FEATURE:
After the iPod…
What Is the Next Great Music-Playing Device?
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I have written about the iPod before…
when I was spotlighting great music breakthroughs – software and hardware that has changed how we listen to and appreciate music through the decades. Ahead of the original iPod’s twentieth anniversary later this year, it has got me thinking about devices and how we listen to music today. There is a great love and demand for vinyl. We cannot really streamline vinyl and make something portable. I am not sure people are listening to compact discs on the move anymore. Tapes are still selling, though I do not think the Walkman or any cassette-playing devices are about anymore. I think there have been a few innovations and breakthroughs over the years since the iPod was launched. I am going to expand in a minute. Before then, I want to bring in an article that looks at the history of the iPod and the first few iterations:
“Our iPod adventure begins in October 2001, when Apple launched its first portable music player.
The first incarnation of the device that was to revolutionise the music industry had a mechanical scroll wheel and launched with 5GB and 10GB capacities, starting at a shade under £300.
The name 'iPod' was coined for use with the Apple music player by copywriter Vinnie Chieco. He was called in by Apple to help market the new product. Curiously, Apple had already registered the trademark 'iPod', but had originally intended it to be used as the name for its Internet kiosks, though these never saw the light of day.
The second-generation iPod waved sayonara to the clunky mechanical scroll wheel and introduced the touch-sensitive version still in use today, albeit in a different form.
Released in July 2002, the new model built on the success of the first incarnation, and came in capacities up to 20GB for £399, with the 5GB model at £259 and 10GB for £329.
With the third-generation iPod, Apple did away with the buttons that surrounded the touch-sensitive wheel, instead setting backlit controls horizontally under the LCD screen.
This edition launched in April 2003 and was the first model to use Apple's 30-pin dock connector. 10GB, 15GB and 30GB models were available, costing £249, £299 and £399 respectively”.
I use the iPod as an example of a device that really changed how we listened to music. Following on from technology such as the Sony Walkman, the original iPod – though it had some drawbacks – offered a library of music in your pocket. I think that, as people still have an affection for hardware but also want a wide range of music at their fingertips, there has not been a development or evolution for today’s market.
It will be great to mark twenty years of the iPod later in the year. In terms of its capacity and specification, this article from Life Wire gives us more details – in addition to information regarding subsequent iPods:
“Introduced: Oct. 2001
Released: Nov. 2001
Discontinued: July 2002
The 1st generation iPod can be identified by its scroll wheel, surrounded by four buttons (clockwise from the top: menu, forward, play/pause, backward), and its center button for selecting items. When it was introduced, the iPod was a Mac-only product. It required Mac OS 9 or Mac OS X 10.1.
While it was not the first MP3 player, the original iPod was both smaller and easier to use than many of its competitors. As a result, it quickly attracted accolades and strong sales. The iTunes Store wasn't introduced until 2003, so users had to add music to their iPods from CDs or other online sources.
At the time of its introduction, Apple wasn't the powerhouse company it later became. The initial success of the iPod, and its successor products, were major factors in the company's explosive growth.
Capacity
5 GB (about 1,000 songs)
10 GB (about 2,000 songs) - released in March 2002
Mechanical hard drive used for storage
Supported Audio Formats
MP3
WAV
AIFF
Colors
White
Screen
160 x 128 pixels
2 inch
Grayscale
Connectors
FireWire
Battery Life
10 hours
Dimensions
4.02 x 2.43 x 0.78 inches
Weight
6.5 ounces
Original Price
US$399 - 5 GB
$499 - 10 GB
Requirements
Mac: Mac OS 9 or higher; iTunes 2 or higher”.
I have been looking online for something that has the same sort of functions as an iPod – albeit a bit more developed and multi-capacity – and doesn’t just feel like a way of utilising Spotify and other streaming platforms. Rather than having an anniversary edition of the iPod and doing a more updated version of that, I wonder whether there is a way that people can feel the benefits of the physical and digital. I loved the Walkman because of its solid feel and the fact you could play tapes on the move. That may seem unwieldly now, though people want the tactile pleasure of vinyl and tape; the feeling they are paying for music and have something that will not evaporate. I don’t think that people have evolved from music-playing devices and entirely rely on Smartphones. Vinyl is great but cannot be played portably. I do like the idea of a multi-format device where one could, for example compile a digital mixtape, insert a USB or their library or they could also play cassettes. Maybe something where you could just go digital but have access to streaming and your own personal library. That crossbreed sounds quite chunky and complex. I am a big fan of album artwork, the thrill of the past and the capabilities of the present when it comes to streamlining music and producing something physical. I feel we will get something in the form of a ‘new iPod’ before too long, I for one…
PHOTO CREDIT: Daniela Mota/Unsplash
WOULD be interesting to see what form it takes.