Apple Launches 1 GB nano, Slashes shuffle

minus_273 writes "Apple has has released a new nano and also slashed prices on the iPod shuffle. The lowest end iPod now goes for $69. The 1 GB shuffle is $99 and the 1 GB nano is $149." From the article: "'The price of components have come down more than 70 percent, especially flash memory for the shuffle,' he said. 'And the price of the shuffle hadn't changed, so they were making a ton of profit off the shuffle. So they're passing some of those savings on.'"

Comments

Perfect timing

[splatterboy]

Oh that Jobs, just in time for Valentines Day...

Feh

[vertinox]

I got a 2 gig Nano for Christmas (no complaints mind you), but I already filled it up on the day that I started moving files to it Even then I am constantly scratching my head trying to figure out what songs I can delete so I can squeeze in another favorite song I just picked up.

I could only imagine what the 1gb would be like, but I suppose if you wanted to give someone an iPod on the cheep or had a small music collection then it would be the best route to go.

I had thought about returning it and getting a 4gb nano, but I think that would be rude to the person who got it for me. And come to think of it, I would want around 10+ gb to satisfy my musical needs anways.

Maybe we'll see higher memories by Christmas this year or next.

Re:Feh

[Gulthek]

Think of the small pods (2 gig and down) as miniature radio stations. Don't try to cram a ton of albums on there, but make a smart playlist of 2 gigabytes (or whatever size) of highly rated music (or highly played, or not played in the last two weeks, or any combination, etc.) and have the ipod automatically load that. That's what I do for my 1 gig shuffle.

But it is nice to also have the 60 gig iPod to tote all of my music around on :-)

Re:Feh

[itscolduphere]

Just create a playlist that selects a random 1 or 2 Gig and loads them onto the iPod. Delete all the songs from the playlist and it grabs another random 1 or 2 Gig and reloads the iPod. You can customize the playlists pretty well, so talk, podcasts, etc. aren't included unless you want them to.

No, you just use a "Recently Played" smart playlist to remove songs that you play through to the end (or use the click-wheel to scroll to the end of if you don't feel like listening to it). Just make the smart playlist that is selecting songs to go on your iPod to "Playlist is not Recently Played," and songs will rotate through automatically without having to re-update the WHOLE thing. Every week or two, when you get a too many songs that you just keep skipping on there, you wipe and put a whole new batch.

If I had a Nano, I'd probably use half for that random playlist and the other half would be a playlist containing all hand-picked songs...and, of course, there'd be a playlist combining the two. Or possibly a playlist that I'd treat as a CD changer and drag several whole albums into in addition to the random one.

As it is, I have a 1 GB Shuffle. I have a majority of my songs (and a vast majority of those that I like) rated. I have six playlists, each representing three different sets of genres, at two ratings levels (one for 4/5 star, one for 3 star and unrated...to keep some variety in there). The most recently played 300 songs are exempted. So I basically have to listen to an entire Shuffle full of songs to hear the same ones again. But the beauty is that each time a song is played, and I update, it is replaced with a song of the same genre and rating level. So if I play a 4/5-star punk song, I get another 4/5-star punk song to replace it, keeping the mix the same.

It's beautiful. It's like a radio that only plays songs that I at least somewhat like. Of course, it wasn't possible (without hackery) until either iTunes 5 or 6, when they finally set it to set the "Last Played" flag of songs updated from a Shuffle to the time of update (as the Shuffle has no clock), instead of just increasing the play count and calling it good.

Obviously, I went through a few months where I had a LOT of time on my hands though. As I obviously did right now, looking at the novel I just wrote. I just hope they don't trash the Shuffle...I like having an iPod that A) isn't expensive, B) doesn't have a screen to break, and C) keeps me from obsessively choosing individual songs, and thus allows me to hear music from my collection I had damn near forgotten about.

Granted, I still keep a 15 GB around for long road trips and such. And, in a pinch, it makes a decent (if expensive) pocket HD.

Sounds like a good deal...

[the_humeister]

...but right now Apple is selling a refurbished 20GB iPod for $189. I think I'd rather go for that one (if I was in a market for iPods).

Re:My problem...

[LordVader717]

I bought a 4GB nano last month, and chose it specifically.
The mainthing I like about it is the robust flash memory and it's small form.

I know I could get 6 times the space for 50$ more, and it's not that I couldn't afford it.
But I'm not fixated on keeping my entire music collection on one handheld device. Sure, it's less work, but most music I only listen to on short term and put something else on later. It kinda stops me getting ored from the same selection aswell.

I just like my nano more than I'd like the standard model.

Forget the nano and shuffle

[LennyDotCom]

Send an ipod to your senator to fight against the broadcast flag and audio flag

But Senator Stevens, the 82-year old committee chairman from Alaska, surprised the audience by announcing that his daughter had bought him an iPod.
Suddenly, Stevens had a much greater understanding of the many ways innovative technology can create choice for consumers. Content industry representatives at the hearing found themselves answering much tougher questions than they typically receive.

sorry folks, but i really dont understand nano

[zr]

looks cool and everything, but what is it for?

i have a full fledged ipod (g5 w/ video) and that works great for keeping my total music collection. its fragile, but that's fine, because i don't use it to work out nor otherwise place it in situations of physical danger.

i also have ishuffle, and i use it for jogging and i know it'll never break. there's no hard drive, no display, nothing. and its light as a feather. no extra protection or care needed. plus it doesn't scratch (and even if it did, i wouldn't care).

so, i have these two niches filled and just see no room for nano.

or what am i missing?

Re:My problem...

[Golias]

So, you know that your music taste is exceptionally varied, and you need the spontaneity more than most other folks do, yet you still "can't see" why "anyone" would want a Shuffle?

That's kind of myopic, isn't it?

Like I said in the last posting on this topic...

[PFI_Optix]

Apple needs to reinvent the Shuffle. People like having an LCD so they can choose songs. Bring back the Shuffle with all its features plus a three-line LCD and you'll have a bigger hit than the 1 GB Nano.

Call it the iPod Micro or (as someone else suggested) the iPod Pico. There's just something to be said for an MP3 player with the ease of use of a USB drive. No cables, just drop it in the front/top USB port and load it and go.

(I'd still like it better if it took a standard battery...my Samsung uses AA and it's nice to be able to swap batteries off a charger in a matter of seconds and to just take a handful of spares when going on a long trip)

How well does Linux talk to iPods these days?

[swillden]

Since I've recently started going to the gym regularly, I've been thinking I might finally have a use for a portable music player (other than my laptop, which has been as portable as I needed). So, I'm interested in whether or not an iPod would work well for me. A significant constraint, however, is that I don't run Windows, and althouh my wife has an iBook, I don't want to have to use her machine to manage my iPod.

So, how effectively can I manage my iPod from Linux?

Anyone have any recommendations on alternative players? I don't need a lot of storage (1GB would be perfectly fine), but cheaper is better. The ability to play vorbis files would be good, too, though I know that's pretty unlikely. I can always whip up a script to convert my hiqh-quality OGGs to lower-quality MP3s, if need be. If my player doesn't have a huge amount of storage, I'll probably have to convert my OGGs to lower bitrates even if the player does play vorbis files, and that's not much less work than converting to MP3.

Another bonus would be a player with an FM tuner (another feature I believe is unavailable with iPods).

Re:iCheap idea

[Anonymous Coward]

Do they have humor where you live?

Re:Nah, I have an iPod

[just_forget_it]

The price base I believe is completely planned and orchestrated by apple. Think about it. For $69, you can get a 512 MB shuffle, but the 1 GB nano is only $30. That's twice as much storage for only 45% more. The 4 GB nano is $249, but the 30GB Video is $299. You more than sextuple the storage space, plus add video capability for only 20% more. The pricing scheme makes it easy to "upsell" (which is nothing more than a new term for "Bait and switch" IMHO).