Unless you were born yesterday you probably heard about the iPod or maybe you even owned one of the many models that Apple released.
The story of the iPod starts in 2001 when the first model was launched and ends, well, seemingly late – in 2019. However, I feel that the iPod has been slowly ‘dying’ over the last 10 years. With technology development, more storage is available on our phones than on the first iPod. It is said on BBC News that, ‘ the first iPod […] could store 1,000 tracks’. It might have been a big number in 2001 but nowadays we can access millions of songs on popular streaming platforms like Spotify or Apple Music.
However, what I believe is worth mentioning is the impact the iPod had on our culture and the way we think about music, and how we listen to it. As mentioned in the BBC News article, in the early 2000s the music industry was faced with a massive issue of illegally downloading music and sharing it. The article suggests that the issue was somewhat solved with the development of the first iPod as well as iTunes.
What else did the iPod revolutionize? In my opinion, it made music more available to its users. You no longer needed a cassette or a cd – you had all you needed in one small and simple to use the device. After all, the simplicity and the easy-to-use UI is what attracts people to Apple products.
To sum up, I believe that the iPod was a great product in the 2000s and early 2010s. However, with technological development, there is no longer a need for a device like the iPod.
Were you surprised that new iPods were still launched till 2019? What are your thoughts on the topic?
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I remember having a gold color iPod when I was younger, don’t know which model though. I was a fad back then. It is a pretty smart way of tackling the illegal download issue for songs while gaining market dominance for the Apple brand name.
In my opinion iPods were really useful as for example I used one as a hard drive for music in my car. But times change, nevertheless my iPods will remain in my collection forever as now they are becoming a collectibles, especially full sets in good condition
It used to be a revolutionary device that time, I hope they come with anniversary model just for collection purposes
I think that back in the 2000s, it was a valuable and innovative device. However, the development of mobile phones combined with internet accessibility made listening to music extremely easy nowadays. What is more, almost all songs and similar files are stored in the cloud.