IPod Touch RIP – The era ends when Apple stops manufacturing its latest portable music player

Apple today announced that it is launching the iPod Touch, a 20-year-old portable music player that “amazes consumers around the world who love the ability to take music with them.” This is the end of its genre – iPod nano and iPod shuffle were discontinued in 2017.

The weak device was transformative. But for now, the company says, “The experience of bringing our music library to the world is built into Apple’s range of products, from iPhone and Apple Watch to iPad and Mac, with access to over 90 million songs and access to more than 30,000 songs … Playlists are available through Apple Music.

The tech giant’s post announcing the move was titled “The Music Goes On”.

The music app on iPod and iTunes ushered in digital music buying for most people, which was controversial at a time when the music industry was struggling to share apps like Napster, which shut down after it filed a lawsuit and lost a court battle with major record companies. labels. The iPod paved the way for forcing people to pay for digital music, paying 99 cents per song or $ 9.99 per album. Apple expanded digital TV and movie downloads in 2005.

The original iPod, released on October 23, 2001, could hold up to 1,000 songs and had a battery life of 10 hours, weighing in at 6.5 ounces. The devices will be available via Apple’s website, retail stores and authorized resellers for $ 199 before stocks run out. They are available in six colors and 32GB, 128GB and 256GB models.

“Music has always been part of our core at Apple, delivering it to hundreds of millions of users in the same way that the iPod has impacted the music industry on its own: it has also defined how music is discovered. , listened to and shared. . Greg said. Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of global marketing.

The company jumped at the opportunity and announced the iPhone as the best device for playing and storing music.