New Delhi: Once upon a time, a Walkman was the coolest gadget one could carry. Then came MP3 players. But in 2001, Apple changed the game.
Twenty-five years ago, it introduced the iPod—a pocket-sized music player that let you take your favourite 1,000-song collection wherever you went.
Unveiled in October 2001, the iPod hit shelves on 10 November and soon became a “must-have”. Over the years, it fizzled out of style and relevance. Now, as the product marks its 25th anniversary, Gen Z is returning to the iPod in a bid to return to a simpler life and time. Some also prefer the music system as a way to limit internet consumption and doomscrolling. Even brands are cashing in on this nostalgia.
What made the iPod iconic?
The sleek and compact device was available in a variety of colours that caught the eye. For millennials growing up amid a wave of new technology, its sleek design and touch-sensitive controls were hard to resist.
But music was more than technology. It was an escape from teenage anxieties, a little pocket of freedom.
And carrying an iPod? That was an instant style statement. The iPod was for millennials what the iPhone is for Gen Z. In fact, to commemorate its status, the Museum of Modern Art in New York has even added the first iPod to its collection.
To even celebrate the 25 years of the iPod, Apple came up with an easter egg on its music website. It directly takes the user to a fully functional digital version of the first-generation music player—a white iPod with its original Chicago font along with a variety of songs such as ‘Take California’ (1997) by Propeller Heads, ‘Love Train’ (1972) by The O’Jays, ‘Shut Up and Let Me Go’ (2008) by The Ting Tings and more. Users can touch the spin wheel and go on a nostalgic road.
The iPod was the product of Tony Fadell, an American Engineer and entrepreneur, along with designer Jony Ive and former CEO of Apple, Steve Jobs.
25 years later…
Since 2001, the iPod has developed its look along with its functions. Apple introduced 36 iPods, with the last one launched in 2019–the seventh generation with an eight-megapixel camera and multi-touch display.
Apple stopped manufacturing the iPod in 2022. Since then, the focus has shifted to iPhones.
But Gen Z, much like their choices of songs on Instagram, is abandoning “old school and retro tracks,” the New York Post reported in April this year.
According to the NY Post, the young generation is ready to leave “sleek” smartphones. They are opting for a simpler life with flip phones, digital cameras, even typewriters and once -coveted iPods.
In May this year, Fadell posted an advertisement by Back Market, a company selling refurbished laptops, tablets, phones and even iPods.
He wrote on X, when they “built iPod, the goal was that the technology disappeared and you could have your music wherever you were. 1,000 songs in your pocket”.
He emphasised how people are now actively looking for ways to disconnect from doomscrolling and constant notifications.
“That doesn’t mean technology is bad. It means the best technology understands when to step back”, he wrote.
The Back Market featured an iPod Shuffle 4th generation ad, which said, “Zero screen time”.
(Edited by Insha Jalil Waziri)