3rd Gen iPod Shuffle = useless aluminum box.

Apple has always been a harbinger of intuitive design; in their software, hardware, and the sleek, brushed aluminum casing to house it all. I mean, who doesn't love brushed aluminum?

They were the first major tech company to realize that all the features in the world are useless if:

A) They break down all the time, and...
B) Nobody can figure out how to use them

The 2nd Generation iPod Shuffle was a coup for an Apple at the top of their game. It was tiny, minimalistic, it held just enough music, and it was solid metal and freaking beautiful. Just look at this work of art:
Apple even offered free engraving on every model ordered online. Customization. Brilliant.

That is why their latest Shuffle model...

...is such a disappointment. How are we supposed to use this thing, Apple?!

The 2nd gen Shuffle had a simple, five-button interface. Play, pause, forward, back, volume up and down. It was universal, mechanical, quick and easy. Nobody was confused. And now you go and cram the controls into three miniscule buttons on the headphone wire? What?

Apple earbuds don't fit in my ears and I know I'm not the only person to have this problem. So how are we supposed to use this new shuffle, Apple? Did you even consider in your techno-xenophobic craze that people might at least want the option to use a pair of third-party headphones?

Soon, Apple will just pick all of our music for us. And that's a shame, because I don't really like Feist.

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