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The Original iPod Turns 15 Years Old
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I skipped the first model, found the capacity way too small for the price. But I did end up with the model that had the touch-sensitive wheel. That thing was a BEAST. Until that day I too was on the mini-disk bandwagon.
Great product, great memories. I couldn't afford / justify one until the 3rd generation, the same year I switched. From PC to Macs at home. Funny thing was, that version had Windows support and removed my need to switch to a Mac, but it was too late.
Still have it, and, actually liked it's touch interface over the click wheel. The lighted buttons, and good backlight were super fun!
Still have it, and, actually liked it's touch interface over the click wheel. The lighted buttons, and good backlight were super fun!
Ouch.. Wow. It seems like Apple gets tons of negative responses right after a new product launch, even from the fanboys! I feel like we see this happen everytime even though many of the products become smash hits. I guess we don't actually know what we want or need. We think we do though.The members of MacRumors welcomed it with open arms.
Hohoho, I can't stop looking over those old comments. Absolute gold:
"Apple should get back to making computers."
"Urgh, no iMac update? Who cares about an MP3 player."
"This product will be dead within 2 years. Guaranteed."
God bless the Internet. Great to look back and see how biblically wrong people were. There's a reason they're known as armchair CEOs.
"Apple should get back to making computers."
"Urgh, no iMac update? Who cares about an MP3 player."
"This product will be dead within 2 years. Guaranteed."
God bless the Internet. Great to look back and see how biblically wrong people were. There's a reason they're known as armchair CEOs.
And the guy in the advert is now a character in EastEnders on BBC One in the U.K.!
Did like my iPod Classic; was gutted when it decided to kiss the floor at work.
Did like my iPod Classic; was gutted when it decided to kiss the floor at work.
I've still got my 30GB iPod video which still works. Had to change the battery as it would just turn off.
Reading this thread the day before the iPod announcement, https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/rumor-roundup.491/ people speculated what the device was going to be. This post amazes me as it describes another device from Apple that would change an industry again a few years later.
Reading this thread the day before the iPod announcement, https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/rumor-roundup.491/ people speculated what the device was going to be. This post amazes me as it describes another device from Apple that would change an industry again a few years later.
Ah all you lucky people who had one! My husband was in charge of the tech buying and he was really bossy about it back then. I had a Rio. Then a Zune. They worked well though--actually still do. But even back then I could see there was something special about iPods. Sadly, I never got one. Once I got an iPhone I sort of had one, in a way.
I can't believe how the time has flown by.
I can't believe how the time has flown by.
1000 songs = entire music library!
PS. What's great about the iPod is it was only ever about the music. I think they had a couple of games but they weren't really anything much. Certainly not like today.
I only ever owned iPod Shuffles and iPhones.
PS. What's great about the iPod is it was only ever about the music. I think they had a couple of games but they weren't really anything much. Certainly not like today.
I only ever owned iPod Shuffles and iPhones.
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"It's a little disconcerting when I look back at the past, but the past still sounds like the future," Moby says. "I remember when 2002 seemed like an unimaginably far time -- like, really far away. Now it's like a distant past."
Technology is, obviously, the perfect physical encapsulation of this: "Remember those multicolored clamshell laptops that Apple had?" he says. "Now they seem old and clunky, like a weird pair of sneakers. But at the time, they just represented the future. The same thing with the iPod, at the time it was so futuristic, and now it just seems like an adorable relic."
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Does anything apple sells today feel "futuristic"?
"It's a little disconcerting when I look back at the past, but the past still sounds like the future," Moby says. "I remember when 2002 seemed like an unimaginably far time -- like, really far away. Now it's like a distant past."
Technology is, obviously, the perfect physical encapsulation of this: "Remember those multicolored clamshell laptops that Apple had?" he says. "Now they seem old and clunky, like a weird pair of sneakers. But at the time, they just represented the future. The same thing with the iPod, at the time it was so futuristic, and now it just seems like an adorable relic."
--
Does anything apple sells today feel "futuristic"?
I remember the iPod cost as much as the 5GB Toshiba hard drive inside. Except you couldn't buy the hard drive anywhere. So some photographers but an iPod just to remove the hard drive and put it in their cameras.
And we still hear the same tired things today.
As I've said before, if the MR community ran Apple they'd burn through that cash pile and be bankrupt pretty quickly.
It's a shame too as there are many good members here and they're often buried under the noise.
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I never ended up buying an iPod (aside from a 4th Gen Nano I found in a property I purchased). But it's easy to see that they're an important part of the history of Apple, what a huge impact they had.
Fifteen years later and this device still looks better than some of the devices on the market today.
The members of MacRumors welcomed it with open arms.
Hindsight is always 20/20, but it's hard not to cringe looking at some of those responses now with the benefit of 15 years of history to look back on. The guy crapping on the iPod because Apple didn't mention anything new about server technology especially is hilarious.
I'll always have a soft spot for the iPod. The iPod Nano was my first Apple product back in 2010 which lead eventually to an iPod Touch, Mac, iPhone, iPad, and various accessories. Expensive gateway drug.
It makes me sad that they are not longer cared for by Apple. I know that smartphones and tablets have overtaken the general MP3 player market, but I bought an iPod Nano last year and it is one of my favorite devices. It only does one thing and does it well. No notifications, glitchy software, physical music buttons for controlling it in the dark without having to look at the screen...it's great.
The casual MP3 market may be gone, but I believe there is still a market for an iPod Classic type devices with expansive storage and a good DAC for the hard-core music listening niche. I know I'd buy one. I love having a device *just* for music, but the iPod Nano is limited to 16GB. I'd kill for a 32 or even 64 variant.
And the iPod touch isn't a great solution because although it has the storage, it lacks good battery life and still suffers from iOS's horrible music app. Plus, it has no physical buttons for music control.
I reminisce...
It makes me sad that they are not longer cared for by Apple. I know that smartphones and tablets have overtaken the general MP3 player market, but I bought an iPod Nano last year and it is one of my favorite devices. It only does one thing and does it well. No notifications, glitchy software, physical music buttons for controlling it in the dark without having to look at the screen...it's great.
The casual MP3 market may be gone, but I believe there is still a market for an iPod Classic type devices with expansive storage and a good DAC for the hard-core music listening niche. I know I'd buy one. I love having a device *just* for music, but the iPod Nano is limited to 16GB. I'd kill for a 32 or even 64 variant.
And the iPod touch isn't a great solution because although it has the storage, it lacks good battery life and still suffers from iOS's horrible music app. Plus, it has no physical buttons for music control.
I reminisce...