The Story of the iPod

MacRumors · 12:17 PM

http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif

Wired pieces together the history of how the iPod came to be.

After licensing SoundJam, which was developed into iTunes, Wired reports that Apple started looking into gadget opportunities, but found that digital cameras and camcorders were pretty well designed and sold well in the marketplace. Music players at the time were a different story.

After Jon Rubenstein was shown prototype of a new 1.8" Toshiba hard drive, the pieces started to come together. As is well known, Apple looked to Pixo for the basic software, but it was Phil Schiller who suggested the use of a scroll wheel interface.

Quote:

Schiller also suggested that menus should scroll faster the longer the wheel is turned, a stroke of genius that distinguishes the iPod from the agony of competing players.

The article details the contributions of other groups in Apple as well as the origin of the name, which was originally intended to be used for an internet kiosk. The iPod was introduced October 23, 2001, almost 5 years ago, and while initial reactions were mixed, its acceptance and sales growth have been remarkable.

Jovian9 · Oct 17, 2006, 12:15 PM

Ahh yes. I remember when these were first introduced. I had alot of "tech lust" to say the least. It took me awhile to finally get one (my wife bought it as a gift) but it has been well worth it.
I no longer have 2 or 3 huge books of cd's that I carry around from car to home to other car.
I used to listen to lots and lots of music, but I didn't listen to music as much as I do now and with as much variety.
Thanks for the iPod Apple!

UberMac · Oct 17, 2006, 12:15 PM

I still love reading those comments after the launch of the iPod...look where it is now! Interesting that Phil came up with one of the best ideas - I always think of marketeers as people who sell, not think :P

Uber

MacsRgr8 · Oct 17, 2006, 12:15 PM

Nice to know Schiller was of significant importance as to why the iPod is so great.
I must admit I don't see Schiller as "one of those visionaires". But the scrollwheel coming form him is encouraging!

Chimera · Oct 17, 2006, 12:17 PM

Already read this through iLounge and it is very interesting, however it seems that every anniversary of the iPod we get a new summary of its creation with each being slightly different.

i.e. Haven't we been told before that Fadell meant to have come to Apple with the idea and some sort of preliminary mockup?

thejadedmonkey · Oct 17, 2006, 12:23 PM

Schiller.. I always assumed it was Woz who did the wheel.

Xeem · Oct 17, 2006, 12:31 PM

I love the link to the iPod's initial "mixed" reaction thread on these forums. It wasn't really mixed, so much as it was bashing and predictions of failure. Hilarious.

~Shard~ · Oct 17, 2006, 12:33 PM

Yep, it's a great little story! I got into the whole iPod universe long before the masses, and currently my 3G is still meeting my needs. Sometimes people look at it and ask what kind of iPod it is since they assume the iPod always looked like how it currently does.

And this also brings back great memories of the infamous Thread 500. Ah, good times...

Lord Blackadder · Oct 17, 2006, 12:34 PM

Yeah, that original Macrumors iPod thread is a good example of why we don't make millions of dollars designing new products...some staggeringly wrong predictions there. Imagine wanting another Newton over the iPod.

MacsRgr8 · Oct 17, 2006, 12:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xeem

I love the link to the iPod's initial "mixed" reaction thread on these forums. It wasn't really mixed, so much as it was bashing and predictions of failure. Hilarious.

Gotta love the rating too!!

CTYankee · Oct 17, 2006, 12:37 PM

those comments back in 2001 crack me up!

Whats really interesting is how people were crying for a PDA...look at the PDA market now. Palm and HP. Handspring, gone. Sony, gone. The Smartphone is the new PDA. Seems Apple nailed the market. A high quality portable music device, not another PDA that will fade away in 5 years. So now that smartphones are the future of PDA's, Apple plans to release one (maybe). Doing this they seem to have avoided the PDA bubble bursting, and get into a more stable market with the credibility of the iPod and the new momentum of the Mac market.

JONNYCHO · Oct 17, 2006, 12:40 PM

I had one of the first mp3 players a while back (forgot the name) but it really sucked, it only held about 8 songs and it was still the size of a ipod mini. Apple then blew that away about a year later with the original ipod. Oh yeah and the old mp3 player was $150

york2600 · Oct 17, 2006, 12:41 PM

I had forgotten all about SoundJam. I used in with my Rio500 (total crap). I remember being really mad when Apple nabbed it since I had paid for it. In the long run it was totally worth it though. SoundJam would never have become a 1/10th of what iTunes is now.

bigandy · Oct 17, 2006, 12:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thejadedmonkey

Schiller.. I always assumed it was Woz who did the wheel.

Woz wasn't around in Apple at the time, was he?

Zadillo · Oct 17, 2006, 12:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lord Blackadder

Yeah, that original Macrumors iPod thread is a good example of why we don't make millions of dollars designing new products...some staggeringly wrong predictions there. Imagine wanting another Newton over the iPod.

Indeed. And seriously, I was and am a huge a Newton fan, and I would have probably loved to see Apple release an updated newton (or even a new PDA using some of the Newton technology), but I have to be realistic and realize that the demand for PDA's just isn't that strong... at best Apple would be facing an uphill battle in a world of Symbian, Palm OS and Windows Mobile devices, not to mention the smartphone world taking over PDA's.

Imagine where Apple would be if they'd released a new PDA instead of the iPod.

mazola · Oct 17, 2006, 12:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zadillo

Imagine where Apple would be if they'd released a new PDA instead of the iPod.

Beleaguered?

Marx55 · Oct 17, 2006, 12:51 PM

SoundJam had an ESSENTIAL feature that is MISSING on iTunes on the Mac: RESUME playback. This is useful to listen long playlists from head to tail.

schatten · Oct 17, 2006, 12:51 PM

*sigh*
If only I had the forethought to buy AAPL stock back when the iPod was announced.

Doctor Q · Oct 17, 2006, 12:52 PM

Quote:

Great just what the world needs, another freaking MP3 player.

Quote:

The Reality Distiortion Field™ is starting to warp Steve's mind if he thinks for one second that this thing is gonna take off.

Words that will live in infamy.

spicyapple · Oct 17, 2006, 12:54 PM

No wireless. Less space than a Nomad. Lame.

mambodancer · Oct 17, 2006, 12:55 PM

Hmmm, makes me wonder if the 5th anniversary of the iPod wouldn't be a great day to introduce the next generation iPod?

BTW my 1st gen iPod is still going strong

Lord Blackadder · Oct 17, 2006, 01:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zadillo

Imagine where Apple would be if they'd released a new PDA instead of the iPod.

When the Newton MessagePad 2000 came out, I wanted one BAD. I still think they are way cool. But Apple was right to dump the Newtons and go with the iPod.

Chris Bangle · Oct 17, 2006, 01:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mambodancer

Hmmm, makes me wonder if the 5th anniversary of the iPod wouldn't be a great day to introduce the next generation iPod?

BTW my 1st gen iPod is still going strong

It would be logical to... 5 years, 6 generations, 30 years of computing experience....

mcarnes · Oct 17, 2006, 01:06 PM

The sad thing is, this kind of reaction seems to happen after every keynote.

twoodcc · Oct 17, 2006, 01:08 PM

the ipod has a remarkable story. great job apple!

Oct 17, 2006, 12:15 PM	#2
Jovian9 macrumors 68000 Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: "I'm going to make you feel punch drunk!"	Ahh yes. I remember when these were first introduced. I had alot of "tech lust" to say the least. It took me awhile to finally get one (my wife bought it as a gift) but it has been well worth it. I no longer have 2 or 3 huge books of cd's that I carry around from car to home to other car. I used to listen to lots and lots of music, but I didn't listen to music as much as I do now and with as much variety. Thanks for the iPod Apple! __________________ Maiava Jovian

Oct 17, 2006, 12:15 PM	#3
UberMac macrumors 6502 Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: England	I still love reading those comments after the launch of the iPod...look where it is now! Interesting that Phil came up with one of the best ideas - I always think of marketeers as people who sell, not think :P Uber __________________ 24 Beers in a crate, 24 hours in a day. Coincidence, I think not.

Oct 17, 2006, 12:15 PM	#4
MacsRgr8 macrumors 601 Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: The Netherlands	Nice to know Schiller was of significant importance as to why the iPod is so great. I must admit I don't see Schiller as "one of those visionaires". But the scrollwheel coming form him is encouraging! __________________ Drag and Drop for Windows users: DRAG your peecee off your desk, and DROP it in the trash.

Oct 17, 2006, 12:17 PM	#5
Chimera macrumors 6502 Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Surrey, England	Already read this through iLounge and it is very interesting, however it seems that every anniversary of the iPod we get a new summary of its creation with each being slightly different. i.e. Haven't we been told before that Fadell meant to have come to Apple with the idea and some sort of preliminary mockup? __________________ If I had more time, I would have written a shorter post

Oct 17, 2006, 12:23 PM	#6
thejadedmonkey macrumors 68040 Join Date: May 2005 Location: Pa	Schiller.. I always assumed it was Woz who did the wheel. __________________ Mac Mini G4 • MacBook Pro • iPod Nano "Good judgement comes from experience, experience comes from bad judgement. - Mark Twain

Oct 17, 2006, 12:31 PM	#7
Xeem macrumors 6502a Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: North Branch, MN	I love the link to the iPod's initial "mixed" reaction thread on these forums. It wasn't really mixed, so much as it was bashing and predictions of failure. Hilarious. __________________ Road Warriors: 12" iBook G4 1.33 GHz/1.5 GB RAM/Mobility Radeon 9550 Gaming PC: AMD Phenom 9600/4 GB RAM/Radeon 4850 Xbox Live Gamertag: Xeem

Oct 17, 2006, 12:33 PM	#8
~Shard~ macrumors Demi-God Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: 1123.6536.5321	Yep, it's a great little story! I got into the whole iPod universe long before the masses, and currently my 3G is still meeting my needs. Sometimes people look at it and ask what kind of iPod it is since they assume the iPod always looked like how it currently does. And this also brings back great memories of the infamous Thread 500. Ah, good times... __________________ My riches consist not in the extent of my possessions, but in the fewness of my wants. - J. Brotherton

Oct 17, 2006, 12:34 PM	#9
Lord Blackadder macrumors 601 Join Date: May 2004 Location: Sod off	Yeah, that original Macrumors iPod thread is a good example of why we don't make millions of dollars designing new products...some staggeringly wrong predictions there. Imagine wanting another Newton over the iPod. __________________ Digital Audio G4 w/OWC 1.4GHz/1GB/2x250GB SATA/Pioneer DVR-107D/GeForce6800GT/Panther/2005FPW 20.1" Oh, God, God, God! What on earth was I drinking last night? My head feels like there's a Frenchman living in it. - Edmund Blackadder

Oct 17, 2006, 12:37 PM	#11
CTYankee macrumors 6502 Join Date: Jul 2002	those comments back in 2001 crack me up! Whats really interesting is how people were crying for a PDA...look at the PDA market now. Palm and HP. Handspring, gone. Sony, gone. The Smartphone is the new PDA. Seems Apple nailed the market. A high quality portable music device, not another PDA that will fade away in 5 years. So now that smartphones are the future of PDA's, Apple plans to release one (maybe). Doing this they seem to have avoided the PDA bubble bursting, and get into a more stable market with the credibility of the iPod and the new momentum of the Mac market.

Oct 17, 2006, 12:40 PM	#12
JONNYCHO macrumors newbie Join Date: Oct 2006	I had one of the first mp3 players a while back (forgot the name) but it really sucked, it only held about 8 songs and it was still the size of a ipod mini. Apple then blew that away about a year later with the original ipod. Oh yeah and the old mp3 player was $150

Oct 17, 2006, 12:41 PM	#13
york2600 macrumors regular Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Antarctica & Portland, OR	SoundJam I had forgotten all about SoundJam. I used in with my Rio500 (total crap). I remember being really mad when Apple nabbed it since I had paid for it. In the long run it was totally worth it though. SoundJam would never have become a 1/10th of what iTunes is now.

Oct 17, 2006, 12:51 PM	#17
Marx55 macrumors 6502a Join Date: Jan 2005	SoundJam had an ESSENTIAL feature that is MISSING on iTunes on the Mac: RESUME playback. This is useful to listen long playlists from head to tail.

Oct 17, 2006, 12:51 PM	#18
schatten macrumors member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Cleveland, OH, USA	My biggest regret... sigh If only I had the forethought to buy AAPL stock back when the iPod was announced. __________________ --schatten You will live in happiness too, like the Oompa Loompa doopity do!

Oct 17, 2006, 12:54 PM	#20
spicyapple macrumors 68000 Join Date: Jul 2006	No wireless. Less space than a Nomad. Lame.

Oct 17, 2006, 12:55 PM	#21
mambodancer macrumors 6502 Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Denver	iPod birthday? Hmmm, makes me wonder if the 5th anniversary of the iPod wouldn't be a great day to introduce the next generation iPod? BTW my 1st gen iPod is still going strong

Oct 17, 2006, 01:06 PM	#24
mcarnes macrumors 68000 Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: USA! USA!	The sad thing is, this kind of reaction seems to happen after every keynote.

Oct 17, 2006, 01:08 PM	#25
twoodcc macrumors 603 Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Right side of wrong	the ipod has a remarkable story. great job apple! __________________ tville pump Smarter than the average bear

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