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Tim Cook on iPod Classic: 'We Couldn't Get the Parts Anymore'

TechZeke said:
No need for iPod when you have a smartphone or tablet. ... Nowadays, even riding transit, I see people opting to carry around their iPad mini as a music device.
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Good for the people whose needs the iPad mini fulfils, but it only goes up to 128GB at the moment - some of us simply need more. Plus that iPad costs way more than the classic used to; it even costs more than the inflated prices of the few new classics you can still buy! So, if it comes to it, I'd definitely shell out $400-500 on a still sealed iPod classic than $600 on a much-less portable ipad mini with lower capacity.

We seem to have been stuck on 128GB as the maximum for portable flash storage for AGES now. As soon as a 256GB ipod touch comes out for around the $400 dollar mark, I'll snap one up.
 
Parasprite said:
I had an MP3 CD player for a while with 60 second skip protection! and like...2...3 hours battery life. You could fit almost 200 low-quality songs on one of those. Went great with my disposable black weird-uncomfortable-black-foam-style headphones.

Yeah I definitely don't miss this at all.
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I actually found out that my £29 DVD player also played MP3 DVDs. I converted about 90 albums to 128 Kbit MP3, burnt them on a DVD, put them into the DVD player, and it actually worked. Must have been about 1,000 songs on a DVD.

Used it once, just to make sure it worked :)
 
Klae17 said:
They have enough money to buy third world countries but can't pay someone to make some parts? BS.
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Stated perfectly by someone that doesn't understand the intricacies of mass production, supplier sourcing and making a profit.

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Deelron said:
Hope so, it's time to start shifting everything past an A5 processor.
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It's also time to move past the 16 GB base. I still haven't updated my 5S to iOS 8 because I don't have near enough space.
 
giantfan1224 said:
Stated perfectly by someone that doesn't understand the intricacies of mass production, supplier sourcing and making a profit.
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I guess, coming from a company that solders their memory in place in order to maximise profits, we shouldn't be surprised. It's just a shame because, for a period of time, Apple looked a tiny bit like a slightly nice company that actually cared about its customers and wasn't *solely* driven by making as much money out of them as possible. I guess that's naive; ultimately, there is no such thing as a 'nice' company - at least, not a shareholder-owned one, anyway.
 
I understand that they weren't making a profit, but I really have to say the iPod Classic was a great product. I still have mine and hope to have it for years to come. The iPod touch only comes in 128 gig and the click wheel was great for me. Especially when driving. I can't imagine being able to scroll through an iPod touch while driving.

I guess I wouldn't mind it being discontinued so much if apple expanded the limits of iTunes match. I have over 315 GB of music in my iTunes Library, so I don't even have a chance. The other problem for me is that even if that was available, I wouldn't be able to stream music when I travelled overseas or on a flight. Unless I had wifi... That's why the 160 GB model was just perfect for me...

Well.. I hope Tim Cook & Apple at least come up with a 160 GB iPod touch soon... Or an iPod with even more space... I actually think they should be able to produce iPods with way more space by now...
 
bobbykjack said:
I guess, coming from a company that solders their memory in place in order to maximise profits, we shouldn't be surprised. It's just a shame because, for a period of time, Apple looked a tiny bit like a slightly nice company that actually cared about its customers and wasn't *solely* driven by making as much money out of them as possible. I guess that's naive; ultimately, there is no such thing as a 'nice' company - at least, not a shareholder-owned one, anyway.
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Right. If only a company cared so much about its customers to continue stocking a product that hardly anyone wants to buy. The nerve of those greedy capitalists!:rolleyes:
 
Michael Scrip said:
You're right... a 64GB iPod Touch can't hold as many songs as a 160GB iPod Classic.

But remember when CDs only held 16 songs and you had to carry your music in one of these?

bnb-208_1_sized_544x500.jpg


How on Earth did you survive? :D
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I use my 160GB Classic for my music and that CD album you have pictured there... I use that for my X-Files 9 Season DVD collection. Just about filled it with just that show. I think mine came with 24 pages.
 
gnasher729 said:
I actually found out that my £29 DVD player also played MP3 DVDs. I converted about 90 albums to 128 Kbit MP3, burnt them on a DVD, put them into the DVD player, and it actually worked. Must have been about 1,000 songs on a DVD.

Used it once, just to make sure it worked :)
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This is literally how I convinced my father to switch from VHS/cassettes -> DVD/CDs -> eventually an actual computer.

"You mean everything Pink Floyd ever made fit on this???"
 
Too bad... I'd really like to see a refresh. With the iPhones growing larger, something i don't mind, getting the 6+ and all ;) My need for an iPod is suddenly back! Jogging with the 6+ is not what I'd call optimal. The nano is always an option, but a slim flash based classic like item, that does music, and nothing more, would be freakin' awesome.

I wonder when the iPod line gets a refresh (Apple TV as well)


I think Apple should kill the shuffle, nano and the touch. And simply make an iPod. Something that does music, and does it well. Somehow sort offline music from the future Beats/iTunes service. Makes sense to minimize the product line up when the revenue stream shrinks. It's either that or axing the whole iPod line. And that would be very sad.
 
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giantfan1224 said:
Right. If only a company cared so much about its customers to continue stocking a product that hardly anyone wants to buy. The nerve of those greedy capitalists!:rolleyes:
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The point is, how much of the drop in consumer demand was a result of Apple's planned "death by neglect" and how much of it was by a genuine move to converged devices?

Apple kept the price and specs the same for years. They didn't advertise it, they didn't talk about it, it just quietly existed. We could engage in a whimsical game of "what-if", but even you would have to acknowledge that this kind of neglect of ANY product would result in reduced demand.
 
sracer said:
The point is, how much of the drop in consumer demand was a result of Apple's planned "death by neglect" and how much of it was by a genuine move to converged devices?

Apple kept the price and specs the same for years. They didn't advertise it, they didn't talk about it, it just quietly existed. We could engage in a whimsical game of "what-if", but even you would have to acknowledge that this kind of neglect of ANY product would result in reduced demand.
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You could say the same thing about the rotary phone. Death by neglect. And the fact that people preferred the push buttons.
 
It's not really a matter of cost, the parts exist and any factory out there could have made them anything and everything to keep the iPod Classic alive, but it probably just didn't make sense for Apple financially due to abysmal sales at this point in time.
 
RobNYC said:
The Classic is dead but the iPod itself is still around. You can still get a nano. Not sure how long they'll keep that line going but apparently it must be selling enough to make it worth it.
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I wouldn't mind if I could get a 100+ gb Nano....that would be a logical and worthwhile product to me.
 
Does Tim Cook have to lie about everything? Just say that very few people buy it instead of making up a bogus story about how you can't get the parts.
 
Classic!

jm001 said:
I still have an original 1st gen. iPod with the moving click wheel, firewire port and a whopping 5GB of storage. Still works great! I use it while gardening (I actually have an armband for it) or in my study at home.
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I still have a 2007 Classic 160GB - perfectly functional. Rarely use it anymore.
 
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