The iPod Mini

The iPod Mini was released in 2004 to wide acclaim. The Mini was a smaller version of the Classic iPod and it took advantage of a smaller size hard drive that was developed by Hitachi. The hard drive was about half the size of the Classic’s hard drive. However, the storage capacity was significantly smaller. The first iPod Mini had a storage size of 4 GB, which was perfect for the many that used iPods for working out and other activities where a lighter weight and form was necessary. It included a click wheel and a smaller size screen with pretty much the same interface. It also came in five attractive colors including blue, green, pink, silver and gold. It originally listed for $249. There was a second generation iPod mini which bumped up the storage size to 6 GB, on the 2G iPod mini, the gold color was discontinued. The 2G model also had an extended battery life, going from 8 hours of audio to 18.

The iPod Nano

The iPod Mini was the beginning of the smaller size iPods. Storage was getting not only smaller, but offering higher capacities. This meant that the forms of new digital music players could be much smaller than ever before. Apple seized the opportunity to create a fully functional iPod in an extremely small form. The result was the iPod Nano.

The iPod Nano was released in September of 2005 to rave reviews. The iPod Nano was the mid level digital music player that while touted a smaller version form of the Classic iPod had a different kind of memory- flash memory. While Classic iPods had hard drives with all moving parts, the Nano was all solid state. This means that there are no moving parts which make it more reliable, especially if you shake it or drop it. The first generation iPod Nano came in either black or white, had a two inch color screen and had a storage capacity of 1 GB, 2GB and 4 GB. It should be noted that it also had the ability to view photos. The Nano was considerably smaller than the Classic, the weight of the Nano was only 1.5 oz and the measurements of the case were: 3.5 inches, by 1.6 inches by .27 inches thick. Currently there have been 4 generations of the iPod Nano.

The 2G iPod Nano

Released a year later in September of 2006, the 2G Nano came in several colors including silver, blue, green, pink, red and black. It also had larger storage capacities going all the way up to 8 GB.

The 3G iPod Nano

The third generation Nano was redesigned to give it a more bulky look. While still quite small, many found the form lacking. However, additional features were added including the ability to play video and a new interface. Storage topped out at 8 GB.

The 4G iPod Nano

The fourth generation Nano saw a return to it’s original form more or less with some slight changes and some added colors. It also includes some nifty features such as an accelerometer which allows you to shake to shuffle and added storage space going all the way up to 16 GB.

The iPod Shuffle

IPod Shuffle

Besides the iPod Nano, another product that Apple introduced to compliment its line of personal digital music players was the Shuffle. The Shuffle was released in early 2005. While it is known as the budget model of the Apple line up, it does offer a product for those consumers that are looking for a basic music player in a very small form. The Shuffle utilized flash memory just like the Nano, but it didn’t have all the bells and whistles like the Nano. The first generation Shuffle had no screen and a simple click wheel. It also had a form like many USB drives which allowed it to be directly inserted into a USB port to download music. Storage was small for the Shuffle. The first generation came with either 512 MB or 1 GB of storage capacity.

The second generation of the Shuffle was known as the clip. It was released in September of 2006 and it came in a multitude of colors. The clip was even smaller than the original shuffle at half the size. It literally clipped onto your clothing or hid in a pocket, perfect for people with active lifestyles. It also didn’t have a screen, but the interface was easy to use. However, it now required an included dock to connect to a computer.

The third generation of the Shuffle which was announced in March of 2009 is the smallest Shuffle to date. This Shuffle utilizes text to speech to alert the wearer which song is playing- since there is no display. The unit is so small that the controls are located on the right ear bud cable. The storage capacity of this device is 4 GB.