The Shuffle is based on marketing, yes--Apple's market research told them that most people only load a few mp3 files on their player and use the Shuffle feature exclusively. So, they responded to what their market was doing, and they've made thousands of dollars off it.
Now, if you're not a casual user of technology, you're going to hate the Shuffle. But for people who just want something to listen to--which is most of the music player market--the Shuffle is perfect.
I wish people would stop ignorantly bashing the Shuffle. You don't like it, don't buy it, simple as that.
Exactly! My wife got me an Ipod shuffle for my birthday last week and there hasn't been a day I haven't used it. I don't care if it has no display. All the songs I have on there are all songs I like so it doesn't matter what order they play in...I like them all. I just want something to play the music I like and it does it well w/o all the bells & whistles.
As a stockholder, I hope it's a bit more than that...
But for people who just want something to listen to--which is most of the music player market--the Shuffle is perfect.
Plus it's not unreasonably priced even compared to regular flash USB drives.