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The first iPod was a boxy, white plastic-and-stainless steel gadget -- about the size of a deck of cards -- with a small, black-and-white screen and a FireWire port on top. And it wasn't cheap: $399 for 5 GB of capacity. But its spinning wheel interface was new and fun, and helped the iPod become a huge hit.
Steve Jobs unveiled the iPod at a press conference in Cupertino, Calif., with the slogan, "1,000 songs in your pocket." (And a surprising 20 minutes of anti-skip technology.) The gadget launched with a goofy commercial.
At Macworld New York, Steve Jobs unveiled the second generation of iPod players -- minor hardware updates -- and cut the price on the original model to $299.
New 10 GB ($399) and 20 GB ($499) models were introduced with touch-sensitive scroll wheels and a wired remote. It was also the first time Windows users could buy iPods, but because Apple didn't have iTunes for Windows back then, it shopped with MUSICMATCH Jukebox, an inferior third-party app later acquired by Yahoo.
Apple showed off its third-generation iPods -- its first total redesign -- sporting a "stunning enclosure that is lighter and thinner than two CDs." The company also unveiled the iTunes music store, which went on to sell more than 1 million songs in its first week.
The solid-state, no-moving-part controls were sleek, but Apple eventually discontinued them in favor of a "click" wheel that provided more feedback. (As an owner of this device, I found it too easy to press the wrong buttons, especially in your pocket.)
The 10 GB launched at $299, 15 GB for $399, and 30 GB for $499. In September, Apple upgraded the more expensive iPods to 20 GB and 40 GB.
At Macworld San Francisco, Steve Jobs announced that Apple had sold 2 million iPods to date. He then unveiled the new iPod mini, which was half the size of the original iPod.
The iPod mini came in five colors -- silver, gold, pink, blue, or green anodized aluminum -- which was hugely important in making the devices fashionable. (The pink iPod was especially popular with women.)
The mini included the first new-style "click wheel," which Apple later rolled out to the main iPod line. It also supported USB 2.0 and FireWire. A 4 GB model -- offering "1,000 songs in your pocket" via Apple's AAC sound format -- cost $249.
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Apple's iPod line continues to get thinner, and the company's marketing department keeps coming up with new objects to compare iPods to. This time, it's "thinner than a standard #2 pencil."
The nano isn't just Apple's smallest iPod with a screen ever -- it boasts its smallest capacity for an iPod with a screen, ever, too: Just 2 GB for $199, and 4 GB for $249. At the time, Apple was going against the grain -- conventional wisdom suggests that you needed more capacity to sell, not less.
But in reality, most people -- the mainstream consumers the nano was pointed at -- didn't have MP3 libraries larger than a few gigabytes that they needed to have with them at a time. And they loved the nano's size and price tag.
**************************************************Steve Jobs returned to the stage after his medical leave, updating the iPod line again. The iPod nano did receive a video camera, as rumored, but the iPod touch did not -- a disappointment. Instead, would-be iPod touch buyers will have to settle for price cuts and a faster set of guts inside the gadget.
Apple also added a FM tuner to the iPod nano and cut the price on the iPod shuffle, adding new color options.
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This was just mere comparison of what can an empire like Apple can do to improve their products in such a remarkable short period of time. Awesome improvement!
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