I've been waiting for someone to post a pic like this. I was wondering about the size difference between the shuffle and the nano. The shuffle, though not as fancy, still does have one advantage over the nano. The shuffle, in addition to being an iPod, without any other cables or adaptors, makes a very convenient USB Flash Drive. In fact, I probably use it more for that, than music. I also have a first generation 10Gb iPod with the movable scroll wheel that I use for music. Remember those? Geez, what a relic. Yes the battery still works, just fine. That nano though... That's the shit right there. See more comparison photos and even some disassembled nano photos here. See the new nano ad here. I must see that thing in person.
2 Responses to “iPod shuffle vs nano”
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February 15th, 2006 at 11:45 am
I am in the market to buy an Ipod for my bf. He is older (51) but I think he would enjoy one!
I do not want to get something that lets you dl 1000 songs - just something simple that doesnt overwhelm him...i figure if he likes the ipod shuffle or nano he can upgrade later if he wants more music. Basically, my question is - Shuffle or Nano?
February 23rd, 2006 at 6:53 pm
Kym, sorry abt the delay. As you can tell, I haven't been visiting my own blog as much as I should. Getting to your question... well that's a personal call.
In my case... I already had a full sized iPod. It's a first Gen 10Gb movable scroll wheel, firewire, no dock dinosaur. It still works, and I still love it to pieces. I did not need a Nano because I already had an iPod that surpassed it in features that were important to me (namely capacity and firewire). I'm not a really big fan of USB, but that's another story.
So... I bought a shuffle and to be honest, the hook for me was not that it played music and could sync with iTunes. It was rather that it was small enough and designed in such a way that it makes a really great USB memory stick. I actually use it much more for that purpose than for music. The fact that it will play my music and sync with my iTunes library is just a bonus. Now... that's me.
From your comment, I assume your bf would probably use his iPod more for "music". comparing the two iPods, in my personal opinion, the Nano trumps the Shuffle because it has a screen ( a color screen no less) and you can pick and choose your music as it plays, instead of having it shuffle your music around and playing your songs randomly. Not that there is anything wrong with the shuffle feature. You can shuffle your music with any of the other iPods as well. But the iPod shuffle won't let you scroll through a list of Artists, Genres, Song Titles, Album Titles, etc... and let you pick what you want to listen to. The other benefit to the Nano, is that it is "nearly" as compact as the Shuffle. Still not gonna be as good at acting like a USB memory stick though. It's just not built that way.
Now Apple has gone and made the decision even easier by providing a Shuffle and a Nano in the same capacity (1 Gb). And... the MSRP of the 1 Gb Nano, is $149 which is only about $20 more than the 1 Gb Shuffle I had bought some months before. (The same Shuffle is down to around $99 today).
Long story short... for music, I would pick the Nano hands down. If you like the idea of having something small enough to be a USB memory stick and don't care about having a screen, then buy the Shuffle.
Last thing... iPods tend to scratch pretty easily (especially being such a portable device). I would also buy some sort of protective case. The market is flooded with them for all iPod models. The one I am partial to is the Invisible Shield. They look great and afford lots of protection from scratches. They are removable and also have a lifetime warranty. They can be a pain in the butt to attach, but it's not too bad.
I am also now the proud owner of a 5G 60Gb iPod Video.
Hey I had to upgrade my full size iPod at some point. I do miss the firewire feature though.