One thing you can count on with gadgets is that sooner or later, they become obsolete and are retired to gadget heaven. Apple has announced that it ending the iPod product after 21 years. It is definitely an end of an era.
The original iPod was introduced on October 23, 2001. In a crowd of MP3 players at the time, it was the first to have the ability to store up to 1,000 songs and provide a 10-hour battery in a 6.5-inch size gadget that you could put in a shirt pocket.
Over the course of the past 21 years, the iPod evolved with expanded storage capacity and was also the foundation for spin-offs and variations, such as the iPod Nano, Mini, Shuffle, Video iPod, and iPod Touch. Of course, other companies tried to “horn in” on Apple’s success, remember the Zune Player?
Let’s face it, if it weren’t for the iPod, we might not have had the iPhone in the same time frame it was introduced in – or other smartphones or that matter. All of which now include more music playback capability than any iPod or related device offered.
Today, the iPod experience has been integrated across Apple’s product line — from iPhone and Apple Watch to iPad and Mac — along with access to more than 90 million songs and over 30,000 playlists available via Apple Music.
However, for iPod fans, the story is quite over yet as Apple is still making the latest version of the iPod Touch available as long as supplies last.
Ecoustics has followed the iPod story since the beginning and there are dozens of archived articles about iPods, iPod variants, iPod docks, iPod music systems, and anything else you want to know about the iPod on our site. Just go to our search bar and type in “IPOD”.
Do you still own and use an iPod or one of its related devices for music listening? If so, comment below and tell us your story, such as when you purchased your first one and what you like and/or didn’t like about it.
Notable iPods
Apple iPod mini (2nd Generation, 2005)
Apple iPod shuffle (Original, 1st Generation, 2005)
Apple iPod shuffle (2nd Generation, 2006)
Apple iPod nano (2nd Generation, 2006)
Apple iPod nano (3rd Generation, 2007)
Apple Introduces iPod touch (1st Generation, 2007)
Apple iPod Shuffle (3rd Generation, 2009)
Apple iPod nano (6th Generation, 2010)
Apple iPod nano Update (6th Generation, 2011)
Apple iPod touch (5th Generation, 2012)
Apple iPod nano (7th Generation, 2012)
Steven Denfeld
May 12, 2022 at 3:34 am
This hits surprisingly deep for me. My first and only iPod was the Video iPod and it outlasted the Shure IEMs I bought with it. In fact, if I had a new 32-pin charger, it’d still work just fine. I made so many playlists and expanded my overall music consciousness through that device. Though it was my only iPod, the lasting impact it made on me is immeasurable. RIP