Apple’s Hardware Playground →

While reading through iLounge’s review of the new iPod nano, I was struck by the photographs on this page. The nano truly is Apple’s hardware playground, as the company has changed the design numerous times over the years.

That makes the nano an interesting device. Apple is much more likely to refine than re-define a product, and the iPod nano is really one of the very few examples I can think of where this isn’t the case.

So, why does Apple change the nano so often? Are the iPod hardware guys just bored?

Some have suggested that this to keep sales of the device moving forward. At $149, the iPod nano is a great gift, and Apple knows it, positioning the player as a great Christmas idea.

I can get behind this theory, but it’s interesting that Apple doesn’t do this with the less-exciting iPod shuffle and classic.