Apple released a new iPod Shuffle on Tuesday. The new version 3 iPod Shuffle’s form factor has significantly changed. It is not more like a little stick of gum instead of a cube. This change mirrors the change seen in the iPod Nano line that occurred last September.
There are only two colors: silver and black. The rainbow of colors has disappeared from the line. The weight of the new shuffles are 30% lighter, coming in at only 0.38 ounces.
The last change is the price. The new Shuffle costs $74 (US) to purchase. This is a $5 increase, although you do get 4GB of storage.
There is a new feature with the iPod Shuffle, VoiceOver. VoiceOver provides voices for navigation with the iPod shuffle. It will allow you to determine what the name of the song and artist with the press of a button. With the addition of VoiceOver you can now also have multiple playlists on the iPod Shuffle, since you will know which playlist is going on. This will be much better than having a single playlist.
The VoiceOver features is available in 14 different languages, which is a smart move on Apple’s part. This will allow you to hear everything under a different language. It will be a robotic voice, but it will still allow access.
If you want to give it a try, go for it. It might work quite well as an iPod for working out, however, it is small and more easily prone to being lost.
