[Chef Medeski]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kirosia Not sure if it's been said or not (I ain't reading 8 pages), but people's asses are gonna get mugged. Seriously. They can just rip it off your neck or arm or whatever. Good player or not, it's useless if it ends up in someone else's hands.

$100. Are you kidding me? It is not worth the risk. I mean all iPods have Pins in them so if you ever take it into an Apple Store and it has been reported stolen you get to go to jail. For what? $100. I mean at least the iPod, even though double the size, costs about 4-5 times more. Putting it in the range of faux gold per ounze instead of like copper ont he shuffle.

I like the nifty little USB feature. I liked it when I saw it the first time on an Archos. Yet, I can't stop liking it, because Apple copied it. I think this thing will sell beautifully. I have a friend who actually paid $350 for a new iPod 20 GB and he doesn't have more than 400 MB on it. Now if the shuffle is not for him what is.

I think the next thing will be something half that price with room like the old MP3 players. 16 and ohh 32 MB. Yet, Apple will market it for being able to still fit hundreds of songs in it due to amazing AAC encoding. Hence, MP3 of 5 years ago. Well, hopefully if they use the money there are getting from the iPods for a good thing such as their amazing computer, then maybe it is good that stupid rich people buy something they will never use.

 

[Kirosia]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chef Medeski $100. Are you kidding me? It is not worth the risk. I mean all iPods have Pins in them so if you ever take it into an Apple Store and it has been reported stolen you get to go to jail. For what? $100. I mean at least the iPod, even though double the size, costs about 4-5 times more. Putting it in the range of faux gold per ounze instead of like copper ont he shuffle.

Muggers don't give a s**t. It looks like an ipod, uses white phones, it's gonna get taken. Most thieves don't even know the true value of these products, but they do know that ipod-like items are worth something. I doubt many muggers are electronics savvy.

My DAP may not sound as good or is as user-friendly as an ipod, but no one's tried to steal it yet. Cause it looks cheap and cruddy. And black. =)

 

[Nospam]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wookie ...The thing that gets me though is how they have the gaul to charge £20 (~$35-40) for a dock that is basically a glorified usb extension cable and i never noticed mention of a lineout on this one....

LOL, only on Head-Fi would someone want a line-out for a flash player

 

[Twigs]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Krishna I would like to pose a question to all of those Apple fans that are slobering over this product: Would you be so enthusiastic if this was not made by Apple? Would you really be praising it, or would you bash it like most of the web is doing if it was made by company such as Creative or Iriver? Fact of the matter is that if this wasn't an Apple product it wouldn't be getting the attention that it is getting. It really doesn't deserve the praise or the beating that has been going on since its release. It is a just another product, like the Ipod is just another product. People take it to extremes and make all Apple products to be the second coming or for that matter the apocalypse, but in the end they are basically just pieces of white plastic, silicon, and metal.

I would bash it for sure if it wasn't made by apple. The only reason I want one is because its an iPod. I know there are other flash players that are much better and almost just as cheap, but since it says apple iPod shuffle i would buy it.

 

[bong]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bong i have a quick question for those who has the iPod Shuffle: if i have both my iPod and the iPod Shuffle connected on my computer at the same time, can i transfer songs (drag and drop) from my iPod to the iPod Shuffle through iTunes? it seems logical as the sources on iTunes appear as separate windows. thanx in advance...

anyone?

i'd like to know because some of my music are on the iPod but not on the comp...

 

[blessingx]

I highly doubt it (as it goes a bit against how Apple handles iPod transfers), but they may make a change. As for history, can anyone vouch that this wasn't possible if you attached an iPod and mini at the same time?

Bong, there's always ways to get the music off first.

 

[OracleGuy]

As far as the pricing goes, instead of comparing against the cheapest flash MP3 player (my kid's got one and it's obviously very cheaply built) I checked the prices of the iRiver 1GB and 512MB players which is perhaps the top "name brand" to compare with. The Shuffle is $100 less; so the question is: is the FM tuner and and screen worth $100 for you.

The Shuffle doesn't seem to cost too much more than a simple USB flash drive. I think it will be a winner. As others have said, for the number of songs it can hold, a screen is unnecessary. The simple interface makes it a winner IMHO.

 

[bong]

Quote:

Originally Posted by blessingx I highly doubt it (as it goes a bit against how Apple handles iPod transfers), but they may make a change. As for history, can anyone vouch that this wasn't possible if you attached an iPod and mini at the same time? Bong, there's always ways to get the music off first.

yeah... i know, but i'd rather not go through that process just to load a few songs onto the Shuffle.
anyway... i'd love it if i would be able to do that.

 

[OracleGuy]

Does anybody know the S/N for iPods in general?

 

[sno1man]

Quote:

Originally Posted by blessingx I highly doubt it (as it goes a bit against how Apple handles iPod transfers), but they may make a change. As for history, can anyone vouch that this wasn't possible if you attached an iPod and mini at the same time? Bong, there's always ways to get the music off first.

No unfortunately there is no way to transfer music pod to pod even with the computer in the middle. It has to be on the computer itself to get on the ipod.

As for the data storage/versus song storage... You have to set a data partition. If you make the data partition bigger, it wipes the songs. If you make it smaller it does allow you to add songs.

Sound quality with my songs on one I got to play with for a few hours was indistinguishable from my mini with the two sets of earbuds I had to try. The sony 71's and apples own.

According to a couple of Apple??? guys at the show (veracity unknown) at one point the plan was to be able to suck songs right off a regular ipod. You create a playlist, select transfer to shuffle from a menu on the ipod, directly connect the two pod to each other and viola!

If that was true the shuffle would have been a definite buy for me

 

[blessingx]

Surprised all the Shuffle's features haven't yet been discussed. Has anyone been able to verify it can read your mind or read your mood?

Evidently this is rumored only for the more expensive 1 Gb model. The .5 Gb only has random.

 

[DigDub]

the general feeling i get after so much discussion is that:
1. the people who likes random play have suddenly comes out of their closet and declares that random play is the future and *gasp* is what every is using on their players. i still remember 'the good ol days' when on the fly playlisting was so important to them.
2. lcd displays are no longer important, even on large capacity players, because most people have suddenly realised that they seldom look at their screens. before the shuffle came out, i'm pretty sure that almost everyone complained when a player had non-scrolling song titles, tiny display and even lack of lcds on units.
3. given the same price range, one would rather accept the one which is more crippled when using just because apple says it is fine to do so. people dissed how the iriver nipple joystick was a chore to navigate, but pressing forward a hundred times, listening to the intro to see if thats the song you want, on the shuffle, is fine. no doubt smart listing will put all your favorite songs into the player, but its one big list. and there ARE times when you have a craving for that one song or just wants to listen to in album mode while on the move.

i can see how the shuffle would appeal to the average listeners who just want music to flow without much intervention. but i don't see them buying or carrying the non-screen basic players before the shuffle came out too. because they do not have smartlisting before shuffle? how hard would it be to drag all your favorite songs into one folder and copy them to a player and play at random? of course, unless they are not really your favorite songs and you need a program to decide them for you.

 

[Valnoren]

Most "head-fiers" are missing the point. The shuffle is not meant for audiophiles. We are talking about the $99 alternative for average parents to buy for their kids or for themselves or anyone else looking for a portable player that they will use a few hours a day. This is for those who have wanted an ipod but dont want to plop down 200+ for a portable music player.

I dont see how no screen for the intended market is a huge deal. You fit 100 or so songs on it! Use that lump a few inches above your sholders to remember what songs you put on it. Or wait here's an idea! Don't put songs you don't like on it ! I listen to my digital collection almost all day everyday. How often to I look to see what's playing. Hardly ever.

Battery: its rechargeable! 12 hours, great after 12 hours I don't have to put a new battery in it. I listen to music most of the day not using a portable how many typical portable users listen for 4 hours a day let alone 12 at the end of the day plug it in like your cellphone.

 

[DigDub]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Valnoren Most "head-fiers" are missing the point. The shuffle is not meant for audiophiles. We are talking about the $99 alternative for average parents to buy for their kids or for themselves or anyone else looking for a portable player that they will use a few hours a day. This is for those who have wanted an ipod but dont want to plop down 200+ for a portable music player. I dont see how no screen for the intended market is a huge deal. You fit 100 or so songs on it! Use that lump a few inches above your sholders to remember what songs you put on it. Or wait here's an idea! Don't put songs you don't like on it ! I listen to my digital collection almost all day everyday. How often to I look to see what's playing. Hardly ever. Battery: its rechargeable! 12 hours, great after 12 hours I don't have to put a new battery in it. I listen to music most of the day not using a portable how many typical portable users listen for 4 hours a day let alone 12 at the end of the day plug it in like your cellphone.

so in the pre-shuffle days, would you have said that? do you see many people (so-called non audiophiles) carrying around players with no screens in the pre-shuffle days? there were players without screen and the reception was lukewarm at best. the problem right now is that many people think that apple were the ones who invented no screen players with random play and thought they 'revolutionalised' the way people want their music players to be. i think only apple can manage to trick people into this 'old and lesser is new and better' thing.

 

[Valnoren]

(small laugh) look Apple has no magic powers to trick people. So often posters will say "many people think that apple (or insert another company) invented X" Does that make them right? No. So what.

Are they Selling their product, uh ya

Sure the pitch was lame, seriously, what user who uses digital music has not used shuffle mode? When Steve Jobs presented it in the keynote my eyes rolled back with a "please Steve". Again I have not read a single article announcing "Apple's revolutionary Shuffle feature!"

"i think only apple can manage to trick people into this 'old and lesser is new and better' thing."

Apples all about making tech easy for anyone to use so they make a product they think will work.

BTW Every tech company does it from microsoft to apple to creative to adobe and macromedia. Its called "sales". Gates recently announced the "digital hub" Jobs pitched years ago making it his own idea. Same pitch different product. Same eye rolling effect for the informed.

The device just works and the fact that it has no screen is small to the intended market. You plug it in, you fill it up, you play it.