Apple announced on Tuesday that it was discontinuing the last iPod music player remaining in its portfolio. The “iPod Touch” will sell out while supplies last, Apple said in a blog post on Tuesday, eliminating one of the last remaining pure music players on the market.
“Today, the spirit of the iPod is alive. We’ve integrated an incredible music experience across all of our products, from the iPhone to the Apple Watch to the HomePod mini and Mac, iPad, and Apple TV. And Apple Music is industry-leading with support for spatial audio SOUND QUALITY – There’s no better way to enjoy, discover and experience music,” said Greg Joswiak, Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing at Apple.
Apple introduced the first iPod in 2001, at a time when portable music players were gaining momentum around the world. According to data tracking website Statista, the company sold 54.83 million units of iPods in 2008, but sales had dropped to less than 15 million units in 2014. The devices accounted for only 1% of Apple’s total revenue in 2014.
The iPod touch was first introduced globally in 2007, and was last updated in 2019. At the time, the company fitted its A10 mobile processor to the iPod touch, which is the same chip that powered the 2016 iPhone 7.
The device hasn’t been updated since, and the music player has more or less disappeared as a market. With the departure of Apple, Japanese Sony has become the only company in the segment to still sell devices.
The company announced a new version of its Walkman in February this year, though it only sells it in select markets. The Sony Walkman NW-WM1ZM2 costs $1300 globally and is for audiophiles who understand and love to listen to high-fidelity audio.
While the iPod line is gone, Apple isn’t giving up on offering audio just yet. The company sells its AirPods line of headphones along with the HomePod smart speaker. Streaming music service, Apple Music is also one of its biggest service offerings in the market.