You might have heard some discussing the state of Apple Music on the iPod nano and shuffle, two products that just got a minor facelift alongside a larger refresh for their bigger brother, the iPod touch. And you might have already guessed that streaming to the devices was a no-go from the lack of Wi-Fi capabilities, but it turns out you won’t even be able to store your offline Apple Music collection on the devices either.
The reason, according to sources, is simply to prevent piracy…
By not allowing users to sync their offline songs to the iPod nano and shuffle, Apple can guarantee that users aren’t able to keep a collection of songs on their device after cancelling their Apple Music subscription. That’s unlike other iOS devices that have access to the iOS Music app and Wi-Fi that Apple can use to authenticate an active Apple Music subscription.
So, if you try to sync offline Apple Music tracks to your iPod nano or shuffle, you’ll simply get a warning from iTunes that “Apple Music songs cannot be copied to an iPod.”
It seems like Apple could have worked around this problem with new software to accommodate authentication of Apple Music subscriptions through iTunes once a month, at least for users that want to take that step to get their offline tracks into their new iPod nano or shuffle.
But for now, your non-touch iPod will be limited to your purchased iTunes or DRM-free music, and Apple Music won’t be much use if you’re planning on keeping the nano or shuffle alive by picking up one of the refreshed units in new colors launched this week.
