iPod shuffle (1st generation)
Discontinued 2 Sept 2006On sale for 1 year, 8 months, from 11 Jan 2005.
Announced
11 Jan 2005
Released
11 Jan 2005
Discontinued
2 Sept 2006
Lifespan
1 year, 8 months
Launch price from
$99
- Category
- iPod Shuffle
- Status
- Discontinued
- Apple support status
- Obsolete (Apple no longer services it)
- Release type
- Refresh of an existing model
- Replaced by
- iPod shuffle (2nd generation)
- Official Apple page
- No longer available on Apple’s website
- Tech specs
- Apple specs ↗
- Press release
- Apple Newsroom ↗
- More information
- iPod Shuffle on Wikipedia ↗
Notes
The iPod shuffle (1st generation) cost $99 and was the first iPod that did not show you anything. There was no screen and no click wheel, just a ring of buttons around a play button on the front, and the music came out in whatever order it chose.
Two versions went on sale together. The 512MB one held around 120 songs at $99, and the 1GB one held around 240 at $149. Both used flash memory rather than a hard disk, which is why there was nothing inside to skip when it was jolted.
A switch on the back had three positions: off, play in order, and shuffle. Next to it sat a button that lit up to show how much battery was left, which was as close as the iPod shuffle (1st generation) came to having a display. Apple quoted 12 hours of playback, and sold a battery pack taking two AAA cells for $29 that added about 20 more.
The bottom end pulled off to reveal a USB plug, so it went straight into a computer with no cable at all and worked as a memory stick as well as a music player. A second cap with a lanyard came in the box. The whole thing weighed 22 grams, and Steve Jobs described it on stage as smaller and lighter than a packet of chewing gum.
It was announced on 11 January 2005 at Macworld Expo in San Francisco. Both versions went on sale the same day, priced at $99 for 512MB and $149 for 1GB.
Read about the iPod mini (1st generation) that it sat beneath in the range.
iPod shuffle (4th generation, Mid 2015)
Discontinued
2017 discontinued 27 Jul27 Jul 2017
iPod shuffle (4th generation, Late 2012)
Discontinued
2015 discontinued 15 Jul15 Jul 2015
iPod shuffle (4th generation)
Discontinued
2012 discontinued 12 Sept12 Sept 2012
iPod shuffle (3rd generation)
Discontinued
2010 discontinued 1 Sept1 Sept 2010
iPod shuffle (2nd generation)
Discontinued
2009 discontinued 11 Mar11 Mar 2009
iPod Shuffle release history
- 2017
-
27 Jul 2017
iPod shuffle (4th generation, Mid 2015)
- ↑ about 2 years later
- 2015
-
15 Jul 2015
iPod shuffle (4th generation, Mid 2015)
iPod shuffle (4th generation, Late 2012)
- ↑ 2 years, 10 months later
- 2012
-
12 Sept 2012
iPod shuffle (4th generation, Late 2012)
iPod shuffle (4th generation)
- ↑ about 2 years later
- 2010
-
1 Sept 2010
iPod shuffle (4th generation)
iPod shuffle (3rd generation)
- ↑ 1 year, 6 months later
- 2009
-
11 Mar 2009
iPod shuffle (3rd generation)
iPod shuffle (2nd generation)
- ↑ 2 years, 4 months later
- 2006
-
3 Nov 2006
iPod shuffle (2nd generation)
- ↑ 2 months later
-
2 Sept 2006
iPod shuffle (1st generation)
- ↑ 1 year, 8 months later
- 2005
-
11 Jan 2005
iPod shuffle (1st generation)