The TUAW source claims that the transition is in the iPod line and that the two iPods will be killed off. The iPod line has been around for a long time and all of them use flash storage today except the classic that uses a normal HDD to store its tunes. The shuffle on the other hand is the only iPod that has no LCD and is only marginally cheaper than the nano minus the screen.

Another fact supporting the axe of the iPods is that once these two are gone all of the line will use touchscreens. Considering Apple has made a name for itself in the touchscreen world over the years that is no surprise either. Naturally, the identity of the source isn’t divulged, but TUAW notes the source isn’t an analyst. My money is on someone in the supply chain that may have knowledge of cancelled orders.

[via TUAW]

The only remaining hardware control on the PMP is a three-position switch, which powers off the iPod Shuffle, sets it to play in order or in random mode.  Volume, play/pause and track skip control is now shifted to the headphone cable; VoiceOver will also read out the names of playlists.

Battery life is 10hrs continuous playback from the li-polymer battery.  The new Apple iPod Shuffle 4GB is available now, priced at $79, in both black and silver. 

Press Release:

Apple Announces Incredible New iPod Shuffle

World’s Smallest Music Player Now Talks to You

CUPERTINO, Calif., March 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Apple(R) today introduced the all-new iPod(R) shuffle, the world’s smallest music player at nearly half of the size of the previous model, and the first music player that talks to you. The revolutionary new VoiceOver feature enables iPod shuffle to speak your song titles, artists and playlist names. The third generation iPod shuffle is significantly smaller than a AA battery, holds up to 1,000 songs and is easier to use with all of the controls conveniently located on the earphone cord. With the press of a button, you can play, pause, adjust volume, switch playlists and hear the name of the song and artist. iPod shuffle features a gorgeous new aluminum design with a built-in stainless steel clip that makes it ultra-wearable.

“Imagine your music player talking to you, telling you your song titles, artists and playlist names,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s vice president of iPod and iPhone(TM) Product Marketing. “The amazingly small new iPod shuffle takes a revolutionary approach to how you listen to your music by talking to you, also making it the first iPod shuffle with playlists.”

iPod shuffle is based on Apple’s incredibly popular shuffle feature, which randomly selects songs from your music library. And now, when you can’t remember the name of a song or an artist playing, with the press of a button iPod shuffle tells you the name of the song and artist. iPod shuffle can even tell you status information, such as battery life. With the ability to hold up to 1,000 songs and the VoiceOver feature, you can now easily switch between multiple playlists on your iPod shuffle. iPod shuffle can speak 14 languages including English, Czech, Dutch, French, German, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish and Turkish.

The new iPod shuffle comes in silver or black and features a sleek and ultra-wearable design with a built-in stainless steel clip. iPod shuffle is the smallest music player in the world and is incredibly easy to clip to almost anything and take with you everywhere you go. iPod shuffle features up to 10 hours of battery life.*

Pricing & Availability

The third generation 4GB iPod shuffle is now shipping and comes in silver or black for a suggested price of $79 (US) through the Apple Store(R) (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers. iPod shuffle comes with the Apple Earphones with Remote and the iPod shuffle USB cable. iPod shuffle requires a Mac(R) with a USB 2.0 port, Mac OS(R) X v10.4.11 or later and iTunes(R) 8.1 or later; or a Windows PC with a USB 2.0 port and Windows Vista, Windows XP Home or Professional (Service Pack 3) or later and iTunes 8.1.

*Battery life and number of charge cycles vary by use and settings. See www.apple.com/batteries for more information. Song capacity is based on four minutes per song and 128-Kbps AAC encoding; in 256-Kbps AAC format, song capacity is up to 500 songs; actual capacity varies by encoding method and bit rate.

According to the tipster – who is credited with accurately predicting the Mac mini, Pro and iMac announcements last week – the new iPod Shuffle will also use a new dock/sync cable.  The black Apple iPod Shuffle 4GB will be product code MC164 while the silver Apple iPod Shuffle 4GB will be product code MB867.

No word on pricing, but the current 2GB iPod Shuffle retails for around $65.  The Apple Store is expected to return at around 8:30 AM Eastern time.

Update: The new Apple iPod Shuffle 4GB is confirmed

The Simpsons have been around long enough that they could slap their name on just about anything and it’d end up selling to several of their faithful fans.  Well now they’re getting into technology and selling custom engraved iPods.

Granted, they will quite obviously cost a little extra, but this limited edition set is definitely worth a look.  They are selling a few different styles that are engraved onto different sizes of iPods.

Each one can also be customized to add your name or whatever else you might want, which is obviously going to cost even more extra.  These are limited edition though so you’ll have to move fast, there are only 2000 of each.  They are selling the iPod Classic 160GB ($439), Classic 80GB ($329), Nano 8GB and 4GB ($269 and $219), Shuffle 1GB and 2GB ($89 and $109) and finally the iPod Touch 8GB, 16GB and 32GB ($389, $499 and $599).

[via chipchick]

Using a non-replaceable rechargeable battery, Creative are promising up to 9hrs playback from a single charge. Music is transferred to the PMP via its built-in USB 2.0 plug, and hooking it up to the computer also recharges it. MP3, WMA/WMA (DRM9) and Audible Format 2,3,4 files are all supported, and Creative tentatively suggest you can fit 133hrs of WMA-encoded music onto the 4GB storage.

An FM radio is also present, with 32 preset slots. Voice recording is also supported. The T200 measures 2.5 x 7.63 x 0.86-inches and weighs 20.6g. No US price has been revealed, but the 2GB version is on sale on Creative’s site for $49.99 and the 4GB will sell for 6980 yen ($67.38) in Japan.

[via Akihabara]

The cases, which come in red, black, blue, pink, orange and white, are made from “the most luxurious pebble stone Italian leather”. It has a little keychain attachment as well so you can hang your Shuffle where ever you please. It will also, of course, give you that extra bit of protection incase you’re into accident prone.

One of these cases will cost you about $16. I have to say, though, if you do decide to buy one and you opt for the white, you’re a fool.

[via ChipChick]

You get your choice of gold or silver, both are jewelry grade, whatever that means, then you get your choice of regular crystals, or pink crystals, embedded into the metal of your choice making up a fashionable shiny shiny iPod case. On a side note, the crystals are all apparently Swarovski crystals, the value of which I am sure is constantly diminished since they are putting them in everything these days, I even saw them on a pencil the other day.

The price tags depend on model and metal primarily, but the number of crystals is also a factor. The cheapest case, at $55, is for the latest version of Shuffle (also the smallest), its made with silver and has a single (albeit larger than the others) crystal on it, the most expensive is $200, and is probably for either the 5G iPod or the iPhone, they also sell a cleaning cloth, and a velvet pouch to keep the thing safe in.

Gilty Couture adds bling to gizmos [via ubergizmo]

No wonder why Cracker Jack isn’t selling, how do you compete with a third-world country’s ice cream shop being able to afford to give out 10,000 iPod Shuffles? Anyways, the company worked with Apple to find a way to hide the Shuffles in the popsicles without ruining the iPods, and they did it, and now you have a chance to get one if you live in Brazil and really like ice cream. And, as close as that place is to the equator, I’d assume everyone likes ice cream there.

No word on how much the popsicles cost, but I just think its cool as hell that they managed to stuff them in with a Popsicle. And of course, they are only available in Brazil, so if you have some vacation time and really wanted an iPod Shuffle, Brazil might not be a bad option.

iSicles: Brazilian Company Hides iPod Shuffles in Popsicles [via Gearlog]

In fact they are fixing one of the few flaws of the shuffle, the lack of a screen for navigational purposes. Then they are upping the storage to iPod Nano levels with 4GB for the Zen Stone Plus.

They are also adding FM radio functionality. The best part, its all going to fit in the same package as the regular model, and the screen is an OLED screen, which means the battery life won’t suffer a drastic loss. No word on price or availability, but it was kind of a leak anyways.

Creative to one-up iPod shuffle with 4GB ZEN [via MacNN]

So they have the possible iPhone-like iPod being announced, a fat Nano that might rear its ugly head, and then what about the Shuffle? Well instead of leaving it well enough alone they are going to add the player to the PRODUCT (RED) line, so it’s a win-win, Apple doesn’t have to leave any of its line of players out of the announcement and they get to do some charity work.

I kind of like the idea of giving money to a charity whose goal is to help rid the world of the AIDS virus. I like even more the idea of pimping a new bright, shiny, metallic red Shuffle if they don’t release a new full sized iPod.

Apple iPod shuffle PRODUCT (RED) to drop September 5th [via MyiTablet]

The people from USB Fever thing otherwise though as they have made a silicon case in the shape of a watch band. It comes in 6 colors.

The color list is as follows: blue, green, pink, purple, black, and white. They are available now for a mere $10. It seems the greatest inventions these days are the most simple ones.

iPod Shuffle Watch Band [via gadgettastic]

The car PC should pack enough of a punch for the average driver. Look for an Intel Core Duo and 7.1 channel audio and DVI-out. One of the biggest issues with car PC’s is that you generally have to get a special adapter to shut down the PC when the car is turned off. You won’t have to worry about that with this little guy, it’s already built-in.

I enjoy the thought of having a PC in my car, but I honestly can’t think of a good reason for me to have anything other than my laptop in there. I’m sure there are plenty of audiophiles that would get plenty of use out of one of these though.

Shuttle Car PC: A Techier Way to Die [via gizmodo]

The IncipioBud is great for travel, as you no longer need to pack the dock and cables. Just put the included lanyard on this tiny adapter and hope you don’t lose it. Priced at $5.99. Works with both Mac and PC.

IncipioBud USB Connector For iPod Shuffle 2G [Via: OhGizmo]

This Is Palm [via Gear Diary]

Wraptor For The iPod [Via: Techie Diva]