When Humane’s AI Pin debuted final week, it sparked an entire new dialog in regards to the elusive dream of making screen-less gadgets. Nonetheless, it was Apple that first tried to enterprise into the realm of screen-less gadgets with the third-generation iPod Shuffle approach again in 2009. Though Apple not sells the iPod Shuffle, that one system was a precursor to what might presumably be the consumer interface of the long run, permitting you to clip the tiny MP3 participant to your shirt and management the music participant via an modern voice-and-remote interface.
The iPod Shuffle entered the market at a time when Apple’s hip music participant had already develop into a pop cultural phenomenon. Gross sales of the iPod have been skyrocketing, and Apple was a couple of years away from unveiling the iPhone. On January 11, 2005, simply minutes earlier than Apple CEO Steve Jobs concluded his Macworld keynote on the Moscone Heart, he addressed a packed viewers by asserting the iPod Shuffle for the primary time as “Another factor”. This system was totally different from the iPod we knew — it seemed like a pack of Wrigley’s gum — no click on wheel, no display screen, no arduous disk. One may need questioned if the Shuffle was even an iPod.
Nonetheless, in Steve Jobs’ thoughts, the Shuffle was geared toward low-cost flash memory-based gamers, providing not solely an enormous progress alternative for Apple but in addition serving as an entry into the Apple ecosystem. The iPod Shuffle bought for $99 and $149, relying on the storage configuration. Whereas the Shuffle lacked a show to indicate what track was enjoying, it did join with the iTunes software program, like different iPods within the lineup. Nonetheless, what stood out in regards to the Shuffle was its skill to play a set of music at random, therefore the title Shuffle.
Whereas many thought the Shuffle can be a one-off product for Apple, Jobs had one thing else in thoughts. Apple continued to launch the iPod Shuffle, beginning with its introduction, and the final vital replace got here out in 2010. The second-generation iPod Shuffle was a departure from the first-generation mannequin. It was a lot smaller, and, actually, one might put on it via a smaller clip. To cut back the scale and make it extra compact, Apple needed to convey a number of design modifications, like ditching the USB plug and changing it with a dock that synced knowledge by way of the headphone port. That iPod Shuffle got here in a bunch of enjoyable colors.
However in 2009, with the introduction of the third-generation iPod Shuffle, Apple shocked everybody. That mannequin was not solely the smallest iPod Shuffle but in addition the primary buttonless iPod ever. It was 1.8 inches tall and 0.3 inches skinny, being half the scale of its predecessor whereas providing extra storage. The $79 third-generation mannequin got here with no show, like different iPod Shuffles up to now, and had a premium design manufactured from aluminum however ditched the bodily controls, changed by the in-line controls of the bundled pair of earphones, with the one exception of a small slider that allow you to choose between enjoying songs so as, shuffling, and switching it off.
From the very starting, the iPod was all in regards to the consumer interface. The primary-generation iPod had a click on wheel, a easy and uncluttered option to management the music. On reflection, the clicking wheel allowed customers to make use of the iPod with out wanting on the display screen. The press wheel was a departure from how gadgets have been managed even then, and to some extent now, which can have improved interfaces and use subtle contact screens however require fixed consideration when you work together with them.
However like the unique iPod, the third-generation iPod Shuffle was the polar reverse — a breakthrough system, however sadly, Apple didn’t get a lot credit score. The third-generation iPod Shuffle introduced a brand-new text-to-speech system that helped customers navigate their music, in addition to a brand new distant management that Apple embedded within the earbud wire. Basically, Apple eliminated the controls from the iPod itself and moved them to the distant on the headphones. It was a special expertise of utilizing the iPod Shuffle—a non-traditional approach of how individuals used to work together with their iPods. Press it as soon as to pause the music; twice to skip to the following observe; 3 times to go to the final observe; press and maintain to listen to the artist and track title; press twice and maintain to fast-forward; press 3 times and maintain to fast-reverse. On paper, placing all of the controls on the headphones might sound nightmarish, however in actuality, the interface was very intuitive.
However the place the third-generation iPod Shuffle shone was its skill to be utterly invisible in the best way you management and work together with the music participant. Apple launched one thing referred to as VoiceOver with that mannequin, which allowed the iPod to learn details about what’s enjoying, reminiscent of studying you the title of the track and artist of the present track, and giving customers the flexibility to decide on totally different playlists. All it required was an extended press on the distant’s middle button, and the Shuffle began studying the names of your playlists; launch it once you hear the one you need to choose.
Not solely did VoiceOver make the iPod Shuffle an much more attention-grabbing product, nevertheless it additionally, in a approach, compensated for the dearth of a show to regulate playback. That being stated, VoiceOver wasn’t an entire alternative for what a show can do, and Apple understood it. The third-generation Shuffle met with a lukewarm response, and the explanation was fairly comprehensible. Regardless of being a forward-looking system, the Shuffle was restricted in options and functionalities; finding a specific track was almost not possible, and the system wasn’t designed to type all of the songs in alphabetical order; the Shuffle didn’t perceive the idea of albums.
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Positive, Apple was a button-less future with the iPod Shuffle, however there have been too many complexities. Many individuals discovered the iPod Shuffle third gen complicated to make use of, and Apple had revealed a 4-minute video tour strolling customers via the controls and options as a rescue measure. Nonetheless, one factor that irked many individuals in regards to the third-generation mannequin was that there have been no different headphones available on the market that had playback controls on a distant that labored with the Shuffle.
Apple’s experiment with the button-less iPod got here to an finish with the fourth-generation iPod Shuffle. The corporate caved in and put buttons again on the iPod, although this time the mix of the distant and VoiceOver was really profitable.
The screen-less system future had been within the works for years, nevertheless it’s not simple to crack, because it comes with many caveats. Humane’s AI Pin is taking the identical course as Apple as soon as did with the third-generation iPod Shuffle. As historical past tells us, it’s not simple to ditch buttons and screens on gadgets but.
