Goodbye iPod, It's Been a Great 20 Years: Discontinuation of Apple's iPod Touch Signals the End

The iPod is dead. Long live the iPod.

Apple recently announced that it is discontinuing its last iPod model, the iPod touch, with the company stating that the device will be available "while supplies last."

The Cupertino-based company previously released the first iPod in 2001, while the 1st generation of the iPod Touch launched in 2007.

Apple iPod Touch Discontinuation

According to Apple's announcement, it is discontinuing the last model of the iPod due to the device being obsolete and unnecessary. The company said that the iPod Touch's main function, taking one's music out into the world, has been added across its entire product line, from the iPhone to the Mac. This function also comes with access to more than 90 million songs and over 30,000 playlists available through Apple Music.

The Verge's report claimed that the discontinuation was only a matter of time, with Apple making it clear that it wasn't looking to spend much time on the iPod. This move was evidenced by Apple's decision to release the seventh-gen iPod Touch with the same A10 processor as the iPhone 7 in 2019, while the iPhone 11 came out with an A13 Bionic Processor in the year.

A report from NanoReview.net showed that the A13 Bionic Processor outperforms the A10 in every way, from CPU performance to battery life.

Tony Fadell, one of the developers of the 2001 iPod, told The Verge in an interview that the iPod team knew that the iPhone could end up overtaking the iPod as it became clear to them that "there were a real threat from mobile phones, [and] feature phones."

"They were starting to add music, MP3 playing, to the cell phones that they were shipping at the time," Fadell said.

Fadell also added that Apple didn't see the probable redundancy as a problem, saying that under Steve Jobs' instructions, Apple needed to ship every single thing that was tried.

"... It was existential," Fadell said. "You couldn't not make the iPhone successful because you were cannibalizing the iPod Business."

This move was made more apparent by Apple's offering its other products that could replace the iPod Touch. For instance, it said that the iPhone is the best device for streaming Apple Music or strong an entire music library on the go, with the Apple Watch and AirPods being the perfect companion devices for it.

It also mentioned that the iPad comes with a more powerful chip, larger display, and the latest iPadOS features and that the HomePod is "the best way to enjoy music at home."

iPod Touch Brief History and Eventual Fate

The iPod became one of its financial foundations during a time when it was experiencing shaky financial ground and highly dependent on selling its Macs, according to Engadget.

Thanks to the iPod's ease of use and Apple's marketing, the device made Apple the general consumer electronics giant it is today. It eventually released other iPod models, such as the iPod Touch, iPod Mini, and the iPod Nano, to name a few.

The iPod models represented 40% of its revenue by 2006, but it soon became clear that people wanted an "iPod phone," which led Apple to create the first iPhone.

The iPod has been in production for around 20 years, and with its discontinuation, people interested in getting an iPod Touch can do so until Apple's supplies last.