GigaOM » ipod-shuffle

Kickstarter finds: iPod shuffle headgear and hiding Bluetooth speakers

Darrell Etherington — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 19:35:09 +0000

I remember when finding projects on Kickstarter related to Apple products were relatively hard to find — especially good ones. Those days are over, and we’ve got another crop of interesting, cleverly designed and above all potentially useful Kickstarter projects to prove it.

Your music, packaged as simply as possible

The ODDIO1 is a smart-looking set of headphones that can caddy your iPod shuffle, making it possible to have your music with you in a simple, svelte package. It doesn’t hurt that these have a bold, colorful (or not, if you opt for the black version) design, too.

The headphone cord is only exactly as long as it needs to be, and plugs into the shuffle once it’s in its cradle on the right earphone (you just slide the iPod in). Buttons on your device remain accessible thanks to a cut-out for the circular control panel, and the headband is made of plastic while the inside is lined with silicone for comfort. ODDIO1′s creators, Jeremy Saxton and Jacob Hall, tout it as the perfect package for those with active lifestyles who don’t want to be encumbered by cables or devices out-of-reach in pockets when snowboarding, using the gym or running, for instance.

ODDIO1 is available for backers beginning at the $35 pledge level, which comes with a choice between three color combos. For $200, you get the special Cupertino color scheme, and an iPod shuffle in a color you pick to boot. ODDIO1 is just getting underway, but it’s making decent progress toward its funding goal of $45,000.

A speaker in disguise

Portable speakers tend to be noticeable things. They can be good-looking or garish, but you’re not likely to miss one in a room. The Hidden Radio & Bluetooth Speaker is comparatively innocuous. It has a twist-and-lift design that lets you control how much volume you hear, and its creators advertise “room filling sound” from your Bluetooth-compatible device. Plus, boasting 30 or more hours of battery life, it won’t quit when you need it most.

The tiny, clean design and alternative connection options (it does have a 3.5 mm stereo jack, too) and more than 80dB of output make this an amazingly appealing device, for sound from your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch wherever you happen to need it. Plus, at $119 for a pre-order of one metallic silver unit, or $229 for a pre-order of two in either silver or black, it’s a deal compared to a lot of currently available comparable tech. The Hidden Radio is also already funded; it currently has $229,717 in funding, far above its goal of $125,000, with 42 days remaining.

Got an exciting Kickstarter project? Send it to us for consideration in our regular roundup of promising accessories.

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If Apple retires iPod classic and shuffle, rest of line will shine

Darrell Etherington — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 13:03:04 +0000

Apple is reportedly very close to permanently cutting the iPod classic and shuffle from its line of media players, according to a report from TUAW late Tuesday. It’s not the first time we’ve heard that some iPod models will be retired, but it does seem more likely than ever that it’s true this time around. And that might actually be great news for iPod fans in the long run.

The iPod classic is basically a legacy holdover at this point among Apple’s portable media players. Its platter hard drive is an oddity among today’s PMPs, for which flash-based storage is the dominant tech by a long shot. It hasn’t changed since 2009, when a 160 GB version was introduced, which eventually replaced the 120 GB option entirely. Really, though, not much is different about the original classic introduced in 2007 and the one on sale today. The classic’s only advantage, from a user perspective, is its sizeable drive; the closest a flash-based iPod currently comes is 64 GB.

The iPod shuffle, while flash-based and subject to more frequent design overhauls, is simply being upstaged by the iPod nano. The latest nano is almost as small, and while it’s more expensive, its touchscreen makes it more usable and expands its capabilities considerably. The shuffle has always been a fairly good gateway device for users looking a cheap way to get into the Apple ecosystem, but with the selling power of the iPhone and iPad, that’s no longer much of a concern.

Dropping the classic and the ~~nano~~ shuffle would free up staff and resources that Apple could reinvest in advancing the remaining products in the iPod line, too. The most recent iPod nano has spawned a thriving accessory ecosystem based on watchband straps to hold the PMP, and it holds plenty of potential as a connected display for iPhones, if Apple does decide to enter the fray with other wrist-based connected devices that are emerging to support the Android ecosystem. The iPod touch, of course, is one part of Apple’s iOS platform, and an important one at that; in April, Ars Technica reported that it accounted for one-third of overall iOS device sales. The iPod touch now makes up at least half of all iPods sold by Apple, and is the only model that consistently sees positive growth.

Put simply, both the nano and the iPod touch have futures that either could potentially, or already do feed the growing beast that is iOS. Steve Jobs may have conveyed back in March that the company had no plans to discontinue the iPod classic, but times change, and so does a company’s focus. With Apple’s new iCloud push, the classic and the shuffle become even less relevant to its overall goals, so it’s highly possible their time has indeed come. Will you miss them?

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Rewind: Editing the Playlist of My Life

Om Malik — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 01:00:08 +0000

Earlier this morning, while cleaning out my desk, I stumbled onto not one but three iPod Shuffles. Amazingly, all of them had retained their charge, even though I have not touched them since I moved over six months ago. It was fun to see them all in one place and realize how cyclical Apple can be when it comes to design – a rectangular shape followed by a square and then a rectangle and now a square again (I am biased towards the third edition of the iPod Shuffle — the one without any controls).

When I started listening to the iPod Shuffle this morning, I realized what I had on my hands was a playlist of my most favorite songs, each one with a memory or a story associated with the song itself. I didn’t need to skip songs because in many ways it was musical bliss. Today, when I listen to music on my computer, I often resort to using the Genius feature – mostly because it makes it easy to auto-magically find music from a gargantuan music library. It had initially taken me nearly six months to build a perfect list and then only keep adding to it, something I described in a post I wrote back in September 2005 as the iShuffle Principle.

The original iPod Shuffle sent me on a mission of whittling down a lot of things and packing them into a couple of suitcases. Ironically, that behavior of self-editing has started to spread into other parts of my life. In the past, I would take a flyer on mainstream clothing brands – but now I don’t think about the brand, but about the shirt I absolutely love, the jeans that are an ideal fit and a watch that I will wear for rest of my life. I have even started to forgo coffee if I can’t get it from a handful of places known for their quality.

I only buy the paper editions of books I absolutely love — the rest of them are simply Kindle downloads. My favorite television shows, such as Frost, Foyle’s War and House MD, I have as DVDs — everything else is on Netflix or a digital download from the Apple store. I wonder if this is a behavior that is going to get more pervasive in the future. Will we react to the problem of plenty by becoming highly selective and taking our hyper-personalized media consumption habits into how we shop, live and behave?

Apple Updates iPod shuffle, Brings Buttons Back

Alex Layne — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 19:50:37 +0000

I wasn’t a huge fan of the third-generation iPod shuffle. The lack of proper controls was just not my thing. Today, with the release of the fourth-generation shuffle, Apple seems to have seen the light and gone back on itself (something it doesn’t do often).

The new shuffle brings back the buttons found on the second-generation model, but the body is squared-off rather than rectangular, so it’s smaller. How much smaller? The new one is 1.14″ high, 1.24″ wide, and .34″ deep. Compare that to the size of the second-generation, which was 1.07 x 1.62 x 0.41 inches, and it turns out to be about 15 percent smaller.

The new shuffle comes in five colors: gray, blue, pink, green, and gold. Battery life is bumped up to 15 hours from 10 for the previous model. The price is $50 and there’s only a 2GB model available, which is a bummer.

You could speculate on why Apple didn’t just replace the shuffle with the new iPod Nano, since they both have similar form factors, and I think the reason is that the shuffle is perceived as the iPod you take to the gym, and Apple isn’t sure how people will react to using a touchscreen when they’re working out.

Did you prefer the buttonless third-generation shuffle? Should Apple just replace the shuffle with the new nano? Tell us what you think in the comments.

Could a New Square iPod Be on the Way?

Chris Brandrick — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 17:20:01 +0000

Ever since Apple announced the date for their upcoming media event a few short days ago, rumors have been circulating regarding what the event could have in store. One rumor seems to have gained a little traction: a redesigned, square iPod.

Apple holds a music-based media event every September, which usually sees Steve Jobs reveal a new line of iPods. This year is expected to be no different, though some also suggest an updated Apple TV, and others predict that we’ll see an update to iTunes. The new square iPod form factor has some physical evidence to back it up, though.

iLounge first spotted images which Chinese iPod case-maker X-Doria claim to be designed for an upcoming fourth-generation iPod touch, and a redesigned iPod nano or iPod shuffle.

The purported iPod touch case clearly has a design to fit a form factor similar to that of the iPhone 4, but it’s the unusual square case also pictured that has sparked debate. The case is of similar proportions to an Apple-branded 1.7-inch touchscreen that surfaced earlier this year. But what iPod could this screen and the square case house — could it be a smaller nano or a bigger shuffle?

Back in 2007, Apple released the third-generation iPod Nano, which boasted a similar square design. Yet after just one year, Apple changed the form factor back to the narrower, rectangular shape. The fifth generation, which saw the introduction of video recording, kept to the same design formula. So would Apple really revert?

The iPod shuffle, which has never had a screen, saw its most radical redesign in 2009. The miniature player lost most of its buttons, with the player controls moved to the headphones. This was not overly popular, due to it requiring users to use special headphones. Maybe Apple is hoping to make up for what many saw as a design blunder.

Personally, I think changes to the iPod nano are indeed more likely. This belief is mainly due to the possible aforementioned touchscreen being utilized, and the fact that the pictured case has a hole on the rear — a space for the camera perhaps?

Whatever changes are in store, we will find out on Sept. 1. What changes would you like to see to the iPod line? Let us know in the comments.

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Apple Refreshes Prices On Entire iPod Line

Charles Jade — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:37:13 +0000

At the Apple Event today, Steve Jobs and company unveiled the fall lineup of iPods. The biggest change was the iPod nano, but every iPod got a little bit of love, be it increased capacity or decreased price.

iPod touch: The new “magic price point” of $199 has 8GB, with two upsell models at 32GB and 64GB for $299 and $399, respectively. The 16GB model disappears and the rumored camera never appeared, but according to Apple this is still the “funnest” iPod ever.

iPod nano: Two models, 8GB at $149 and 16GB at $179. Both models have new features, including: camera, FM radio, and pedometer. All are available in seven shiny, metallic colors: silver, black, purple, blue, green, orange, and pink. There are also the Apple Store exclusives, Product RED, and a yellow/gold.

iPod shuffle: Two primary models, a new 2GB at $59, and a 4GB at $79. There are five colors: silver, black, blue, green, and pink. There is also a 4GB stainless steel model for $99. The tiny music player with the creepy voice—in my opinion—now works with more headphones, too.

iPod Classic: 160GB, $249, two colors, a grayish white and black. The classic got a capacity increase and kept its price. Apparently the rumored demise of the media player with the mechanical hard drive appears to have been greatly exaggerated, unless we’re talking about the Zune.

Clearly, the iPod nano will be the gift to give and/or receive this Christmas, but once again Apple has managed to successfully refresh the media player lineup. Expect the company to sell between 20 and 25 million iPods for the holiday quarter, same as the previous three years.

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iPod Price Drop Ahead of Apple Event

Charles Jade — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 13:23:40 +0000

Hours before the “Only Rock and Roll” event takes place in San Francisco, the Apple Store has slashed prices on some the current iPod models.

The new numbers are still in the process of being posted, with parts of the Apple Store referencing old prices, but the savings are real and substantial.

The 8GB iPod touch now costs $189, a $40 discount, while the 16GB model is now $249, a $50 reduction. However, big savings are to be had for the 32GB model, now $279, a whopping $120 price cut. Other iPods saw cuts, too. The 8GB iPod nano has dropped to $129, down from $149, and the 16GB model is now $149, previously $199. The iPod Classic, rumored to be phased out today, is now $229, down from $249. The price of the iPod shuffle remains unchanged.

While it’s debatable whether the new pricing will extend to the iPods expected to be unveiled today, the new prices on old models of the iPod touch may impact consumers considering Microsoft’s Zune HD. The 16GB Zune HD, to be released on Sept. 15, will retail for $219.99, while the 32GB model will cost $289.99. This means Apple has effectively undercut the Zune HD, at least on the high-end. It will be interesting to see whether Microsoft will lower prices again, or give up the pricing talking point, which wouldn’t really leave much to talk about regarding the Zune HD.

However, there will be a lot to talk about today, starting at 10 a.m. PDT, and TheAppleBlog will be covering it live.

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My iPod Shuffle 3G Experience

Tom Reestman — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 20:00:03 +0000

I’ve had my new iPod shuffle for two days and thought I’d post my thoughts on it. We’ve already covered the out-of-the-box and setup experience elsewhere, so I won’t repeat them here.

Playlist Support

I experimented with a few different setups, but finally settled on using three playlists:

One contains all my “recent” music (basically, everything added in the last few months).
Another contains all the “recent” music that’s been rated one star and up. (This is just a subset of the above list, so it requires no extra space on the device.)
The third one grabs songs at random — rated three stars or higher — from my entire collection, provided they’re not “recent.”

The first playlist takes about a third of the shuffle’s storage (though obviously it fluctuates), and the latter is specifically limited to the remaining two-thirds.

The interface to switch between playlists is pretty simple, and works great. Click and hold the center button, it first names the current song/artist and then beeps. Let go at the beep and it will name the current playlist, then “All Songs,” and then each playlist in alphabetical order. When it names the one you want, click the center button.

With up to six playlists, this works great. For 7-12 playlists I’d suggest using the + and – buttons to speed up the voice listing. Going past a dozen playlists I found it a bit too much, but it really all depends on your own patience level.

For my purposes, it’s a great convenience to have playlist functionality, and a very welcome improvement in the shuffle.

Song Titles

This is a wonderful addition. Since a lot of the music on my shuffle is new, I’d sometimes hear a song and not be sure who it was, or what song it was. I’d have to make a mental note to remember that when I got back to my Mac I’d want to find it and see if it was rated. Now I just click and hold to get the artist and title.

Sound

I haven’t used my 2G shuffle in a while, but I remember it being a little more “noisy” than this one. This one just seems quieter.

I think the sound is fine, but then again I use it walking or riding a bike and that’s hardly the best time for the brain to be especially picky about high fidelity.

Gripes

The USB charger cable is three inches long. If my main Mac were a MacBook I’d probably prefer this; how much cable do you need for that anyway? But my iTunes library is on my iMac. I have to plug it in the back (kind of a pain) and then it just hangs there since it doesn’t even reach the desktop. My iPhone dock is always plugged in; I just dock it when I need it. My old shuffle was the same way. But this device really can’t work that way since I have to fumble around in the back regardless.

The headphone cable is shorter than Apple has supplied before. My plan was not to even clip the thing, but rather just drop it in my pocket. When I did that, I found the headphone cord uncomfortably short, yet the iPhone never had this problem. I compared it to the iPhone headphones and it’s roughly eight inches shorter. Really, Apple, are you getting rich from all the cord you saved with this device?

Conclusion

I like this device quite a bit more than the 2G shuffle. I’ve been using headphone controls for a while with my iPhone and find them preferable to fumbling with the unit. I think they make even more sense on the shuffle. I also like the playlist and song title support, and of course holding 4GB of tunes is a big plus.

If you’re very happy with your 2G unit, I wouldn’t rush out and get a 3G. And if the Apple headphones are a deal breaker, you’ll need to wait until third party’s gear up. But if you’d like even a couple of these features: a lot more memory, headphone controls, more convenient size, playlist support, and ability to know what song is playing, then it’s an excellent upgrade.

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Apple’s Marketing and Sales Teams May Need an Update

Tom Reestman — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 13:40:14 +0000

In case you hadn’t figured it out by now, I like the new iPod shuffle. So much so that I ordered one (in black) the day they were announced.

I bought it online since shipping and engraving are free. I lose the instant gratification of the Apple Store, but I gain the personalization of engraving. (Though I admit it was challenging to come up with an engraving because there’s a small limit on letters.) Shortly after ordering, I got a confirmation email saying it would ship in three to five business days. So far, so good, now all I can do is wait. But look what I received today: I think somebody goofed. I mean, it’s nice that Apple thought of me and all that, but I have a couple of issues with this email:

“We hope you’re enjoying your iPod.” Well, no, I’m not. Because I don’t have it yet. In fact, unless you’re hiding something from me, you haven’t even shipped it yet.
The picture is of an antiquated shuffle, not the shiny new one I ordered. I mean, the thing has the controls on it instead of using remote headphone controls. Remember back when we used to control these things that way? That was ages ago. You know, before the Enlightenment.
The email makes no mention of the new shuffle at all.

Apple, you should get a note to the appropriate groups to have your canned email updated ASAP. And maybe not send it until you think the recipient actually has the item in question, OK? Oh, and maybe include a reference to the actual item that was purchased? Thanks anyway… I guess… Man, if they ship me that green one I’m gonna so go ballistic.

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New iPod Shuffle Interface is Killing People: Apple Sought For Questioning

Tom Reestman — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 13:25:57 +0000

Yes, the headline is an exaggeration, but as I read more and more about the reaction to this thing I’m really struck by some of it.

“If I lose my headphones then I can’t use the device!” Well, if you lose your headphones now what do you do? Hold the thing up to your ear and crank the volume? You need to get headphones in either case. And third parties will provide more options.

The interface gets lots of flack. Apparently the click, double-click and triple-click is just too much. No one can use it. Grandma will be helpless.

Much is made, for example, of the diagram Apple supplies about its usage:

How quickly we forget that the 2G unit had a diagram of its own:

Yeah, neither one is pretty. I learned long ago not to even try to remember the status of the lights.

Let’s think about what you do most of the time with this thing:

Play/Pause
Volume Up
Volume Down
Next Track
Last Track

I’d say as a device meant more to be used while exercising, at the gym, etc., the above covers what you do 95 percent of the time. So let’s look closer at those…

The Three Basics

One can see that the first three items are the same for both devices. You have an upper button to raise volume, a center button to play/pause, and a lower button to lower volume.

However, notice those buttons will always be oriented correctly on the 3G shuffle. Gravity will see to that. On the 2G shuffle, however, that’s not the case (see photo). Depending on how you wear it, the orientation will be different. And remember that you’re not facing the darn thing when you use the controls. It’s controlled while being worn. I can’t possibly be the only one who used this thing in the real world and noticed that.

So right off the bat I can say the usability of the the three main controls is actually better and easier on the new shuffle than the old.

Next and Previous

Regarding next track, instead of a separate button you now use the center button and double-click. Those decrying this are overreacting. It’s not like it’s a foreign concept that a user will balk at. Some of us have been double-clicking for 25 years! In actual use, I’m sure I could go to the next track as quick, if not quicker, than any 2G shuffle user.

That leaves previous track. A triple-click is a bigger leap, I’ll grant. However, with the concept of next track easy to grasp at two clicks, I don’t think explaining a third click for previous will be that tough.

And remember, the orientation issue of the buttons when wearing the old shuffle applies just as much to the next/prev buttons. In actual use the buttons will not be oriented like you see in the marketing photos, and the device is not facing you. With the headphone controls, the orientation never changes and they’re always right there.

Will You Hold, Please?

All the ruckus about how other, less used controls require holding the button down also seem much ado about nothing.

First, click and hold, like a double-click, is not a new concept, so can we stop acting like nobody will ever get it?

Second, the 2G button had its share of holding, too, which everybody seems to have forgotten. You had to click/hold the center button to enable/disable the controls (i.e., the “hold” function). The 3G doesn’t need this feature because the controls were wisely moved off the device.

You also had to click/hold to fast forward or rewind. In short, you executed the next (or previous) track command but then kept the button held down. The 3G works the same way. This really isn’t that tough folks.

Remote Controls are Great

Remember the original iPod came with a remote? Yep, it clipped to your person and let you not have to fiddle with the device. It lasted a generation or two, but like the dock and extra cables, it got cut when Apple scaled back costs. Still, Apple knew the convenience of this capability, and I’m glad it’s back.

When the iPhone required the remote headphones that came with it, I don’t remember anybody screaming about how they were stuck with Apple’s headphones. And yet that was an expensive device where one may have more reasonably thought they’d have more choice.

Apple’s had remote headphones for a while now, and it’s a breeze to operate them. The controls are always in the same place; they’re easier to use, not harder. Third parties are getting on board as well.

Size Matters

Moving beyond the interface, I’ve read several more comments that this thing may be too small. The comments seem to think the 2G was “just right.” What is this? Goldilocks? It’s meant to be worn, people. Smaller is better.

Look at it This Way

Everybody trying to shoehorn this into the iPod line with standard thinking will have their head explode. This thing is to the 2G shuffle what the original shuffle was to the iPod. Apple took an interface element people just assumed had to be there, and removed it. Many think it won’t fly, but I like it.

Think of it this way: Apple took their $29 remote headphones, and for $50 added a 4GB memory stick wrapped in beautiful aluminum with a 10-hour battery, full iTunes capability (including playlists and podcasts) and voice features, all at a tiny size and weight with a clip to hold it on.

Complain all you want, the more I think about it, the more I like it. I hope to have mine soon.

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