The facts are what it says on the Apple Store, not what a fan site says .
That's not a fan site, that's a mac news site. It's evening in the UK right now, how much you want to bet the price is updated by tomorrow morning at the latest there?
This is pretty frickin' sweet. Nice, aggressive move by Apple.
Though I do have to wonder about the details... did Apple, say, downgrade the headphones at all to meet the new price point? Any shenanigans in other areas? Just have to make sure, though I think this is probably entirely on the up and up.
If that checks out, then the only question for me is, do I want Sage, Purple, Silver, or Product Red? Cannot abide the powder blue, it's just too "chick" even for a secure guy like me.
240 songs (assuming you use 128kbps) is 14 hours of music at 3.5 minutes per song. Double the bitrate to 256kbps and you have 7 hours of audio. Even I were running the boston the marathon with cinder blocks dragging behind me a 1GB Shuffle would be plenty. Even using Apple Lossless that is over 1.5 hours of audio.
My interest in getting one would be to have some general storage and music in one device. I'm finding more and more that a USB stick is handy to have with me. If it could double as a music player, that'd be very nice. The big downside with the shuffle is the lack of USB plug; I'm not keen on having to carry a USB adaptor - kind of defeats the purpose.
I tend to rip all my music to Apple Lossless from CDs. 128k MP3s are just too lo-fi for me; I wish Apple would add a way to automatically convert from one to the other when syncing; I'd like my library to be Apple Lossless and then tell iTunes to sync to 256k AAC.
My interest in getting one would be to have some general storage and music in one device. I'm finding more and more that a USB stick is handy to have with me. If it could double as a music player, that'd be very nice. The big downside with the shuffle is the lack of USB plug; I'm not keen on having to carry a USB adaptor - kind of defeats the purpose.
...
- Jasen.
that's exactly why i jumped on the old shuffle when apple dumped them in their refurb section: no cable, 1gig was enough for a usb stick. oddly enough i've never plugged any earphones into it, but it's nice to have the option.
My interest in getting one would be to have some general storage and music in one device. I'm finding more and more that a USB stick is handy to have with me. If it could double as a music player, that'd be very nice. The big downside with the shuffle is the lack of USB plug; I'm not keen on having to carry a USB adaptor - kind of defeats the purpose.
I tend to rip all my music to Apple Lossless from CDs. 128k MP3s are just too lo-fi for me; I wish Apple would add a way to automatically convert from one to the other when syncing; I'd like my library to be Apple Lossless and then tell iTunes to sync to 256k AAC.
I think the syncing via the stereo connector is quite ingenious. It reduces the number of ports and uses a very small one for the transfer. But it does make it a good USB drive.
As for the automatic conversion, that is already an option for the Shuffle. iTunes will convert your audio to 128kbps AAC for the Shuffle. While this is a nice touch, it would be nice to have an option to change the bitrate.
Since I too import my audio as Apple Lossless, my solution was to create a dynamic Gym playlist and then to re-encode the tracks I wanted at 256kbps. Since they were all grouped together under the dynamic Recently Added playlist, I then added a Gym comment to the tracks and only sync that playlist. I still have 40% capacity remaining.
Yes, and it is the opposite direction I would have expected Apple to go.
I would have thought their move would have been to add a limited (text-only) screen to the Shuffle, rather than drop the price. Adding features instead of price drops is Apple's usual play.
Yes, and it is the opposite direction I would have expected Apple to go.
I would have thought their move would have been to add a limited (text-only) screen to the Shuffle, rather than drop the price. Adding features instead of price drops is Apple's usual play.
1) Where do you add the screen?
2) How do you explain the inclusion of the device to begin with?
Apple seems to go with simpler, devices over more complex ones. While everyone was trying make an "iPod killer" by adding more and more features Apple came out with an unorthodox device that eschewed all the bells and whistles of the typical player.
The thing Apple could add to the Shuffle would be Bluetooth that would send audio and track info to the attached speakers and in-lens display attached to sport glasses/shades.
I would have thought their move would have been to add a limited (text-only) screen to the Shuffle, rather than drop the price. Adding features instead of price drops is Apple's usual play.
I'm not sure why people want a screen. If I want a screen, I use my Nano or my Touch. I love the Shuffle for working out. That's the great thing about it.
My only wish is that it would have been a 4GB or even larger, so that I could have all of my music AND use it as a backup device for my important stuff.
I now use my 1GB Shuffle (Dec '06) pretty much all the time when running. It's great for that.
Re audiophile quality - There is a low-level background hiss in that model, even with Apple's own earbuds, is less problematic than I thought it would be initially. The hiss can only be heard on quiet sections, and when I am not breathing too hard/loudly ;-)
So for me two improvements I'd love to see in a Shuffle update are:
1.) A one or two line display for Artist and Title (there is room next to the control ring for that), that would help in those situations where I have either changed the mix recently, or when I sometimes use it to drive a stereo at another location, and am searching for track info.
2.) Better audio quality - specifically, get rid of the background hiss noise.
The extra memory does not seems as essential to me, though is a plus if you go for higher bitrate tracks.
It's certainly a lower margin that yesterday, but you have a point, it may still be a higher margin than when the $79 2G 1GB Shuffle first appeared in Fall 2006. Especially since the only case change has been to its colour.
The margin may, or may not be higher, but it's starting from a much lower price point, so overall profits from the sale will still be lower.
That's fine though.
What I'm hoping to see is more memory in the other players, and not by the end of the year either. If Apple can combine that with slightly lower pricing, that would be good, as some other players now have both more memory, and lower pricing.
I'm sure that those other manufacturers have lower margins, as they sell far less players, and some have those sales spread out between many more models.
Someone gave a friend of mine, who is older, and not good with computers at all (he is somewhat afraid to use e-mail, for example, and has a PC his wife bought), a cheap Samsung player as a birthday present.
He asked me what kind of music came on it. I explained that he would have to install the software, and join a web music store to buy music, and he froze!
He asked me what kind of music came on it. I explained that he would have to install the software, and join a web music store to buy music, and he froze!
I bought my father a 2G Shuffle as a gift, but I pre-installed all his favorite music before giving it to him. We're talking Neil Diamond, Kris, Kristofferson, Beach Boys and other contemporary artists from the 70's.
This is pretty frickin' sweet. Nice, aggressive move by Apple.
Though I do have to wonder about the details... did Apple, say, downgrade the headphones at all to meet the new price point? Any shenanigans in other areas? Just have to make sure, though I think this is probably entirely on the up and up.
If that checks out, then the only question for me is, do I want Sage, Purple, Silver, or Product Red? Cannot abide the powder blue, it's just too "chick" even for a secure guy like me.
.
Apple sells 50 million headphones a year with their players, they probably cost 50 cents apiece. As it is, they aren't very good.
It's kind of sad, you know. When the iPod first came out, earphones for players were so damned poor, that the Apple supplied phones were considered to be better than most all others.
But, as usual, that spurred the other companies on, and while Apple's phones got no better, the others did, to the point that Apple's are now considered to be about the worst phones.
I never can understand why Apple does that. It happens with their monitors as well.
I bought my father a 2G Shuffle as a gift, but I pre-installed all his favorite music before giving it to him. We're talking Neil Diamond, Kris, Kristofferson, Beach Boys and other contemporary artists from the 70's.
My interest in getting one would be to have some general storage and music in one device. I'm finding more and more that a USB stick is handy to have with me. If it could double as a music player, that'd be very nice. The big downside with the shuffle is the lack of USB plug; I'm not keen on having to carry a USB adaptor - kind of defeats the purpose.
I tend to rip all my music to Apple Lossless from CDs. 128k MP3s are just too lo-fi for me; I wish Apple would add a way to automatically convert from one to the other when syncing; I'd like my library to be Apple Lossless and then tell iTunes to sync to 256k AAC.
- Jasen.
Yeah, it's a shame iTunes doesn't have exactly this option. I sure would have been using it for the past year with my shuffle. Hm... I wonder if Jasen ever checked the options to see if this is possible...
Apple sells 50 million headphones a year with their players, they probably cost 50 cents apiece. As it is, they aren't very good.
It's kind of sad, you know. When the iPod first came out, earphones for players were so damned poor, that the Apple supplied phones were considered to be better than most all others.
But, as usual, that spurred the other companies on, and while Apple's phones got no better, the others did, to the point that Apple's are now considered to be about the worst phones.
I never can understand why Apple does that. It happens with their monitors as well.
The included iPod headphones are honestly not that bad, and I doubt that they're as cheap as 50 cents to make. I think Bob 'Dr. Mac' Levitus had a review where he gave Apple headphones some grudging props.
I have a pair of Shure E3Cs, which are very popular among audiophile headphones, and while they whup absolute ass on the iPod 'phones in regards to detail and clarity, the iPod 'phones have better bass and just make you want to 'groove' more somehow.
I'd much rather listen to jazz or classical on the Shures, but for working out, rock, rap, metal, etc I'd go with the stock 'phones. Though perhaps that says more about the Shure's lousy bass performance, and the crappy quality of a lot of popular music recordings. \
I think if you want to hear some truly lousy 'phones, you go with some of the el cheapo 'Sony Extended Bass' numbers or its clones. There is some really muddy, imbalanced sound to be had out there, and of course if you play tracks that are already over-bass'ed, it gets even worse.
My candidate for an Oscar in this area of craptacular-ness has to be a certain kind of home loudspeaker, though... you know, the kind you can get for really cheap, yet have 15" woofers.
I bought my father a 2G Shuffle as a gift, but I pre-installed all his favorite music before giving it to him. We're talking Neil Diamond, Kris, Kristofferson, Beach Boys and other contemporary artists from the 70's.
Some old stuff is still pretty good. The Beach Boys seem to hold up well over time, for example.
But Kiss was never that good to begin with, and Neil Diamond is an, ahem, 'acquired taste'.
The weird part? I saw an episode of Family Guy recently that had Barry Manilow in it... and he wasn't being mocked. It seems that Barry Manilow is so uncool that he's actually cool.
Some old stuff is still pretty good. The Beach Boys seem to hold up well over time, for example.
But Kiss was never that good to begin with, and Neil Diamond is an, ahem, 'acquired taste'.
The weird part? I saw an episode of Family Guy recently that had Barry Manilow in it... and he wasn't being mocked. It seems that Barry Manilow is so uncool that he's actually cool.
I like Beach Boys when I was younger. Neil Diamond is still good to listen to. As for Kris, I much prefer him as an actor. All these artists were in their prime on or before I was in diapers so perhaps my feeling would have been different if it wasn't being pumped through my parent's 8-track and cassette players while I was growing up.
I'm sure that those other manufacturers have lower margins, as they sell far less players, and some have those sales spread out between many more models.
That's nothing new. Except for a few months after an iPod update, there usually were several competitors with cheaper models with more features.
Comments
The facts are what it says on the Apple Store, not what a fan site says
That's not a fan site, that's a mac news site. It's evening in the UK right now, how much you want to bet the price is updated by tomorrow morning at the latest there?
iPhone everywhere!!! what about iPod nano price slashes?
Let's not overdo it, now.
Though I do have to wonder about the details... did Apple, say, downgrade the headphones at all to meet the new price point? Any shenanigans in other areas? Just have to make sure, though I think this is probably entirely on the up and up.
If that checks out, then the only question for me is, do I want Sage, Purple, Silver, or Product Red? Cannot abide the powder blue, it's just too "chick" even for a secure guy like me.
.
240 songs (assuming you use 128kbps) is 14 hours of music at 3.5 minutes per song. Double the bitrate to 256kbps and you have 7 hours of audio. Even I were running the boston the marathon with cinder blocks dragging behind me a 1GB Shuffle would be plenty. Even using Apple Lossless that is over 1.5 hours of audio.
My interest in getting one would be to have some general storage and music in one device. I'm finding more and more that a USB stick is handy to have with me. If it could double as a music player, that'd be very nice. The big downside with the shuffle is the lack of USB plug; I'm not keen on having to carry a USB adaptor - kind of defeats the purpose.
I tend to rip all my music to Apple Lossless from CDs. 128k MP3s are just too lo-fi for me; I wish Apple would add a way to automatically convert from one to the other when syncing; I'd like my library to be Apple Lossless and then tell iTunes to sync to 256k AAC.
- Jasen.
My interest in getting one would be to have some general storage and music in one device. I'm finding more and more that a USB stick is handy to have with me. If it could double as a music player, that'd be very nice. The big downside with the shuffle is the lack of USB plug; I'm not keen on having to carry a USB adaptor - kind of defeats the purpose.
...
- Jasen.
that's exactly why i jumped on the old shuffle when apple dumped them in their refurb section: no cable, 1gig was enough for a usb stick. oddly enough i've never plugged any earphones into it, but it's nice to have the option.
My interest in getting one would be to have some general storage and music in one device. I'm finding more and more that a USB stick is handy to have with me. If it could double as a music player, that'd be very nice. The big downside with the shuffle is the lack of USB plug; I'm not keen on having to carry a USB adaptor - kind of defeats the purpose.
I tend to rip all my music to Apple Lossless from CDs. 128k MP3s are just too lo-fi for me; I wish Apple would add a way to automatically convert from one to the other when syncing; I'd like my library to be Apple Lossless and then tell iTunes to sync to 256k AAC.
I think the syncing via the stereo connector is quite ingenious. It reduces the number of ports and uses a very small one for the transfer. But it does make it a good USB drive.
As for the automatic conversion, that is already an option for the Shuffle. iTunes will convert your audio to 128kbps AAC for the Shuffle. While this is a nice touch, it would be nice to have an option to change the bitrate.
Since I too import my audio as Apple Lossless, my solution was to create a dynamic Gym playlist and then to re-encode the tracks I wanted at 256kbps. Since they were all grouped together under the dynamic Recently Added playlist, I then added a Gym comment to the tracks and only sync that playlist. I still have 40% capacity remaining.
This is gonna kill that average iPod price...
Yes, and it is the opposite direction I would have expected Apple to go.
I would have thought their move would have been to add a limited (text-only) screen to the Shuffle, rather than drop the price. Adding features instead of price drops is Apple's usual play.
Yes, and it is the opposite direction I would have expected Apple to go.
I would have thought their move would have been to add a limited (text-only) screen to the Shuffle, rather than drop the price. Adding features instead of price drops is Apple's usual play.
1) Where do you add the screen?
2) How do you explain the inclusion of the device to begin with?
Apple seems to go with simpler, devices over more complex ones. While everyone was trying make an "iPod killer" by adding more and more features Apple came out with an unorthodox device that eschewed all the bells and whistles of the typical player.
The thing Apple could add to the Shuffle would be Bluetooth that would send audio and track info to the attached speakers and in-lens display attached to sport glasses/shades.
I would have thought their move would have been to add a limited (text-only) screen to the Shuffle, rather than drop the price. Adding features instead of price drops is Apple's usual play.
I'm not sure why people want a screen. If I want a screen, I use my Nano or my Touch. I love the Shuffle for working out. That's the great thing about it.
My only wish is that it would have been a 4GB or even larger, so that I could have all of my music AND use it as a backup device for my important stuff.
Re audiophile quality - There is a low-level background hiss in that model, even with Apple's own earbuds, is less problematic than I thought it would be initially. The hiss can only be heard on quiet sections, and when I am not breathing too hard/loudly ;-)
So for me two improvements I'd love to see in a Shuffle update are:
1.) A one or two line display for Artist and Title (there is room next to the control ring for that), that would help in those situations where I have either changed the mix recently, or when I sometimes use it to drive a stereo at another location, and am searching for track info.
2.) Better audio quality - specifically, get rid of the background hiss noise.
The extra memory does not seems as essential to me, though is a plus if you go for higher bitrate tracks.
(JMO - Just My Opinion)
It's certainly a lower margin that yesterday, but you have a point, it may still be a higher margin than when the $79 2G 1GB Shuffle first appeared in Fall 2006. Especially since the only case change has been to its colour.
The margin may, or may not be higher, but it's starting from a much lower price point, so overall profits from the sale will still be lower.
That's fine though.
What I'm hoping to see is more memory in the other players, and not by the end of the year either. If Apple can combine that with slightly lower pricing, that would be good, as some other players now have both more memory, and lower pricing.
I'm sure that those other manufacturers have lower margins, as they sell far less players, and some have those sales spread out between many more models.
Someone gave a friend of mine, who is older, and not good with computers at all (he is somewhat afraid to use e-mail, for example, and has a PC his wife bought), a cheap Samsung player as a birthday present.
He asked me what kind of music came on it. I explained that he would have to install the software, and join a web music store to buy music, and he froze!
He asked me what kind of music came on it. I explained that he would have to install the software, and join a web music store to buy music, and he froze!
I bought my father a 2G Shuffle as a gift, but I pre-installed all his favorite music before giving it to him. We're talking Neil Diamond, Kris, Kristofferson, Beach Boys and other contemporary artists from the 70's.
This is pretty frickin' sweet. Nice, aggressive move by Apple.
Though I do have to wonder about the details... did Apple, say, downgrade the headphones at all to meet the new price point? Any shenanigans in other areas? Just have to make sure, though I think this is probably entirely on the up and up.
If that checks out, then the only question for me is, do I want Sage, Purple, Silver, or Product Red? Cannot abide the powder blue, it's just too "chick" even for a secure guy like me.
.
Apple sells 50 million headphones a year with their players, they probably cost 50 cents apiece. As it is, they aren't very good.
It's kind of sad, you know. When the iPod first came out, earphones for players were so damned poor, that the Apple supplied phones were considered to be better than most all others.
But, as usual, that spurred the other companies on, and while Apple's phones got no better, the others did, to the point that Apple's are now considered to be about the worst phones.
I never can understand why Apple does that. It happens with their monitors as well.
I bought my father a 2G Shuffle as a gift, but I pre-installed all his favorite music before giving it to him. We're talking Neil Diamond, Kris, Kristofferson, Beach Boys and other contemporary artists from the 70's.
Hmm! I seem to remember them.
My interest in getting one would be to have some general storage and music in one device. I'm finding more and more that a USB stick is handy to have with me. If it could double as a music player, that'd be very nice. The big downside with the shuffle is the lack of USB plug; I'm not keen on having to carry a USB adaptor - kind of defeats the purpose.
I tend to rip all my music to Apple Lossless from CDs. 128k MP3s are just too lo-fi for me; I wish Apple would add a way to automatically convert from one to the other when syncing; I'd like my library to be Apple Lossless and then tell iTunes to sync to 256k AAC.
- Jasen.
Yeah, it's a shame iTunes doesn't have exactly this option. I sure would have been using it for the past year with my shuffle. Hm... I wonder if Jasen ever checked the options to see if this is possible...
Apple sells 50 million headphones a year with their players, they probably cost 50 cents apiece. As it is, they aren't very good.
It's kind of sad, you know. When the iPod first came out, earphones for players were so damned poor, that the Apple supplied phones were considered to be better than most all others.
But, as usual, that spurred the other companies on, and while Apple's phones got no better, the others did, to the point that Apple's are now considered to be about the worst phones.
I never can understand why Apple does that. It happens with their monitors as well.
The included iPod headphones are honestly not that bad, and I doubt that they're as cheap as 50 cents to make. I think Bob 'Dr. Mac' Levitus had a review where he gave Apple headphones some grudging props.
I have a pair of Shure E3Cs, which are very popular among audiophile headphones, and while they whup absolute ass on the iPod 'phones in regards to detail and clarity, the iPod 'phones have better bass and just make you want to 'groove' more somehow.
I'd much rather listen to jazz or classical on the Shures, but for working out, rock, rap, metal, etc I'd go with the stock 'phones. Though perhaps that says more about the Shure's lousy bass performance, and the crappy quality of a lot of popular music recordings.
I think if you want to hear some truly lousy 'phones, you go with some of the el cheapo 'Sony Extended Bass' numbers or its clones. There is some really muddy, imbalanced sound to be had out there, and of course if you play tracks that are already over-bass'ed, it gets even worse.
My candidate for an Oscar in this area of craptacular-ness has to be a certain kind of home loudspeaker, though... you know, the kind you can get for really cheap, yet have 15" woofers.
.
I bought my father a 2G Shuffle as a gift, but I pre-installed all his favorite music before giving it to him. We're talking Neil Diamond, Kris, Kristofferson, Beach Boys and other contemporary artists from the 70's.
Some old stuff is still pretty good. The Beach Boys seem to hold up well over time, for example.
But Kiss was never that good to begin with, and Neil Diamond is an, ahem, 'acquired taste'.
The weird part? I saw an episode of Family Guy recently that had Barry Manilow in it... and he wasn't being mocked. It seems that Barry Manilow is so uncool that he's actually cool.
.
Some old stuff is still pretty good. The Beach Boys seem to hold up well over time, for example.
But Kiss was never that good to begin with, and Neil Diamond is an, ahem, 'acquired taste'.
The weird part? I saw an episode of Family Guy recently that had Barry Manilow in it... and he wasn't being mocked. It seems that Barry Manilow is so uncool that he's actually cool.
I like Beach Boys when I was younger. Neil Diamond is still good to listen to. As for Kris, I much prefer him as an actor. All these artists were in their prime on or before I was in diapers so perhaps my feeling would have been different if it wasn't being pumped through my parent's 8-track and cassette players while I was growing up.
I'm sure that those other manufacturers have lower margins, as they sell far less players, and some have those sales spread out between many more models.
That's nothing new. Except for a few months after an iPod update, there usually were several competitors with cheaper models with more features.