A third-generation iPod prototype from 2003 that features a scrapped Tetris clone has been discovered, revealing Apple’s earlier plans to bring one of the most popular games of all time to its handheld jukebox.

AppleDemoYT is a prolific collector of unreleased Apple products who created a YouTube video of this unreleased Tetris clone on May 24. Called ‘Stacker’, the game leveraged the iPod’s click wheel to move the blocks, as well as the middle button to change a block’s shape. The iPod is labeled DVT (Design Validation Testing) — this means it was a late-prototype model. AppleDemoYT explains in his video that the device was manufactured around the beginning of April 2003, which puts the prototype a month before the third-generation iPod was released on May 2. One could suspect that scrapping this Tetris clone could have been a last-minute decision by Apple, although we don’t know why.

An official version of Tetris debuted on the iPod several years later in 2006, taking advantage of the fifth-generation iPod’s improved color display. When the third-generation iPod was released, a collection of games were available to play. For example, Breakout, a game created by Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, required you to bounce a ball in order to break rows of bricks. Other games included were Music Quiz, which used your music library, and Parachute, where you could control a cannon to shoot down helicopters.

What other games were featured on iPod?

Way back in 2006, Apple released a plethora of games to coincide with a new software update for its fifth and sixth-generation iPods:

• Bejeweled
• Cubis 2
• Mahjong
• Mini Golf
• Pac-Man
• Texas Hold 'Em
• Vortex
• Zuma

Sonic would later be made available in 2007 for $4.99 / £4.99, though its control scheme was awkward. You had to hold the fast-forward button to make Sonic run and use the middle button to make him jump. Games like Tetris made sense for the click-wheel iPod, but once the App Store arrived on the iPhone in 2008 with its touch display, the accelerometer, and more, the device signaled the end of these iPod games. Regardless, this third-generation iPod prototype showcases what was possible with the iconic click-wheel design, as well as showing how we could have had one of the greatest games on our iPods in 2003.

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Long before Apple made the Apple Watch, people used to take the iconic iPod nano and attach it to their wrists instead. The iPod was arguably the first Apple smartwatch, and soon we could be turning our Apple Watches into iPods instead.

That's what the tinyPod appears to be, although we know very little about what it will do or how it will work right now. Instead, we have a teaser, posted to the X social network, and a promise of more information coming soon.

Whether or not you'll want to strap your Apple Watch Series 9 to this thing or not remains to be seen, but there's a certain symmetry to the Apple Watch becoming an iPod that's hard to ignore and it'll be fascinating to see what the tinyPod is capable of.

It's an iWatchPod

The teaser video for the tinyPod appears to suggest that we'll be able to use our Apple Watches just like an iPod, but there is also a hint of the iPhone in there as well. Remember that you'll be able to use all of your watchOS apps with this thing, making this more capable than most iPods ever were.

The teaser says that we can expect to learn more next month which means we should only have to wait a few more weeks to get some details. Pricing will also be a big question mark that hangs over the tinyPod until more details are available, while we have to wonder about distribution as well. If there was ever a product that has the air of a Kickstarter project, this is definitely it.

All eyes are now on June to see what the people behind the tinyPod have in store.

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This week the Department of Justice landed Apple with the lawsuit of the century, claiming the company operates a monopoly over its iPhone products and iOS business model that stifles competition and hurts its competitors. 

Amidst a myriad of strange claims, such as the idea that the dreadful Amazon Fire Phone failed because of Apple (and not because it was dreadful), a revisionist history of Apple’s iPod success has set tongues wagging on the internet. 

As part of an introduction to the Apple vs. United States lawsuit, the Department of Justice claims Apple was a failing company on the brink of bankruptcy by the late 1990s, but that Apple’s fortunes changed “around the time it launched the iPod in 2001.” According to the suit, the iPod’s “innovative design” and “savvy marketing” were not enough to “drive a successful business strategy,” and instead a “confluence of several factors made it a smash success.”

Noting Apple’s iTunes software, a key piece of the iPod’s early success, the DOJ claims that “path-clearing antitrust enforcement case, brought by the United States and state attorneys general, against Microsoft, opened the market and constrained Microsoft’s ability to prohibit companies like Apple from offering iTunes on Windows PCs.” 

The suit also claims that Apple’s licensing agreements with major music labels allowed it to offer users tons of music for a fee-per-download price. The DOJ says that this “gave Apple a playbook” for the iPhone which involves driving “as many consumers and third-party participants to the platform as possible and offer a wide selection of content, products, and services created by those third parties to consumers,” a strategy one could summarize as “make good products.”  

iPod history, the internet reacts 

“Reading the DOJ/Apple lawsuit again and some of this, such as the bizarre iPod history, is like a ChatGPT hallucination,” claimed Apple journalist Chance Miller. Stratechery’s Ben Thompson presented the DOJ’s claim about its “path-clearing” lawsuit with a simple “wut”, before adding “this is the worst history of iPod I've ever seen… retconning the Microsoft case to alim credit for the iPod is annoying and a distraction.” Not only is it thus, it’s also not true. As tech commentator Steven Sinofsky states, “Microsoft begged and pleaded for Apple to make iTunes available on Windows. The debate inside Apple about going to Windows is well-documented and established by the people who debated. How can you take this case seriously?” 

As another commenter alluded to, it was the insatiable attitude of Steve Jobs that gave Apple access to its industry-leading licensing agreements. Sinofskey continues, “Notice there is no discussion of the enormous consumer benefit and love of the iPod. No discussion how it saved the music industry from piracy. No discussion of how it made the world’s music available in your pocket. NONE.” 

The DOJ also completely ignores the most important reasons for the iPod’s success, notably its design and superb interface, including the iconic click-wheel. As revealed in Tripp Mickle’s book After Steve: How Apple Became a Trillion-Dollar Company and Lost Its Soul, Steve Jobs pressed Apple to create a portable music player as “the nascent MP3 market sparked dreams of a next-generation Sony Walkman.” 

The iPod’s success was also buoyed by the initiative of head of hardware engineering Jon Rubinstein, who discovered a new type of miniature disk drive created by Toshiba. It was the original hardware behind the famous “a thousand songs in your pocket” device, Apple snapped up the rights to every disk Toshiba would make. 

Microsoft knew at the time it had been beaten to the punch, but it was a full two years after the launch of the iPod that it brought iTunes to Windows, despite the DOJ’s miracle lawsuit. “I am assuming they went along because of the 70 cents per song is better than zero, even for the smaller Mac market. When Apple brings this to Windows (I assume they won't make the mistake of not bringing it to Windows, we will really be smoked.),” Microsoft’s David Cole told execs on April 30, 2003. 

Famously, Jim Allchin said of the iPod that “Apple is just so far ahead”, and told Bill Gates he would buy a Mac today “if I was not working at Microsoft. Away from the DOJ’s claims that Apple’s iPod success was down to a “confluence” of factors, some beyond Apple’s control, clearly the people in the know at Microsoft knew it was because Apple’s iPod was just better than anything else on the market. 

Given that the DOJ paints its iPod history as foundational to the success of the iPhone and the business model it is trying to overturn, it will be interesting to see whether this revisionist history of the iPod becomes a topic of discussion in court. 

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Do you remember the glossy white iPod Hi-Fi dock of yesteryear? Well, an unreleased black version has surfaced online, giving us an insight into what could’ve been for Apple’s speaker system.

Originally released in February 2006, the iPod Hi-Fi allows users to dock their iPod via the 30-pin connection and listen to their iTunes music via two wide-range speakers. It’s fair to say the product wasn’t a success, with its $349 price tag leading to the Hi-Fi’s discontinuation in September 2007.

Now, José Benitez Cong, who “helped build the team” that made the iPod Hi-Fi has taken to X to showcase a very rare blacked-out model. He says, “This was a marvel of a design for its time,” and that the black variant was a gift to a friend that was “THE only black HiFi in existence.” Cong says he still uses his iPod Hi-Fi for workouts, thanks to its ease of use and the ability to quickly dock your iPod and charge it at the same time.

Nowadays, Apple’s speaker offerings are HomePods and while they far exceed the audio quality and value proposition of the iPod Hi-Fi back in 2006, they still fall short in one key area: No display.

A HomePod with a display?

We’ve heard the rumblings for months, and it’s likely that at some point in the product lifespan, we’ll see a HomePod with a display to select your tunes from Apple Music easily. Seeing the iPod Hi-Fi again for the first time in years reminds me of how awesome docking an iPod or even an iPhone 4 used to be. Rather than relying on Siri, you got to pick your music by scrolling through your library with that glorious click wheel — it’s far more manual but far more satisfying.

The HomePod 2 sounds fantastic, but AirPlay in my home can sometimes be a little unreliable, and crucially, Siri doesn’t understand my Scottish accent. The lack of options for controlling my HomePod actually led to me selling Apple’s smart speaker and opting for Sonos, which seems to be far more reliable on my home network.

The black iPod Hi-Fi has me yearning for some kind of built-in HomePod display, hopefully, Apple decides to launch one sooner rather than later.

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Before he climbed Mount Everest, explorer George Leigh Mallory was asked “why do you want to climb Everest?”. He responded, famously, “Because it’s there”. We can only imagine that's the thought process this bonkers Reddit user had when they plugged a pair of iPods into their Steam deck to control the handheld computer’s games.

In what is becoming some kind of crazed theme in the world of game controllers (there’s a trend for people playing the notoriously difficult Dark Souls with dance pad controller peripherals, or Guitar Hero gaming axes), this is just another example of ‘why not?’ made real.

[Follow-up] Tired of playing on your Deck with proper controls? Why not play Skyrim with a pair of iPods as controllers instead? Guaranteed to spice up your gameplay with an extra layer of challenge! from r/SteamDeck

While pointless, and probably taking far too long, it’s still fun. Isn’t It? I think it's fun. The Reddit user presumably did too.

Like, don’t, but also, cool?

Taking to Reddit with a nightmare in ergonomics and a disgrace to game controllers everywhere, Redditor nekomichi shows off playing some popular games with his iPod-enabled Steam Deck abomination. They manage to get a fair way through Helgen in ever-popular RPG Skyrim for example, the two iPads connected through their 30-pin connectors to a docking station hooked up to the Steam deck.

How did nekomichi do it? As they explain in a previous post from a week prior, they’ve had to use a custom firmware called Rockbox to connect the iPods to Steam Deck, “which allows them to act as USB input devices.” 

From there, “The iPod Mini on the left is acting as a mouse cursor controlled by the four directional keys with the center button acting as a left click (attack), the iPod 4th generation on the right is acting as a multimedia controller, with fast forward acting as taking a step forward and rewind as taking a step back”, they explain. To add some extra fun, they note that they have to mash the forwards button to move around in-game because “it's not possible to send button-hold commands.”

It doesn’t help that one of the click wheels is apparently faulty, either — although whichever way you look at it, it’s never going to be a viable way to play your games. 

Is it fun? Yes. Wacky? Absolutely. We suspect as well that nekomichi might be a mad scientist: But who doesn’t love a bonkers researcher who puts things that should never be paired together just to see what happens? Now that you’ve made your Frankenstein, nekomichi, can we have a go? Please?

Thanks.

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While the iPhone is undoubtedly the product that was the first many people owned with an Apple logo on the back, it's far from the first iconic product to come out of Cupertino. There was of course the Macintosh and then the iMac, but it's the iPod that captured the imagination of millions around the globe and arguably turned Apple into the company it is today. And while the iPhone didn't turn out to be an iPod that could make phone calls, the two will forever be linked.

Now, owners of even the most modern of iPhones can get a little bit of that iPod nostalgia each and every time they look at their smartphone thanks to a new wallpaper pack. The wallpapers are perfect for iPhone Lock Screens and give the effect of an iPod on-screen, complete with the infamous click wheel.

The wallpapers are available in multiple colors to match some of the most iconic iPods around, and some also include classic stickers that will remind some iPhone owners of their much-loved iPods from yesteryear. And whether it's the latest iPhone 15 or something a little older, these wallpapers are going to look great.

Picture perfect

The wallpapers themselves are all available as a single "iPod Wallpapers Pack" that can be had from the Oliur store. They're part of a collaboration with designer Shane Levine, and they look awesome.

"A very unique style wallpaper pack designed for the iPhone. Make your lockscreen look like a classic iPod," the description reads. "There's 12 high definition wallpapers in the pack, in various different colors. Some of them also include some classic stickers. The perfect wallpaper pack for iPod lovers."

The pack of 12 wallpapers will set you back $14, and they're available now as a single 58MB zip file. Buying them is the easy part, choosing which one you're going to use is where things get complicated.

The wallpapers are designed in such a way that your iPhone's clock will appear as if on the iPod's screen, while there is also space for iPhone widgets to also look like they're part of the design, too.

A little bit of history

While the first iPhone arrived in 2007, the iPod dates back to October 2001 when the very first model arrived. As of 2022 the iPod had sold an estimated 450 million units across various different iterations and generations. The classic iPod is the one that springs to mind for most people, but the iPod mini, iPod Shuffle, and of course the iPod touch were also part of the lineup.

Apple finally called time on the iPod in May 2022 with the end of the iPod touch lineup. “Music has always been part of our core at Apple, and bringing it to hundreds of millions of users in the way iPod did impacted more than just the music industry — it also redefined how music is discovered, listened to, and shared,” Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing, said at the time. 

“Today, the spirit of iPod lives on. We’ve integrated an incredible music experience across all of our products, from the iPhone to the Apple Watch to HomePod mini, and across Mac, iPad, and Apple TV. And Apple Music delivers industry-leading sound quality with support for spatial audio — there’s no better way to enjoy, discover, and experience music.”

Now, a year or so later, we can all relive some of the iPod magic on our iPhones, all while enjoying the latest technology Apple's best iPhones have to offer.

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The iPod. At this point in time, it may not be as desirable as it ever was, but it still retains a presence in the consciousness of pretty much everyone who was alive and aware from the year 2001 to… well, now. That click wheel holds a special place in my heart, that’s for sure, and it’s likely that you’ve seen it even if you haven’t used it.

It looks like one company also remembers the click wheel, as they’ve stuck something similar on the front of its MP3 player — and it resembles one of Apple’s now discontinued iPod classic models.

iPod lookalike…

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Devices like this tend to be cheaply made, out of cheap parts and then sold to you, the unsuspecting end-user, for a cheap price. This thing has all the hallmarks of a cut-price device that you shouldn’t be plugging your nice wireless headphones into.

If you want something good that's dedicated to music, then you’re going to have to spend a lot more money. If you don’t mind about sound quality, then a headphone dongle and some decent headphones plugged into your iPhone 15 are going to do just fine. For those looking for more, I have just the Black Friday saving for you.

I’ve tried Fiio’s incredible M15S player, and that was an absolute monster of sound reproduction. The M11S might not have quite the same amount of power as the M15S, but it will take all kinds of different headphone connectors and then play your hi-res tracks with aplomb. It also looks pretty cool, if that’s important to you. Alas, no clickwheel. 

Of course, if you just want to listen to music, then one of the best Black Friday AirPods deals with your iPhone are going to work just fine. 

Kickstarting the truly portable music revolution in 2001, the iPod has become perhaps one of the most recognizable products in its legacy lineup — and now it’s back. Kind of.

High street fashion brand Urban Outfitters now has iPods on its site for you to buy in various guises, from the original model to an iPod mini. They’re being sold by 3rd party seller Retrospekt — which is now calling the iPod lineup ‘vintage’. Thanks, Retrospekt, for making us feel old. Now drop those prices.

Don’t buy an iPod on Urban Outfitters

Why not? Because the iPod Mini that we found on the Urban Outfitters site is being sold for a cool $200. That’s only $50 less than you could have bought one new back in 2004 when the then-smallest iPod was first released, and now it’s roughly $170 over what you should actually be paying.

These are refurbished products, with Retrospekt saying they have fresh batteries and new, more modern storage of greater amounts than you’d find in a disk-drive-based model from eBay, but you still shouldn’t pay the premium that is being peddled here.

For all intents and purposes, unless you are a collector looking for a mint-in-box device that still comes in all its plastic wrap, you shouldn’t be paying any more than $30-$50 at a stretch for a 20-year-old iPod — refurbished or not.

iMore’s take — don’t pay $200 for an inconvenient novelty

I am uniquely placed to make recommendations here, mostly because I still use iPods to listen to music. I keep a couple in my drawer — a blue iPod mini, and an iPod Classic with a new case on it. Both have new batteries, and new storage (tripling the 128GB I had in the Classic, in fact), and they are both dumb.

They are hobbyist equipment for weird users who like old things, not viable portable music players in the year 2023. They don’t play music from Apple Music or Spotify, they require MP3 or AAC files from your Mac, they need headphones with a cable, and they need a surprisingly large amount of pocket space to work. For those of us who are audio geeks, they are loads of fun, but for the punter with $200 burning a hole in their pocket, they are a daft plan.

If you really want an iPod mini, or original iPod for that matter, to muck about with, make it a project. Buy a second-hand model off eBay for $30, grab a new battery for $10, and then an SD card for $20 with an adapter to use it to replace the now ancient hard drive for a further $20. That’s now just $80, and you’ve got a little weekend hobby on your hands. Like a project car, only it takes up less space and doesn’t eat away at your finances every week when the exhaust manifold goes to pot.

They’re not hard to mod. iFixit has excellent guides about taking all of them apart, and there are a million YouTube videos on the topic. Just, don’t pay $200 for one. There are better things to spend your time with than overpriced old tech that can be bought cheaper elsewhere.

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The original iPod from 2001 is arguably the product that paved the way for today's iPhone 14 and beyond, and it became an icon not just for Apple but for a generation. It wasn't cheap at $399, but that's a bargain compared to the price one just sold for.

The original iPod sold for an incredible $29,000 on the Rally platform which allows people to effectively buy shares in rare collectible items.

Rally sold thousands of shares in the 2001 iPod, a product that had 5GB of storage and includes an original Apple Store bag. There's also an original, unopened iPod sleeve included as well.

A 2001 classic

It isn't every day that you see a 22-year-old item sell for such a huge sum, but the 2001 iPod wasn't an everyday product.

"The iPod was originally purchased for $399 + tax in December 2001 at Willowbrook Mall in Plano Texas, at an Apple Store that was actually opened just before the iPod release," Rally told iMore via email. "Its original owner received it as a Christmas gift, and the iPod was placed unopened on a closet shelf, where it sat for almost two decades."

Rally originally put the iPod up for $5 per share with 5,000 shares available, and a new buyout offer was placed for $29,000 recently. Existing shareholders voted on the buyout and approved it, resulting in a new record.

If you somehow have an unopened iPod sitting in a cupboard somewhere, now might be a good time to dust it off and consider selling it for a huge profit. Even with inflation, the $399 purchase price can't compete with this kind of figure.

It isn't just iPods, either. A 4GB original iPhone recently sold for another record, an incredible $190,000. That's an incredible amount of money and it's likely to only appreciate in value, too.

On the first day of this diary, we spent a good portion of time simply setting the iPod Classic up. The conclusion? Using the device isn’t quite as seamless in 2023 as it was in the 2010s. Technology, it turns out, keeps evolving. 

Thankfully, the worst of that’s all behind us. That means today’s diary can focus predominantly on the experience of using an iPod Classic as the main driver for all my audio devices. Let’s dive right in.

Saturday, 08:32am: Running

I like to start my weekend off right: by torturing myself. Yes, it’s time to run. My usual setup consists of a pair of AirPods Pro that I connect to my Apple Watch, which stores a selection of music, podcasts, and audiobooks to keep me entertained throughout the process.

Immediately, I encountered a road bump: there was no easy way to connect my wireless earbuds to the iPod. Technically, a Bluetooth adaptor would work, but I didn’t have one to hand. This meant I needed to dig out a pair of in-ear headphones for my jog.

I wish I could tell you this was a fun experience — but that’d be a bald-faced lie. The cable for the wired headphones was too short to fit in my pocket, so I had to grasp the iPod in my increasingly sweaty hands. Despite this, I was thankful for the lock button on the MP3 player, as that stopped the device going haywire while it was getting sopping wet and salty.

The whole experience felt deeply inelegant. I’m now so used to exercising with wireless gear that switching back to cables was deeply jarring. I will ask one question, though, was the iPod Classic ever a proper running device? Surely that was something the Nano or Shuffle were far more geared towards?

Whatever the answer, I can unequivocally say that the iPod Classic is no longer fit for fitness.

Saturday, 10:07 am: Shower. Yes, shower

I love portable Bluetooth speakers — especially the durable models. One of life’s great pleasures is taking a long shower with some excellent music, and this is something the UE BOOM 3 excels at.

But, yet again, we bump into another problem. While the previous version of the speaker had an aux cord, the BOOM 3 doesn’t. That meant no music in the shower. Life with an old iPod is turning into a trial.

Saturday, 11:15am: Hanging out at home

Saturday morning is a great time to tick off some tasks; so it’s time to tidy the house.

Normally, I play music from my iPhone or MacBook, using AirPlay to send the tunes straight to the Bluesound Node, a wireless streamer hooked up to my amplifier. Joyously, this hardware does have a 3.5mm input, meaning the iPod Classic can slot into my system perfectly.

Here, I had the opportunity to rediscover the MP3 player’s fantastic On-The-Go playlist feature. Effectively, if you hold down the center button in the clickwheel, a menu pops up. This includes a range of features — like starting Genius or browsing an album — but my favorite was always On-The-Go, which allowed you to add tracks to a generic playlist.

This is an enjoyable way to queue up songs as I’m getting the house into order. Although, I will say one thing: having to walk over directly to the iPod or carrying the stereo remote to change volume is a bit of a hassle. It’s much more convenient to do this with your iPhone or Apple Watch.

Saturday, 17:45pm: Heading out

After a day relaxing at home, it’s time to go out and meet some friends at the pub. Going for an evening walk with a pair of headphones and the iPod is where the device truly comes into its own. 

Despite all its downsides, there’s still something magical about it. Maybe it’s nostalgia, maybe it’s familiarity, but scrolling through a list of artists without any distractions remains a wonderful feeling. Yes, it’s a bit slower than an iPhone, doesn’t have a good search option, and the screen is dated, but, I’ll be damned, it’s still a terrific bit of kit.

I’ll also say this: people love it when you take an old iPod out with you.

Saturday, 21:15pm: Home time

As brilliant as the iPod once was, it’s really showing its age in 2023. The last time I picked up the device was about four years ago and, even from that point, the consumer tech industry has accelerated forward.

Screens are better, the majority of devices use solid-state memory (SSD), and headphone jacks are getting scarcer and scarcer. On top of that, as iTunes has disappeared and macOS evolves, it appears that reliable support for the iPod has fled.

Saying all that, it’s still a beautiful device with an iconic design, and can be a delight in the right circumstances — it’s just that these instances are getting fewer. Nowadays, iPhones are so flexible, easy to use, and powerful that they make the iPod look like something from a different century.

But you know what? I still love it — and this experiment has convinced me I need to upgrade and modify my iPod to see if that makes it more suitable for 2023. Nostalgia is one hell of a drug.

The iPod is iconic. Not only did Apple’s MP3 player rocket the company into the public’s imagination, but it also defined an entire industry. You can’t write the story of digital music without a rather hefty chapter on the iPod.

Yet, as is always the case, the world moves on. The iPod is no more. While the final model, the iPod Touch, might have only been discontinued in 2022, the classic click wheel devices reached their end back in 2014. From Apple’s perspective, its MP3 player is long dead.

Despite this, there’s still a thriving community of iPod fans, from those still using the original devices to people calling for new versions of the classic music player.

Amidst all this nostalgia, there’s a question rarely asked: how well would an unmodified iPod operate as an audio device in 2023? In our modern world of streaming and wireless headphones? 

Well, I had to find out — so I spent two days living like it was 2010.

Friday, 8:55am: Finding the iPod… and its cable

First things first, I had to dig out an iPod. Luckily, I had a dusty 160GB Classic sitting in a drawer. In a surprise to no one, the battery was dead — and this is where I bumped into my first problem: where the hell was its charging cable? The old 30-pin connector wire was nowhere to be found.

After 45-odd minutes of rifling through shelves and boxes, I eventually found the cable underneath a magazine rack in the lounge. Truly, tech moves in mysterious ways.

The next step was connecting the iPod Classic to my laptop. The 30-pin connector I had used USB-A, so I needed to dig out a USB-C adaptor to plug it into my 2021 MacBook Pro.

A few minutes of charging later and the iPod sprung to life. Success!

Connecting the iPod Classic to a computer

This is where things got trickier.

The last time I used an iPod Classic, iTunes was still around. Since the launch of macOS Catalina though, the library element of this software was replaced by the Apple Music app, while management of external devices moved to Finder.

This hasn’t been an issue when connecting my iPhone, but I bumped into a gamut of problems with the iPod Classic. It took an age for Finder to actually recognize the device and it kept disconnecting — most likely down to a dodgy cable.

Once I’d found the perfect angle to keep the iPod connected, I encountered another issue: macOS Ventura struggled to sync my iPod. It was stuck on the loading screen, never able to actually transfer the music across.

This, it turns out, is an issue that lots of people are experiencing. Following this guide, I managed to get the iPod to sync. But once, and only once.

Putting music on the device

Because I don’t have much else better to do with my time, I still maintain a full digital music library. This is mainly driven by Bandcamp, downloads from vinyl purchases, and burning CDs. I managed to get a chunk of this music across onto the iPod Classic. 

I also wanted to put some podcasts on the device, but, as previously mentioned, I only managed to sync the MP3 player once. Considering I spend a good portion of my time swaddled by podcasts, this was disappointing. 

Anyway, what happens if you don’t maintain a digital music library? Well, I was surprised to discover that both the iTunes Store and Amazon still sell downloadable singles and albums. I could’ve sworn those services stopped.

This makes it incredibly easy to buy songs and transfer them to an MP3 player on macOS. Well, if you can get your iPod synced, that is.

Connecting a pair of headphones

Yes, it’s taken almost a full workday to actually listen to the iPod, but we’re getting achingly close. Unfortunately, there’s another hurdle: my headphones.

My current daily drivers are the AirPods Max, and while these are delightful, they’re completely wireless. And the iPod? Well, that’s a completely wired device.

This means that — outside of buying a Bluetooth adaptor — you can’t use the AirPods Max with an iPod. All isn’t lost though; I have a pair of the Sony WH-1000XM5 that still have a headphone jack.

Friday, 17:00pm: Admiring the iPod Classic

You know what? Even all these years after its release, the iPod Classic is still a joy to use. The click wheel is magnificent, the form factor delightful, and music sounds great.

After all that stress, it’s nice to kick back and enjoy some tunes. Although I will say one thing: using Spotify on my iPhone would’ve got me here way quicker.

That’s day one of this diary complete, make sure you check out day two, as now the iPod is up and running, we can really put it through its paces.

I listen to a lot of music, be that when I’m working, typing furiously away at my desk, when I’m reading a book, or even when I’ve chosen to sit down and just listen to music. 

The last one is one of my favorite things to do, and when I do, I don’t want to be disturbed. My phone is turned off, my laptop closed, and the door firmly shut – nothing gets in the way of my listening time. Unless the house is on fire. Or my Uber Eats arrives. Sometimes, I don't even want to use Apple Music, excellent as it is.

Why? My love for my iPod, that's why.

For this purpose, just doing nothing else other than immersing myself in my favorite tunes, an iPod is perfect. It’s not connected to the internet, so I can switch off from the outside world and listen to music in my own personal universe. There are other options to do this with sure – and some of them may even be better. In the long run, however, I can’t see my iPod going anywhere anytime soon – and here are five reasons why.

Disconnect from the outside world

I’ve spoken about it already, but there really is nothing like dedicating some time to listening to music and zoning out from the world around you. In my case, that means shutting everything off that has a connection to the internet or cellphone towers, and just getting comfortable with nothing but some music or some thoughts. Sometimes, this looks like playing a record on my HiFi, sometimes a CD, and sometimes it's pressing play on my iPod and sitting back. Often, in fact.

The simplicity of the device and its single focus on music means that I can disconnect. After all, I spend all my time at a desk, connected to the internet, and typing away at massive screens. Something that's got nothing to do with any of that is huge for when I want to relax. No calls, no Slack messages, no emails, nothing. Just me and my tunes. 

It can work well with my other hobbies as well. I like to read, and playing music on my iPod again lets me focus on the book at hand, instead of playing around with internet settings and streaming apps. It’s simple bliss. Not a MacBook Pro in sight.

The form factor

The iPod video, the model I have, is small. The screen is, in modern terms, postage stamp sized, and the rest of the device is smaller than the iPhone 13 mini. It fits perfectly in a pocket, seamlessly into a car center console, and slips super nicely into your palm. There’s something almost organic about its smooth, pebble-like aluminum plate back, and it remains a pleasure to use a device that truly only needs one hand to operate.

I've changed some bits and bobs on mine. The front panel has been replaced with a red one, and the battery swapped out. Beyond that, nothing has been changed in terms of the way the device feels in hand. It’s one of those devices that’s a pleasure to hold, and you can imagine the work that went into making it both as palm and as pocket friendly as possible.

The battery life

This little box of tricks lasts for days. I could charge it up now, and then I’d have a few days of listening to music before it conks out. Admittedly that’s after I changed the battery, but I don’t mind doing that every few years to keep it going.

Think about it this way. How long, realistically, does your iPhone last? You plug it in the evening, unplug it in the morning, and it just about lasts through the day. Even the best iPads don't last that long. For my needs with my diminutive portable music player, I don’t feel like that's enough – and thanks to its power-sipping components, it doesn’t need as much charging.

Seriously, these devices last ages on a single charge. It’s mad.

The internals

The DAC, or digital to analog audio converter, in the iPod video is very, very good. That's the bit of the insides that takes the digital track of the song I want to listen to and turns it from ones and zeros to a listenable track that my headphones and I understand as music. The better the DAC, the better the music sounds, and as I said, the iPod’s DAC is good, so the music sounds good too.

It really is as simple as that – while my favorite small player may not have the most juice inside to run the more powerful headphones, the replication of high quality tracks is excellent.

If only it knew how to play Flacs.

The Clickwheel

Honestly, how could I have left this feature off the list? The Clickwheel is what makes an iPod an iPod, what sets it apart from all the other digital audio players out there. Nothing had anything like the joyfully tactile wheel that clicks slightly as you use it, no control method so smooth and simple with the easy-to-use UI.

The Clickwheel is one of the greatest pre-touch screen input methods, there are no two ways around it. It's a lovely piece of design and it's one of the primary reasons the iPod sticks around in my pocket and on my desk. Even though the UI on my iPhone 14 is great, I still miss something about physical controls. The iPod gives me just that.

Will anything ever replace it?

Never say never – but until that time, something is going to have to do a great many things before I consider ditching my beloved iPod. I would miss the lovely screen, the Clickwheel, and the size. I’d miss the UI, and to some degree, I’d miss Parachute, the weird game that comes installed. To me, not even the best iPhones come close.

Someday, there may well be a device that topples the iPod as my music-listening device of choice. Until then, however, my iPod shall remain my trusty companion – even if I can't connect a pair of AirPods Max.

Today, on April 1, back in 1976, Apple was founded by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, which eventually led to reading these very words on a website that covers everything about the company.

That means it’s Apple’s 47th birthday today, and the company has done quite a bit since its inception, which began with two people in a garage in Palo Alto. We’ve seen the rise of the personal computer, mainly thanks to the Macintosh, and we can carry around a thousand songs in our pocket thanks to the iPod.

With Apple allegedly getting its newest product, the Reality Pro VR headset, ready to be announced at WWDC 2023, we at iMore thought of our favorite products from throughout the company’s history.

Pick 1 - iPad Pro 11-inch (Gen 1 2018)

John-Anthony Disotto — How to Editor

Thinking about the 1st generation 11-inch iPad Pro makes me nostalgic beyond belief. That iPad, which I believe is still the best value for money in an iPad today (buy one-second hand, it’s still a speed demon), is the epitome of my final years at university.

Combined with Notability, Apple Pencil, and a Magic Keyboard, my trusty iPad Pro became my only device as I marched toward my degree. I loved that thing and, to this day, question why I sold it after I graduated—recording lecturers using Notability’s record feature that synced up the audio with my writing made for the perfect study tool and a godsend for interviews.

Now, I use my M2 iPad Pro, and it’s fantastic, but for some reason, its older sibling still has my heart, and I can’t help but feel a sense of regret when I think about the good times we shared.

Pick 2 - MacBook Pro 13-inch (2011)

Tammy Rogers — Staff Writer

My first MacBook - the one that kickstarted my love of macOS and those sumptuous aluminum shells. This wasn’t the first unibody MacBook Pro, but it’s the first one I laid my hands on. I got mine in my first year of uni, a couple of years after it came out, and it served me and my needs perfectly for the four years I studied.

The hard drive died, so I replaced it with an SSD. The RAM got borked somehow, so I replaced it. It was my trusty university companion, and without it, I would not have graduated. It may not be the most memorable Apple product, but I miss it immensely. If I could have it serve my needs now, I absolutely would. After all, it still turns on. So maybe…

Pick 3 - iPhone (1st generation)

Stephen Warwick — News Editor

I’ve probably cheated here by choosing the original iPhone, but it is without a doubt the most impressive (and important) product Apple has ever made. Apple’s iPhone continues to excel today and drives millions of customers through the doors of Apple Stores each year, but the very first iPhone was such a marvel of design and engineering in a way I don’t think we often appreciate now. 

The multi-touch display, the curved back, the glass screen, and more were all hugely ahead of their time. Apple’s iPhone successes across the years are largely down to just how revolutionary the original iPhone was and how much it shook up the smartphone market, arguably even creating it.

The original design was a thing of beauty, and I find myself almost daily lusting after an original iPhone on eBay.

Pick 4 - iPod (3rd Generation)

Daryl Baxter — Features Editor

Pre-iPod, I would carry around a Creative MP3 disk player, which allowed me to play files from a burned CD - however, it was so slow at loading tracks, and having to swap CDs constantly frustrated me to no end.

So when I saved up some money for an iPod in April 2003, it really did feel like a breath of fresh air once I switched it on and synced some music from iTunes.

I loved, and still love, everything that the iPod brought. It had a simple but brilliant interface, the click wheel felt great, and the fact that every song loaded up in less than 3 seconds rather than 10 was a big deal at the time.

It’s said that when Apple launches a new product, it’s best to wait until the second or third generation so that the kinks and user feedback have been taken on board - but here, it felt like it had hit a home run when the iPod debuted in 2001, and so for this third-generation model, Apple made a great product even better.

While I carry an iPod Video with me today, I’ve always got a soft spot for the third-generation model. The iPod 3rd Generation introduced me to Apple at the very beginning, which made me pursue a career in technology and led to you reading these very words.

Back to the Future

While it’s fun to look back on the past with Apple, WWDC always announces the future of its updates, while hinting toward upcoming products.

This year’s event seems as though it’s gearing up for something new, alongside iOS 17 and the other upcoming software updates.

The VR headset has been rumored for years, and it feels as though WWDC 2023 is finally going to be the time and place where we all get to see what it looks like, what it’s called, and if we’ll all be buying one by Christmas.

Whether we’ll be looking back at the headset when Apple reaches its hundredth birthday though, remains to be seen.

WWDC is an exciting time that shows the best of Apple and its community. As the company’s most important event of the year draws nearer, we’re excited to see what the future entails - whatever it is, we’ll be ready for it.

Apple has discontinued and scrapped more products than it has made available in its lifetime, but there’s a bunch that the iMore team would like to see brought back from the grave.

From the iPod HiFi in 2007 to the Mac Pro in 2013, there are a bunch of products that the company scrapped due to low sales, low reviews, or it realized it was a mistake to bring it out in the first place.

But on the other hand, the iMore team has been using Apple products for a few decades, and we’ve all got our own nostalgia for products that should make a return.

With this in mind, we’ve picked five products that Apple should consider bringing back for a big revival.

Pick 1 - 5.8-inch iPhone

John-Anthony Disotto — How to Editor

There’s this constant idea in the world of tech that bigger is better and I’m here to tell you once and for all that it’s just not true. My favorite iPhone of all time was the 11 Pro, with its beautiful Midnight Green frosted glass back. While I'm a fan of the color, the main reason why it’s my favorite iPhone is that I love the 5.8-inch display.

I have average-sized hands and average-sized wrists yet for some reason, the newer iPhones give me constant hand cramps. The iPhone 13 mini was a nice novelty but a device too small also gives me hand cramps and the battery life was just not good enough. Think of me as Goldilocks, the mini is too small, the 6.1-inch devices are too large and the 6.7-inch Pro Max models are out of the question, and the 5.8-inch size of the iPhone X is just right. 

Please Apple, I don’t want to use older devices to get better ergonomics. If the iPhone 15 had a size closer to the hay day of iPhones then I guarantee I’d be first in line.

Pick 2 - iPod Classic

Tammy Rogers — Staff Writer

I love my iPod. Perhaps it was because I was too young (ergo – not enough money), but they were always this out-of-reach, aspirational music player that I always wanted. Since then I’ve learned just how competent the devices are as portable music players. The iPod Video or the first iPod with a click wheel that could play video files was the one I wanted. It wasn’t too big, and it didn’t look like an iPhone - so I needed one.

Fast forward around 17 years, and I’ve got one. I’ve made it red, and bundled a new battery in the back to go with its new SD card storage to make it a little more modern.

I love it – but I would like to see what Apple could do with the form factor today. There have been some concepts and mockups, and if anything, it’s left me wanting more. If Sony can release a new Walkman MP3 player in the year of our lord 2023, why not the iPod? Just make sure it still has a click wheel.

Pick 3 - iMac Pro

Stephen Warwick — News Editor

We’ve gone too long without an iMac Pro and a serious all-in-one Apple desktop for power users. The only iMac you can buy is Apple’s paltry M1 version. Admittedly, the M1 is a fantastic chip, but it’s Apple’s first-ever iteration of a low-powered mobile chip housed in a large desktop computer. I was disappointed that the iMac didn’t get an M1 Pro or Max upgrade, and we’re still overdue an M2 version. In the meantime, we need an iMac Pro. 

Between the incredible display tech that’s going into the Studio Display and Pro Display XDR, and the hefty new M2 Pro and M2 Max processors, Apple has all of the components it needs to put together a truly stunning all-in-one iMac Pro that served the same users as the last one. Power-hungry users who need an all-in-one to fit their space. 

Pick 4 - G4 Cube

Daryl Baxter — Features Editor

Apple has previously said that, thanks to Apple silicon, it can approach how a Mac can be designed in a completely different way. This is how the G4 Cube could make a return in the form of the new Mac Pro.

Released in July 2000 before it was discontinued just a year later, it was a small cube held by an acrylic structure, so it gave the impression that it was suspended in the air. However, it fell into the same trap that the trashcan Mac Pro would fall into in 2013 - it was far too expensive at $1799 in 2000, which would be $3,125 in 2023 counting for inflation, and difficult to upgrade due to it being in the acrylic structure.

It was a pet project to then-CEO Steve Jobs, who wanted something that was a cross between a Cinema Display and the G4 iMac. But it struggled to find an audience that would buy it, and some buyers started to spot cracks in the enclosure.

But Apple silicon could bring it back, with a new aluminum design while making the Cube easier to upgrade its internals in the future, such as memory and storage.

Pick 5 - AirPower

Gerald Lynch — Editor in Chief

Ah, AirPower — perhaps Apple’s most public admission of defeat, ever? After unveiling the AirPower concept in September 2017 alongside the iPhone 8 and iPhone X, with a launch planned for the following Spring, the charging mat was brushed under the carpet and quietly canned. Never before had Apple lined a product up for launch and pulled the plug on it at the 11th hour.

Which is a damn shame, as the appeal of AirPower is still there. Even with the success of MagSafe chargers, AirPower’s magical ability to charge devices wirelessly no matter where they are placed on its surface still sounds awesome. But the complexity of engineering such a seemingly simple idea means that not only has Apple failed to deliver it, but few competitors have been able to fulfill it, either. The closest so far is the Wireless Charging Platform, produced by FreePower and distributed, surprisingly, by Tesla. But even that can’t handle an Apple Watch… 

Which of these could actually happen?

Out of the five here, the iMac Pro seems to be the most likely product to be revived by Apple. Since its release in 2021 the M1 24-inch iMac has been well-received, thanks to its colorful design and fast M1 chip. Because of the model's success, plenty of users out there are clamoring for a 27-inch iMac model that could potentially house an M2 Pro chip.

As Stephen says, Apple has all the components ready to make a very powerful iMac Pro, but it can also take inspiration from the display of the MacBook Pro. Throw ProMotion in, have an edge-to-edge display but without the notch, and have a camera that's as good as the selfie camera from an iPhone 14 Pro. Mix this in with a Midnight color and you've got an iMac Pro that would fit well in the Apple silicon Mac lineup.

However, have we missed one out that deserves a revamp more than what we've suggested? Do reach out on Twitter as we'll be talking about this on the iMore Show very soon.

The iPod's click wheel was a rather iconic design element and user interface. It looks like Apple wanted it to have a life beyond the iPod, though. A recently uncovered patent filing on Google Patents shows that the iPad could've had a click wheel implementation, although it looks like Apple wanted a software UI implementation rather than a hardware click wheel.

The patent, uncovered by u/PurplrIsSus1985 on Reddit, shows a detailed implementation of a click wheel for iPad. There are a lot of use cases and implementations noted in the patent filing, which dates back to 2005, likely during the very early development stages of the iPad.

We could've seen a click wheel UI across Apple products

The patent filing discusses a lot of different implementations of a virtual scroll wheel and a virtual knob, all of which look like the iPod click wheel given a second life as a user interface element. One of the implementations include a volume control akin to that found on a click wheel bearing iPod.

The patent also shows off a bunch of other UI implementations, including multi-touch gestures like pinch-to-zoom. It appears that the patent focused on Apple's tablet user interface, with the click wheel UI being one of the earlier options Apple considered.

As we now know, Apple never really went forward with that idea. While it would've seemed like the natural progression at the time, coming from the iPod, Apple made all the right choices with the iPad's user interface, with the touch functionality and supporting UI debuting as one of the best available at the time.

It seems unlikely that we will ever see this implementation come to life in an upgrade to the best iPads out there, given it doesn't make much sense for the iPad as it is today. 

Whether you have an old iPhone or the latest model iPhone 14 Pro, it isn't immune to problems with either the hardware, software, or both. It can happen to anyone, even you, unfortunately! Even the best iPhones can have a bad day. So if you are experiencing issues like freezing up, unresponsiveness, or something just ended up getting borked during a software update, you may need to get your iPhone into recovery mode.

With recovery mode, you use your current Mac or even a PC, and it's definitely more of a last resort than a first step. However, while it may sound scary, it isn't too complicated and will most likely fix whatever ailment is plaguing your device. Even if you don't have problems right now, this information is good to know down the line, in case you ever do need it.

The process for putting your iPhone or one of the best iPads into recovery mode varies depending on what model you have, but don't worry — we've outlined all the steps for whichever model of iPhone you may have right now.

Here's how to put your iPhone or iPad into recovery mode.

How to put your iPhone 8 or newer into recovery mode

Because the iPhone 8 doesn't have a mechanical Home button and iPhone X through iPhone 14 Pro don't even have a Home button to begin with, recovery mode is accessed via a series of button presses on the sides of the device.

1. Open Finder on your Mac.
   • This applies to a Mac running macOS Catalina or later. On a Mac running macOS Mojave or earlier, open iTunes. On a PC, open iTunes.
2. Plug your iPhone in to your computer using your USB to Lightning cable.
3. With your phone connected to your computer, quickly press and release the Volume Up button, quickly press and release the Volume Down button, and then press and hold the Side button until you see the recovery mode screen.

If for some reason, Recovery Mode doesn't work, you can also try putting your iPhone or iPad into DFU mode. Device Firmware Update mode is a little trickier to get into, but will often force a restore even when nothing else works.

How to put your iPad without a Home button into recovery mode

It's a similar method for putting a modern iPad into recovery mode since many of the newer models don't have a Home button. The below steps apply to the iPad Pro (2018 or later), iPad Air (4th generation or later), and the iPad mini 6.

1. Open Finder on your Mac.
   • This applies to a Mac running macOS Catalina or later. On a Mac running macOS Mojave or earlier, open iTunes. On a PC, open iTunes.
2. Plug your iPad into your computer using your USB-C cable.
3. With your iPad connected to your computer, press and release the Volume Up button (nearest to the Top button), press and release the Volume Down button (furthest from the Top button), and then press and hold the Top button until you see the recovery mode screen.

How to put your iPhone 7 into recovery mode

Though it does have a Home button, the iPhone 7's recovery mode process differs from older models due to its capacitive, rather than mechanical, Home button design. That means you'll need to use the buttons on the sides as described below.

1. Open Finder on your Mac.
   • This applies to a Mac running macOS Catalina or later. On a Mac running macOS Mojave or earlier, open iTunes. On a PC, open iTunes.
2. Plug your iPhone in to your computer using your USB to Lightning cable.
3. With your phone connected to your computer, press and hold the Side button and the Volume Down button at the same time until you see the recovery mode screen.

This method also works for the iPod touch (7th generation), though you'll utilize the Top button rather than the Side button.

How to put your iPhone 6s or earlier or iPad with a Home button into recovery mode

For iPhone 6s or earlier, iPod touch (6th generation or earlier), or iPad models with a Home button, the instructions differ yet again. Here's how to initiate recovery mode on those devices.

1. Open Finder on your Mac.
   • This applies to a Mac running macOS Catalina or later. On a Mac running macOS Mojave or earlier, open iTunes. On a PC, open iTunes.
2. Plug your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad into your computer using your USB to Lightning cable.
3. With your device connected to your computer, press and hold the Side (or Top) button and the Home button at the same time until you see the recovery mode screen.

Back up and running

Having your device become unresponsive is hardly the best iPhone or iPad experience so hopefully, the above steps have helped you fix whatever problem you were facing via recovery mode. Once in recovery mode, you can use your computer to update your iPhone or iPad or erase your iPhone or iPad, which can cure all manner of ills.

If you're still struggling, your next step would be to contact Apple support to see what other troubleshooting options you have at your disposal.

Updated July 2022: These steps are still up-to-date.

A few more iPods are about to go the way of the dinosaur.

According to a memo obtained by MacRumors, Apple is alerting authorized service providers that it is planning to add a number of iPod models to the company's obsolete list. The devices being added include generations of the iPod shuffle, iPod nano, and iPod touch.

In a memo sent to authorized service providers obtained by MacRumors, Apple says that the late 2012 model of the iPod shuffle, alongside the seventh-generation iPod nano and the fifth-generation model iPod touch, will be marked as obsolete on September 30. The 16GB variant of the fifth-generation iPod touch is already marked as obsolete, with Apple looking to add the 32GB and 64GB options to the list later this month.

Here's the list of devices reportedly being added to the obsolete list:

• iPod shuffle (Late 2012)
• iPod nano (7th generation)
• iPod touch (5th generation, 32GB and 64GB)

What happens when a device is obsolete?

Once the models are officially on the obsolete list, they will no longer be able to receive hardware service from a repair center, meaning that customers can no longer get them repaired by Apple or one of its Authorized Service Providers. They can still get it repaired by a third party, but those repairs will no longer be backed by Apple.

The company officially discontinued the iPod earlier this year in May. With the advent of the iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and HomePod, iPod sales had slowly decreased year over year for the company to the point that it was finally time to say goodbye to the device that changed music for good.

Apple does not plan to bring back the iPod and, for those looking for one, you'll need to look to second-hand options on eBay, Facebook Marketplace, and elsewhere. That said, a better idea would be to pick up an iPhone or Apple Watch at this point.

What you need to know

• Apple is removing the iPod touch product page from its website.
• The page is no longer available in Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and more.
• Going to the URL now redirects visitors to the Apple Support website.

The iPod touch is taking another step into the history books.

Spotted by MacRumors, Apple has started to remove the iPod touch product page from its website. According to the report, the page is no longer available in Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and a number of other countries. The URL will now redirect visitors to the Apple Support website.

If you missed out on buying the iPod touch before it sold out on Apple's website, you might still be able to find a model at a third-party retailer or, of course, on the used market.

In the press release from when Apple announced that the iPod was being officially discontinued, the company recommended the iPhone and Apple Watch as alternatives for those looking to purchase the device.

If you weren't living under a rock last week, you heard the news that Apple officially discontinued the iPod. The company announced that the existing generation of the iPod touch would be the final iPod model — ever.

People flocked to social media (and to websites like this one, of course) to talk about the iPod, its effect on the music industry, Apple itself, and also many stories about how the iPod affected them personally. Many people reflected on how an iPod was not only their first Apple device but the first piece of technology that made them FEEL something when, as Apple puts it, technology and the creative arts intersect.

I spent my share of time thinking about my experience with the iPod, too. I too was among those whose iPod was their first Apple device. I remember two things when I was a kid when it came to technology: my family getting our Gateway computer (cow print box and all) and getting the original iPod nano. Queue iTunes, Napster, ripping my CDs, eventually getting a MacBook, and all of the other things that followed that simple purchase that caused me to stick with Apple for the next two decades.

While it was fun to reflect on the iPod and its history, for Apple and all of us, I also began to wonder where it goes now. The iPod is gone but, as Apple put it, "the music lives on." That statement got me thinking that, if it no longer lives inside of the device that put 1000 songs in our pocket, where does the music live now?

The iPod lives on inside of two devices: AirPods and HomePod

While it might be almost instinct to say that the future of the iPod lives inside the best iPhone, the longer I thought about it, the more I became convinced this is not the case. While one of the three pillars of the iPhone was originally "a widescreen iPod with touch controls," it has long since grown out of that and become almost all the things for all the people. It's your camera, your calculator, your GPS, your notepad, and, oh yeah, your phone. Add the App Store and the iPhone is about as much of an iPod as the iPad is an Apple Newton (look it up on Wikipedia).

While the iPhone is certainly the device that most of us might use to access our music, whether it be on Apple Music or another music streaming service, I don't think the iPhone embodies Apple's love of music. Tim Cook has said that "music's always been at the heart of Apple." Now that the iPod is gone, I believe that the spirit of the iPod lives on in not one but two devices: AirPods and HomePod.

The thing that made me realize that the spirit of the iPod now lives in AirPods and HomePod was actually pretty simple: it was Apple's own ads. The iPod had an iconic series of ads that featured silhouettes of people dancing to music with, you guessed it, their iPods and Apple's EarPods. Even when the iPod evolved and featured video and then the iPod touch opened the App Store to it, the focus stayed mostly on the music.

When you look at campaign ads for the iPhone, things don't really focus so much on music anymore. There's too much for Apple to cover and the iPhone is for so much more than music. The ads focus on the camera, the display, the durability of the new glass, and the latest processor — as Steve Jobs put it, "speeds and feeds." However, when you look at AirPods and HomePod, music and how a product makes you feel come right back into focus.

It's especially evident in the ads that Apple releases with AirPods, and that's an easy one to guess why. AirPods are headphones and what do you use headphones mainly for if not listening to music? Back off podcast and audiobook people — Apple isn't making ads for that. Apple's ads for AirPods don't talk about speeds and feeds but about how getting lost in music makes you FEEL. And, if you want to feel like the people in the ads, you should buy a pair of AirPods.

The same goes with the HomePod. While the device has Siri packed in which enables it to serve as a smart assistant for your entire home, Apple's marketing around the device is less like Amazon, which leans in hard on its home speaker as an assistant, and more like AirPods. The best representation of this is "Welcome Home," the HomePod ad from Spike Jonze that, just like AirPods ads, is less about the device's features and more about how it lets you get lost in the music at home. The company did something similar with the HomePod mini as well.

The music lives on

While the iPod may be gone, the music certainly lives on at Apple with AirPods and HomePod. A device that helps you get lost in the music is expressed in full with Apple's advertisements for its wireless headphones and its home speaker. It's clear that Apple sees the spirit of its original music player within each device.

It also lives on, of course, in Apple Music, the company's music streaming service. The company continues to invest in music, recently adding Spatial Audio and Lossless Audio into its music streaming plan at no additional cost to its subscribers.

With the help of Apple Music, AirPods, and HomePod, 1000 songs in your pocket has grown into 90 million songs, anywhere. While I'll miss the iPod and the history we have all shared with it, I'm excited for the future of music and where Apple will take it next.

What you need to know

• Apple discontinued the iPod touch earlier this week.
• It is still selling it "while supplies last".
• Some configurations are already starting to sell out.

Update, May 11 (8:40 pm ET): The iPod touch is now completely sold out on Apple's online store in the United States.

Apple's iPod touch is selling out in some configurations less than 24 hours after it was discontinued.

As noted by MacRumors, some configurations including the 256GB model in all colors are listed as sold out on Apple's US website. The (PRODUCT)RED version is also listed as sold out for delivery, however, all models may have some limited in-store availability for in-store pickup.

There is also a dearth in stocks on Amazon, with nearly all configurations sold out.

Apple announced that the iPod touch, and by proxy the iPod as a whole, was being discontinued as of Tuesday this week. The company stated:

Apple says that the legacy of the iPod lives on in all of Apple's music-capable devices like its best iPhone, the iPhone 13, its Apple Watch, iPads, and even the Mac.

Apple's Greg Joswiak said "Today, the spirit of iPod lives on. We've integrated an incredible music experience across all of our products, from the iPhone to the Apple Watch to HomePod mini, and across Mac, iPad, and Apple TV. And Apple Music delivers industry-leading sound quality with support for spatial audio — there's no better way to enjoy, discover, and experience music."

Update, May 11 (8:40 pm ET) — The iPod touch is now completely sold out on Apple's online store in the United States.

Spotted by 9to5Mac, the iPod touch is now completely sold out on Apple's online store in the United States. While there were still some 32GB models available earlier today, all configurations are now sold out and it is now impossible to purchase the iPod touch from Apple's online store in the country.

Of course, Apple may replenish its store if it finds a box of them in the basement or something. If not, "while supplies last" may have only lasted a day.

What you need to know

• Apple is killing the iPod Touch.
• The company says it will only be available while stocks last.
• Apple says the "spirit" of iPod lives on in the rest of Apple's product lineup.

Apple has today announced the end of the iPod Touch.

In a press release the company stated:

Apple's Greg Joswiak, SVP of worldwide marketing said "Music has always been part of our core at Apple, and bringing it to hundreds of millions of users in the way iPod did 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, from the iPhone to the Apple Watch to HomePod mini, and across Mac, iPad, and Apple TV. And Apple Music delivers industry-leading sound quality with support for spatial audio — there's no better way to enjoy, discover, and experience music."

While stocks last the iPod Touch will remain available to buy, however, it's clear from Apple's release today that the iPod is done as a produc, with Apple focusing instead on the integration of music into products like its best iPhones, iPads, and Macs.

Apple announced the first iPod back in 2001, described at the time as "1,000 songs in your pocket." It went on to become one of the company's most-successful products, and when through a huge number of iterations including the classic, the nano, the shuffle, and the mini, as the well as the Touch, which Apple last refreshed in 2019.

The Apple TV opens your world to different forms of entertainment, including films, TV shows, sports, and gaming. Setting up your new Apple TV is relatively easy if you already have an iPhone or iPad.

Here's how to do it.

How to set up your Apple TV with a device

To get started:

1. Put your iPhone or iPad near your Apple TV. Make sure Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are turned on.
2. Start your Apple TV. This can include the Apple TV 4K or older models.
3. Follow the onscreen instructions on your iPhone or iPad.

As Apple explains, "automatic setup doesn't transfer account information for third-party apps such as Netflix or Hulu, and doesn't turn on iTunes Match or Home Sharing."

And with that, you're all set! You can set up your Apple TV on the best iPhones and best iPads.

Are you looking for more? Be sure to check out the latest Apple TV+ offerings, which include award-winning TV shows, films, documentaries, and more.

Simple, no?

As you can see, it takes just a few seconds before you're enjoying Apple TV in your home. Happy viewing!

Updated March 2022: Current through latest watchOS version.

In Apple's iOS 15 and iPadOS 15, you can use your voice to search in mobile Safari using Siri. It's available on the best iPhones and best iPads.

Here's more about the feature and how it works. (Hint: You use your voice!)

Using your voice with Safari on iPhone and iPad

Instead of your fingers, you can now do searches on Safari using your voice. To do so:

1. Open the Safari app on your device's Home screen.
2. Choose the Tab Bar at the bottom of the screen.
3. Tap the microphone icon at the far right of the text field.
4. Voice your search.

A Safari search acts differently depending on the results. If Siri can identify a specific website based on the search (for example, iMore, it will open it immediately (iMore.com). If, however, your search is more generic ("spinach salad"), you'll see different results as you can see below:

Big changes

Safari has seen significant changes come it's way on iOS/iPad 15. And these changes are one of the seven features you might have missed on the latest update.

Besides voice search, there's Share with You, making it easier to find content sent to you through Messages and new privacy protections. Mobile Safari also includes a bottom tab bar, customizable start page, Tab Groups with syncing, web extensions, and more.

Also explore ...

There are other new features that arrived with iOS/iPad 15, including the latest Focus tool, significant FaceTime changes, new Memoji, and many others.

Questions?

Do you have any questions about voice search on Safari on iPhone and iPad? How about a question concerning iOS 15 or iPadOS 15? If so, let us know in the comments below.

What you need to know

• Apple has made its fifth-generation iPod Touch 16GB obsolete.
• That's because the device stopped sales more than seven years ago.
• It means you can no longer get it serviced by Apple.

Apple's 16GB fifth generation iPod Touch is now obsolete, according to Apple.

As noted by MacRumors:

It means that users can no longer get hardware servicing or source parts for the device through service providers, as Apple explains:

Apple's most current iPod Touch is the seventh generation from 2019, and whilst we're big fans, it's clear the iPod has lost much of its shine thanks to the proliferation of the iPhone, which does everything the iPod does and more. Still, the iPod is a nice gift for young children, and even a handy companion for Android users who want some of Apple's services and features iOS but want to retain the flexibility of having an Android handset.

What you need to know

• YouTuber Will it Work? has put the iPod Nano's Lightning port through its paces.
• They found that the iPod Nano will indeed charge an Apple Pencil.
• It can also run a small fan and a UV light.

A YouTuber experimenting with Apple's iPod Nano has revealed the device can in fact charge the Apple Pencil.

As spotted by iDropNews, YouTuber Will it Work conducted a series of tests with the seventh-gen iPod Nano to find out what its Lightning Port was capable of.

Niles Mitchell first showed off a small Lightning fan and a UV light that work with the iPhone, before testing them with the iPod Nano. The iPod can in fact run both, but the Apple Pencil test was the most surprising. Mitchell was able to plug in and charge an Apple Pencil using the iPod Nano. As you can imagine, it took quite a bit of juice, charging the Pencil from 80-100% drained the Nano's battery from full to just 25%. The Apple Pencil, of course, doesn't actually work with the iPod Nano's tiny touch screen, however, Mitchell did show off a $13 stylus that did.

Recently, an Apple patent indicated the company has considering ways to include the Apple Pencil with its MacBook lineup, from our recent report:

What you need to know

• The shell of an unreleased iPod touch has appeared in new photos.
• The device is said to be a fifth-gen iPod touch.

Apple designs all kinds of things that never get released and one of them appears to be an iPod touch that looked like an iPhone 5 – complete with chamfered edges.

Leaked by someone with a decent track record in the form of Twitter user Mr.White, the device doesn't have an Apple logo on the back but it does have the telltale shape of one of the best-lookig iPhones ever – iPhone 5. Except this shell has a space for the larger-than-life 30-pin Dock Connector whereas iPhone 5 famously ushered in the Lightning connect we still use today.

https://twitter.com/laobaiTD/status/1402835983788249088

The fifth-generation iPod touch we ultimately received arrived in 2012 and featured curved edges similar to those that ended up being part of the iPhone 6 design a couple years later.

As we reach the middle of 2021, the current iPod touch is almost a forgotten product. It hasn't seen a refresh in more than two years and finding it on apple.com takes more than a few clicks. As Apple moves certain iPhones into cheaper and cheaper categories, the role of the humble iPod touch isn't clear.

The current iPod touch 7 is still a good device for those who want to give juds a way to watch their shows, though. For everyone else, the best iPhone deals are a better option.

What you need to know

• Apple's iPod nano is long gone but this concept shows how amazing a modern one could be.
• The new concept shows a rounded iPod nano that resembles the AirTags leaks we've seen.

Who remembers the iPod nano? I do, and I owned the very first model. It was cool. But you know what would make it cooler? A screen you can touch and a look that's very much Apple in 2021. This latest concept by Tech Blood proves it, too.

Shared via a YouTube video and a handful of still renders, this new concept imagines what would happen if you created a modern iPod nano. The shape immediately reminds me of the rumored AirTags and the display is, of course, touch-friendly.

And just look at it!

The concept shows an iOS-like interface that is actually its own bespoke operating system. But Podcasts, Music, and even Siri are all present and correct. I think it's fair to say I'd be all over one of these things if Apple let me buy one!

Until then, I'd suggest bagging yourself an iPod touch and slapping it into one of these waterproof cases for iPod touch 7 to make sure it stays in tip-top condition.

So, disaster has struck: your iPhone won't turn on! You've checked that the battery isn't depleted, you've tried all sorts of button combinations, and it still won't work. But before you give up and call Apple for help, there are things you can do; steps you can take. While it's true that hardware fails, it's more likely to be some kind of software glitch for which you'll need to find a workaround.

So, follow along and we'll try to get you back up and functional in no time!

1. Plug in

Yes, I know, you're sure it's not the battery and you're sure you're charged up, but let's make double-triple sure. Maybe something caused your battery to drain faster than you expected, or maybe your charger or cable wasn't working, so it's worth checking.

Grab your Lightning connector (or USB-C cable, for an iPad Air or iPad Pro) — preferably a different one than you used before — plug into an outlet or USB port, and leave it for at least an hour. If that works — if it boots up and starts working — great. If not, keep going!

2. Hard reset

If your iPhone or iPad won't turn on, one of the first and easiest things to try is a hard reset. Whether it's really not turning on or it's just frozen on a black screen, or it really hasn't booted, a reset can help. Yes, it's the old "reboot Windows" solution, and it's silly, but it works. Sometimes bad bits get stuck and need to be flushed out.

Of course, how to reset your iPhone or iPad depends on what model you have, so you'll need to follow those specific instructions.

• How to reboot and reset your iPhone or iPad

3. Restore

After trying the easy fixes, it's time to try the harder ones. In this case, restoring your iPhone or iPad in iTunes. iTunes is a safer bet than iCloud because it actually offloads, re-installs, and reloads your data rather than doing everything in-place and on your device. That can sometimes shake loose bad bits that even a hard reset or iCloud restore can't.

Your iPhone or iPad will have to be functional to restore — even if it's not booting directly — but plugging into iTunes should answer that question almost immediately.

• How to restore your iPhone or iPad from a backup

4. Contact Apple

Real talk: Sometimes a problem is really a problem. Electronics can fail, and they can fail at any time. If you have AppleCare+, make a Genius Bar appointment at the Apple Store or call Apple at 1-800-MY-APPLE to set up a mail-in repair. If you don't have AppleCare, you may have to pay for the visit or call, but it's less of a waste than having a dead iPhone or iPad.

Your fixes?

If you had an iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad that won't start up, and one of the above fixes worked for you, let me know! If something else worked, let me know that as well!

If you can't charge your iPhone or iPad, whether it's the latest iPhone 12 or iPad Pro, or an older iPhone 6s or iPad Air, there's a lot you can try on your own before contacting Apple for help. Sure, sometimes it's a hardware problem with the Lightning or USB-C connector or the battery, but often enough it's a software issue that a few simple steps can fix.

If so, follow along and we'll get you back up and battery running in no time!

1. Force a restart

If your iPhone or iPad won't charge, one of the first and easiest things to try is a forced restart. Make all the "reboot Windows" jokes you want but sometimes bad bits get stuck and need to be flushed out. Follow these instructions to force a reboot, or even reset your iPhone.

• How to reboot or reset your iPhone or iPad

2. Switch outlets or ports

Funny as it sounds, sometimes outlets or USB ports just don't work. That's especially true if you're plugging into a wall or computer you've never plugged into before. It can also happen if an electrical or other problem occurs in your regular outlet or port.

So, make sure you try plugging into a different outlet or USB port and see if your iPhone or iPad starts to charge. If it does, you're good. If not, keep reading.

3. Switch cables

Like outlets, cables can fail. Sometimes they get chewed up by the wear and tear of travel or even household life. Other times, especially for third party cables, defects catch up with them. If there's no problem with the iPhone or iPad, and no problem with the power source, you need to check the cable in-between.

Try a different cable. If you don't have one handy, try one from a family member, friend, schoolmate, colleague, or even one from a store in the mall. Just get your hands on a cable or two other than your regular and see how goes. If it works, awesome. If not, keep reading.

4. Restore in iTunes

After trying the easy fixes, it's time to try the harder ones. In this case, restoring your iPhone or iPad in Finder (on your Mac) or iTunes (on Windows and older Macs. A computer-based restore is a safer bet than iCloud because it actually offloads, re-installs, and reloads your data rather than doing everything in-place and on your device. That can sometimes shake loose bad bits that even a forced restart or iCloud restore can't. If you use an encrypted backup, it'll even restore your passwords so you can get back up and running faster.

You'll need to back up your device to your Mac, then erase it, then restore it.

• How to back up your iPhone or iPad manually to macOS
• How to erase and restore your iPhone
• How to restore your iPhone or iPad using macOS

5. Contact Apple

Sometimes a problem really is a problem. Like any physical connector, the Lightning or 30-pin Dock port is subject to both wear-and-tear and electrical failure. There could also be an issue with your battery. If you have AppleCare+, don't walk, run to get it fixed. If you don't, get an estimate and weigh the cost of repair against the cost of upgrading to a new device.

If you don't live close to an Apple Store, you can call 1-800-MY-APPLE in order to set up a mail-in repair. If you don't have AppleCare, you may have to pay for the call, but it's less of a waste than having a dead iPhone or iPad.

Your fixes?

It doesn't matter if your iPhone is older, or the best iPhone you can buy right now, problems can still arise. If you had an iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad that you couldn't charge, and one of the above fixes worked for you, let me know! If something else worked, let me know that as well!

What you need to know

• Apple has added an iPod nano and iPod Shuffle to the vintage list.
• It's also added an iPod touch to the obsolete list.
• But you aren't still using any of them anyway, are you?

Apple continues to clear the decks in terms of support for its aging iPod lineup, putting two of them onto its vintage product list and one onto its obsolete list.

According to a swift browse of Apple's support document and liberal use of the always fun Wayback Machine, it appears that Apple has added the following products to its worldwide vintage collection.

• iPod nano (7th generation, Late 2012)
• iPod shuffle (4th generation, Late 2012)

Here's what the vintage list looks like now, compared to September 26.

It's a bad time for the iPod touch as well, with the 4th generation iPhone wannabe now on the obsolete products list. Oddly, it's also on the vintage list, too.

So, what does all of this mean? Nothing for the majority of people reading this but, for those who are still using one of these things, here's what Apple has to say.

So, now you know!

What you need to know

• Apple is adding the 7th generation iPod nano to the Vintage and Obsolete list.
• It is also adding the 5th generation iPod touch to the list.
• Both devices will still be able to receive hardware service from Apple and its service providers.

The 7th generation iPod nano was also the final generation of the iPod nano, and it appears that it is finally being welcomed into Apple's vintage list.

According to a new report from MacRumors, Apple will be adding the 7th generation iPod nano to its Vintage and Obsolete products list as a now vintage product. It was originally introduced in September of 2012 with a refreshed model in 2015.

Along with the 7th generation iPod nano, Apple is apparently also adding the 5th generation iPod touch to the vintage list. As a vintage product, both devices will still be able to receive repairs from both Apple and third-party service providers.

Apple introduced the original iPod nano in September of 2005.

The iOS 14 public beta is just going live now so if you're interested in test-driving Apple's next-generation software for the iPhone, strap yourself in. Because here's everything you really need to know.

iOS 14: Beta means beta

To get on any or all of Apple's software testing programs, go to beta.apple.com and sign up.

Just remember that beta means beta, so put it on a secondary iPhone or iPod touch, nothing you absolutely need to depend on for your daily life or livelihood.

It's been really solid so far, way more like iOS 12 than iOS 13, but you never know what'll happen from one beta update to the next, and remember, developers can't update for iOS 14 in the App Store until it goes into general release this fall, so if anything doesn't work, it's on you, not them.

In other words, make a backup before you go beta in case you want or need to revert to iOS 13.

iOS 14: Compatibility

iOS 14 basically runs on all the same iPhones that iOS 13 ran on. That means every iPhone from the 2015 iPhone 6s and 2016 original iPhone SE on up. Also, the current generation iPod touch 7.

iOS 14: Widgets

For almost a decade and a half, the Home screen has been an uninterrupted grid of tiny app icons. But now, Apple has gone and punched widget-sized holes through the whole thing.

Small, medium, and large-sized widget holes to be precise.

You can still swipe in the minus-one Homepage to see all the widgets but now, on the iPhone, touch and hold on any widget you like, and you can drag it right onto the Home screen.

It's still Apple, so you still can't drop them anywhere you like, the grid just makes more room for them on the sides or as full rows.

You can also go into jiggly mode. Yes, jiggly mode, that's what Steve called them at the beginning, it's what Craig calls them now, don't worry about it.

Because the icons now give you options, the fastest way to jiggly is touch and hold an empty area of the screen.

Then tap the plus button at the top left, pull up the Widget Gallery to see all the different versions of all the different widgets, and drag and drop any of them as well.

Now, if you have an Apple Watch and these new widgets look a lot like those old complications to you, that's because you're incredibly observant — and that's precisely what they are.

Apple bought over their killer design language, information density, and glanceability, and have just made them the standard across all the platforms.

But, because they come from complications, much of the previous iOS widget interactivity is gone.

Because this is beta, we only have Apple's new-fangled widgets to work with for now. But, old-style widgets still work, and should keep working for about another year or so.

For the new-style widgets, apps push updates to them, which then get shown in chronological order. Whatever's being shown can then deep link back into the app. Small widgets have a single deep link but the medium and large widgets can have separate deep links for each section.

So, a small podcast widget could link you back to your now playing screen where a big one could offer you the current and next three show pages up.

It's super power-efficient but at the cost of that old-style interactivity.

And… I don't know if that's philosophical, because Apple has always seen the Home screen as a portal, not a destination, or practical, because it'll take time to add that functionality to the previous watch-only system, but we'll have to wait and see.

But if you want your interactive widgets back, drop a like below.

To save space and prevent you having to pick favorites, you can drop multiple same-sized widgets one on top of the other to form a stack, then swipe through them on your Home page. You can hold down to remove or reorder widgets any way you want.

There's even a Smart Stack widget that cycles between them intelligently for you, based on time, location, previous behavior, and priorities set by the app — for example, if you have a meeting coming up, Calendar can say oh me, me, me! And jump to the top of the stack.

Now, I've never used widgets much on Android, and I don't know if I'm going to use them much on the iPhone either. Except…

Except for the Siri Suggested apps widget. It disappears right onto your Home screen, just looks like a set of normal old Home screen apps, but uses the same intelligence to predict which apps you'll want to use next. Things like time of day, location, previous behavior, and a whole lot more.

And if you ever see an app you never want to see, you can tap and hold and banish it… until you next re-add the widget.

I've dropped two of them on my Home screen, they don't duplicate, but they do almost always have the app I'm looking for, even if it takes me a second longer to zero in on it.

I don't know how many non-nerds will use widgets, even find them, because historically those numbers just haven't been high, but as a nerd, I'm super happy they're here.

And like with Control Center, Notification Center, and bunch of other more advanced, more capable systems Apple's added over the years, I'm even super happier they're completely out of the way for anybody who has absolutely no interest in them.

Because functional complexity through interface depth is exactly how you mature an operating system for existing, more niche users without making it impenetrable to new, more casual users.

Let me know your current favorites and the ones you're waiting on most in the comments below.

iOS 14: Default apps

If you had default apps on your iOS 14 bingo card, go ahead and circle in… but only a little.

Because, you'll soon be able to set whatever email client you want, including Gmail and Outlook, and whatever web browser you want, including Chrome and Edge, as your default.

Why only mail and browsers? Those are the ones Apple got the most requests for, but that just means you have to keep asking for things like Maps, Music, and Calendar as well.

Why only soon? Because developers have to update their apps with a flag that says they're available for default mail or browser status, and Apple wants to make sure they're real. Like, Google and Microsoft, no problem. Some scammer app that just wants to steal your messages, take over your Amazon affiliate cookies, spam you with ads, or redirect you to phishing sites — well those better all be squashed and hard.

I value Apple's commitment to privacy so I'll be sticking with Mail and Safari, but I love that Apple can't rest on default status anymore and now has to fight for every user, which will hopefully make all apps better for everyone.

Let me know what, if anything, you'll be changing yours to, and which default apps you want next in the comments.

iOS 14: App Library

Confession: My home screens are graveyards where apps are so very often downloaded and left to die. Sometimes I'll search for them later if I need them. Other times I'll do a fresh install just to blast them all clean and start over.

But, with iOS 14, Apple is using the same kind of Siri suggested smarts to impose, I'll say it again, a little Marie Kondo-style organization on all of our apps.

I never really used the far more basic app drawer on Android either. I just tend to use search for whatever I can't immediately find.

Which, by the way, is getting better in iOS 14. In addition to knowledge Search — essentially type-to-Siri — you can now search inside apps, and use search to quick launch apps. Basically, it's what's been on the Mac for a few years now and it's great to finally see it on the iPhone as well.

But when it comes to the App Library, it's the implementation, not the idea that matters, so…

The App Library sits all the way to the right in the Home screen stack. But, now you can hide all those intermediate graveyard-like Home screen pages if you want to. Just go into jiggly mode, tap the little navigation dots above the dock, and uncheck any screens you no longer want seen.

Then, it can be as few swipes from Home screen prime as you want it to be.

And for any pages left, just tap and hold those dots and slide your finger back and forth to super scrub them.

The library looks like giant folders with full sizes apps in them… with a regular-sized folder with tiny apps in them. Basically apps all the way down.

Tap on a regular-sized app and you go straight into that app. Tap a tiny app and you open the folder.

Tap an hold an app and you're in a special delete-only version of jiggly mode.

It's… a bit much but you get the hang of it quick.

The first app group is suggested, which works just like the Siri suggested apps widget. The next is recently added, which is great if you, like me, download stuff, get distracted, forget what you downloaded, realize it didn't go at the absolute end of all apps but rather whatever slot was free on some screen in between and then spend forever too long trying to find it.

The rest of the groups are categorized based on the apps inside… and often not that well. I'm guessing it pulls from the categories developers add to their apps but the results don't always make sense. So, here's hoping Apple requires and honors a primary category, gets smarter about sorting, or — here's an idea — let us change the labels or hold on an app and choose wrong category, wrong category, bad AI, bad! And help train it to be better.

The system is smart though in that it can reorder the categories themselves and the apps they surface as it learns more about when and how you use them. And that part it does really, really well.

There's also a search box on top but, unlike the regular search, if you tap into it you now get a full, alphabetic list of all your apps, like watchOS got previously.

I don't know that I'll ever use it, but my inner bring-order-to-the-galaxy-ier loves knowing its there.

iOS 14: App Clips

Ever since Apple introduced extensibility in iOS 8, basically breaking apart binary app blobs into discrete sets of functionality that could be surfaced in other apps, even on other devices like Apple Watch or CarPlay, I've been waiting for the apps themselves to be downloadable in anything other than binary blob form.

You know, so I didn't have to figure out what they're called, find them, wait for them to install, set up an account, set up a payment system, do just a ton of overhead just to get something quick done.

And App Clips may … just may … finally, be what I've been waiting for.

Developers spin them out of their main apps and they have to be really small so they're really fast. You can grab them from the web or from inside Maps, or IRL from an NFC tap, QR code, or a new hybrid Apple code. Even from Messages if someone shared one to you.

Then you just tap the card, sign in with Apple, use Apple Pay, and you're done. You can even go to the App Library to use them again or download the full app.

Or, at least you can once apps update to include them when iOS 14 goes live this fall. And, situations where they'll be most valuable, like travel, becomes possible for all of us again.

But, all the fingers crossed this idea takes off because even though this is still on a screen, we're going to need tech like this for the augmented reality future.

iOS 14: Compact UI

Ok. Remember when you were about to tap something and a call would come in, and it was too late to peel off, and you'd tap the hang-up button before you could stop yourself?

Well, that's been fixed. Or, at least, mitigated.

Now, when a phone or FaceTime call comes in, instead of a full-screen takeover, you get a fairly standard banner notification. Same with apps like Skype, come iOS 14 release this fall.

Swipe it up and away to get rid of it or pull it down to get the classic full-screen interface and options like messaging we all know and sometimes use.

Same with Siri. Now it's a swirling powerball of assistant might that bursts up on top of the Dock and gives you results in very similar banner-sized overlays.

The ball looks kind weird though, sitting on top of the Dock, so I'm hoping Apple tweaks it to just blank out the bar and settle better into the middle of it.

Likewise, you can see the screen beneath Siri now but still can't interact with it, but because you can see it, you think you can, but if you do, it just obliterates the Siri result, and you have to start over, yes, like an animal… and animal muttering "can you not".

Flicking away the notifications would be more consistent but may get annoying, and a pinning option may be the best or worst of both worlds.

Maybe let me grab a result I really need to persist and drop it as a widget if I want to refer back to it again? I legit don't know.

Picture in Picture on the iPhone works mostly like it has on iPad for the last many years. Go to a video in Safari or any app that eventually supports it, make the video full screen, exit the app, and then it goes picture in picture.

You can move it between the corners, pinch to make it bigger or smaller, hide it off to the side or bring it back, and tap the button to return to the host app.

You can even use it with FaceTime so you can leave the app to do something else without it showing a big PAUSE button and ratting you out to everyone else on the call.

Which is great. But I'm also hoping we get a button in the default media controller that lets us tap to P-I-P any time we want as well. It'd be the same amount of steps, but less cognitive load if you're thinking P-I-P to begin with.

Either way, I love that it's finally on the iPhone, even if I loathe that the YouTube app will likely never add support for it.

iOS 14: Messages

If you've ever had to scroll, scroll, scroll, past parents and carrier spam and work groups and Charles Boyle to try and find that important but infrequent message thread, then Pinned conversations in iOS 14 are for you, and really all of us.

Just swipe left to right to pin. Tap and hold to unpin.

You can pin up to 9 conversations at the top of the messages stack, like chat heads frozen in time and space, and they'll sync to your iPad and Mac, if you have one or both, so you can not only find those convos fast, fast, fast but see recent messages, emoji reactions, even typing indicators.

For group messages, you can set a group photo to make them easier to tell apart, so you don't accidentally send something to your PTA group meant for your meme group even if a few people overlap.

You can now mention someone, with our without an @ symbol first. Just type their name, tap their face, and they'll be notified, even if they turned general group alerts off an only left say my name alerts on.

You can also reply in-line to older or specific messages. Just tap and hold on the message you want to thread and choose reply. It's super useful if a conversation is mutating rapidly or you just want to add something later. The interface is a bit confusing to me still and everyone not on the beta will still see it in chronological order, so I've found it helpful to keep over-adding context at least for now.

Speaking of which, Memoji have gotten 10 new hairstyles, and while Apple would never say this, I've found many of them are just perfect for all the new, longer shelter-in-place hair many of us have been rocking lately.

Also, 18 new headwear options, including bicycle helmet, old timy-whimy aviator goggles, and even a chef's hat which is just chef's kiss.

There are 9 age levels now, from baby to gamma and gampa, 3 new Memoji stickers — hug, gasp, and fist bump, and masks for those of us with empathy and sense enough to want to emphasize just how important to our collective health and economy wearing them are.

There's also a new Emoji picker which finally, oh so finally, has search box, like macOS has enjoyed for a good long while now. It makes it super easier, yes, barely an inconvenience now to find your less recently, less frequently used emoji. Especially as the amount of emoji continues to soar each year.

It even persists your favs above the regular keyboard if you want to spam hearts or prayers or peace or whichever fingers you personally prefer.

It's so emoji extra.

iOS 14: Camera

Camera is getting faster. Up to 90% on shots, hitting up to 4 frames per second. Portrait mode is 15% faster shot-to-shot as well. You can also choose to prioritize speed over processing if that's what you want.

QuickTake video is now supported on iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max, so everyone can get in on the instant TikTok action. And all iPhone models now get quick toggles for video resolution and frame rate. Just tap the readout to toggle the setting.

Night mode on iPhone 11 will help you stay steadier or let you cancel out faster. And you can choose to capture mirrored selfies, if the difference between preview and photo always threw you.

Also, QuickTake can now be set to volume down so you get back burst mode on volume up.

In photos, you can now filter your collection by favorites, edited, videos, and photos, and sort any album from oldest to newest or vice versa.

You can also add captions to photos to better describe them for others or better recall the important details for yourself, search for the captions, and they'll sync across your devices.

iOS 14: Maps

New maps, already rolled out across the U.S., is coming to the U.K., Ireland, and Canada this year. And Maps is adding cycling directions in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and a number of cities in China including Beijing and Shanghai.

You'll get several options for the routes, including the fastest, but also easier ones if there's less elevation or stairs to navigate, or bike lanes that might be safer.

If you have an electric vehicle, you can enter the type and maps will add compatible charging stops along your routes. And, if your city uses congestion zones, Maps can route you around them. Also, it'll let you know if you're approaching speed or red light cameras and where they're located.

If and when traveling becomes a thing again, new guides chock full of local attractions can help you choose which city you want to go to and which restaurants and sights you want to visit when you get there.

Also, if you're walking in a city where the building are blocking GPS, you know when the blue circle covers a three block radius and no matter which way you go it's just always the wrong way? Well, you can now use the camera to scan those buildings around you and reverse-look-around a far more precise location.

As much as I never want to be the person scanning skylines as passers by tourist shame-me like I'm unfolding an old-school paper map, I've so needed this in New York and San Fransisco.

iOS 14: Translate

Last year we got a new Measure app to show off the improvements in ARKit. This year we're getting a new Translate app to take advantage of some of the new Siri improvements.

You can choose your language, the language you want translated, even download the language if you want or need everything done on-device. For privacy sure but also if you're not sure about your internet connection.

You can dictate what you want translated, type it in as text, save favorite phrases to refer back to them in a pinch, even get dictionary definitions if you want or need them.

You can also just rotate to landscape to get a big honking text sign to better get the attention of whomever you're trying to talk to.

And, if you want to start a conversation, you can rotate your iPhone landscape, watch the screen split, tap the mic and start playing Pong between your language and theirs. It'll even try to auto-detect the language to keep up with who's saying what.

It's nowhere nearly a Babel Fish or everything-but-Klingon-Universal Translator but I love that Google and now Apple are pushing us closer to that sci-fi future.

iOS 14: Accessibility

Accessibility always gets some of the coolest, most cutting edge features because the team's driving goal is to make the iPhone easier to use for everyone.

This year, that includes double and triple tap shortcuts on any iPhone with Face ID — and the new tap-to-wake accelerometer feature that came with it.

Just go into Settings > accessibility > Touch and pick things launch control center or Notification Center. It takes a second to work but saves you several seconds and taps you'd otherwise have to use over and over again.

Let me know what you're setting it to in the comments.

If FaceTime detects sign language, it'll make the person using it more prominent so everyone can make out the signs more easily.

Headphone accommodations let you customize exactly the audio experience you want, amplifying soft sounds, adjusting frequencies, even making a personal profile.

There's also VoiceOver recognition, where machine learning recognizes elements on the screen even if apps or web sites haven't done their jobs and labeled them appropriately, or if a bug has come up that interferes with it.

It'll also do similar for images, explaining every element in a photo it can identify, as well as reading any text it can make out. It's… terrific.

I just love this stuff and this team.

iOS 14: Privacy

Apple's been talking about Privacy by Design for years. It basically means every feature is created with privacy in mind each step along the way, not just bolted on badly at the end.

But, it's also come to mean new and creative ways to name and shame… I mean disclose and force consent… the apps and services that aren't doing everything they can for our privacy. Even Apple's own.

This year that includes tracking control, so just like an app has to ask permission to use your location in the real world, when you launch it, it now has to ask your permission to cookie you and track you as you move around the online world as well.

And, honestly, I can't imagine any advertiser who's proud of their business model and not trying desperately to hide it from us would object to this in any way at all.

For location, you can also choose to give only an approximate location instead of a precise one, so an app only sees the neighborhood you're in, not the room.

Take that, Tim Hortons.

For copy and paste access, iOS will now tell you if and when an app is reading your clipboard. So, if you copy a private photo or message, then switch apps, that other app can't just suck it up as well. If you're using iCloud Clipboard to paste from another device, it'll tell you that too.

And just like last year when Bluetooth disclosure caught a bunch of apps trying to use beacons to get around location permissions, this year apps like TikTok and LinkedIn have already been caught reading our clipboards without our consent. Meaning, without us choosing to paste anything.

More like this please.

If anything is using the mic, including Siri after it activates, you'll see an orange dot in the status bar. Green if anything is using the RGB camera.

The photo library is also getting limited access. Before you had to choose basically between yes and no. Now you can choose to only allow select photos at select times. You're in control.

Just like nutrition labels on foods, apps now have to provide privacy information on the App Store, so you can see what they're collecting, where it's going, and get details on how it's being used.

And if an app starts supporting Sign in with Apple, you can now switch from your old login to that system to better protect your privacy going forward.

iOS 14: To be continued...

iOS 14 is packing not just a ton of new smarts but a huge amount of potential. It's still in beta, though, so things can and will change before it ships this fall. So, lots more to come. In the meantime, let me know your favorite new features in the comments below!

What you need to know

• The iPod Classic shipped with a miniature spinning hard disk.
• But it was slow and noisy and bad.
• So watch and laugh this Australian does the only logical thing – puts transplants an SSD into an iPod Classic.

The iPod Classic was officially killed off almost six years ago and I still mourn its loss. That click wheel, Dock connector, awful spinning hard disk. It's just all a reminder of the pre-iPhone age. And while Apple did have some iPods with flash storage, the Classic never got it because it was the iPod for those with huge music libraries. And flash storage was expensive, of course. That isn't really the case in 2020 so why not put an SSD into an iPod Classic?

Well, for starters, it'll probably draw blood for reasons you'll see in this video. But apart from that, it's a damned fine idea!

At a little more than 16 minutes long you might be forgiven for thinking that the idea of watching someone take an iPod apart isn't a fun way to spend your time. But you'd be wrong, thanks in part to the way the Australian doing the work keeps things ticking along. Maybe the Australian/British sense of humor won't translate – let me know in the comments – but I chuckled way more than I do when I watch most iPod videos!

Not that I watch a lot of them. Of course. I'm not that weird.

OK, maybe I am. Anyway, check out the video. It's awesome. When you've done with this video, check out the same person putting 1TB of storage into another iPod Classic – you know you want to.

Before I got my first iPod in 2003, I had some experience with Apple products. Our family computer had been a Mac for a couple of years before we switched to Windows for compatibility reasons, and my elementary school classrooms had Macs, too. But it wasn't until that first iPod that I would genuinely call myself an Apple fan.

And these days, I kind of miss using my iPod Classic. I know that there are still dedicated music players out there, but nothing comes close to what Apple offered in the Classic, not even Apple's own iPod touch. I miss having a device made just (or primarily) for music, even though there's a lot of convenience and practicality in making music just another feature of the iPhone.

I remember that I had some kind of odd, unintuitive MP3 player before I got an iPod. The only thing I remember about it is that it was small and hard to load up with music. Then I got my iPod, and everything changed. It was still compact, but it couldn't be easier to fill to the brim with every song I'd ever owned, which was something, especially back in a time when burning CDs to your computer was still a thing a lot of us did.

And there was something fun about using an iPod that modern devices just haven't been able to replicate. I wouldn't exactly call today's modern music apps joys to use. They work just fine, and everything is clearly labeled so I can navigate through my library or browse through available music. But it's all just functional. Conversely, the iPod was fun to use whenever I played music, even as the initial novelty wore off. The joy of using something can fade into the background over time, but I don't think I had a bad user experience with the iPod.

The iPod was just a perfect device for what it did, and frankly, it hasn't been matched since Apple discontinued it six years ago. While the first iPod I owned, the third-generation model, was definitely a departure from the previous iterations of the device with buttons above the click wheel, subsequent generations put the buttons back on the wheel, and I don't know that you could find a single better experience for both digging through your music library and controlling playback in one interface.

Click. Click. Scroll. Click.

That's all it used to take to start playing music. Now, sometimes it's that simple on my iPhone, but rarely. The closest I can get to that level of simplicity now is using Siri on my iPhone. For me, that's not nearly as reliable as the click wheel (seriously, Apple, why doesn't Siri default to searching my library for my request first?).

Do you want to pause music? Play again? Skip forward or back? I could just keep my hands in my pockets and thumb the click wheel. I always found it easy to click the right button on the wheel without looking. While clicking my AirPods or pulling my iPhone out of my pocket to tap the pause button isn't exactly a hardship, none of it matches the delightful simplicity of using the iPod Classic.

Speaking of delight, there was something about scrolling through my music collection that I just loved. The classic iPod's 'clicking' sound that played as you scrolled through your music collection added to the experience of the device, and it helped subtly orient you as you moved through your library.

There are many advantages to our modern devices, like internet connectivity, a nigh-infinite collection of songs at our fingertips, and even third-party apps full of music that don't require you to use Apple's built-in offering. But the act of listening to music used to be just a little more fun. Not a lot more, but a little more, and I miss that fun. I miss the simplicity.

I certainly wouldn't trade my iPhone for an iPod Classic. I'd lose too much in that exchange. But I would also probably jump at the chance to get a new, click wheel-based iPod.

More navigation links:

Techno-stalgia

• My First Mac
• Remembering arcades
• Love for LAN
• Lemonade Stand memories
• The classy iPod Classic
• Game manual memorabilia
• Nintendo Nostalgia
• Cassettes vs digital music

• The best Android tablet was the Pixel C
• Galaxy S Fascinate retrospective review
• HTC Inspire 4G retrospective review
• Why the Moto X was the best
• Honeycomb: The Android version we all forgot
• Nexus Q was super weird but influential
• NVIDIA Shield is timeless
• The first Android phones I loved
• Android 10 vs. Android 4.4
• Android phones with physical keyboards
• Admit it, Android sucked before 2017
• The wild early days of Android smartwatches

• The glory days of Windows Phone
• Remembering Xbox 360
• Legacy of the Pocket PC
• PC gaming changed my life
• Best video games of the '80s
• Why Zune was great
• 35 years of Windows

If you're a faithful Reminders user, then you're in for a treat with the completely redesigned and revamped Reminders in iOS 13 on both iPhone and iPad. It's no longer just a simple list app, as Apple has added a robust Quick Toolbar for quickly adding dates, times, locations, flags, photos, and much more. That's right—you can finally add attachments to your Reminders, and there's a brand new option of tagging people in your reminders, so you get the reminder as you send them a message.

• What kind of attachments are allowed in Reminders?
• How to add an attachment to your reminder
• How to tag someone in your reminder

What kind of attachments are allowed in Reminders?

While Reminders now allows you to add an attachment to your tasks, it is currently only limited to photos or documents.

For photos, you can take a brand new photo with your device's camera, or choose something from your Photo Library.

As far as documents are concerned, it is limited to only scanning new documents with the camera. There is no way to import an existing scan from iCloud Drive or another third-party scanning app or cloud storage service.

How to add an attachment to your reminder

Adding an attachment is easy, thanks to the new Quick Toolbar.

1. Launch Reminders on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Tap on the List that you want to add a new reminder in.
3. Tap New Reminder in the bottom left.

4. Type your reminder in the text input field.
5. To add the attachment, tap on the Camera icon in the Quick Toolbar above the keyboard.
   • Take Photo launches the device camera for a new capture.
   • Photo Library lets you pick out an image from your device Photo Library.
   • Scan Document brings up the camera in document scanning mode. It will search for a document and highlight the scannable area in yellow. Tap on the capture button to take the picture. You can readjust the captured area of the document at any time by dragging the corners.

6. Once you have your attachment, tap Done.
7. The reminder is saved with your text, attachment, and other data.

How to tag someone in your reminder

1. Launch Reminders on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Tap on the List that you want to add a new reminder in.
3. Tap New Reminder in the bottom left.

4. Type your reminder in the text input field.
5. Tap on the "i" button to bring up the Details screen.
6. Where it says Remind me when messaging, tap the toggle to ON (green).

7. Tap on Choose Person and select someone in your contact list (Edit appears if you have someone added and want to make changes).
8. Tap Done once you've picked someone.

With this feature, the reminder you just made will pop up whenever you are messaging that person. It will also show up on your Lock Screen and Notification Center until you have completed it.

Questions?

This is a huge revamp for Reminders, and it definitely adds some cool new features. Have questions regarding attachments and people-tagging in Reminders? Let us know in the comments!

Update June 2020: Updating for the latest version of iOS 13.

What you need to know

• A prototype of a 3rd generation iPod Touch surfaced online.
• The images show that Apple considered a rear-facing camera for the device.
• Notably, the camera was centered on the back, something never featured on any devices.

When Apple was developing the 3rd generation of the iPod Touch, it apparently played around with the idea of a centered rear camera for the device.

Reported by MacRumors, Giulio Zompetti, a developer who collects prototypes of Apple devices, posted images of the prototype on Twitter, saying that it was the "best unit of my whole collection."

The images show off a rear camera at the top of the back of the device, a feature that Apple decided against when it released the final version of the 3rd generation iPod Touch. The 3rd generation featured no camera on the device at all.

Apple saved the feature for the 4th generation of the iPod Touch, which Apple called "the new iPod Touch". The device featured both front-facing and rear-facing cameras, a first for the iPod Touch. The camera on the back of the device, however, was not located at the top center of the device. Rather, it was placed at the top left of the back of the device, a location that Apple has placed all of its cameras for the iPod, iPhone, and iPad.

Seeing the prototype is an interesting look into the world of Apple's design lab, a world in which centered cameras could have been.

When Apple announced DualShock 4 and Xbox One S controller support for Apple TV during the WWDC 2019 keynote, many of us probably thought that it was just for the tvOS. However, as it turns out, support for DualShock 4 and Xbox One S controllers is also coming in iOS 13 and iPadOS 13 as well, so you can use your favorite console controller with your iPhone or iPad. Getting it paired up is a breeze as well.

• How to pair your DualShock 4 controller
• How to pair your Xbox One S controller
• How to unpair your DualShock 4 or Xbox One S controller

How to pair your DualShock 4 controller

1. Launch Settings on your iPhone or iPad.

2. Tap on Bluetooth.

3. On your DualShock 4 controller, put it into pairing mode by holding down the PlayStation and Share button for several seconds until the light starts flashing white.

4. The DualShock 4 controller should now appear under Other Devices in your Bluetooth device list.
5. Tap on DualShock 4 Controller in the list to pair it.Source: iMore

Now that your DualShock 4 controller is connected, you can play any game that supports MFi controllers with your PlayStation 4 DualShock 4 controller instead. You can check the controller's battery level in the Battery widget.

How to pair your Xbox One S controller

1. Launch Settings on your iPhone or iPad.

2. Tap on Bluetooth.

3. On your Xbox One S controller, power it on by pressing the Xbox button.
4. Put your Xbox One S controller into pairing mode by holding down the Connect button on the top for about three seconds.
5. The Xbox One S controller should show up in the Other Devices as Xbox Wireless Controller.
6. Tap on Xbox Wireless Controller to pair.

Again, once your Xbox One S controller is paired to your iOS 13 device, you'll be able to play any game with it as long as the game has controller support. You can also check the battery level for your controller in the Battery widget.

How to unpair your DualShock 4 or Xbox One S controller

1. Launch Settings on your iPhone or iPad.

2. Tap on Bluetooth.

3. Find your DualShock 4 or Xbox One S controller in the device list, then tap on the "i" button.

4. Select Forget this device.
   • You can also just disconnect it to conserve controller battery.

5. Confirm the unpairing by tapping on OK.

6. If you want to use the controller again, you'll need to follow the pairing instructions above to get it connected again.

What about original Xbox One controllers?

Apple mentioned specifically that iOS 13 will only work with the Xbox One S controller because it has built-in Bluetooth support without an adapter. The original Xbox One controllers needed an adapter for Bluetooth connectivity, which will not work with iOS 13.

Questions?

We're very happy to finally see iPhone and iPad support for major console controllers coming this fall, as most of us already have these in our home and don't need to go out and buy a proprietary mobile controller just to play some games. Maybe one day we'll even see support for Nintendo's Pro Controller, but until then, we'll get our mobile game on with our DualShock 4 and Xbox One S controllers.

If you have any questions about using DualShock 4 or Xbox One S controllers with iOS 13, let us know in the comments!

Updated May 2020: Updated for the latest version of iOS.

Stepping into Apple's ecosystem is generally a costly venture, which is why the latest Apple iPod touch is perfect for anyone looking for a way in without spending over $500. Whether you're looking to subscribe to Apple Arcade or you'd like a dedicated Apple Music player, this iPod touch keeps up with all the latest apps and games for iOS with no issues thanks to its updated A10 processing chip.

Released just about a year ago, today's your chance to score nearly $40 off its full cost by picking up a refurbished model on sale at Woot. The latest, 7th generation iPod Touch isn't the only model on sale today however. You can choose from the 6th or 7th generation models starting at just $94.99 while supplies last.

The iPod touch has always been a nifty device for those who want access to all of the games and apps you can find exclusively on iOS. It can be your dedicated gaming device, or a dedicated media player, or something you hand over to the kids when they're bored in the car. The latest model features a slim, four-inch form factor and even AR support for games like Pokemon Go and Harry Potter: Wizards Unite! However, there's no Face ID or Touch ID, no cellular or Apple Watch connectivity, and no Portrait Mode either. Luckily, the 8MP camera is still capable of taking gorgeous photos without it, and you can choose between using Bluetooth headphones or wired ones with the built-in headphone jack.

To learn more about the iPod touch and why you should pick one up today, check out our review where it scored four out of five stars and a badge of recommendation.

Woot usually charges $6 per order for shipping, though you can score free shipping there by logging in with an Amazon Prime account before checking out. If you've never been a Prime member before, you can score a free 30-day trial to snag free shipping at Woot and Amazon, along with access to Prime's perks like the Prime Video streaming service, exclusive members-only discounts, and more.

Take a trip back to 2001. Wikipedia has just launched, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was in theatres, and Apple was about to change the way we think about music. The iPod launched in late 2001, combined with Apple's newest software iTunes — which launched in January of that year — became almost an instant hit. MP3 players existed, but lots of them were not user-friendly, and in terms of capacity, they were quite small.

There's no denying that the iPod was a success because it was an excellent product. Still, the iconic advertising that went along with the product contributed to the success of the product immensely.

The original ad

Although the original iPod ad isn't likely the one that sticks in your mind, it was an important step in the direction that Apple took with marketing the device.

The original ad features a man in his home jamming out to the tune Take California by Propellerheads and organizing his music library on his Apple iBook. Shortly after that, you see him transfer music to his iPod, unplug it from his laptop, put the EarBuds in his ears, and start dancing around his home with his iPod in hand. At the end of the ad comes the tagline:

"iPod; a thousand songs in your pocket."

You can already see the elements that Apple stuck with moving forward. The simplicity of iPod advertising (even with this original ad) is a huge part of what made iPod advertising a success. Simple, clear messaging is an essential part of any ad campaign, and the short tagline gives you all the information you need to understand what the iPod is all about.

The visuals are relatively simple as well; most of the ad is just the man dancing around his place. It gives the impression that the iPod is fun, cool, and just plain rocks. The choice of music was important too even more so later on; I'll touch on that later. A catchy tune that is likely to get stuck in your head after hearing it a couple of times during the commercial break of your favorite TV show is never going to hurt your bottom line.

Silhouette success

These are the ads you likely remember when you think of the iPod. Colorful backgrounds, dark silhouettes dancing, upbeat music, and the contrast of the bright white iPod and EarPods. They were tons of these ads, and all of them followed the same basic formula. They did have a few different tag lines at the end over the years, including: "1000 songs in your pocket", "iPod + iTunes," and "Now for Windows," but the visualization is what mattered most.

When it comes to marketing any product, you're never just selling a product; you're selling a feeling, or a lifestyle, or something bigger than the product itself. You want consumers to be able to connect with a product on an emotional level, and the one way to do that is to give your product personality or traits that your target audience can relate too.

Lots of ads will attempt to target a very specific audience and goes as far as too cater very exclusive to them. A company will cast actors that look like their intended consumers and have them act in a way that those consumers would act to form a bond between whatever it is they are trying to seel and its potential consumer base. The silhouettes in the iPod commercials did this in a very simple yet effective way because the silhouettes were so generic.

The iPod was targetting younger people, likely that broad spectrum of 18-35-year-olds that everyone wants to advertise to, but by putting their dancers in the shadows, it allowed everyone to see a bit of themselves in the commercials.

No longer were you looking at a specific person in a particular environment interacting with the iPod (like in the first commercial). Still, now you were seeing a variety of people just dancing. It was easy to identify with these silhouettes because they essentially represented "the masses," they were no one group, one type of person, or one "look," they were just people enjoying music — who can't relate to that?

When the music became a selling point

As time went on, selling iTunes became just as important as selling the iPod as Apple starting making money on people purchases music digitally. This was when you started to see a slight shift in the classic silhouette ads to include famous artists. Some of these ads had a little more style — like the one featuring Eminem shown above — but still the same basic concept.

The only real difference between these ads and those previous ones was the emphasis on the songs and artists themselves. Apple didn't want you only to use iTunes and iPod, but also buy your music from them. They partnered with huge artists at the time that were promoting super popular singles and albums.

This wasn't the only time U2 and Apple partnered up, although we know how that debacle turned out for them later; at the time, this was super effective. Not only was Vertigo a huge radio hit, but U2 was (and arguably still is) one of the most recognizable bands in the world.

At this point, the iPod was already a huge success, and more versions of the iPod (like iPod Shuffle) were hitting the market. This was simply Apple doubling down on their success.

Silhouettes faded away

All good ad campaigns come to an end eventually, and the iPod silhouettes were faded out, but the impact of those ads is still felt to this day. You can easily find people still reminiscing about the silhouette iPod ads all over the internet today. When you think iPod, most people are going to remember these ads as their first impression of the iPod.

By the time the silhouette campaign ended, the word iPod had become synonymous with an MP3 player, so much so that I remember calling my Sony MP3 player I had an iPod, just for simplicity. That type of market saturation comes from having a great product that was advertised spectacularly well. You couldn't watch TV, read a magazine, or walk past a billboard in the early 2000s without seeing a black silhouette holding a white iPod, and it worked miracles for Apple.

Looking to pick up a brand new iPod touch 7? Well before you do, you need to know about the six awesome colors that it comes in. Not only is this new iPod incredibly eye-catching, but it also has up to 256GB storage, meaning you can rock out to all your favorite tunes and more in the most colorful of ways to match your style.

Find the perfect color for your personalist

The iPod touch 7 comes in six different colors that will match your personal style and taste, so which one will you be picking out? We personally love the charity focus behind the (PRODUCT)Red iPod touch 7, but also the red color, which is bold and certainly will turn heads. Plus, you are contributing towards a good cause and getting fun tech out of it, so it's a win-win, right?

If you want another color that's fun, we like the Blue iPod touch 7 as well. It's a nice pop of color, and who doesn't like the color blue? If you want something that's classy and minimalistic, then you just can't go wrong with Space Gray. It's the closest color to black out of the bunch, and as we all know, black goes with everything.

If you need to learn more about the iPod touch 7, don't worry: we have you covered.

The release of the first iPod in October of 2001 was a huge milestone for Apple, and for quite a few people (especially a younger crowd) with the company on their radar. This tiny device— although the old models seem huge to us now — could hold thousands of songs, fit in your pocket, and be with you everywhere. Earlier that year, Apple had released iTunes, and now with an iPod at your disposal, you could manage your entire music library and have it with you at all times. While the iPod wasn't the first MP3 player to hit the market, there's no question it was the most popular for a long time after its launch, so much so, that the word iPod became synonymous with the term MP3 player.

Apple advertised the heck out of iPod, and a lot of those commercials had iconic songs that were either already popular or became popular because they were used in the commercial. Since I recently took a look back at all the awesome iPad commercials we've seen in the past decade, I decided to open the "musical time capsule" and take a look back at some of the most memorable iPod commercials over the years.

The first iPod (iPod Classic 1st generation)

To this day, I still find this commercial is brilliant. It's simple and the messaging is so straight forward. The ad featuring the song Take California by Propellerheads features a man dancing around his home as he listened and organized his music in iTunes on his Mac. The man then puts earbuds in his ears and leaves the computer to dance more and walk out the door. The ad ends with the simple words "iPod; a thousand songs in your pocket"

iPod Classic (3rd and 4th generation)

The famous iPod silhouette commercials are probably the ones that most people remember from the early 2000s, and Apple made a handful of them. All the commercials had the same premise, dark silhouettes dancing in front of brightly colored backgrounds, with the bright white iPod silhouettes in clear view.

There were quite a few of these ads, I won't list them all here, but in 2003, the iTunes store launched meaning the ads were now also selling the music as much as the music player. This was made super evident in 2004, the Apple brought in legendary rock group U2 to promote the iPod along with the band's newest single Vertigo.

iPod Shuffle (1st Generation)

In 2005, Apple launched the first iPod Shuffle. This iPod was much smaller, had no screen, only went up to 1GB of storage, and was only $99 at launch. Apple stuck with the same silhouette style commercial for this iPod to the very catchy tune Jerk it Out by Caesers.

iPad Nano (1st Generation)

Replacing the short-lived iPod Mini, the iPod Nano was billed as everything the iPod Classic was just in a smaller package. Apple was still making general iPod commercials in the silhouette style at this point, but they did roll out a specific iPod Nano ad that introduced the product to the masses.

iPod Shuffle (2nd generation)

Sometimes called the "clip-on iPod", the second-generation iPod Shuffle featured a clip that could easily attach to your clothes. This tiny little rectangle was iconic for its time and the commercial heavily focused on the clip-on design.

iPad Nano (2nd generation)

The second-generation iPod Nano featured an anodized aluminum casing and was available in six (very bright) colors. The ad that introduced this product was very reminiscent of the silhouettes iPod commercials, only this time, the new colors were the center of attention.

iPad Classic (5th generation)

The fifth-generation iPod introduced the capability to play videos using the fully colored screen, and Apple again went with U2 to sell the product.

iPad Nano (3rd generation)

Given the nickname as "the fatty nano", the third-generation iPad Nano was the first iPod Nano to be able to play video. The song 1234 by Fiest was featured in the ad and just for the music alone, this ad stuck in people's minds for a long time.

iPod Touch (1st generation)

The first iPod Touch was launched on the heels of the iPhone and featured a lot of the same functionality. It had Wi-Fi and a multi-touch screen. The iPod Touch is the only iPod that's still around today and many of them mirrored changes that were seen in iPhone models over the years.

iPad Nano (5th generation)

The fifth-generation iPod Nano introduced a lot of firsts. It was the first iPod to include a video camera, and it came with a new polished look and rounded design.

iPad Nano (6th generation)

I've got a special place in my heart for the sixth-generation iPad Nano as it was the first one I bought. It was a neat mix of the small clip-on design that was popularized by the iPod Shuffle line and the multi-touch screen from the iPod Nano line. Plus, the ad used the track Short Skirt / Long Jacket by Cake, which is a positive in my books.

iPod Touch (4th generation)

The fourth-generation iPod Touch featured both a front-facing and rear-facing camera, video recording, and a retina display. The commercial really highlighted just how much you could do with and iPod. It was like having a mini-tablet with all your music.

iPod Touch (5th generation), iPad Nano (7th generation), and iPod Shuffle (4th generation)

This was the last version of the iPad Nano and iPod Shuffle and with iPod now being so synonymous with the company, the poppy and bouncy ad that featured the entire iPod lineup in all the cool colors that all three models now had.

A musical time capsule

Going through these ads has reminded me of just how much Apple influenced my music tastes. The songs that were used in plenty of iPod commercials were either already hits or became hits. Apple Music has a playlist (which they update every so often) with over 100 songs that were featured in Apple ads over the years. It's a great way to remember some of those amazing songs in iPod ads and other product ads, make sure you give it a listen!

• Get the Apple Music playlist

What you need to know

• Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has a new report out.
• In it he says that AirPods Pro and iPod touch will be made by a new manufacturer.
• The same goes for Apple Watch Series 6, too.

Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has a new report out in which he says Apple will bring multiple new manufacturers online, some catering for the company's most popular wearables. The report came in an investment note sent to customers of investment firm TF International Securities.

MacRumors notes that Kuo has Chinese company Goertek set to begin manufacturing AirPods Pro during the first half of the year. Apple already uses Luxshare Precision for AirPods Pro production but it wants to further diversify its manufacturing pipelines to better meet what is expected to be strong demand for the new earbuds.

It isn't all bad news for Luxshare, though. It will be taking over manufacturing duties for the S-series chips that power this year's Apple Watch, likely to be named Apple Watch Series 6.

Finally, Apple will bring Chines firm BYD Electronic online as the sole company tasked with producing its iPod touch. It will be taking over from Quanta, the same company also losing out on the Apple Watch deal.

The interesting product here is iPod touch, a device that many would argue Apple hasn't given any meaningful love to in years. Maybe that's about to change.

Over the last 18-months, we've gotten new iPads Pro, new iPhones Pro, and new Apple Watches with always-on displays. By any metric, this is Apple's best lineup of product ever.

But, as slam dunk as some of these products are — they're still not all the products. Even now, at the end of the decade, there are still some pretty big gaps across the iPhone, iPad, iPod — yeah, I said it — HomePod, Apple Watch, and Apple TV lineups.

So, since I covered the missing Macs in one of last week's videos, I'm going to strap on my destiny prognostication engine, Escaflowne style, and cover all the missing iOS and iOS-offshoot devices in this video.

iPhone mini

Apple has finally gotten its iPhone lineup locked down. iPhone 11 back at $699 and the iPhone Pro up to at $999. There are even rumors of an iPhone 8-based, iPhone SE style iPhone 9 this spring to slide in on under, maybe as low as $399.

But, what the original iPhone SE showed us, is that some people don't just want a cheaper iPhone. They want a smaller iPhone.

Now, there are a whole bunch of reasons it's hard to make smaller phones anymore. The iPhone 8 platform is all paid down now, the way to iPhone 5s was when the SE launched. Doing an all new, all modern smaller design would bring with it a modern design price.

Some people won't care, because they're willing to pay a premium for small. But the other issue is thermals. The modern chipsets that power the modern iPhones need a lot of, well, power, otherwise you get shutdowns on spikes or intense performance management, all of which we kinda hate.

So, as much as many would love an iPhone 5-sized iPhone X, I don't think we'll see one any time soon.

iPhone Fold

I've been saying this for almost a year already — the history of human technology from books to wallets to clothes, hell, tacos — is folding. We fold things over and double up on depth to save on surface area.

This year, we saw everything from the silly Royale Flex Pai to the troubled Samsung Galaxy Fold to the now-you-don't Hawaii Mate X to the nostalgia designed — and specced — Moto RAZR — and other concepts besides. But we didn't see anything from Apple.

That's because Apple doesn't alpha in public. They barely beta. So, while I've heard Apple's been experimenting with foldables for almost a decade, I don't think we'll see an iPhone that opens up into an iPad until the technology is more mature.

Though rumors of Samsung and Corning being close on flexible glass means it may not be that long a wait.

iPad mini Pro

The original iPad Pro was 12.9-inches. Right after that, we got one at 9.7-inches which quickly mighty morphed into 10.5 and then 11-inches. What we didn't get — what we've never gotten — is a 7.9-inch iPad Pro mini. Or… iPad mini Pro.

Last spring we did get an iPad mini 5 with OG Apple Pencil support, but not one with the new Pro design language or the new Apple Pencil 2, the A12 or A13 Bionic, ProMotion display, USB-C, and all the other pro bells and creative whistles.

Certainly not one with a tiny, mini Smart Keyboard to go with it. Which sounds ridiculous but is totally the kind of problem I'd love to see Apple try and solve.

Strangely, because of the keyboard, I don't think we'll see an iPad mini Pro… Pro mini? Any time soon. But I'd really love to.

iPad PCs

The iPad Pro is a tablet that can convert into sort-of-a-laptop, which is the opposite of Microsoft's Surface line of laptops that can convert into sort-of-tablets. But Microsoft leans so hard into that PC angle that they also have the Surface Laptop, which is a traditional clamshell, and the Surface Studio, which is an iMac-style all-in-one desktop.

Apple's probably had iOS laptops running in the lab for almost as long as they've had iPads. If you're going to test Macs on ARM, you're also going to test iOS in Macs, after all. And I think iOS laptops would actually hold a lot of appeal for everyone from education to executives. The people who currently have to make do with ChromeBooks or out-of-production 12-inch MacBooks.

At the opposite end are creative pros for whom the current 12.9-inch iPad simply isn't big enough, and the current iMac simply isn't multi-touch or Apple Pencil-friendly enough.

Both these products are so niche, and ARM Macs are probably so close, that I don't expect to see either of them any time soon. But I think very specific markets would love to see them already.

iPod touch Pro

The iPod touch was the iPhone for people who didn't want or need a phone, and the cheapest way to get into the App Store. Both those things are still true, and you can still get an iPhone 5-style iPod touch with beefed up internals for $199, but it's not modern any more and certainly not sexy.

So, instead, imagine an iPhone Pro style iPod touch Pro with iPad Pro style design language and all the horsepower it needs to be a mobile gaming, mobile entertainment, and mobile camera powerhouse.

Maybe there's a smaller, cheaper iPhone 11 and a bigger, more expensive iPhone 11 Pro version. Even if you have an iPhone in your other pocket, but especially if you don't, you could just shoot all your Instas, get all your iMessages, play all your Apple Arcade, and watch all your TV+ and Channels, on the go, then Switch-style dock it and keep playing when you get home.

It's such an overlap with the iPhone that I don't think we'll see it, at least this much of it, from a company that already has the iPhone. But in a world where the iPod was treated as if the iPhone didn't exist? I think we'd see exactly this.

HomePod mini and Theater

I've done a whole video on the missing HomePods already, so I'll link that in the description. But it's almost a year later and we haven't seen much movement on the HomePod lineup beyond lower pricing, so it bears repeating.

HomePod minis would be a great way to get more far-field devices into more and smaller rooms, and HomePod theater would just be the perfect Dolby Atmos accompaniment for the Apple TV 4K's Dolby Vision and all the incredible HDR and spatial audio content it streams.

HomePod tech has made everything from the new iPhone and MacBook Pro speakers to the new AirPods Pro so much better than anything that's come before, it'd be a shame if the HomePod itself didn't get to benefit and improve from it as well.

Again, I'll expect it when I see it.

Apple (Watch) Band

Apple made the iPod. Then Apple made the iPod mini and killed it with the iPod nano. Then Apple made the iPod shuffle. And killed all of that with the iPhone and Apple Watch. But, even though Apple now has the Series 3 Watch starting at just $199, they haven't really applied the iPod strategy to any other product yet, including the watch.

And, it feels like there could be room under the Watch, maybe at $99, for something that's closer to the Shuffle. No, not something that shows you random time or gives you random workouts, though there's certainly a cross-fit partnership in there somewhere.

But just a band, in yearly palettes and styles, that does a subset of Apple Watch things, enough to give people who don't want a watch but do want some health and fitness features, a way to get into the ecosystem.

It's quite possible Apple will push the price of the Watch down so low it leaves no functional room beneath it for an Apple Band, but if Apple really wants to mainstream health and fitness, and that's the legacy they want to be known for, exploring even more mass-market devices just makes the kind of sense that does.

Apple TV dongle

Google has the Chrome Cast. Amazon has the FireStick. I've made a whole video about how cool an Apple TV dongle would be, especially for travel, so I'll link that in the description as well.

But we're in the weird middle ground right now where Apple is expanding their own original content, especially TV+ but including Arcade, but also partnering with once-upon-a-time rivals like Samsung and Roku and Amazon to get that content built into those rival devices.

I still think there's room for an Apple TV stick, though. One, if it could let you play or stream Apple Arcade games to any display, which is something Apple hasn't done with any rival yet. And two, because as much as some people trust Apple's apps on other devices, there's just more privacy trust with Apple software on Apple's own devices.

And an Apple TV stick is what would let you have your stuff no matter what device or where you go.

What you need to know

• YouTuber DankPods has revealed in a video his attempt to create a Bluetooth iPod.
• The attempt uses a couple of classic iPods and some "interesting" Bluetooth configurations.
• The resulting video is pretty funny.

Australian YouTuber DankPods has posted a video in which he attempts to create a Bluetooth iPod, using some old generation iPods and a very interesting configuration of parts.

DankPods says that the video is "by far the most requested thing on this channel". Jestingly, he begins by using a Bluetooth transmitter, an aux cable and a Bluetooth receiver plugged into a speaker. That, of course, is a pretty simple setup, but not quite what viewers are after.

He upgrades the setup somewhat by using a tiny aux cable to create a sort of "Bluetooth antenna" for the iPod, and he even tries to run it through an old remote attachment for iPod.

Finally, he reveals an iPod that plays music using Bluetooth, with no external paraphernalia, to the tune of none-other than All Star by Smashmouth. The result looks pretty fantastic until he reveals that in order to make the iPod work, you have to crack it open each time you want to activate the Bluetooth transmitter shoved inside the iPod's housing.

Recently, DankPods also posted a project in which he adds 1TB of storage to an old iPod Classic. You can check that video out here. The attempt at a Bluetooth iPod can be found below!

What you need to know

• You can watch as a YouTuber adds 1TB of flash storage to an iPod Classic.
• Not once, but twice.
• If this post doesn't get finished it's because I'm on eBay.

The final iPod Classic to be made came with 160GB of storage. It was discontinued in 2014 and I still mourn its loss. But if you still have an iPod Classic knocking around and want to give it a new lease of life, why not add a little more storage? Like, say, 1TB of the stuff?

That's exactly what YouTuber DankPods (via Reddit) did, and the result is just short of magical. But only just.

Throughout the video you'll see 1TB of flash storage added to two different iPod Classics. The storage is taken care of by four microSD cards and a board to hold it all. And yes, I'm now trawling eBay for the whole lot. I'm easily entertained, you see.

I don't want to spoil too much because I think you'll really enjoy watching the video. But this is a story of two halves, with one iPod Classic working, to a point, and a second one only being successful after multiple false starts. Be warned, if you're someone who had an iPod Classic back in the day you might shed a tear or two here.

Or maybe that was just me.

What you need to know

• Rewound is a music player that lets you easily control a variety of settings with one touch.
• You can skin it so it looks like an iPod.
• By changing the way the navigation works, you can even control it by scrolling.
• Rewound is available for free through the Apple App Store.

Updated December 16, 2019: Apple has pulled the app from the store. It doesn't work anymore either.

A few days ago, The Verge and other outlets highlighted an upcoming app called Rewound that let you skin your iPhone into an iPad. By downloading free skins — and changing the way navigation works in the app — you can convert your iPhone into an iPod Classic or even an iPod: U2 Edition.

Rebound is finally available on the Apple App Store and is free at the moment. The listing says that there are in-app purchases, but we were unable to access them at this time. Maybe they'll be added with a future update to remove possible advertisements. Only time will tell, and we'll keep you posted as soon as we know more.

Once you've downloaded the app, head over to settings and select Skin. This will allow you to superimpose an image onto the bottom half of the app and reorganize the navigation. If you search for the hashtag #rewoundskins on Twitter, you'll be able to download a number of them from users who have created them. Just save the images to Photos. Our favorites are the black, iPod Classic skin from Mike Crumbella and the iPod: U2 Edition skin from DonationBuilder.

If you want to go back in time to a simpler time, be sure to check out the Rewound music player. We've been playing around with it for a few hours now and absolutely love it. Hopefully, a future update will allow you to customize it even further, like changing fonts or adding a glass effect to top half of the app.

What you need to know

• Apple is no longer signing iOS 13.2.2.
• iOS 13.2.3 is now the only version of the software available.
• Users wishing to downgrade are no longer able to.

Apple is no longer signing iOS 13.2.2 according to 9to5Mac, leaving iOS 13.2.3 as the only version of the software that can now be installed on iPhones and iPads. That follows the release of iOS 13.2.3 a few weeks ago. Apple is currently allowing developers to beta test iOS 13.3, too.

By no longer signing iOS 13.2.3 Apple is preventing anyone from installing it on iPhones and iPads. While most people would want the latest version of iOS on their devices, some might not. That could be because of newly introduced bugs or the potential for a new jailbreak that requires a specific version of iOS.

Apple sometimes prevents older versions of iOS from being installed once a jailbreak has been released for it. But in this case it is likely that Apple simply wants to make sure that its most stable version is the one everyone is running on their devices. The release of iOS 13.2.3 brought with it improvements to memory management for multitasking as well as fixes for Mail and Messages.

With iOS 13.3 now in the hands of beta testers it is likely it will be realesed to the public soon. Although how soon that will be isn't yet clear.

What you need to know

• The iPod Classic remains a modern great.
• A developer built an iPhone app that recreates the iconic click wheel.
• They hope to have it finished by the end of the year.

A developer has built an iPhone app that recreates the magic of the iPod Classic. Click wheel and all. Elvin Hu even managed to bring Cover Flow album art to the iPhone, too.

The project first came to prominence when Hu tweeted a video of it yesterday. And boy oh boy does it look cool!

Hu then spoke with The Verge and explained where the project came from.

Hu has been working on the app for a coupole of months now and the hope is that it will be ready by the end of the year. Whether Apple will let it through App Store review is another matter, though. Hopefully we'll all get to take a trip down memory lane soon enough.

As a mother who has raised three children, I've seen what does and doesn't work for kids and tech. Handing over your own precious iPhone is a test of nerves while buying your children their own devices is expensive. So, you want to make the right choice. You really can't go wrong with either of Apple's entry-priced offerings. Which one you choose will depend on several factors, including the age of your children, what they'll be doing with the device, and how careful they are with their devices.

If you're not sure your child will handle an electronic device with the utmost care (even after a frustrating video game loss,) I'd pick the less expensive iPod touch 7 as a starter device. If your child is a bit older and more experienced and careful with electronics, the iPad mini 5 is more likely to please.

Know your child

Both devices have a lot to offer. Both are compact devices that are perfect for home or travel. They have a beautiful Retina display and an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera for the budding photographer. Plus, they offer 1080p HD video recording for future YouTubers to hone their skills.

The iPod touch 7 stands out for its substantially lower price point. Plus, it comes with headphones, so you don't have to hear Vamparina and friends. It's tiny, which is great for tiny hands. You get your choice of six colors, which may or may not matter once you put a case on it. But the iPod touch 7 isn't just for little kids; it also makes a great second device for tweens or teens so they can leave their more expensive devices at home. However, if your child is prone to losing things, the iPod touch is easier to lose because of its diminutive size. In fact, my daughter, who is very careful and rarely breaks things, lost her first iPod touch when she left it in a rental car on vacation.

The iPad mini 5 would be my pick for a tween or older child who already has a proven track record of caring for delicate electronic devices. It's definitely a more sophisticated device with a faster processing chip, better front-facing camera, longer battery life, and Apple Pencil compatibility. The iPad mini 5 is a better gaming device as well as better for creating art. You also have the option to purchase a cellular-enabled iPad mini 5, so your child can access the internet anywhere.

One more specification that is important to consider is the amount of storage you need on the device. The iPod touch starts at 32 GB while the iPad mini starts at 64GB. Yes, 32GB will be plenty of storage for games, some music, and a few videos. But if they plan to download and store a lot of videos, that amount will be eaten up pretty quickly. The next storage level available on the iPod touch is 128GB, which will mean a $100 price bump. The iPad mini starts at 64GB of storage, which gives you a bit more wiggle room.

The iPad touch 7 and the iPad mini 5 are two of the best entry-level devices Apple has ever offered. Just about any child would be thrilled to receive either one. The most important thing is knowing your child. Only you can know if he or she is better off with a smaller, less expensive device or if they are ready for a larger, more expensive device.

Apple's 2019 update to the iPod touch was an unexpected one; it updated a product some of us thought was just about to go the way of the dinosaur. Though rumors had been circling for months, I for one, didn't put much stock in it because, well ... why?

Low and behold though, on May 28 of 2019, just a week after Apple updated the MacBook Pro, it added the iPod touch 7 to the roster. With nothing but a processor bump and larger storage capacity (Our former EIC Rene's minimalist review is: "Now with A10 and 256GB of storage), the real question becomes, who is this for?

After putting it through its paces, I can definitely say that Apple has made a smart move here, launching an updated, but still basic iPod touch that can serve as a dedicated device for those of us already in the Apple ecosystem and a gateway device for those who want to try out Apple's services but don't want to pay the premium for an iPhone or iPad.

iPod touch 7: Price and availability

Apple iPod touch (7th Gen) was released in May of 2019 and was the last iPod released by Apple. You can still buy an iPod touch (7th Gen) renewed on Amazon for $288 or Walmart starting at $199 depending on the color you choose. You also might find one on Best Buy's site starting at $199 depending on color; pending your location. 

iPod touch 7: A brief history of the iPod touch

The iPod touch first launched in 2007, the same year as the first iPhone. Back then, the iPod was Apple's most popular product and the iPod touch revolutionized the digital music industry (and subsequently put other MP3 players out of business). In October of 2012, the iPod touch received a design overhaul that gave us the overall look that we see today (sans the lanyard hook). That was the fifth-generation iPod touch.

Back in 2012, the iPhone and iPod touch were practically neck-in-neck in terms of specs. The iPhone always won out with a better camera and a more advanced processor chip (by one generation), but you could legitimately make side-by-side comparisons of the iPhone 5 and the fifth-generation iPod touch and it would make sense.

In 2015, when Apple updated the iPod touch again, things had changed significantly for Apple in terms of its iPhone lineup. The iPhone 6s and 6s Plus were Apple's flagship devices with Touch ID, a 12MP rear camera and a 5MP front camera, 4K video recording, and a lot of big improvements. The iPod touch didn't have any biometric login (still doesn't), didn't support 4K video (still doesn't), and had an 8MP rear camera and paltry 1.2MP front-facing camera (still does). You can see how the gap in technology grew over those three short years.

More and more, people were asking the question of why would someone want an iPod touch when they can get an iPhone? Even an iPad out performs an iPod touch, and has a much bigger screen.

Fast forward to 2019 and we're looking at an iPod touch that is essentially the same design as the one from 2012 with nearly all the same specs as the one from 2015 with the only change being that it now has an A10 processor chip, so it supports augmented reality (AR) and you can get it in as much as 256GB storage. So we're again faced with the question of why would anyone want an iPod touch when they can get an iPhone?

iPod touch 7: What I like

iPod touch 7: A dedicated music listening device

When it comes to music listening, downloading or streaming, the iPod touch 7 is pretty much exactly the same as its predecessor. You're not getting a new or better listening experience. The Bluetooth connection is the same. The speakers are the same. If you have never owned an iPod touch, or like me, your last iPod touch is still running iOS 6 and doesn't even support Apple Music, a new iPod touch is a great investment.

My personal favorite use for the iPod touch is as a dedicated music player. I love loading up playlists and bringing them with me to parties, backyard BBQ, and camping trips. What I don't love is when my iPhone becomes the jukebox for the evening. It's especially bothersome when other people want to play songs on my iPhone. I love that they want to play different music. I don't love that my iPhone is the instrument. What about text messages? What about the various notifications I have set up? With a dedicated music player, I don't have to worry about any of that.

Most important; I don't have to worry about running out of battery life on my iPhone, which is much more important after the party is over and I'm trying to get a ride home, or when I'm camping and every ounce of juice is needed for mapping my return trip.

Using the iPod touch as a dedicated music player also means that I can share with my significant other. We have varying tastes in music and preferred services. I use Apple Music, he uses Spotify. I can stream my favorite playlists and albums on Apple Music and it won't affect his end of year song list in Spotify. He can create his perfect road trip playlist in Spotify and I won't get recommendations for genres I'm not interested in.

If the iPod touch isn't being used for anything but music, I can also pair it with whichever speaker I want and never have to unpair it to use a different speaker or headphones. I can set it up in one place in the house (or backyard) and never have to change that setup.

Similarly, I can do the same thing in the car. Download all the music, podcasts, and audiobooks I want while on Wi-Fi, and then drop my iPod touch in the car and I've got a world of entertainment at my fingertips. I don't have to reconnect my iPhone every time I get into the car. The iPod touch is always there. Plus, when I need my iPhone for navigation, I don't have to worry about it interrupting my listening experience.

iPod touch 7: A tiny movie theater in your pocket

Movies, TV shows, documentaries, YouTube videos, you can watch it all on the iPod touch. For being such a small screen, it looks pretty fantastic. No, I'm not suggesting we all throw our 5K monitors in the garbage, but if you're stuck at a boring seminar, hiding from the family on Thanksgiving, or just want to show your buddy the latest Fail videos, the iPod touch is a nice little media player.

And, again, as a dedicated device, you can download all the movies and TV shows you can fit with the storage you have and go off the grid with it. Bring it to your hotel with a proper HDMI connector and you don't have to worry about whether the internet is going to work well enough to let you watch movies all night long.

When TV+ comes out later this fall, I would not turn my nose up at watching Apple's exclusive content on the iPod touch, even with such a small screen. It's not ideal, but it's totally doable.

iPod touch 7: An iOS device for the non-Apple people

For anyone looking to get into the Apple ecosystem that doesn't already own an iPhone or iPad, the iPod touch 7 is a great first-timer's experience. It runs the latest iOS, supports all of Apple's services, and has all the same connection features that you need (like Bluetooth and AirPlay support).

It doesn't have cellular support, so you can't use your phone number to call people (unless you do have an iPhone, in which case, you can use it to make and receive calls when your iPhone and iPod touch are on the same Wi-Fi network using Continuity). You can, however, use the Messages app with your Apple ID to send and receive iMessages, including using tap backs, screen effects, and bubble effects. For Android users, this is a great way to participate in the phenomenon that is Messages without having to switch.

Using various social apps like Skype or WhatsApp, you can essentially use an iPod touch like a phone for all intents and purposes. You just have to be on a Wi-Fi network to do so. If you're tired of paying that high monthly cellular + data bill for your phone, maybe it's time to switch off and just use an iPod touch instead. It would take some working around and you'd be without an internet connection when you're on the road, but it's doable ... if you're willing to try.

iPod touch 7: Long live the four-inch form factor!

It's not secret that I'm a fan of the four-inch form factor. I love the iPhone SE. It's a perfect fit for my hands and my pocket. The iPod touch is the exact same width and height, and is even thinner (nearly half the thickness) as the iPhone SE. So tiny. So cute.

I'll admit, after two years of the iPhone X and iPhone XS screen size, that four-inch screen does seem pretty small, though. If I'm playing games like Pokémon GO or checking my email on the road, I like the larger screen real estate that the iPhone XS provides.

Which is why I think a four-inch screen is the perfect size for the iPod touch. I want to stream music, podcasts, and audiobooks from it and don't need a big screen to do that.

iPod touch 7: Performance

I wouldn't be properly reviewing a device if I didn't mention the overall performance, including battery life, and system speed.

Everything on the iPod touch 7 works as you'd expect it to. Apps and games load fast. A couple of apps crashed when I launched them, but that happened right after I got it, so it may have been due to the heavy processor use installing all that content on a new device. The battery lasts a decently long time. I didn't run it for 40 hours straight, but I did run it for about 8 hours straight, listening to music, and the battery percentage only dropped by about a quarter.

iPod touch 7: What I don't like

iPod touch 7: As a dedicated gaming console

With iPod touch 7, Apple improved the processor chip to the A10, and thus improved the gaming experience significantly. Logically, you would think this means that gaming on the iPod touch is fantastic now. Well... not as fantastic as you'd think. 

It's better, to be sure. The A10 Fusion chip is much faster than the A8 chip of the iPod touch 6. According to Apple, up to 2x faster performance and up to 3x better graphics. 

I tested the iPod touch 7 with a handful of different games intended to push it to its limits.

Fortnite, the game everyone wants to know whether it works on iPod touch 7, does, indeed work on iPod touch 7. It runs smooth, has no lag, and never drops connection. That being said, it really doesn't look as good as playing it on the iPhone XS. It's like there's a matte filter across the screen. Everything is just a little flatter and stripped down. 

CSR Racing, a game that's known for its incredibly detailed realism in graphics, plays like its riding on rails on the iPod touch (did you get my Pretty Woman reference there?). How it looks, however, isn't quite so smooth. It's not bad or ugly, it's just not as good as the amazing graphics on the iPhone XS. It's like we stepped back in time, graphically, to about 2017.

Thanks to the new A10 Fusion chip, iPod touch 7 is now capable of doing augmented reality (AR) games. These are the best AR games for iPod touch 7. 

I installed Lego AR Playgrounds to see what the iPod touch could do. Once I was able to scan and find a flat surface (which took way longer than I think it should have), the game was afoot! Though the screen is a little small for AR, the overall device size is much better for AR games. It's lightweight and easy to move around with one hand. I don't know if you've ever seen anyone trying to play AR games on an iPad, but it's an awkward experience.

That being said, when Apple Arcade launches, graphics-intense games may not be an issue. There are hundreds and hundreds of beautiful mobile games, like Alto's Odyssey, Lumino City, Monument Vally (1 and 2), and more that look great on the iPod touch 7 and play great, too.

Even though Apple's biggest improvement to the iPod touch in 2019 is its processor performance, which is obviously geared toward gaming, the iPod touch fails to impress me as a dedicated gaming device.

What it all comes down to is, the iPod touch 7 is not the new mobile gaming console we've all been waiting for.

iPod touch: As a camera

The camera isn't anything to get excited about. The rear-facing camera performs really well in natural sunlight. Clear, crisp images. In the dark, it's pretty noisy. The FaceTime camera is ... OK. It's a bit grainy, but not as bad as I thought it would be. You won't want to blow up your selfies for a billboard ad, but they're good enough for the social media needs. It's interesting to go back to a selfie cam that doesn't smooth out your features at all. My face isn't as clear as I thought.

iPod touch 7: The competition

If you already have the sixth-generation iPod touch, it's not likely that you're going to find the processor upgrade to be enough to buy a new one. The point of the faster processor is to play games that the iPod touch 6 can't handle, but I don't think they look that good on the iPod touch 7 compared to an iPhone XS, and so don't think the one major upgrade is worth moving from the sixth-generation to the seventh.

The only other significant change is that the iPod touch 7 storage capacity goes to 256GB, which is pretty darn big if the only thing you're using it for is media and entertainment. The iPhone XS, however, goes to 512GB, so you can double your storage and save half of it just for movies, music, and games if you wanted and have the better screen and graphics processor.

iPod touch 7: Should you buy it?

You should buy this if...

• You want a dedicated music device
• You're an Android user that wants iOS
• You want a portable mini movie player
• You want something kid-friendly

You shouldn't buy this if...

• You want Face ID/Touch ID
• You want more than 256GB of storage
• Cellular connectivity 
• Apple Watch connectivity
• 4K video recording
• A 12 MP camera
• Portrait Mode
• Dedicated gaming 

The most obvious reason to get an iPod touch is that it's is a great starter device for kids. Parents can invest a minimal amount of money to get what is essentially an iPhone without cellular capability (or a tiny iPad, if you prefer). The starting price of an iPod touch is $199, so it's less burdensome on the pocketbook than any other Apple devices. 

Your kids can load up whatever music they want (that you've approved), what ever games they like (that you've agreed to), and whatever streaming movie and TV service you're signed up with (after they've finished their homework). Thanks to Screen Time and improved parental controls, you can also lock down this iPod touch and monitor it from your iPhone. More freedom for the little ones, less annoyances for you ("Mom, can I play with your iPhone while we're out to dinner?").

Another obvious demographic is Android users. We all want to see if the grass is greener on the other side, and Apple wants to convince Android users to switch. An iPod touch lets Android users have a low-cost gadget that will allow them to play in the Apple playground without having to switch. I own an Android tablet that I bought specifically because it was inexpensive enough for me to feel OK buying, even though I knew it wouldn't be something I used every day ... or even every week.

With Apple's recent push to sell its services, this is an ideal way to shore up its user base for things like TV+, Apple Music, and Apple Arcade. The latter, I think, is the main reason Apple updated the iPod touch. The 2015 iPod touch specs were perfectly acceptable for streaming Apple Music or reading News+ (though it's a pretty small screen for those magazines to fit on). The A10 processor chip means it now supports AR apps and games, something Apple has been bullish on for the past few years. Apple is trying to sell its services and wants Android users. The iPod touch can make that possible.

But those aren't the only people that the iPod touch is for.

People with low or no vision have long been champions of the iPod touch because it's a low-cost screen reader. Thanks to the robust accessibility features, you can use VoiceOver to read the news, your favorite blog posts, and a lot more. With display accommodations, you can adjust the way things look on the screen, like inverting colors and setting filters for color blindness. The Zoom feature on iOS magnifies things up to 1500 percent, so you can read certain things without having to pinch-to-zoom the whole screen. The magnifier is another incredible feature that, when used in conjunction with display accommodations, provides an advanced magnifying reader that can help with non-digital reading. The iPod touch can do all of this and its much less expensive than buying an iPhone or iPad.

Coders can take advantage of the low price tag on the iPod touch. If you're looking for a developer device, but can't afford one of Apple's more expensive products, $199 starts to look really good. Schools can buy them in bulk and use them as learning tools for students for coding, too.

The iPod touch is worth buying, even if you already own an iPhone.

I've heard a lot of people say that the iPod touch is obsolete and isn't worth buying if you already have a smart phone. I used to think the same way. My most recent iPod touch is from 2010 and I haven't touched it since about 2012 (until today when I booted it up to see what it's like). With the iPod touch 7, I can see a whole list of possibilities, all of them based on the idea that this is a dedicated device, meaning you can use it for one thing and one thing only, if you so choose.

Ways to utilize your iPod touch 7: 

• Download a bunch of games you wouldn't have put on your iPhone for space-saving reasons. It's like a mobile game console, although the games won't look as good as they do on your iPhone. 
• Stock up on downloaded music. This can be used at backyard barbecues where you can play music all night without worrying about running out of batteries on your iPhone.
• Leave it in the car. As a dedicated music player plus a device for gaming on the go, this things got it all and you don't have to keep it with you at all times like you might with your iPhone.
• Bring it on a jog or to the gym. You can leave your iPhone at home, or at least in your gym bag, and still have the use of your entertainment apps. This is especially nice for people that don't already own an Apple Watch.
• Download audio books and podcasts. If you're headed on a long road trip, this can be your one-stop shop for music, podcasts, and audio books and you don't have to deal with your navigation apps affecting your experience.
• Connect it to your speakers at work and pipe in your favorite tunes. Don't worry about taking it home at night. It's the work iPod!
• Want to set up a dedicated iMessage app so you can chat with grandma or the grandkids? You can sign in with a separate Apple ID from what you have on your iPhone and this becomes a special communications device.

A worthy investment

I am actually surprised at how much I connected with the iPod touch 7. I went into this thinking it'd be pointless because I already have an iPhone, iPad Pro, iPad mini, Mac, Apple TV, and Apple Watch. How could I possible find a use for another Apple device?

Turns out, there are plenty of things I can, and will, use the iPod touch for, specifically as a dedicated music device.

If you have an iPod touch 6, this is probably one to skip. The one major upgrade, the A10 Fusion chip, does make it possible to play games that you can't play on the iPod touch 6, but they don't look nearly as good as they do on an iPhone.

If you haven't had an iPod touch since 2012 (or earlier), this is a solid upgrade you might want to consider. It'll rekindle your love of the iPod. If you really don't think there's a reason for you to buy an iPod touch, you're probably right. It's an excess for anyone that already owns an iPhone, but that doesn't mean you won't love it, anyway.

If you're an Android user and have been wondering what it's like to play in Apple's playground, you really should get an iPod touch 7. It's not the same as having an iPhone XS. But you're not looking for a new iPhone, are you? The iPod touch lets you jump into the Apple ecosystem without having to commit to anything.