Fifteen years ago on the 23rd of October the world was first introduced to a whole new way of listening to music; it was on that day that we saw the first of many Apple iPods.
In honour of the iPod’s 15th birthday we take a look at how far it’s come
In The Beginning
Back in 2001 the very first iPod cost $399 and featured 5GB of storage space. In took awhile for the iPod to catch on, many considered the device too expensive and didn’t like the fact that the iPod only worked with Apple devices. It wasn’t until 2003 that the iPod really started to catch on.
It was then that Apple released a version of iTunes that was compatible with Windows, and introduced the very first iTunes Music Store. Apple began seeing souring sales for the iPod as users could now purchase their favourite music, sync it with the iPod and get listening all within a few minutes.
The Next Generation
After 2005 the iPod took on different iterations like the iPod Shuffle, the iPod Nano and the iPod Mini. These newer, slimmer and included their first ever USB ports. It was also around this time that the Apple launched their first budget iPods, making it a device that anyone could afford rather than a luxury item for a select few.
It was also around this time that the iPod helped solidify listening to digital music on the go. The image of the busy commuter rushing to work with earphones in their ears became a everyday scene thanks to the iPod.
The Modern Day
Currently, devices like the iPod Nano and iPod Touch are currently in their seventh and sixth generation respectively. They also feature modern innovations like touchscreen functionality, FaceTime support and Retina Display.
Even though the iPod seems to be getting phased out by smartphones and smartwatches they are still an important part of tech history that has changed the way that we listening to music.