True, but I think that was a combination of several things. First, Jobs wanted to draw attention to the Mac platform, and having it be exclusive to the Mac, at least for a time, helped with the "Switcher" campaign launched in the summer of 2002. Second, and more important, the iPod was put together very quickly (according to the Macworld article, Apple hired a consultant in February 2001, had a very rough prototype in April, and started shipping in November 2001). Apple didn't have the capacity to build very many (or the desire) since it was new and untested ground for the company, and the industry. Apple worked out the kinks the first time around and then quickly improved upon it. Third, it needed Firewire since USB 2.0 wasn't common back then and USB 1.1 was too slow. Few Windows PCs had Firewire, so it wasn't until a USB 2.0 version was available that it could be usable by the Windows crowd.
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iPod Turns 10 Years Old Today
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True, but I think that was a combination of several things. First, Jobs wanted to draw attention to the Mac platform, and having it be exclusive to the Mac, at least for a time, helped with the "Switcher" campaign launched in the summer of 2002. Second, and more important, the iPod was put together very quickly (according to the Macworld article, Apple hired a consultant in February 2001, had a very rough prototype in April, and started shipping in November 2001). Apple didn't have the capacity to build very many (or the desire) since it was new and untested ground for the company, and the industry. Apple worked out the kinks the first time around and then quickly improved upon it. Third, it needed Firewire since USB 2.0 wasn't common back then and USB 1.1 was too slow. Few Windows PCs had Firewire, so it wasn't until a USB 2.0 version was available that it could be usable by the Windows crowd.
but they did do that.
thats like saying, if the packers didnt win all those games, they wouldn't have won the super bowl.
Are you serious? There is no better way to quickly find your music than with click wheel.
The 3rd gen 15GB was my first Apple product. Without it I probably never would have switched over to Apple for all my computer needs.
I was watching the All Things D interview with Steve Jobs and Bill Gates the other day and when he mentioned that iTunes is the best software available for Windows it brought back a ton of memories of the just how horrible it was trying to sync an iPod in WinXP before iTunes was released.
I was watching the All Things D interview with Steve Jobs and Bill Gates the other day and when he mentioned that iTunes is the best software available for Windows it brought back a ton of memories of the just how horrible it was trying to sync an iPod in WinXP before iTunes was released.
I still have the original 5GB one working. I replaced the battery and used it. Recently I gave it to my father in law and he is enjoying it!! Nothing stops it.
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Never question THE JOBS.
Never question THE JOBS.
The iPod really turned things around for Apple. It's too bad that it's being left at the wayside. I guess that's just the evolution of technology, though.
I remember pre/circa-ipod release Mp3 players...they were terrible.
I had (in no particular order):
An iRiver something or other that was shaped like a stick and total POS software-wise. Thats all I remember
Compaq iPaq: Got it for christmas to replace my iriver. This thing was a actually all right, it was very light and all flash. But storage was limited and you had a very small screen. And the transfer program wasn't all that great. I ended up just syncing once a year. I think it held like 256mb or something...maybe 512.
Nomad: this honking beast could hold a lot of files, but they were organized in folders just like explorer....not very fun to navigate and heavy as heck. It felt like I had 3.5 inch HD in there! All 6gb of it.
Eventually I gave up on Mp3 players and got a MD player What a pain that was, although it made me feel so futuristic and still miss it...wish that was still a viable format. I had a recorder player in one unit but still needed a hifi to transfer, and a ton of little discs just like in the scifi movies. Too bad transferring all my music and playlist to MD took literally DAYS and $$$$. But it was so mechanical and tiny with a million moving parts..it was awesome. It was also not mac compatible which really sealed it once I moved to laptops. Oh, and the ATRAC software was a DRM and interface disaster.
Until I had an iphone I had no portable music really, and I ended up getting a classic for the car too.
Thanks ipod!
I had (in no particular order):
An iRiver something or other that was shaped like a stick and total POS software-wise. Thats all I remember
Compaq iPaq: Got it for christmas to replace my iriver. This thing was a actually all right, it was very light and all flash. But storage was limited and you had a very small screen. And the transfer program wasn't all that great. I ended up just syncing once a year. I think it held like 256mb or something...maybe 512.
Nomad: this honking beast could hold a lot of files, but they were organized in folders just like explorer....not very fun to navigate and heavy as heck. It felt like I had 3.5 inch HD in there! All 6gb of it.
Eventually I gave up on Mp3 players and got a MD player What a pain that was, although it made me feel so futuristic and still miss it...wish that was still a viable format. I had a recorder player in one unit but still needed a hifi to transfer, and a ton of little discs just like in the scifi movies. Too bad transferring all my music and playlist to MD took literally DAYS and $$$$. But it was so mechanical and tiny with a million moving parts..it was awesome. It was also not mac compatible which really sealed it once I moved to laptops. Oh, and the ATRAC software was a DRM and interface disaster.
Until I had an iphone I had no portable music really, and I ended up getting a classic for the car too.
Thanks ipod!
Still have mine - and funny story:
A friend of mine got the exact next serial-number on his iPod!
A friend of mine got the exact next serial-number on his iPod!
What do you even mean? It makes perfect sense. Why would you want to be known as the company holding onto tech 10, 15 years old? No self-respecting tech company should be interested in embracing the past that isn't the point. Hope you pre-ordered Steve's bio, you are going to learn a lot about this guy trust me.
They're not killing the iPod line. Do you have an iPhone? Do you use both to listen to music? Wouldn't you agree having an iPhone cuts down on consumer need for an iPod?
The pt is - you are. Everyone in the iPhone and iPad forums are. Not Apple. They're just selling innovation; not 'generations.
I use mine for my car so no, I would not agree with you
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It took me until Febuary 2002 to justify the $400 purchase the iPod.
One of the best uses for the iPod was as a (tiny for its time) portable hard drive. I could use it to transport all my Photoshop files. A small FireWire external drive of the same capacity was well over $200 at the time.
And the iPod was an amazing music player on top of it.
Anyone who used that first iPod knew it was going to be huge some day. However, no one could have predicted the incredible success that followed.
It took me until Febuary 2002 to justify the $400 purchase the iPod.
One of the best uses for the iPod was as a (tiny for its time) portable hard drive. I could use it to transport all my Photoshop files. A small FireWire external drive of the same capacity was well over $200 at the time.
And the iPod was an amazing music player on top of it.
Anyone who used that first iPod knew it was going to be huge some day. However, no one could have predicted the incredible success that followed.
There's still a need for a device like iPod. Unlike phones, music players don't have contract and serve specific needs (iPod Classic for example). Just stop defending Apple's moves with reasons that don't even make sense.
Agree with the reason, wish Apple doesn't kill the iPod line
I disagree. They aren't "showing it any love" because the iPod classic is at its pinnacle already. There isn't any need to update the old gal - there's nowhere to go. After all these years, it is still the best-in-class classic MP3 player. It has a massive hard drive for music, movies, and photos and that classic design/UI. There aren't even any major competitors left challenging it for dominance of that space. They've all moved on and/or canceled their offerings. Likewise the Nano and Touch still serve their purposes really well. Though it was unfortunate Apple didn't upgrade the Touch with the new chips, it was probably cost/power issues since the Touch has to be sold for less than a contract iPhone and the Touch is thinner so it has less room for batteries. But still, it would've been nice to keep the Touch up-to-date. You *can* also get a non-contract iPhone.
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Anyway, Happy Birthday iPod!
iPod = the real "Think Different" campaign
The iPod did more to get people to Think Different about their electronic devices than any advertising campaign ever could.
The iPod showed the world what Mac users had been raving about for so many years. Before the iPod, the majority of consumers saw user experience as a squishy distraction from the hard numbers of speed, storage and installed base.
It's hard to imagine now how prevalent that attitude was back then -- and this is proof of how revolutionary Apple was.
Naysayers can quibble all they want about who invented what hardware or UI device, but nobody can argue that Jobs changed our collective mind. Even if Apple goes out of business tomorrow, it is immortalized in this mass perspective shift. All companies in Apple's space -- including Microsoft, Google and Samsung -- must adopt Apple's once revolutionary stance to even compete.
iPod was the turning point.
The iPod did more to get people to Think Different about their electronic devices than any advertising campaign ever could.
The iPod showed the world what Mac users had been raving about for so many years. Before the iPod, the majority of consumers saw user experience as a squishy distraction from the hard numbers of speed, storage and installed base.
It's hard to imagine now how prevalent that attitude was back then -- and this is proof of how revolutionary Apple was.
Naysayers can quibble all they want about who invented what hardware or UI device, but nobody can argue that Jobs changed our collective mind. Even if Apple goes out of business tomorrow, it is immortalized in this mass perspective shift. All companies in Apple's space -- including Microsoft, Google and Samsung -- must adopt Apple's once revolutionary stance to even compete.
iPod was the turning point.
The iPod Mini was, INDEED, the major blowout in terms of creating a dominant iPod culture. It simply wiped all other "competitors" off the market back then.
And what is EVEN more incredible was Apple's move to kill it and replace it with the Nano...SJ's boldness at that point cannot be overstated.
Happy Birthday iPod!!!
Too bad Apple FAILED(hard) at celebrating your birthday. Unless you call painting the iPod Touch white celebrating.
Too bad Apple FAILED(hard) at celebrating your birthday. Unless you call painting the iPod Touch white celebrating.
For Christmas in 2000, I bought myself an Iomega HipZip MP3 player. I thought I was cool at first, but the reality of how bad it was sunk in pretty quickly: it used interchangeable 40-MB discs that held about 12 songs, and the buttons and interface were really hard to use.
I put it away (I think I still have it somewhere) and swore off MP3 players. While it looked much better, I never could justify the cost of an iPod until 2009 when I got a Mac and the iPod Touch 2nd Gen. was thrown in for free. I used it all the time. When I cracked the screen last year, I quickly bought a 4th Gen. I take my iPod everywhere I go - even if I don't need it - my best friend jokingly calls the iPod "my wife."
I can't wait to get an iPhone when my current Windows phone contract expires...
I put it away (I think I still have it somewhere) and swore off MP3 players. While it looked much better, I never could justify the cost of an iPod until 2009 when I got a Mac and the iPod Touch 2nd Gen. was thrown in for free. I used it all the time. When I cracked the screen last year, I quickly bought a 4th Gen. I take my iPod everywhere I go - even if I don't need it - my best friend jokingly calls the iPod "my wife."
I can't wait to get an iPhone when my current Windows phone contract expires...
The current Nano is much more than a touch screen shuffle. And like I said, I don't see it as a downgrade, I see it as an upgrade. The Nano was becoming a monster with the camera (useless, yet another camera, the digital clock of the 00s) and the video support (on such a tiny screen). It was a mess. The 6th gen Nano brought back the whole reason to have a Nano to begin with. A very small and competent music player.
It's usefulness was upgraded in my eyes with the 6th generation. It's the one that finally justified the cost for me to drag around a separate music player instead of relying on my cellphone.
I absolutely loved my silver 4GB iPod Mini, was a great device and used it for years without any trouble before I got an iPod Touch and then an iPhone. I really do miss that click wheel in a way.
