iPods Are Cool Again?

It's been more than four years since Apple officially discontinued the iPod, bringing one of the most iconic product lines in tech history to an end. It's also been nearly 25 years since Steve Jobs unveiled the original iPod with its unforgettable promise: "1,000 songs in your pocket."

For over two decades, the iPod completely changed the way we listened to music. It made carrying an entire music library around feel effortless and helped shape the digital music industry as we know it.

But for a lot of younger music fans, the iPod isn't something they grew up with. Even here at Ameritz, plenty of our team have never owned one. They came of age in a world where smartphones had already replaced dedicated music players.

So why is a device that disappeared from Apple's shelves and our pockets suddenly making a comeback?

The Device That Changed Music

When the first iPod launched in 2001, digital music was still finding its feet.

Most people either carried bulky CD collections or ripped their favourite albums onto early MP3 players. At the same time, services like Napster had shown there was huge demand for downloadable music, even if the legal options hadn't caught up yet.

This was the moment Apple saw an opportunity, not just to build a better MP3 player, but to completely change the way people discovered, bought, and listened to music.

In 2003, the company launched the iTunes Store after Steve Jobs negotiated licensing deals with major record labels including Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment. Suddenly, buying music legally became quick, affordable and simple, with individual tracks costing as little as 99p. For the first time, you didn't have to buy an entire album just to own one song you loved, you could simply purchase your favourite track and download it straight to your iPod.

Together, the iPod and iTunes completely changed the industry, and sales exploded. Apple sold almost 400,000 iPods in its first year. That jumped to around 2 million in 2003 and more than 8 million in 2004 alone. By early 2005, over 10 million iPods had been sold, and by the time production ended in 2022, Apple had sold an estimated 450 million worldwide.

For many people, the iPod was also their first introduction to Apple. It opened the door to products like the iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch, helping build the ecosystem that millions now use every day.

The iPhone Changed Everything

Ironically, the iPod's biggest competitor came from Apple itself. When the iPhone launched in 2007, it combined a phone, music player and internet-connected computer into one device. Carrying a separate MP3 player suddenly felt unnecessary.

Then the rush of streaming services arrived.

Platforms like Spotify changed the way people listened to music altogether. Instead of buying songs and building playlists, listeners suddenly had access to millions of tracks with a monthly subscription.

The iPod slowly faded into the background, and by 2022, Apple officially ended production with only the iPod Touch remaining in its product category.

So Why Are People Buying iPods Again?

Here's where things get interesting.

Over the last few years, demand for second-hand iPods has been steadily growing.

Searches for the iPod Classic have reportedly increased by around 25% year-on-year, while searches for the iPod Nano have risen by roughly 20%. Refurbished electronics retailer Back Market has also reported increasing interest in used iPods.

At first glance, it's easy to put this down to nostalgia and that's definitely a small part of the story. So what's the bigger picture?

Less Screen Time, More Music

One of the biggest reasons behind the iPod's comeback has nothing to do with Millenials and earlier reliving the 2000s. It appears to be a collective ideology on escaping our attention consuming phones that is driving the comeback.

Business Insider has reported that growing efforts to reduce digital distractions are encouraging more people to look for dedicated music players again. Schools in several countries have also introduced stricter rules around smartphone use, leading some students to dust off their parents iPods, or go and buy second hand ones from places like eBay or CEX (a second-hand gaming and electronics chain in the UK) instead.

More broadly, conversations around digital wellbeing have become much more common.

People are increasingly questioning how much time they spend glued to their phones, endlessly switching between notifications, social media, emails and apps.

The iPod offers something refreshingly different.

• No notifications.

• No endless scrolling.

• No ads.

• No social media (not including the iPod Touch).

• Just music.

And who could forget the iPod's mini-games? Whether it was losing hours to Brick waiting on the bus, trying to beat Solitaire, or taking on the Music Quiz that tested you on songs from your own library, they were a surprisingly addictive part of the iPod experience.

A Different Way to Listen

The iPod is almost certainly never coming back as a brand-new Apple product, even if plenty of us would happily queue up for an updated iPod.

Apple has shown no signs of bringing the range back, and it's easy to see why. The way we listen to music has completely changed forever. Services like Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music and others have shifted the industry from owning songs to streaming them, creating a subscription model that's far more financially attractive and convenient than selling standalone music players and individual track downloads.

That's why today's iPod revival is happening almost entirely through the second-hand and refurbished market. It could also mirror the wider trend we've seen in recent years, with more music fans returning to physical media like CDs and vinyl.

For younger generations who were brought up with an iPhone in their hands, an iPod offers something they may have never experienced. For everyone else, it's a reminder of a time when one gadget did one job exceptionally well, instead of trying to do everything and be great at nothing.

And in a world full of notifications, endless scrolling and constant distractions, that simplicity is exactly what many people have been missing.

More than two decades after its debut, the iPod's legacy continues to evolve in unexpected ways. What was once viewed as obsolete technology has found a new relevance, not because it offers more features than today's devices, but because, for many, it offers considerably less.