10 ms·
Apple Apparently Discontinues iPod Nano and iPod Shuffle
- twoodfin 9y agoOne step closer to ditching the iTunes app on the Mac?
- jandrese 9y agoNot updated since 2010 or 2012, and declining sales? I wonder if there is any possibility that these two facts were related? The shuffle in particular seems to still have a place as a super portable player you use while jogging or biking or whatever, but was hampered in recent years by lack of support for Airpods. I get that the usage model is "just use your phone", but phones are not always a great size for this.
- keltex 9y agoMy wife loves them for running. She told me to order 2 immediately before they run out of stock.
- VeejayRampay 9y agoNo wonder she does, they're fantastic due to the clip and light weight.
- maxxxxx 9y agoSame here. I have a very old Nano for hiking and running. Using a phone is not a replacement for this. Can the Apple Watch be used as player?
- jpalomaki 9y agoApple Watch is the new portable music player.
- alistairSH 9y agoCan it play music independent of a phone? I don't want to carry a phone with me when running. No good place to put it. Likewise in the gym - I'm moving around, so any pocket is likely to be a problem for at least some portion of the workout (back pocket - benchpress, side pocket - stretching and yoga, etc).
- 27182818284 9y agoNot...really. You can do some playlist-like stuff, but not really. It isn't there yet but it is definitely on the horizon. Not hard to imagine an Apple Watch talking directly to your AirPods and skipping the phone at a point in the future.
- sathomasga 9y agoYes...really. I regularly run with just my Apple Watch and a pair of bluetooth earbuds. Works fine.
- polpo 9y agoYes, you can sync a playlist to the watch so it can play it independently: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204691 https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204691
- alistairSH 9y agoCool. Didn't know that. I was leaning towards picking up a Garmin Fenix, but this makes the Apple Watch a bit more compelling. Still not sure I can deal with the frequent charging. Hmmmm. Edit - nevermind - looks like only a single playlist can be synced. That's a pretty major flaw in the system.
- 9y ago
- ksk 9y agoOther than the size aspect they don't really replicate the UX experience of a tiny device with dedicated media buttons. Specialized devices used for specialized purposes will always perform better than general devices.
- tajen 9y agoThey should sell the original iPod Nano with the wheel, it was awesome.
- mixmastamyk 9y agoHow so? We gave our daughter ours, but the dependence on iTunes sucks.
- mcone 9y agoI'm probably in the minority here, but I don't want my children having access to the internet or apps before the age of 10. The iPad Nano was the perfect device for this. The kids can listen to all the music they want without the baggage that comes with the iPod Touch.
- limeblack 9y agoI don't agree with the 1st statement really, but if you have seen the movie Baby Driver then I can under the nostalgia you are talking about. There is still a market for old ipods like you are talking about for this reason.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- pc86 9y agoI would never run with my 6S Plus. It's approximately as wide as my bicep and aside from looking ridiculous, would just be too heavy to comfortably run with. The 5S I had was pushing it even with the big strap I had. I've considered buying a Shuffle now as I don't really care what order the music is in, but I don't know if the Forerunner I have will connect to it (everything I've read in my cursory search specifically says "phone").
- npongratz 9y agoThe Shuffle supports loading multiple playlists, which you can set in any order you like. You can also choose "shuffle" mode (in other words, you're not stuck with "shuffle" playback on the iPod Shuffle). Assuming you mean Toyota 4Runner: As long as your 4Runner has an aux port, you should be able to connect the Shuffle with a male-to-male audio extension cable.
- BurningFrog 9y agoYeah, a tiny and cheap player with GBs of music is ideal for running or leaving in your car. Does no one make that anymore?
- dkonofalski 9y agoI have some very fond memories of my iPods Nano (is that really how we have to say it?). Farewell, old friend.
- freehunter 9y ago>(is that really how we have to say it?) I can't imagine why. Most formally it would be "iPod Nano devices", but most people would say "iPod Nanos". You only pluralize the words that there are actually multiple of. You may talk about a Member of Parliament, but you wouldn't have Member of Parliaments because you're not talking about multiple Parliaments. You're talking about multiple members and a singular Parliament, so it's Members of Parliament. Your city has a Chamber of Commerce, but your state has many Chambers of Commerce. But with the iPod Nano, it's not multiple iPods and a singular Nano. It's multiple "iPod Nano" devices. So you'd just say "iPod Nanos".
- currymj 9y agoif Nano is an adjective though then it might be like the classic "Attorney General"/"Attorneys General".
- freehunter 9y agoNano is part of a brand name, not an adjective: https://www.apple.com/legal/intellectual-property/trademark/appletmlist.html https://www.apple.com/legal/intellectual-property/trademark/...
- robmass94 9y agoI think a better example would be "Attorneys General." Edit: Beaten to the punch!
- dkonofalski 9y agoThe Whopper Jr. would like to have a word with you. I did have multiple iPods because the iPod is the name of the device and the "Nano" piece is a descriptive adjective of which iPod it is.
- rjsw 9y agoI have a 6G Nano. It has a great UI but the physical buttons are really fragile. It cost me less to get a new dumb phone plus a SD card than is would have done to get the Nano repaired.
- oneeyedpigeon 9y agoWho's making good portable digital music players nowadays? In particular, looking for a replacement for the iPod classic.
- kyyd 9y agofiio
- simlevesque 9y agofiios are OK. They don't support large sized micro sd and the ui sucks.
- vinaysshenoy 9y agoPeople who buy Fiio don't buy them for the UI. The audio quality that comes out of a Fiio player is phenomenal.
- simlevesque 9y agoYeah that's true, but it does not cut it for me. If I have over 300 artists, a good UI is a necessity IMO. I'd like to have it all, Fiios with a good UI.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- freehunter 9y agoThe market is pretty much locked up between the Sandisk Clip and the Sony Walkman. Some of their models offer micro SD slots too.
- coredog64 9y agoMany of the Sandisk models can have their firmware replaced by Rockbox if that's your thing.
- VeejayRampay 9y agoiPod Shuffle is the best there is for running, buuuut I suppose it endangers Apple's business model and profitability so it needs to be sent to a farm upstate.
- Tiktaalik 9y agoDisappointing but expected as these devices haven't been updated in forever. It's clear that Apple wants the Watch to be the new small scale iPod for fitness use, but I really don't need all that fancy tech and the corresponding high price of the Watch.
- Brendinooo 9y agoI wonder when enough of the relevant patents for the iPod Classics expire that someone can use the tech to create their own take on it? I have to think there are profits available for someone who takes the old chassis and builds on the form factor. EDIT: Just looked over the Fiio line. Are they using the same tech as Apple? Does the scroll wheel feel pretty similar?
- yourapostasy 9y agoThe iPod Shuffle is the perfect form factor for my specific use case: I plug a second generation model into the gym's sound system (I work out at 3 am, I'm the only one there at the time), leaving my phone to run the fitness app and heart rate monitor. It recharges as fast as my bike blinkies when I get back, and because I listen to the exact same workout playlist every time, I don't have to fidget with the tracks on it. There are still scads of these units on eBay after a quick check, so I'll probably scoop up a couple, because the Apple UI to load the simple playlist is what I use for all my other music devices, so switching to a different UI would just be more overhead for me at this point. With some re-branding, these could be re-positioned as children's first music devices. They can be priced cheap enough to give to really young children without stressing over losing them, say $30 USD. It would still suck, but not in the same way as if a child lost an iPhone 7. And it gets children into Apple's ecosystem early, and the children can even use the UI themselves because the constrained environment makes drastically simplifying the UI possible. I think Apple is giving up an opportunity here to create an advertising platform for their ecosystem that is paid by their own customers.
- dmix 9y agoIf you're not carrying it while you run how is the tiny iPod Shuffle perfect form factor? You're just "plugging it into the sound system"? I personally leave my big Nexus 6P on the ground on top of my towel next to machines while I work out, connecting to headphones via bluetooth with a $40 headphone amp that clips onto to my shirt or shorts: https://www.amazon.com/Creative-Headphone-Amplifier-Integrated-Smartphones/dp/B00J2JATL0 https://www.amazon.com/Creative-Headphone-Amplifier-Integrat... Works well for me and the sound is great (despite the fact it's made by Creative and not overpriced autophile-ware). Now that Bluetooth headphones are a thing I don't see the utility in the shuffle anymore. I bet Apple views bluetooth headphones as the portable iPod killer more than anything...
- yourapostasy 9y agoWhen I go early enough, there is no one there. They let me plug my iPod Shuffle into the sound system via the headphone jack, and enjoy the experience of working out with my playlist going out over the speakers. It's not the same as when I have headphones on; not better, just different, and I like the change. When I work out with other gym customers present, I use my headphones. I agree that with Bluetooth headphones going in the $20-30 range, the use of headphone jack-based devices will go down over time. But there are a lot of those jacks out there in the world, so it will take a long time.
- wodenokoto 9y agoWhat is a good shuffle alternative?