was a parody, but apparently it's not

http://www.theonion.com/content/video/apple_introduces_revolutionary

[Gnormie @ Mar 11th 2009 6:08PM]

Now to play previous track tap the button 12 times, wait 4 seconds and tapity tap tap.

Seriously this is nothing good, the old shuffle is better and the why someone would choose this over the Sansa clip is beyond me, with it's superior sound quality, battery life, screen, cheaper price tag and are Apple seriously saying that someone could fit this new Shuffle somewhere on their person but to do the same with the clip would be impossible?

[John Doe @ Mar 11th 2009 6:12PM]

Seriously...do we need a user manual on this site?

Engadget should probably post one of those Apple's 'Guided Tours' as well.

[smak @ Mar 11th 2009 6:15PM]

I really can't believe this isn't a joke. Apple ear buds are fucking horrible and they break after marginal use, and now they are locking people into using them?

This will sell to gym-rats only, and then they'll forget how to skip tracks, and just return it for a Touch.

[Alex @ Mar 11th 2009 6:20PM]

Yep! The balls on them... dissing a product they know will fail anyway, so as to appear non-Apple-biased.

;-)

[JAmerican @ Mar 11th 2009 6:21PM]

The next nano will be built into the headset with 1 hour battery life.

[aram @ Mar 11th 2009 6:24PM]

It really is crazy bad. Like a weird joke.
The New Coke of mp3 players, needlessly complicated.

It might be something of a collectors item.

Apple seems to be missing the sweet spot lately.

[Neha @ Mar 11th 2009 6:36PM]

It's called blow back. There is no way to spin this without sound like a complete moron or Daniel Dilger.

[TitaniumMan @ Mar 11th 2009 6:42PM]

Nice engadget. There is a much nicer explanation of the controls here:
http://www.apple.com/ipodshuffle/features.html
then click at the "see how the controls work".
It looks pretty simple.

[Gnormie @ Mar 11th 2009 7:05PM]

@TitaniumMan
Because an mp3 player that requires a video to teach you how to use basic functionality is obviously simple enough.

Apple is trying to fix something that isn't broken and locking you into horrible, cheap headphones by following their design over functionality philosophy way too far. In balance design/functionality is a great thing, Apple has gone so much for the former that it's started to affect usability - seriously there is nothing wrong with a nice big button to begin playing music....

[iphonerulez @ Mar 11th 2009 7:30PM]

The new Apple Shuffle talks and it's telling Apple haters to STFU. Apple will sell millions of them within a few months.

[who? @ Mar 11th 2009 7:31PM]

I hate Apple for making it like this, especially since I won't be able to use it the way I'm used to when I go out and run with my current shuffle (controls in my palm with the excess headphone wire), but saying it's too complicated is complete posh.

Saying that it is too hard to use is like saying it's too complex to click three times to select a paragraph, or that holding down the mouse button to drag a file to another location is too hard to remember. Watch a four minute intro video on Apple's site and you'll know just about all there is as far as its operations go. I don't see what's so difficult about that :P

Is it that a learning curve is unacceptable? Or that the controls just aren't what you're used to? Maybe different combinations of buttons to master is a problem for you?

If you said yes to any of those, I would definitely not recommend video gaming for you.

[foosebtng @ Mar 11th 2009 7:32PM]

@STIEN

To play Devo - whip it
To play Billy Squier - stroke it
To play Michael Jackson - beat it

...okay, this post went wrong somewhere...

[fwg001 @ Mar 14th 2009 2:13AM]

Does pressing A-B-right-left-right-left-down-down-up-up-Start bring up steve job's obit?

[Theli @ Mar 11th 2009 7:45PM]

Upcoming feature:
Texting by use of Morse code.

Personally, I don't see why they need a separate volume up and volume down button. Couldn't they use some kind of system where the control decides whether you want to increase or decrease the volume based on the firmness of the click?

[Decoy @ Mar 11th 2009 7:59PM]

You will see a green button flash once, which indicates it is either rewinding, playing, fastforwarding, going to the next track, going to the previous track or exiting a playlist.

[TitaniumMan @ Mar 11th 2009 8:27PM]

@Gnormie
I didn't send you to the video (guided tour) but the description below. Read before you post.
This is meant as the ipod-for-the-gym, and you can reach the controls much more easily if they are built on the headphones while you are running. As for the headphones... What would you suggest Apple should have done without compromising the new design? Most people don't really care about the headphone quality when they are on the run anyway.

If you buy the shuffle to listen to music on the couch, you are buying the wrong ipod.

[Spartan_458 @ Mar 11th 2009 8:31PM]

Now Apple has achieved its goal. It has gotten so good at simplifying their products that the products are actually getting harder to use because they're so simple!

*head explodes*

[Jim @ Mar 11th 2009 8:40PM]

This reminds me too much of the Cinco Phone. Sometimes "simple" is just too complicated.

http://www.juicetheblog.com/2008/09/30/cinco-phone/

[DeoWulf @ Mar 11th 2009 9:29PM]

@Steveorevo

You shouldn't be using earbuds while in the car, just FYI. Isolates you from surrounding traffic noise. Which reminds me, this device is totally pointless for use in car stereos or other external speakers without that [presumably] costly adapter... what a waste. That is, until they come out with the iPod Shuffle compatible car stereo...

[Steveorevo @ Mar 11th 2009 10:29PM]

@DeoWolf

I don't wear earbuds when I drive. I was referring to when I'm jogging (something the fat PC guy doesn't do), and simply don't care to look at the screen or jumble with controls. Hearing my play list appeals to me. The inertia of having a big device slap againest my rippled abs annoys me. But I guess the majority of M$ lovin', Zune tattoo'd PC guys here don't get it.

:P

[CubeGuy @ Mar 12th 2009 12:02AM]

@Steveorevo

Just... stop talking.

[ducky @ Mar 12th 2009 6:48AM]

It's comical how Engadget's user base is so completely anti-everything-Apple, to the point of low-ranking anyone who says anything besides "APPLE SUCKS BAWWW."

There's no sense in having a comment rating system when the ratings are so completely biased towards one type of fanboy.

[Deed @ Mar 12th 2009 1:03PM]

Hey why all the Coldplay hate

Fuck you guys my opinion is totally valid because I'm an actual, Windows-using musician.

[thetinguy @ Mar 12th 2009 9:03PM]

Mark my words, this is the beginning of the end for the iPod.

[vic bishop @ Mar 15th 2009 1:07PM]

ha ha look at the advert they should have created: http://vicbishop.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/new-ipod-shuffle.jpg
NO FING BUTTONS lol

[Zinger314 @ Mar 11th 2009 5:26PM]

Now Engadget articles are as small as the iPod Shuffle.

[Dan @ Mar 11th 2009 7:17PM]

Wondering where the body was.

They got the manual image form here http://manuals.info.apple.com/en_US/iPod_shuffle_3rdGen_UG.pdf (Page 21 to be exact)

Apparently you need to know morse code to use this one...

[Benson @ Mar 11th 2009 7:53PM]

iPod for hams?

[Ridgecity @ Mar 12th 2009 3:01AM]

Actually it's not that complicated, the manual is pretty wordy to explain 3 buttons and most of the stuff relates to hold the middle button, you don't need to stare and the little led to know what you are doing.

You know, that manual, it actually looks like something Microsoft would release, maybe they hired some people from them, but it's a extremely tedious manual for such a simple product.

[The Number 1 Cubs Fan @ Mar 11th 2009 5:35PM]

I'll take my separate controls thank you.

[Brian @ Mar 11th 2009 5:26PM]

wow, 3 articles and it hasn't even been seen before.

[Joe @ Mar 12th 2009 9:51AM]

Just wait until the next revision. "Everyone loved the new shuffle when we introduced it this past March - but I kept hearing the same feedback: It's too big! There are too many buttons!

"So we went back, told the hardware guys it had to be smaller, they said it couldn't be done, I told them it needed less buttons, they said it couldn't be done, and I told them to try anyway. And you know what? Today I'm going to introduce the new shuffle. It's just the size of a grain of rice, and instead of all three of those buttons, we've reduced it to no buttons. You just listen to it the way it wants you to listen to it.

"And one more thing: The earbuds are now just one earbud. It also has all the other buttons, of which there are, again, none."

[Sin @ Mar 13th 2009 5:48AM]

The only difference from G2 shuffle is: double click is >>|, and triple click is |

[Sin @ Mar 13th 2009 6:12AM]

|

[Giga @ Mar 11th 2009 5:27PM]

That's quite a bit to memorize.

[DirtyVegas @ Mar 11th 2009 5:31PM]

Pssssh. Ask any fanboy, and he'll tell you how well Apple is catering to the need of people who want to pay a lot of money and press a lot of buttons to accomplish very little.

[Uncontrol @ Mar 11th 2009 6:09PM]

dirty vegas, i think you mean press one button, but do it in a variety of ways

[Deadpan @ Mar 11th 2009 6:17PM]

Am I the only one reminded of that iPhone Shuffle spoof?

[pJo @ Mar 11th 2009 6:18PM]

The single button navigation isn't that crazy. I think 90% (okay 60% - 30% just thought they would) of shuffle owners use them jogging, listen to the same playlist every time, and never fast forward or rewind. Since fewer buttons means less likelihood of errant finger-pushing whilst jogging, I see the usability argument for the single button navigation (there are still separate volume buttons as these are likely to be used frequently). Theoretically, it could be an improvement for the jogger.

I have no idea why they would put the button(s) on the headphone cable, though, and I'm trying to give them the benefit of the doubt.

[um... @ Mar 11th 2009 6:32PM]

-- ..- ... - | -... . | ..-. --- .-. | -- --- .-. ... . | -.-. --- -.. . | ..-. .- -. ...

[arkweld @ Mar 11th 2009 7:05PM]

this is taking minimalist design to stupid levels. The next shuffle won't have headphones at all to protect your hearing. You'll load up the music and the shuffle will announce the track by spelling the track info with a single blinking light which will allow you to imagine what the song sounds like.

Personally I think this is Steve's revenge. He's pissed he had to add an extra mouse click function to Apple mice and now he's forcing the single button approach on everything else instead.