Quick review

Pros : The Apple iPod Shuffle is very light and very small in size. It has a VoiceOver cues and can efficiently support podcasts and audiobooks. After the invisible MP3 player, the 3rd Generation iPod Shuffle is the next recommendation.
The Third generation ipod Shuffle also has a Flash memory installed in it (4GB), it supports digital audio standards like AIFF, Audible, MP3, AAC, Apple Lossless.

Cons: The microscopic design of 3rd Generation iPod Shuffle is very boring and unconventional, short battery life is a big concern, one has to operate the device using a pill-size remote control on the headset cord. Moreover the unconventional, and kinky controls and very few features bring down this new Shuffle iPod. Like other iPod versions, there is no FM radio or screen, thus it is a complete Digital Audio Player.

Apple’s third generation iPod Shuffle MP3 player, available in the market for $79. The tiny player is embedded with a new feature ‘VoiceOver’ which talks to you in a sweet robotic voice helping you by telling the name of song and its singer and thus reducing the stress of reading the names. It also informs the battery status when required.

One thing which makes it unfortable to use is the new control panel situated at the ear-piece rather on the main body.

Though the miniature iPod Shuffle wont be able to meet everyone’s requirements but will satisfy the people looking for an extremely sleek, light weighed and almost invisible MP3 player.

Design /Structure

You have a first glance on it, and I can bet that you won’t ask, “What it is?” The 3rd Gene iPod Shuffle is too small, even smaller and thinner than a small thumb-drive and thus go unnoticed unless it has an earpiece attached to it. Measuring 0.7 inch by 1.8 inches by 0.3 inch, this tiny and metal enclosed player is no bigger than your thumb nail, having no sign of a button or something.

The thing which is to be hated the most is that, the iPod functions are controlled from a tiny remote situated at the cable, below the right ear plug. The panel has 3 keys, two the handle the volume and the central key for various functions like forwarding ( pressing twice), pausing( pressing once), rewinding (pressing thrice) etc.
With this changed panel  the person has to bear the risk of losing the control of  the iPod if he loses the cable.
Though the cable can be replaced by a new one from any registered Apple store, for a cost of $28. The metal body enclosing the hardware is said to be eco friendly and highly recycalable.

New Features

The 3rd Generation Shuffle has added few new features to it, one of them is the addition of Voice Over which announces the name of the audiotrack and singer of the selected song. The VoiceOver facility is very useful but can be turned off using Apple’s iTunes software, if someone does not like the robotic voice of VoiceOver.

The next new feature which adores this new 3rd generation iPod Shuffle is its ability to sync and navigate in midst of the multiple playlists, audio podcasts and the audiobooks. This is also done using the VoiceOver feature, press the central key for more than 3secs and the robotic voice will then dictate the name of the various playlists in the iPod, and leave the central key and re-click it if you want to play the selected/announced playlist. Use the volume controllers to skip the playlists, if you have many playlists.

Battery

Shuffle has a 4 inch USB adapter accompanying it. The iPod gives a backup of around 10 hours after getting fully charged ( approx in 2 hrs 45 mins).

Not happy to tell

The 3rd Generation Shuffle  has many shortcomings, including the unconventional features and controls, unimpressive design. Even though the voice and structure quality is better than the previous versions (Nano and Classic). The removal of control panel from the main body is a major drawback for the product, the usability of this cable embedded control panel is questioned by many.

The lilliput player with better interaction, light and slim design, and easy navigation was unable to overshadow its shortcomings.

Related posts:

1. New iPod Shuffle Speaks
2. The Next Generation BMW 1 Series
3. Toshiba (Mini) NB205-N310 Review
4. Nokia E75 Review
5. Lenovo Thinkpad X200 Review