Memories of the iPod: A device that transformed our relationship to music

It’s official: Apple’s groundbreaking portable music player is no more. We are left only with our memories of the iPod and maybe that last model we will keep for ever.

The decision was obvious. The decision was obvious. Most people now listen to music on their iPhones or streaming services. Apple’s iPad has effectively replaced the iPod Touch in its other function, which was to be a mobile device that could be used by children who don’t have phones. All the same, it’s still a somewhat sad moment …

A bunch of us here at 9to5Mac last year shared our early memories of the iPod, on the 20th anniversary of the launch of the device. It would be fun to reflect on the experiences I have had with the iPod over the years and invite others to do the same.

Life before iPod

I’ve loved music since childhood, so even though the initial Sony Walkman was expensive, I couldn’t resist getting one.

It’s hard to believe now just how innovative this device was. We had our first portable music player that was so light and compact that we could take it everywhere.

The big drawback, of course, was that it was limited to a single album at a time. Still, that was good enough for everyday use, and mine was indeed used every day. Later, I upgraded to a Discman as CDs began to take over.

As an early adopter of gadgets, it surprised no one when I bought the first ever mp3 player: the MPMan F10 (above right). The tiny amount of flash storage meant I was still limited to one album at a time, and swapping out music was less convenient than switching tapes, but it was way smaller and lighter, and hey, it was a gadget.

Buying an iPod on launch day in 2001

I was ecstatic when the iPod was revealed. A thousand songs in my pocket? That was irresistible!

I happened to be in New York the day it went on sale. I’d always promised myself I’d fly Concorde one day, and managed to get two of the last discounted tickets available before British Airways announced the upcoming retirement of the service, and only full-fare ($5,000 one-way!) Tickets were still available. After I had secured the deal, my girlfriend and I set about finding suitable hotels. She was able to secure a Waldorf room. A mix-up with our booking resulted in a swift apology and an upgrade to a suite. This trip was going well! The icing on top would be adding an iPod to the equation.

I remember that we had to walk half-way across Manhattan in order to find a store with stock. Getting one was a huge accomplishment. Even though I was only in New York for five days and had a lot to see, I did spend a couple of hours at our hotel transferring music, much to the amusement of my other half, who is not a techie. It wasn’t as though I would be listening to music until my return flight, even though we were traveling together. However, it was still an amazing new device that I needed to test and set up.

The user interface was genius! To have a thousand songs on the device (I of course had to test the claim!) It felt magical to be able quickly to select which one I liked. I managed to resist the urge to leave my girlfriend and listen to my music on my flight back. After that, it was rare indeed for me to leave home without it – and I think it was many months before it ceased to feel like magic.

30GB iPod Classic in 2003

My next upgrade was to the 30GB model in 2003. At that point, I had become greedy. I felt like I had a thousand songs, but the fact that it was possible to save a large portion of my music library on the device was just too tempting.

This model also changed the way I listened to music at home. To get the same music access I had when I was on the go, instead of listening to CDs, the model connected to my hifi to allow me to instantly connect to it.

This was also the point at which I had to admit that I was no audiophile. The quality of mp3 files available then was significantly lower than CD quality. When I listened to the same track back-to-back in each format, the mp3 version sounded noticeably muddier. However, while I could easily tell the difference, and would choose CDs for active listening, my everyday background music was played on theiPod.

Resisting other models

Another models were introduced. The iPod Mini. The iPod Shuffle (so cute I wanted one, but had no excuse for one as my Classic still went with me everywhere). The iPod Photo. The iPod Nano. However, Apple did manage to sell me one more…

160GB iPod Classic in 2007

Finally, Apple made a device with enough space to store my entire music collection. This was the holy grail. It was no longer necessary to choose music while I’m on the go, but having instant access to all of it at any time, from anywhere. I cannot begin to tell you how happy that made me!

I kept that model for years and years. Indeed, even when I’d switched to listening to music on my iPhone – the convenience of a single device with easy(ish) music swapping finally outweighing the joy of having all my music all the time – I still kept it. It became instead my car music player, permanently wired into power and car stereo AUX port. I then had all my music in the car.

I did sell it when Spotify became my main music source and I was able to listen again, anytime, anywhere. I still wish that it hadn’t happened, but a part of me wishes so!

Today

Today, my iPhone and my iPhone are the primary audio devices in my home. I can ask Siri for what music I need, but my iPhone plays my music on my phone. Both Spotify and Apple Music are my subscriptions. The former is for Tango, while the latter is for all other music. This arrangement allows both Spotify and Apple Music to suggest the right genre music for me. I was too afraid to mix them, fearing that they would become confused.

Those are my iPod memories – limited exclusively to the Classic – what about yours? Please share your stories in the comments, we’d love to hear them!