It seems the king of the mini MP3 players is far from losing its foothold. Relatively the size of a quarter, the iPod Shuffle is still one of the best ultra compact players on the market.

Weighing about half an ounce the iPod Shuffle is great for those just looking to take a few playlists on the road doing just as the name suggests, shuffle. The Shuffle supports multiple audio formats including MP3, protected and unprotected AAC (iTunes) and unprotected WMA. It also has a small clip that enables you to place the player just about anywhere. This tiny miracle with 1 GB of memory stores about 250 songs and has a rechargeable lithium ion that will last about 12 hours.

Critics and users find the shuffle ideal for those that like to listen to music while working out and its integration with iTunes is seamless. However, its extraordinary small size forces it to lack additional features like a screen or FM tuner.

The iPod Shuffle isn’t designed to be a workhorse media player. It is for the casual user that wants to listen to a small selection of songs while at the gym or cleaning the house without the fear of it breaking or falling. Simplicity has a new name, Shuffle.