It hasn't been discontinued yet, so why can't you buy one before it does? It will still work fine after it's discontinued and probably well after you are able to get a driver's license.
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Tim Cook: iPod is a 'Declining Business'
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Um... what? You want Apple to invest more into this dying market to gain 35+ more customers?
I am sure "iPod market" is declining in aggregate - that is if you combine all iPod Classic, Nano, Shuffle, and Touch lines. I was referring just to iPod Touch line - it is here to stay. iPod Touch is more of an 'iPhone Lite" than "iPod", so it needs to be treated distinctly from iPod-the-music-player (Shuffle/Nano/Classic).
If you think "there is no market for iPod Touch" - you're living on a different planet than I am.
Lastly, Nano is going to continue to live on as a wearable - i.e. part of a future iWatch.
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Yep....
I bought an iPod Classic *just* for this purpose, a couple years ago. To this day, it usually just sits in the center console of my car, attached to the special USB connector cable for the iPod. The car stereo integration with it is excellent, and not having it in there would feel like I ripped a nice feature out of my stereo.
I understand why Apple might be ready to discontinue these ... but all of the vehicles designed specifically to integrate with them will ensure a viable used market for them, for years to come.
I bought an iPod Classic *just* for this purpose, a couple years ago. To this day, it usually just sits in the center console of my car, attached to the special USB connector cable for the iPod. The car stereo integration with it is excellent, and not having it in there would feel like I ripped a nice feature out of my stereo.
I understand why Apple might be ready to discontinue these ... but all of the vehicles designed specifically to integrate with them will ensure a viable used market for them, for years to come.
Except that you don't need iPod Classic to do this. You can just get a 256GB USB stick (about $35 on eBay these days), fill it up with music, plug it into your car USB port, and use car stereo controls to navigate your content. That's what I do on a daily basis.
Yeah... I was thinking about the full iPod line. My bad.
I dunno though... when was the last time Apple updated the iPod Touch? It doesn't seem to be getting the love anymore.
The truth is... Apple is not selling as many iPods as they used to... including the iPod Touch. Apple didn't even mention iPod units sales in their earnings report.
But they used to.
I will agree that the iPod Touch is a great device... but it doesn't look like Apple feels the same way about it.
They didn't refresh it during the last cycle because there was no compelling reason to. Certainly, iPod Touch line will take a backseat to iPhones/iPads, but will I suspect Apple will continue refreshing it every couple of years.
Also, with all the recent rumors about Apple TV becoming an iOS Gaming console with App Store - iOS devices will be able to act as game controllers. iPod Touch will make for a perfect iOS Controller if/when this comes true.
apple will never, ever switch ipods to removable media. it's cheaper to build them in as few piece as possible.
but it's moot, because youre also wrong -- ipod sales are declining because more people are using their smartphones to store music. pure and simple.
Still using my Classic for almost 10 years.
Agreed!
I've had my 80 gig, fifth gen Classic since 2005. It was tough juggling my music collection. Then two years ago (2012) my wife surprised me with a 160 gig sixth gen Classic. I still use both. The 80 gig which is 9 years old doesn't hold a charge for very long (maybe 4 hours) but it's still great!
The Classic is still the best option for music collector/lovers.
Agreed!
I've had my 80 gig, fifth gen Classic since 2005. It was tough juggling my music collection. Then two years ago (2012) my wife surprised me with a 160 gig sixth gen Classic. I still use both. The 80 gig which is 9 years old doesn't hold a charge for very long (maybe 4 hours) but it's still great!
The Classic is still the best option for music collector/lovers.
It doesn't need it. It's just weird that it doesn't have it even though every other iPod and iPhone does. It suggests that they've abandoned it. But anyway, I wouldn't want Lightning on an iPod Classic. Apple wouldn't have cared and would have put Lightning on it immediately if it was ever going to be updated.
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Should be the same… My Honda sometimes can't even play a playlist properly. It loops after 4 songs on some occasions. In my experience, everything else treats iPhones and iPods the same, and it works.
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Haha
i remember when i got my first apple product a ipod touch the 3rd gen in 2009. was the best thing ever and used it for about 3 years till i got a 3GS.
but its true ipods have been declining since now everybody has a iphone so why would i need a ipod touch?
but its true ipods have been declining since now everybody has a iphone so why would i need a ipod touch?
It's been on a downward course for like 12 consecutive quarters? My point stands.... the iPod ran it's course and is slowly but surely being phased out.
Because then no-one would buy the iPhone, and Apple would either have to either take a huge loss or jack the iPod Touch prices up so they're close to that of an iPhone. Both would be terrible, terrible business strategies, which is why they'll never happen.
Key point: the Classic already has digital output. It isn't optical, but it never will be, because Apple won't add that. This is why there has been "audiophile" talk about it in the thread, it allows for outboard DACs. This is what distinguishes it from almost the entire industry.
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Me too. Although mine is smaller.
I'm wondering if Apple is going to start increasing the amount of storage and change the DAC to a 24 bit DAC and then start selling 24 bit AAC files on iTunes.
Apple already sells iPads. With the touch if they keep it they might as well transition it to the iPad line. For anything smaller they're probably more likely to create new wearable products like a watch than put full iOS on a nano or shuffle.
At this point it doesn't really make sense to lump in the touch with the music players, it's much more similar to an iPad.
The question isn't whether there's a market for it, it's whether there are enough users who want it but not an iPad mini.
Fair point - iPad Mini is probably the biggest "competitor" to iPod Touch. Touch does not compete with other iPods or iPhones.
But considering that Touch sells for significantly less, and (unlike iPad mini) is truly pocketable - I say it'll continue keeping its place in Apple's lineup as an entry-level iOS device.
Good point. Yeah that would be cool.
But if Apple is heading into the living room for gaming... I'd prefer a real controller with actual buttons though.
I don't see the point of gaming on a 50" screen while tapping on a 4" screen
This was inevitable, but at a certain point the company decided they no longer care about music. Their music app has gone from not so great to absolutely the worst of all music apps on the market.
If you stop tending to a market, yes, it will decline. Apple's been too busy with the iPhone to notice what brought them there in the first place.
If you stop tending to a market, yes, it will decline. Apple's been too busy with the iPhone to notice what brought them there in the first place.
+1
+1 - they are totally dropping the ball on ipods imho. what they need to do to re-invigorate that sector is introduce a flash based classic with 96/24 high definition support, audiophile grade and upgrade the quality of all their ipods to support high bit-rate music. get people to re-download and re-experience their collections in high fi. include a high output amp to drive the bigger headphones people are getting more into these days.
In addition they could charge some basic fee per song to upgrade your collection. If they would upgrade all 25,000 of my imatch tracks to 96/24 I would gladly pay $1k+ or even just bump the annual fee for this support.
+1 - they are totally dropping the ball on ipods imho. what they need to do to re-invigorate that sector is introduce a flash based classic with 96/24 high definition support, audiophile grade and upgrade the quality of all their ipods to support high bit-rate music. get people to re-download and re-experience their collections in high fi. include a high output amp to drive the bigger headphones people are getting more into these days.
In addition they could charge some basic fee per song to upgrade your collection. If they would upgrade all 25,000 of my imatch tracks to 96/24 I would gladly pay $1k+ or even just bump the annual fee for this support.
I agree; the iPod Touch is a nice product. With the amount of wifi available all over the place, I could easily see someone getting by with this and a cheap dumb smartphone with prepaid minutes that they never use. You could get all your apps on the iPod Touch and have a monthly cellphone cost of about $20.