Ask HN: Best iPod Shuffle Alternative?

[ingvul]

I own an ipod shuffle 4th generation (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPod_Shuffle) that still works fine. I love it. It works great, the buttons are responsive, the battery is good and, above all, the size if perfect. The only downside is its capacity: "only" 2 GB. Now, 2 GB is a lot of music (for me) and for all these years it was enough... but somehow I need more space.

Do you know a good alternative to the ipod shuffle? I've been googling and there are a lot of chinese mp3 players, but I'm doubtful of their quality (when it comes to physical buttons or touch screens). I'm looking for this:

- small size. This is a must - I don't mind if it doesn't have a touch screen - at least 5 GB (sd card would be better) - decent battery - jack connector. Although I would love to use bluetooth, but I'm very skeptical of anything but Apple when it comes to bluetooth - clip to hang. Optional - plug and play. I don't want to install any extra software to transfer music from my pc/mac. Optional as well, but desirable

[marshmallow_12]

why would you even want something with no screen? I find there are many generic, chinese sansaclip clones out there. All of them use virtually identical software, and they really do quite a good job. Bluetooth, mp3/mp4, colour screens even text files. They are not at all expensive and come with micro sd slots and good battery, so they are really quite complete. I'm not majorly into sound quality, but they seem ok to me. And if you like this stuff, you can even download rockbox, which is literally a whole box of tricks.(edit: as far as putting music on it, it's basically just plug and play. Also they are surpisingly waterproof)

So my answer to you is to go after one of those cheap chinese things. I would choose one even over a sandisk purely based on how much better they feel. I can't find my precise version at this moment, but i think they are basically all the same. If you are scared to listen to me, go for a small sandisk with an sd slot.

My question is though, is there any true replacement for the Nano 7? I'm talking in terms of it's form factor and screen/general quality.

[_twor → marshmallow_12]

From the plethora of websites selling Chinese electronics, have you used one you could recommend here?

[marshmallow_12 → _twor]

i can't remember any specific models. But i don't honestly think theres that much difference between any of them. Find one with proper buttons for about 15 to 20 pounds.

[gnatman]

Check out the SanDisk/Sansa Clip!

[suyula]

If you're happy to overpay a LOT, check out the Sandisk Sansa Clip. They've been discontinued by the manufacturer, sadly.

When mine broke after about 5 years I replaced it with a used iPod Classic, which you can get pretty cheap but doesn't meet your requirements.

[senjindarashiva]

The clip seems to be an extra but I've had good experiences with the supplier before: http://www.cowonglobal.com/product/iAUDIOE3/

[hkiely]

The Sandisk Sansa is the best name brand alternative with removable flash storage.

[offtop5]

I'd personally buy a 50$ Android phone and install a music playing app.

[_6vhu]

I see price isn’t a listed factor in your decision, so I’m going suggest the Apple Watch.

[john-doe]

Nokia feature phone + 32GB SD card

[speedgoose]

Have you considered a smart watch?