Ars Technica tortures the second gen iPod shuffle

Ars Technica’s Jacqui Cheng puts the second generation iPod shuffle through its paces, reviewing not only the essential elements of usability, but also taking the time to step on it, drop it from a third floor balcony, immerse it in beer, and run over it with her car. Turns out the 2G shuffle is pretty darn resilient to most forms of abuse and even, seemingly, has some inadvertent safety features built-in.

I then took the shuffle out running with me. Clipped securely to my Ars hoodie, there was little danger of the shuffle falling…so I removed it from the hoodie and held it in-hand. After nearly six attempts to drop it with the headphones in my ears, I realized that the shuffle is too lightweight to even detach from the headphones when dropped. It just falls and dangles, never coming into contact with the cold, hard pavement. I was forced to be creative, so I simply draped the headphones over the back of my neck and dropped the shuffle.

That said, Jacqui does have some criticisms of the littlest iPod, specifically that it’s user interface is less intuitive than your average iPod, given the lack of a screen and cryptic color status lights that make The Da Vinci Code seem crystal clear. Still, she gives the shuffle a 7 out of 10 (or, if you prefer Ars’s notation, a VII out of X).