Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

This Week Marks the 20th Anniversary of the iPod and 30th Anniversary of the PowerBook

While the iPod has almost disappeared from Apple’s current line-up, having an iPod is still important in my life. Well, technically it’s an iPhone (1st gen SE), but its small size fits in my pocket easily, with the headphone jack I can plug in my headphones or connect it to the aux cable in my car and play my favourite tunes, all the while saving battery life on my iPhone.

Secondly, the current iPod Touch in my opinion is a rip off and you’re better off getting a 1st gen SE instead. In the UK, the iPod is £200 but I got my SE for half the price on iOutlet. It‘s performance is effectively the same as the A10 fusion chip in the iPod is underclocked, but it has a bigger battery and it can make calls if needed as a back-up phone.
 
  • Like
Reactions: klasma
The new MBP to be announced in an hour or so, would not be called MacBook Pro but something different. Perhaps PowerMac?
 
Ah, I remember the PowerBook well. I had one. I had an online friend who interned at Apple at the time and (I was so trusting in those days) he used my CC to buy it and the Apple leather notebook bag at the Apple employee discount prices. Not only did he do it but he had it shipped to me very fast. He never used my CC info for anything else, either. Never even met the guy in person. He was much more advanced in Mac programming than I was at the time.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ronntaylor
tothemoonsands said:
Imagine a 20th anniversary iPod re-launch. Similar design and functionality as an iPod, but adds in some modern features. Support for Airpods. Wifi for direct downloading from Apple Music (no computer syncing required). Enhanced battery life. What else?
Click to expand...
...podcasts, maybe even those tiny videos on the screen which I loved (and it would still work for most Youtube content), large (>200gb) flash drive, headphone jack, priced at 300...
I would resubscribe to Apple Music immediately! Dedicated devices for media that are worth dedicating a device to!
 
  • Like
Reactions: tothemoonsands
That PowerBook video pretty much sums up Apple without Steve Jobs. I am sure that he was laughing his butt off from his office at NeXT or Pixar lol
 
The iPod really started it all, didn't it? I was already a diehard Mac user at the time, but seeing how they applied the then-classic Apple philosophy to a music player was just incredible. It seemed a little expensive but after a few months I bought a refurbished iPod... which then had severe battery issues and I was able to have it replaced under warranty and ended up with a brand-new one.

I remember this ended the days of having sleeves of cassettes or CDs in my car. It let me take an incredible amount of music with me everywhere I went. It also made people think I was a smoker, because of the square-shaped bulge in my pocket. Those were the days, now we're all sporting square bulges and even fewer people smoke. Ha.

I'd like to think I saw the revolution coming. I'd like to think that I foresaw the convergence of devices that were slowly becoming such a big part of our lives. But I was just along for the ride like everyone else.

I still have my original iPod, and it still works... unfortunately I don't have a firewire-based computer to get any new music on it. The LCD screen and scroll wheel seem quaint now. I have a collection of other old gear, like the ill-fated iPod Photo... that are also just gathering dust along side an old AirPort router. I still even have miles (well, not quite miles) of phone cord used for an early AppleTalk network. Maybe it's time to clean out the cord box.
 
  • Like
Reactions: RichardGroves
Followed in 1992 by the first recall of Powerbook batteries which could overheat and melt through through the case.
 
  • Haha
Reactions: Gnomeo86
I just love the presentation style of the guys who unveiled the PowerBook. They are so natural and funny. Nothing like the robot-like, rehearsed-to-death, over-the-top presentations Apple does today.
 
  • Like
Reactions: klasma
I also still have an iPod nano. Great for biking or doing anything where you want music and do not want your phone to break if you crash.
 
tyche said:
No wireless. Less space than a Nomad. Lame.

Slashdot is forever famous for their iPod thought.
Click to expand...
It is kinda a shame how now if you disagree with these peeps with a, “hey, I think the iPod is a great idea” you’re just called a Apple Fanboy.
 
CopyChief said:
... unfortunately I don't have a firewire-based computer to get any new music on it. The LCD screen and scroll wheel seem quaint now. I have a collection of other old gear, like the ill-fated iPod Photo... that are also just gathering dust along side an old AirPort router. I still even have miles (well, not quite miles) of phone cord used for an early AppleTalk network. Maybe it's time to clean out the cord box.
Click to expand...
CopyChief I am now contemplating on trying to put a SSD into my original iPod; I still have a B&W G3(G4 upgraded) which I might be able to re-install the software, either that or just make a disk image of it. But yeah, it would be better if I could figure a way to my MacPro; wonder if today's iTunes/Music (Finder) would even recognize it.
 
Still remember drooling over the first gen iPod after having owned and used a few other early, terrible MP3 players. Eventually they released a Windows compatible version of the first gen that required MusicMatch Jukebox to sync files (iTunes for Windows was released the following year).

I bought and installed a PCI FireWire card in my Windows PC the same day I bought an iPod. I still remember how impressive the transfer speeds were, even if MusicMatch was terrible.

That iPod eventually led to me buying an iBook the following year.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back