iPod

The final iPod lineup, featuring iPod touch (7th generation), iPod nano (7th generation), and iPod shuffle (4th generation)

The iPod was a line of portable media players released by Apple between 2001 and 2019. Three major iPod product lines were released making use of the iPod operating system, while the iPod touch ran iOS. On 10 May 2022, Apple announced the retirement of the iPod product line.

With some unique exceptions, the iPod product line makes use of a "click wheel", a plastic dial that is touch-sensitive. The user rotates their finger clockwise or counter-clockwise to navigate through lists on the device, or to adjust volume. The user can then click the center button to select an item, or click a navigational button: Menu, Play/Pause, Previous Song, and Next Song. Earlier variations of the iPod classic use a mechanically rotating wheel, with navigational buttons either on the outside of the wheel, or in a row above it. Later iPod nanos, and all iPod touches, make use of a touch screen rather than a click wheel. iPod shuffles provide few or no buttons, and no display, instead opting to provide a simplified set of playback options based around shuffling songs in a library.

While later iPod software uses of iOS-inspired design elements, no iPod (other than iPod touch) runs iOS - rather, they are based on the Pixo OS product Apple acquired from Pixo. However, iPods launched in 2006 and later do make use of iBoot as their bootloader. All iPods are based on ARMv4 and ARMv6 platforms, with earlier iPods making use of the PortalPlayer PP5000 series of systems-on-a-chip, and later iPods switching to Samsung S5L87xx SoCs similar to those used in early iOS devices. The iPod shuffle (1st generation) is unique in using a SigmaTel STMP 3550 processor, based on the Motorola 56000 digital signal processor instruction set.

The iPod classic and iPod mini product lines make use of a compact hard drive for storage, enabling them to hold significant capacity at a low cost - reaching 160 GB in 2007. iPod shuffle was the first iPod to bring flash memory to the iPod lineup, although at much smaller capacities - 4 GB being the most premium storage option in 2009. The iPod nano's replacement of the iPod mini product line brought flash memory to its form factor, reaching 16 GB as the most premium storage option in 2008. The iPod touch provided up to 32 GB in 2007, reaching 256 GB in 2019 as the final iPod sold.

Again excluding the iPod touch, no iPod has the capability to connect to the internet, or otherwise to use Wi-Fi. Only the iPod nano (7th generation) supports Bluetooth headphones. iPods act as a portable extension to the iTunes software, and for a brief period, Musicmatch Jukebox, provided for Windows users until iTunes was released for Windows. A user would maintain a music library in iTunes, and sync some or all of this library to their iPod over FireWire, or later USB. Some iPods can receive FM radio, using wired headphones as an antenna.

All iPod designs, with the exception of the iPod shuffle and later iPod touches, connect to a computer or accessory through the 30-pin connector. iPod shuffles initially connected through a built-in USB connector, and later via a cable that adapts the 3.5mm headphone port to USB. iPod touch (5th generation) and later use Lightning.

The iPod operating system makes use of the IPSW file format, however the structure of iPod IPSWs significantly differs from iOS IPSWs.

iPod product lines

• iPod classic: The original iPod product line, later renamed iPod classic to differentiate it from the other product lines, making use of hard drive storage.
  • iPod Photo: A variant of the iPod (4th generation) with larger, full-color display.
  • iPod Video: The name given to the iPod (5th generation), having a significantly larger display for watching videos.
• iPod nano: Product line of various miniaturized iPod designs, making use of flash storage.
  • iPod mini: Short-lived predecessor to the iPod nano, making use of hard drive storage.
• iPod shuffle: Experimental iPod designs with no display, sometimes with no buttons, making use of flash storage.
• iPod touch: Wi-Fi-only variant of the iPhone, unique in the iPod product line for running iOS.

Partnerships

Apple released iPod products under various partnerships. Special edition iPods branded in the style of various artists were released across the iPod's lifetime. The most prominent of these partnerships are highlighted below.

U2

iPod with video (5th generation) U2 Special Edition

Apple released some iPod models in U2 Special Editions. These iPods featured a front design in black with red click wheel in the style of the How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb album cover, and laser-etched signatures of the band members on the rear cover, in addition to "U2 Special Edition" labeling. The iPod (4th generation) U2 Special Edition was released on 26 October 2004, ahead of the album release on 22 November 2004. The promotion was later extended, with further iPods receiving identical U2 Special Edition designs.

The devices released under this partnership were:

• iPod (4th generation) U2 Special Edition
• iPod with Color Display (iPod Photo) U2 Special Edition
• iPod (5th generation) (Original and Rev A) U2 Special Edition

Product Red

Apple partnered with Product Red numerous times to sell special edition iPods in a red finish, exclusively through the Apple retail and online stores. Product Red is a brand of ONE Campaign, a non-profit advocacy organization co-founded by U2 lead vocalist Bono alongside Bobby Shriver. A portion of revenue from sales is donated to The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

The devices released under this partnership were:

• iPod nano (2nd generation) PRODUCT(RED) Special Edition (4 GB/8 GB)
• iPod shuffle (2nd generation) PRODUCT(RED) Special Edition (1 GB/2 GB)
• iPod nano (3rd generation) PRODUCT(RED) Special Edition (8 GB)
• iPod nano (4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th generations) PRODUCT(RED) Special Edition (8 GB/16 GB)
• iPod shuffle (4th generation) PRODUCT(RED) Special Edition (2 GB)
• iPod touch (5th generation) PRODUCT(RED) Special Edition (16 GB/32 GB/64 GB)
• iPod touch (6th generation) PRODUCT(RED) Special Edition (16 GB/32 GB/64 GB/128 GB)
• iPod touch (7th generation) PRODUCT(RED) Special Edition (32 GB/128 GB/256 GB)

The partnership has continued beyond the iPod era, with iPhones, Apple Watches, and case/band accessories also receiving Product Red special editions.

iPod+HP

Apple iPod from HP Color Music Player (iPod Photo) in box

Announced on 8 January 2004 at the Consumer Electronics Show, Hewlett-Packard partnered with Apple to release iPods co-branded with the HP logo, and to preinstall iTunes on their consumer HP Pavilion and Compaq Presario computers.

The Apple/HP co-branded devices released under this deal were:

• Apple iPod from HP Music Player, based on iPod (4th generation), released 27 August 2004
  • 20 GB: Model MP102
  • 40 GB: Model MP103
• Apple iPod from HP Color Music Player, based on iPod Photo, released 12 April 2005
  • 30 GB: Model MP7001
  • 60 GB: Model MP7002
• Apple iPod mini from HP Music Player, based on iPod mini (1st generation), released 2 June 2005
  • 4 GB: Model MP5001
  • 6 GB: Model MP5002
• Apple iPod Shuffle from HP Music Player, based on iPod shuffle (1st generation), released 1 July 2005
  • 512 MB: Model MP3001
  • 1 GB: Model MP3002

An iPod (3rd generation) with HP's blue brand color front plate design was demonstrated by HP CEO Carly Fiorina at the CES presentation, however, it was never sold.

HP variants of these devices were manufactured by Apple and were identical in both hardware and software, but were sold in HP packaging, and used HP model and serial numbers. Customer support, including warranty claims, were to be directed to HP's customer service channels, rather than AppleCare. The included CD only includes an installer for iTunes for Windows, not macOS. Still, being completely standard iPods in software, they could be used with a Mac, which would reformat the iPod as HFS+.

HP additionally sold vinyl skin wraps for the iPod (4th generation) and iPod mini, named "HP iPod Printable Tattoos". Skins were made available with designs including those of Ashlee Simpson, The Cure, Gwen Stefani, The Hives, Keane, Lloyd Banks from G-Unit, Vanessa Carlton, and The Who. A blank skin template was also sold, allowing the user to create and print their own design using an inkjet printer.

The partnership was terminated by HP on 29 July 2005, after Fiorina was replaced by new CEO Mark Hurd. HP+iPod sales ceased in November 2005. However, HP were still prevented from releasing a competing MP3 player device until August 2006. iTunes continued to be preinstalled on HP computers until a partnership with RealNetworks Rhapsody was announced on 6 January 2006.

The partnership has been criticized for being made with poor negotiation and strategy on HP's part. While HP received the ability to sell the iPod product which at this point was growing in popularity, especially with Windows users, Apple had the upper hand in receiving additional advertising for the iTunes Store via HP's computers, additionally putting HP in a position that they would not be able to advertise competitors such as Microsoft's MSN Music. In addition, HP+iPod models were sold in HP's retail channels, while Apple was in the process of making distribution deals with similar retailers. After only 2 months of the delayed release of HP's iPod (4th generation), Apple released the iPod Photo, which took a further 5 months to be released in the HP+iPod product line. It has been reported that the peak of the HP+iPod partnership only represented 5% of all iPod sales.

Avon

In June 2009, a special Gold edition of the 1 GB iPod shuffle (2nd generation) was sold via an Avon promotion. It was sold through various promotions, where the customer would purchase an amount of products from the store to receive a complimentary iPod. Unlike the iPod+HP partnership, Avon makes clear in included documentation that Apple covers the iPod's warranty. In addition to the customer promotion, Avon dealers received an iPod shuffle with Avon logo branding. Customer iPods did not have additional branding.

Issues

Battery aging

With all iPods being anywhere between 6 and 21 years old, having significantly fallen out of favor as compared to smartphones that are more powerful and capable of music streaming, issues related to lithium-ion battery aging are likely to appear. Batteries that have been drained for many years tends to develop problems with reporting accurate battery charge percentage, which can lead to the device failing to charge, or unexpectedly powering off.

The unibody design of many iPods, or the very tight tolerances used to secure the front and back case together on other iPods, poses a risk for the aged batteries. This is known in the community as "the spot", because many iPods were designed with the battery behind the LCD, causing the failure to present itself through a visible pressure point on the LCD. The extremely thin designs used by most iPod nanos present the risk of puncturing the battery while attempting to remove it from the case, which can release toxic chemicals and potentially start a fire.

2005 iPod battery life class action

On 12 May 2005, Apple proposed a settlement of class action regarding iPods exhibiting reduced battery life as compared to Apple's advertised battery lifetime ratings. Customers in the United States who purchased or obtained a 1st, 2nd, or 3rd generation iPod prior to 31 May 2004 were eligible to receive Apple Store credit worth US$50, a free repair or replaced iPod (if the customer purchased an iPod with dock connector (3rd generation)), a check worth US$25 (in the case of an earlier iPod), or 50% compensation for a prior battery or full device replacement made at the customer's cost. The deadline to claim the offer was the later of 30 September 2005, or two years from the original purchase date. The corresponding replacement program continued until 30 September 2006.

iPod nano (1st generation) battery safety risk

On 11 November 2011, Apple issued the iPod nano Replacement Program recall, because "the battery in the iPod nano (1st generation) may overheat and pose a safety risk". It is speculated that the root cause is battery expansion pushing against the click wheel, which is not able to spread the load as other iPods are able to, where the battery is behind the display. The program exchanged any iPod nano (1st generation) with the latest generation of iPod nano available at the time, and ended sometime prior to 19 January 2017.

Comparison between models

	Name	Release Date	Capacity	Colors	Disk type	Display	Input	Audio output	Data connector	USB	FireWire	Case design
iPod classic
	iPod with scroll wheel (1st generation)	10 November 2001	5 GB	White	1.8″ hard drive	160×128 2″ monochrome	Mechanical scroll wheel, surrounding navigation buttons	3.5mm headphones (stereo)	FireWire port	No	Yes	Glossy plastic front/Chrome back
			10 GB
	iPod with touch wheel (2nd generation)	17 July 2002	10 GB				Touch-sensitive wheel, surrounding navigation buttons
			20 GB
	iPod with dock connector (3rd generation)	28 April 2003	10 GB				Touch-sensitive wheel, touch-sensitive navigation buttons above		30-pin Connector	Data only
			15 GB
			30 GB
		8 September 2003	20 GB
			40 GB
	iPod with Click Wheel (4th generation)	19 July 2004	20 GB				Touch-sensitive click wheel			Yes	Yes
			40 GB
		26 October 2004	20 GB	U2 Black/Red
	iPod Photo	26 October 2004	40 GB	White		220×176 2″ color
			60 GB
		23 February 2005	30 GB
	iPod with color display (iPod Photo)	28 June 2005	20 GB
			60 GB
			20 GB	U2 Black/Red
	iPod with video (5th generation)	12 October 2005	30 GB	White Black		320×240 2.5″ color					Charging only
			60 GB
		6 June 2006	30 GB	U2 Black/Red
		12 September 2006	80 GB	White Black
	iPod classic (6th generation)	5 September 2007	80 GB	Silver Black								Anodized aluminium front/Chrome back
			160 GB
	iPod classic (6th generation Rev A)	9 September 2008	120 GB	Silver Gray				3.5mm headphones (stereo with remote control)
	iPod classic (6th generation Rev B)	9 September 2009	160 GB
	iPod classic (6th generation Rev C)	12 September 2012
iPod mini
	iPod mini (1st generation)	20 February 2004	4 GB	Silver Blue Green Pink Gold	1.0″ Microdrive	138×110 1.67″ monochrome	Touch-sensitive click wheel	3.5mm headphones (stereo)	30-pin Connector	Yes	Yes	Anodized aluminium unibody
	iPod mini (2nd generation)	23 February 2005	4 GB	Silver Blue Green Pink
			6 GB
iPod nano
	iPod nano (1st generation)	7 September 2005	2 GB	Black White	Flash (SSD)	176×132 1.5″ color	Touch-sensitive click wheel	3.5mm headphones (stereo)	30-pin Connector	Yes	Charging only	Glossy plastic front/Chrome back
			4 GB
		7 February 2006	1 GB
	iPod nano (2nd generation)	12 September 2006	2 GB	Silver								Anodized aluminium front/Chrome back
			4 GB	Silver Green Blue Pink PRODUCT(RED)
			8 GB	Black PRODUCT(RED)
	iPod nano (3rd generation)	5 September 2007	4 GB	Silver		320×240 2″ color
			8 GB	Silver Blue Green Black PRODUCT(RED)
		22 January 2008	8 GB	Silver Pink Blue Green Black PRODUCT(RED)
	iPod nano (4th generation)	9 September 2008	8 GB	Silver Black Purple Blue Green Yellow Orange Pink PRODUCT(RED)		240×320 2″ color					No	Anodized aluminium unibody
			16 GB
	iPod nano (5th generation)	13 September 2009	8 GB	Black Silver Purple Pink Yellow Blue Green Orange PRODUCT(RED)		240×376 2.22″ color
			16 GB
	iPod nano (6th generation)	1 September 2010	8 GB	Silver Graphite Blue Green Orange Pink PRODUCT(RED)		240×240 1.55″ color touchscreen	Touchscreen
			16 GB
	iPod nano (7th generation)	12 October 2012	16 GB	Slate Silver Pink Yellow Green Blue Purple PRODUCT(RED)		240×432 2.5″ color touchscreen			Lightning Connector
		10 September 2013		Space Gray Silver Pink Yellow Green Blue Purple PRODUCT(RED)
		15 July 2015		Space Gray Silver Gold Pink Blue PRODUCT(RED)
iPod shuffle
	iPod shuffle (1st generation)	11 January 2005	512 MB	White	Flash (SSD)	—	Navigation buttons, Off/Repeat/Shuffle switch	3.5mm headphones (stereo with controls)	Built-in USB port	Yes	No	Glossy plastic
		7 February 2006	1 GB
	iPod shuffle (2nd generation)	3 November 2006	1 GB	Silver					USB via 3.5mm headphones			Anodized aluminium unibody
		30 January 2007		Silver Blue Green Orange Pink
		5 September 2007		Silver Gold Light Blue Light Green Purple PRODUCT(RED)
		18 February 2008	2 GB
		9 September 2008	1 GB	Silver Blue Green Pink PRODUCT(RED)
			2 GB
	iPod shuffle (3rd generation)	11 March 2009	4 GB	Silver Black			Off/Repeat/Shuffle switch
		9 September 2009	2 GB	Silver Black Blue Green Pink Polished Stainless Steel (4 GB)
			4 GB
	iPod shuffle (4th generation)	1 September 2010	2 GB	Silver Blue Green Orange Pink			Navigation buttons, Off/Repeat/Shuffle switch
		12 September 2012		Silver Black Blue Green Pink Purple Yellow PRODUCT(RED)
		10 September 2013		Silver Space Gray Blue Green Pink Purple Yellow PRODUCT(RED)
		15 July 2015		Silver Space Gray Gold Blue Pink PRODUCT(RED)

External Links

• iPod on Wikipedia
• List of iPod models on Wikipedia
• freemyipod.org Wiki
• iPod Linux Wiki