Apple has done wonders for human-friendly UI in the past, but with this latest ipod shuffle, they’ve made the cheapest part of the package, the one most likely to fail, about the most important part of the user interface. Well, that’s not entirely true; they’ve made it the only part of the user interface.

To create the world’s smallest music player, we moved the controls from iPod shuffle to the earbud cord. This allowed us to make the new iPod shuffle dramatically smaller, but not just for dramatically smaller’s sake. It’s also easier to use, with the controls located where you can access them quickly.

Judging by the photos, there’s no way to change the volume or advance to the next track without the provided ear buds; this isn’t an extension cord that you can plug your own headphones into, this is an integral part of the shitty earbuds. Prefer in-ear after-market headphones? Don’t like Apple’s earbuds? Well, fuck you, hippy. I find that Apple’s buds leak too much sound both in and out, and they tend to fall out way too easily. Add to that, they get really uncomfortable on extended wear.

Oh, they could have put an accelerometer in there to let you advance songs, or included the controls as a cord extension, but no… UI fail instead if you feel the need to use another set of phones.