Quick Takes: Do the IPod Shuffle

Apple's economical IPod Shuffle differs from the pricier IPods in two major ways: It stores music on flash memory rather than on a hard drive, and it dispenses with an LCD display, an omission Apple is spinning as a virtue. Adding track randomization--or "shuffle"--to the petite player, the company is marketing the device's lack of track information as an experience in aural spontaneity. If you can live without track navigation, you'll find that the IPod Shuffle sounds terrific, and--at $99 for a 512MB player and $149 for a 1GB player--it comes with a very appealing price.