iPod

The iPod is a line of portable media players designed and marketed by Apple Inc. Introduced in 2001, it helped popularize digital music and the concept of a dedicated portable media player. Early models combined a hard drive with a click wheel and seamless integration with iTunes.

Over its lifetime, the iPod family expanded to several designs. The iPod Mini offered a smaller aluminum chassis; iPod Photo added color imagery; iPod Classic provided larger storage capacities. Flash-based models such as the Nano and the Shuffle emphasized portability and simplicity, with the Nano offering various screen sizes and the Shuffle focusing on a compact form.

The iPod Touch, launched in 2007, introduced multi-touch gestures and Wi-Fi access, running the iOS operating system and enabling access to apps through the App Store. It functioned as a portable media player, game device, and web browser, with storage options expanding over time.

iTunes era: The iPod relied on iTunes for music management and syncing, while later models and services expanded to video, photos, and apps on the Touch. The iTunes Store enabled music purchases that fed the growing library.

Discontinuation and legacy: Apple gradually retired most iPod models, with the iPod Classic discontinued in 2014, the Nano and Shuffle in 2017, and the iPod Touch in 2022. While smartphones and streaming services have largely supplanted dedicated players, the iPod helped shape portable music consumption and product design.