THE IPOD SHUFFLES ON AND ON
Apple looks to end production of a device that has changed the music business
For a generation of people who lived, worked and grew up in the 2000s, the word iPod was synonymous with music. Escaping the sight of those white ear buds was nearly impossible. And despite the speed with which smartphones took over our lives, Apple kept making its digital media players without much fuss.
Not anymore.
In a statement this week, the company said it would continue selling the seventh generation iPod Touch “while supplies last” — a quiet confirmation that the age of the iPod may finally be over.
The move, while bittersweet for techies of a certain age, didn't come entirely by surprise. For years, Apple has slowly culled its line of portable media machines: the last iPod with the classic clickwheel was discontinued in 2014, and the once-popular iPod nano followed suit three years later.
“Today, the spirit of iPod lives on,” said Apple senior vice-president Greg Joswiak. “We've integrated an incredible music experience across all of our products, from the iPhone to the Apple Watch to HomePod mini, and across Mac, iPad and Apple TV.”
Right now, the thought of a single-purpose device like the iPod can feel hopelessly passé. And to an extent, Apple felt the same. The original models only played music we purchased, ripped and pirated, but they were followed by versions that played videos and, eventually, the touch screen models that persisted up to this week. But even though iPods were eventually overshadowed by the iPhone, it's hard to understate the impact they had on the company — and the people who used them.
These days, Apple is worth more than US$2 trillion and directs its attention to everything from computer processor design to Oscar-worthy movie production. In the years leading up to the original iPod's release, however, Apple was only just emerging from what iPod creator Tony Fadell called a “death spiral” in his new book.
After a string of not-quiteright leaders, prodigal chief executive Steve Jobs returned to the company and shook up its computer lineup with a slew of cheap, colourful iMacs in 1998.
Then came similarly cheery iBooks a year later. But it was arguably the first iPod, unveiled in October 2001, that set a revived Apple down a different path — one that cemented its place in people's pockets, not just on their desks.
In the past, Apple had dabbled with other super-portable gadgets in the past, such as some ill-fated digital cameras and the early PDA. But according to Leander Kahney, author of the book The Cult of iPod, the company's first MP3 player was different.
“It really was a marvellous gadget,” he said.
“So easy to use and the source of so much joy and pleasure — because of the music it contained, of course.
“And it was the product that totally transformed Apple, laid the groundwork for the iPhone and kick-started massive growth.”