Reuters Examines The Culture Of The iPod mini

A ppleis iPod mini is many things: Itis small, functional, light weight, and many consider it to be well-designed. It is also a fashion statement, according to a recent article in Reuters. The article, PluggedIn: Apple iPod Mini Reflects Personality, points out that not only has the iPod mini found a home in the hands and on the belt clips on the trendy and the fashion conscious, it seems to resonate with the individualists as well by virtue of the five available colors. Hereis a bit of the article:

"They are a point of differentiation for the individual and theyire almost a status symbol, said Tim Bajarin, an analyst at Creative Strategies. "Because of the colors and its small size, it really is an expression of personality."

Phil Leigh, an analyst at Inside Digital Media, says: "Even though those white ear buds arenit really that great, people want to wear them with an iPod so others know that theyire carrying an iPod."

And while the larger, white iPods that are about the size of a deck of playing cards have been a huge success, itis the smaller business-card-sized iPod mini that has resonated with the digerati and could spawn design innovation in other compact digital music players, analysts said.

"We can only hope," Bajarin said. "I would hope that Appleis innovation in industrial design spills out to the rest of the industry."

Thereis more information in the full article at Reuters News.