Apple - iPod shuffle

http://www.apple.com/ipodshuffle/

Why I got Steph an iPod Shuffle
So I had this $100 Gift Card from Best Buy and I couldn't find anything to purchase for myself. Well I'm sure I could have bought one of those light sabers or a CF card or something like that, but i couldn't find anything I really wanted or needed for that matter.

So, Stephanie wanted an iPod for working out and whatnot. I thought hey the shuffle is 99 bucks, its small, supposedly sounds good and has that aire of Apple cool about it.

So I ordered one. Then I thought man that's cheap, why would someone get thier lady friend the cheapest one out there. Maybe this is like buying CZ instead of a diamond...then I started thinking about it.

This may be the coolest iPod out there. No, I'm not trying to make myself feel better about cheaping out...heres why. I use my iPod for 2 things, the first is sitting on my mantle in its dock plugged into a set of Klipsch ProMedia speakers (the best computer speakers ever, by the way.) As a home stereo system I like being able to scroll through the music and choose whats playing. Occasionally I will shuffle the entire thing when I am cleaning or something like that but normally I pick the artist and play entire albums.

The second way I use it is on my motorcycle or when I'm out walking the dog. I set it to shuffle put it in my pocket and clip the remote to my t-shirt or jacket. Usually I shuffle a playlist or an artist or what ever. The point is that I don't take it out of my pocket the whole time and i use the tiny remote to skip the trash that comes up.

Enter the iPod Shuffle...the whole thing is a tiny remote that allows you to skip songs, adjust volume, pause, play and whatnot. Bonus points for not having a heavy expensive thing bouncing around in your pocket. Basically you plug this thing into your computer, put you favorite 5 albums of the day on there and off you go.

I got the smaller one (512MB) because you have to plug it into a computer to charge it, thus you can change the songs at any time. My Ipod is full of music, I never delete anything because I like having everything with me. For a cross country motorcycle trip this is ideal. To ride my bicycle a few miles its overkill. I'd pocket the 20gig, put it on shuffle and use the remote to skip around.

Anyway, I think the Shuffle is a cool idea...it may lack menus, displays and large capacity but for what its for it does an increadible job. I'll have to borrow it.