Get a grip on the Apple iPod Shuffle 2012 (pictures)
Take a closer look at Apple's iPod Shuffle, a fitness-friendly MP3 player available for $49.
Donald Bell
Donald Bell has spent more than five years as a CNET senior editor, reviewing everything from MP3 players to the first three generations of the Apple iPad. He currently devotes his time to producing How To content for CNET, as well as weekly episodes of CNET's Top 5 video series.
The latest iPod Shuffle seems impossibly small. Measuring 1.24 inches wide by 1.14 inches tall by 0.34 inch thick, it's practically a musical postage stamp.
The only relatively new feature added to the iPod Shuffle in recent years is a VoiceOver button located on the top edge of the player. Pressing this microscopic button once will cause a synthetic voice to announce the artist and song title of the currently playing song.
Unlike the previous generation of the iPod Shuffle (lower in the picture), which deliberately left a space on the front of the player for an easy grip, it is nearly impossible to pinch the clip on this design without accidentally pressing the back-skip button in the process.