PC Mag: Shuffle a "Very Good Choice"

by , 4:15 AM EST, February 14th, 2005

The Apple iPod shuffle is "an outstanding example" of "minimalism" despite it needing a navigation display, Bill Machrone concludes in his review of the product in the newest issue of PC Magazine, dated March 8.

Mr. Machrone writes that the shuffle is a "highly competent" music player with "dead-flat frequency response, less harmonic distortion, and most notably, better bass response than its bigger siblings" and "drives its earbuds well and hard without resorting to artificial bass boost.

"For such a diminutive player, the iPod shuffle was extraordinarily loud," he wrote. "We managed to drive the shuffle into thermal shutdown with our high-volume tests, but we doubt that any user will ever experience this."

But it was the lack of a display that irritated Mr. Machrone most: "We admire the functional simplicity of the shuffle, and recognize there are times (such as during a workout) that you won't miss the display (and will be happy to do without the extra weight it necessitates). Still, overall we prefer a player with a navigation window. When we use random play on our personal digital audio player, we often find that it stimulates a musical mood; we'll then switch to a specific playlist or group of albums."

PC Mag's Bill Machrone like the iPod shuffle's size and audio quality, but isn't crazy about its lack of a display.

In giving the shuffle a four-point out of five, or "very good", rating, Mr. Machrone concludes, "so if you want a low-cost player that stores just hundreds (as opposed to thousands) of songs and don't need to see what's playing, the iPod shuffle is a very good choice."