From the world’s most popular music player to the day it died

Apple has just decided to stop manufacturing the iPod, ending the 21-year journey of many ups and downs of the music player line.

1,000 songs in your pocket

The first generation of iPods was released by Apple in October 2001 with the famous quote of Steve Jobs: “1,000 songs in your pocket”. The device has a rectangular design with a shiny steel frame surrounding it, weighing 180 grams. The device comes with headphones, capable of storing 1,000 songs.

Since its introduction in 2001, Apple has sold more than 450 million iPods. Last year, the company also sold about 3 million devices.

Apple uses Toshiba’s 1.8-inch hard drive but has the capacity to store 1,000 songs. Thanks to that, “Apple defect” develops a digital music player with a compact size like the Sony Walkman, but with the largest storage capacity on the market.

In addition, Apple acquired the company that developed the MP3 player software, the foundation of iTunes later. The software allows users to manage digital music libraries and quickly create their own playlists.

Due to the high price of $399, the first generation iPod sold only 400,000 units. Three years later, the company released the iPod Mini with an aluminum case and a variety of color options and priced at $249. As a result, sales of the product exploded. By the end of 2005, Apple had sold 22.5 million iPods. The company continued to expand the influence of the iPod Mini by releasing a version of iTunes for Windows computers.

Apple replaced the iPod Mini with a thinner version called the Nano, which starts at $200. iPod Nano continued to help “Apple House” nearly double sales, to 40 million devices the following year.

The iPod’s most important role, however, was as a “catalyst” for the creation of the iPhone. The iPhone was built on the blend of software and services that made the iPod successful. iTunes allows customers to back up iPhones and put music on the device. Meanwhile, the App Store allows users to download and pay for software and services.

After the first generation, the company expanded the product range with models such as iPod Shuffle, iPod Nano, iPod Classic and iPod Touch. Since 2017, the company has only produced the iPod Touch. In particular, the 7th generation iPod Touch is the last version, launched in 2019. The product has a 4-inch screen and is equipped with the same A10 Fusion processor chip as the iPhone 7.

However, when the iPhone was born and was a great success, the iPod became increasingly inferior. Apple also no longer focuses on this device line as it used to. In July 2017, the company announced the death of the iPod Shuffle and iPod Nano.

Deciding to die

On May 11, Apple also announced the cessation of production for the iPod Touch product line. This means that the iPod brand is dead. Apple’s new announcement means that one of the world’s most famous music player brands, the iPod, is officially discontinued after more than 20 years on the market.

The company also said that the iPod Touches currently on sale at the Apple Store are final products, and will not continue to be replenished when out of stock.

Earlier this year, Apple considered introducing a new version or stopping production of the iPod Touch. The company has the final decision to end the life of this product line. Despite the death of the iPod, Greg Joswiak, Apple’s vice president of global marketing, insists that the spirit of the music player lives on in the iPhone, Apple Watch, Apple TV and HomePod mini.