Like the nano 1st gen I wrote about earlier, this was another iPod from my past. Also, it was my immediate upgrade from my 1st gen, so I thought it only fitting to take this one out for a spin next. Another Mercari find for under ¥1,000 or so. Another instance where the seller had no idea if it worked or not. Another bet that paid off.

This silver 4GB iPod nano 3rd gen may actually be the same model I bought, if I remember correctly. Unlike in my last story, this time, I was the one with the disposable income. Well, probably not very disposable, but it at least released on a payday. In fact, the Friday it hit stores, I took the bus straight from work to the Michigan Ave Apple store. Sure, it’s celebrating consumerism and hype, but buying Apple products on launch day felt like something special.

Then came a long bus ride home. I didn’t dare take out my new treasure, as the commute happened through some of Chicago’s sketchiest areas. Is this irony?

I love the squat look of this device. Like the original iPod in chibi form. Or, like an icon of an iPod. Funnily enough, I don’t like the full-size video iPods; I find the large screens to appear top-heavy. But with the minuscule nano, it works.

I can’t help but compare this design to the 1st gen nano. Where I may prefer the simplicity of the earlier form and UI, I admit, the features of the 3rd gen are cool as heck.

First of all, video in such a minuscule device was (and still is) an extremely neat trick.

Coverflow rewards us fastidious meta-data taggers and album artwork uploaders. Finally.

Gapless playback is here, so this makes it a go-to for straight-through album listens. Shuffling by album is also possible. These devices are limited in size, as all nanos are. My solution is a handy ‘random full albums to playlist’ script from DougScripts.com. I begin every month with a random selection of albums, totaling the number of days in that month. 31 albums in January, 28 albums in February. Yeah, I have a system for most everything.

Where this model falls short for me is in the walk-and-listen operation. While the screen is larger, navigating the flashier menu isn’t as lightning-quick as the old list-based UI. Also, I find the scroll wheel to be not as responsive, but that may just be a product of the poor condition of this particular device.

As this is the most pocketable and cute iPod, it would be perfect if the old interface was available. Somewhere in Cupertino lies a prototype of a 1st/3rd gen hybrid I really want. Still, this model will stay in my iPod quiver, as long as the battery holds up…