The iPod is Alive and Well…For Some of Us

by Jason Epstein

51 million iPhones and 26 million iPads were sold in the fourth quarter of 2013.  The iPod, however, moved just 6 million units.  And one can only assume that the vast majority of those sold were of the ‘Touch’ persuasion.  But despite those fast waning sales figures, I’m here to tell you that the iPod is alive and well.  No, not the Touch – the Classic.

I love my iPod.  LOVE IT. That’s right – it’s not an iPad, iPhone or even iPod Touch – it’s an iPod Classic 6th generation from the dawn of technology back in 2008.  First fire was invented, then the wheel and then the iPod.  So why do I love an outdated, obsolete piece of technology?  Well, first of all, I’m not your average music consumer.  I was a late adopter of the iPod having listened to CDs until 2006 – and yes, I’m gasping and shuddering at that thought along with you.  I don’t listen to the radio and I don’t use music streaming services.  Instead, I’m all about ownership of actual music files and listening to them as I please – and I own and listen to a LOT of music.  I love my iPod because it stores a hell of a lot more content than any ‘Touch’ device or phone does.  It doesn’t get bogged down by concurrently running programs or advertisements or incoming phone calls or texts.  So I can keep my 11,000+ song music library on it plus multiple seasons of my favorite TV shows.  Most consumers aren’t happy unless their music device is connected to the Internet.  But to me, that’s what a smart phone is for.  

Does the iPod bear updating beyond its latest “Classic” iteration?  I don’t think so.  Sure, it’s possible the iPod Touch could catch up eventually in terms of storage space, but the increased popularity of streaming media also means that the average consumer may not have a need for that space.  Also, the iPod Touch is way too close to the iPhone in its build and features to make it worthwhile to buy one without strongly considering an iPhone purchase – or for Apple to even invest in an ylonger.

I feel good about my iPod Classic, but if Apple were ever to revisit this dying breed, upgrades to all the normal accouterments such as battery power, storage space, weight, screen size, etc. would certainly be well-received.  But they won’t.  As time goes on the increasing cannibalization of Internet-incapable storage-based products is impossible to deny; the Xbox One and PS4 are based on hardware, software and subscription revenue streams, while the Apple iPhone ensures continual revenue streams through high-priced data plans.  It’s a trend that won’t stop as companies continually find more (and increasingly creative) methods of getting money from their customers.

Apple hasn’t introduced any new iPods in years which can certainly explain in part its decline in sales, but that’s all part of their well-publicized plan to make the iPhone into the new iPod – and then some. And they’ve achieved that.  What they haven’t achieved is satisfying a niche music and music technology consumer like myself that values uninterrupted music play, large quantities of storage space, and owning at least one portable electronic device that has absolutely no Internet connection whatsoever.  So while sales figures may continue to decline and future innovation may look bleak, the iPod Classic still has a warm, loving home to come to for the few of us that still appreciate its simple, limited and no-nonsense capabilities as a dedicated music player.

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