new iPod Shuffles Apple announced the new, more colorful iPod shuffle yesterday. Yes, they look like tictacs or chicklets or some other colorful candy. And I don’t just want one! I want one of each color! The clip design is pretty impressive to being with - sturdy, utilitarian, stylish as all get out. Add color and you have an even bigger hit. (And, apparently, take a picture of 5 across some female model’s chest and you have your front page ad. I guess that’s not really out of the ordinary.)

Since it’s Apple, the only thing they have to change is the color to make a big splash. Same price: $79. Same size: 1GB. Same battery life: 12 hours. Same incredibly low weight: 0.55 ounce. But now, Apple’s product is even more prominent when you clip it to your coat, bag or shirt. As an added bonus, it’s now easier to find your shuffle in among a bag of cables and accessories too!

Now you can accessorize with your Shuffle in Silver, Pink, Green, Blue and Orange. The colors almost match the iPod middle child’s colors too. (The Nano comes in Silver, Green, Blue, Pink and Black as well as a special edition candy-apple red.) $79 is way cheaper than most high fashion accessories and the Shuffle is far more useful.

I have a Shuffle actually, one of the original pack-of-gum sized white plastic ones. I love it - it’s light, indestructible and feels like a Lego. I don’t use it nearly as much as I could but I love it on trips because it’s small, light and doesn’t need recharging all that often. I have utterly no need for any of these cute little colored clips that happen to also play music. None. But I still want them. All of them.

Think about it… I could pre-load each of them by mood.

  • Green: Bouncy, work-out music
  • Blue: Mellow, morning music
  • Pink: Fast, intense music that makes me drive too fast
  • Orange: Truly random music
  • Silver: Romantic, sappy music

Luckily I really don’t need another iPod and I won’t be able to justify one and especially not 5! But wouldn’t it be fun? (And really, if I were going to do the above, wouldn’t it make way more sense to get a bigger iPod and make playlists? Hush! That is not the point!)

$79 seems a deal for a trendy and cute little 1GB music player. But then you see the iPod nano - still cute, but for a little over twice the price ($199) you can get 8x the storage! As you keep looking you discover that for a mere $50 more than that ($249) you can get almost 4x the storage of the nano and video capabilities by purchasing the full sized iPod. There’s definitely an opportunity to upsell yourself here. Depending on your needs, wants, wishes and desires, you may end up back at the Shuffle - it’s darned cute and 240 songs is enough for your commute all week. Or the Shuffle is a 2nd iPod, or the “go to the gym” iPod or the like. The iPod shuffle definitely has its niche, appeal and irresistibility combined with a sweet price point.

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