ipod: RIP Apple iPod (2001-2022): Why it can never be forgotten – Times of India

More than 20 years ago, Steve Jobs introduced the world to the iPod. Jobs in his own inimitable style went on to introduce a rather tiny looking gadget and perhaps changed the world like never before. The launch of the iPad in 20011 changed — not just the way you used music — but also started a deep connection with personal technology and gadgets. The iPod bought music everywhere but it also created the habit — good or bad that depending on your perspective — of not stepping out with a gadget. Now that Apple has officially discontinued the iPod, it is fair to say that it truly is the end of an era.

The iPod was the start of Apple 2.0

The calendar era in the world has been divided into Anno Domini (AD) and Before Christ (BC). The era of new tech — and more so for Apple —can similarly be divided into AI and BI: After iPod and Before iPod. The iPod was the start of a new era for Apple. It won’t be inaccurate to say that perhaps if there was no iPod then you wouldn’t have seen an iPhone. It is something that Jobs also hinted at when he unveiled the first iPhone to the world in 2007. He said about the iPhone— not once, but twice — “an iPod, a phone and an internet communicator” while the audience broke into raptures. The iPod was also named one of the many things that inspired the birth of the iPhone.
In true Apple style, the iPod wasn’t the first digital player. But it was a first if its kind, never-seen-before gadget. Music — or MP3 players — were around before the iPod came along but they weren’t “cool”. The promise of a “1000 songs in your pocket” made the iPod not just cool and trendy but also one of the first iconic new tech products. The iPod — for many — was also the first gadget they ever bought. That personal connection that people have with gadgets now wasn’t there till the iPod came along. It was THE accessory to have and it was truly a great product.

Now one might argue that The Walkman was the first gadget to give a sense of companionship. Here’s the thing though about The Walkman— it was high on utility but it could be infuriating. The batteries were always running out, the headphones – cheap ones – would give terrible sound quality and the whole deal with audio cassettes had become cumbersome. After rewinding or forwarding songs multiple times, the tape invariably got stuck and ruined the mechanism. The iPod redefined and changed everything about listening to music on the go.
That’s why it helped Apple fill its coffers as well. In 2007, it was reported that 48% of Apple’s $7.1 billion quarterly revenue came from the iPod. In 2006-07, according to Statista, iPod’s contribution to Apple’s total revenue was close to 40%. The iPod was truly one of the first key products of Apple 2.0 under Jobs. The iPhone and iPad created the cult of Jobs but the seeds of that cult were sown by the iPod.
Jobs somehow knew what would click. When he unveiled the iPod — he took the iPod from his jeans pocket — and said, “No one has found the recipe yet for digital music. And we think not only can we find the recipe, but we think the Apple brand is going to be fantastic, because people trust the Apple brand to get their great digital electronics from … we’re introducing a product today that takes us exactly there, and that product is called iPod.”
Read those words again. “We think the Apple brand is going to be fantastic”. As the sun sets on the iPod, Apple’s market capitalisation value is close to $2.5 trillion. Apple is the most valuable company in the world and has products that are recognised — and sold — all over the world. The iPod may have disappeared slowly into oblivion but it did its job.

Enter the hallowed gates of the Apple ecosystem

Apple ruled the roost in the early 2000s. Samsung wasn’t the behemoth that it is now — at least not in smartphones and other categories. The Chinese invasion of the technology world hadn’t started. OnePlus 1 was still 2 and Xiaomi and Realme weren’t even born. The magic of the iPod was that it made Apple a cool company. That’s not to say that Apple wasn’t cool earlier — the Macintosh ensured that — but it wasn’t the Apple you and we know today. The iPod kickstarted an era of dominance for Apple. The iPod was the product that got Apple in households across the world. Till the iPod, Apple was just a company that made computers — and that too expensive ones. As hard as Apple tried, Microsoft was way cooler than Apple.

The iPod changed the dynamics of the tech industry. It also brought back the focus on how products are designed. Apple kept it simple and then kept on tweaking the iPod design. Some may have liked the iPod nano or some may have liked the classic iPod — but what never changed was how the iPod was always great to look at and easy to use. The iPod in that sense also helped push Mac devices as well. It was reported that the week after the iPod was launched, iTunes was downloaded by 2.75 lakh people.
There was a time when Apple may have wanted this aura of being an elusive company. iPod changed all that and gave birth to the hallowed gardens of the Apple ecosystem. There was no concept of creating an ecosystem of devices until the iPod. Apple, however, was betting on it and knew that once people got into that ecosystem it would have been hard to leave.
Some might point out that the iPod in all its forms actually died a quiet death a few years back. For the last few years, the sales have been declining steadily — only one model was available. There was not even a dedicated tab for iPod anymore on the Apple site – it is hidden under the Music tab. It was quite obvious for a while now that the iPod will be killed. However, the way the iPod lent a personal touch, no other device did. And perhaps that’s why even the expected demise of the iPod will evoke a great sense of nostalgia for many years to come.