The iPod is dead. Long live the iPod. At least in our hearts, because Apple has announced that it is officially discontinuing its last model of the iPod, the iPod Touch.
For those of us at a certain age, the ending of the iPod strikes a bittersweet, nostalgic chord. For those of us who can’t remember when the music player was released at all, well, trust that it marked a revolution in our lives and yours.
When the iPod emerged on the scene “over 20 years ago,” as Apple notes, it brought with it a technological sea change. The advent of the iPod was the opening note in many transformations on the horizon. The music machine seemed to usher in the current age we live in. But, progress is all about change. And change means that even our most beloved of technologies eventually no longer suit us. But our desire for music, it turns out, opened the door to much greater things.
Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing shares in a release, “Music has always been part of our core at Apple, and bringing it to hundreds of millions of users in the way iPod did, [it] impacted more than just the music industry — it also redefined how music is discovered, listened to, and shared. Today, the spirit of iPod lives on. We’ve integrated an incredible music experience across all of our products.”
And so, though Apple has discontinued the iPod, it continues on, in a fashion. The iPod Touch will remain available to those loyalists who want nothing more and nothing less than the product, at least while supplies last. And then the music player will go gently into that good night. Rest in peace, iPod. May you continue to play your tunes in technological heaven. Many of us will remember you and your colorful ads fondly.