Forget 2016, it’s time to make sound like 2001 again.
Tony Fadell, creator of the iPod, said it is time for Apple to relaunch the device that changed the Cupertino-based tech giant and music forever.
“I think there are smarter ways of making an AirPod that has an iPod in it. So, I think they need to bring back the iPod,” Fadell told Eric Newcomer during a recent interview on the tech journalist’s podcast.
Fadell, widely known as “the father of the iPod,” said there are two reasons to bring back the device that is synonymous with his legacy.
First, to cash in on the broader nostalgia around the music device, which ended in 2019 with the release of the revamped, 7th-generation iPod Touch. The original iPod, which could hold just 1,000 songs, shared much more in common with the Nano and Shuffle lines than the iPhone-like Touch. Apple killed off the Nano and Shuffle in 2017.
“So, iPod from the nostalgic point of view for all those people who’s like, ‘Oh, I remember the iPod,’ but they don’t want distractions anymore,” Fadell said.
Second, a modern iPod would also tap into a market of music listeners who want a more “pure” experience, listening to music without all the extra stuff that comes with listening to music on a smartphone. After all, dumb phones are becoming increasingly popular as people try to simplify their relationship with tech.
Online, there are still active communities that seek to mod the now-retro iPods to fit more modern needs, including an entire subreddit devoted to the cause.
Pressed on what form a new iPod would take, Fadell said he wouldn’t give away all of his ideas. Fadell has been mentioned in some corners as a potential replacement for CEO Tim Cook, who has been the subject of retirement speculation. (Cook, who is 64, has said he will not retire in a “traditional” way.) Apple exec John Ternus, the iPhone company’s senior vice president of hardware engineering, is widely reported to be the top contender to replace Cook.
“Apple will make the right decision when they need to, about who the next CEO is. I love the company. It’s been in my blood since 1980, ’81, when I had my first Apple II,” Fadell said. “If anyone calls from the board, or Tim called, whatever, I’ll be happy to pick up the phone and that’s it. I’ll help ’em any way they think they would like to be helped.”
Fadell pointed to how Sony — which sells a $3,699 collector’s edition of a Walkman — recently announced its first new turntables in years, seeking to capitalize on the growing number of vinyl listeners. Sony also sold off control of its TV line to TCL.
“They kill the TVs, and they bring back turntables,” Fadell said. “You tell me.”
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