Remember the iPod, the gadget that changed how we listened to music? Steve Jobs declared it a landmark product in the wake of 9/11, and it indeed lived up to the hype. By 2004, the iPod was so beloved that I wrote a cover story on its impact. Yet, the iPod’s final act was a quiet one, with the last traditional model being discontinued in 2017. The death of the iPod wasn’t as memorable as its life was transformative. Apple’s relentless innovation saw the iPod evolve, but ultimately, it was the iPhone that took over. Tony Fadell, the iPod’s ‘father,’ agrees that it was a valuable standalone product. He believes it could have continued as a dedicated music player, but Apple prioritised the iPhone. Fadell’s sentiment is that the iPod’s absence left a void, and he wonders if it should still exist.

Despite the iPhone’s dominance, there is a community of tech refuseniks who continue to mod old iPods, trying to recreate the simpler joy of the past. While the iPod was a one-function device that brought unadulterated joy, the iPhone, with its internet connectivity, has become a distraction. The legacy of the iPod lies in the transformation of Apple from a computer company to a consumer electronics giant. But, looking back, the iPod was perfect in its simplicity, a device that scratched an itch in a way that smartphones can’t.