101-498: The iPod is a discontinued series of portable media players and multi-purpose mobile devices that were designed and marketed by Apple Inc. from 2001 to 2022. The first version was released on November 10, 2001, about 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 months after the Macintosh version of iTunes was released. Apple sold an estimated 450 million iPod products as of 2022. Apple discontinued the iPod product line on May 10, 2022. At over 20 years,
202-420: A FireWire connection to the host computer was used to update songs or recharge the battery . The battery could also be charged with a power adapter that was included with the first four generations. The third generation began including a 30-pin dock connector , allowing for FireWire or USB connectivity. This provided better compatibility with non-Apple machines, as most of them did not have FireWire ports at
303-430: A combination lock . On January 8, 2004, Hewlett-Packard (HP) announced that they would sell HP-branded iPods under a license agreement from Apple. Several new retail channels were used—including Walmart —and these iPods eventually made up 5% of all iPod sales. In July 2005, HP stopped selling iPods due to unfavorable terms and conditions imposed by Apple. In 2006, Apple partnered with Irish rock band U2 to present
404-517: A line-level audio signal (radio, voice, etc.). Devices such as CD players can be connected to the MP3 player (using the USB port) in order to directly play music from the memory of the player without the use of a computer. Modular MP3 keydrive players are composed of two detachable parts: the head (or reader/writer) and the body (the memory). They can be independently obtained and upgradable (one can change
505-617: A personal organiser are emulated, or support for video games , like the iriver clix (through compatibility of Adobe Flash Lite ) or the PlayStation Portable , is included. Only mid-range to high-end players support "savestating" for power-off (i.e. leaves off song/video in progress similar to tape-based media). Nearly all players are compatible with the MP3 audio format, and many others support Windows Media Audio (WMA), Advanced Audio Coding (AAC) and WAV . Some players are compatible with open-source formats like Ogg Vorbis and
606-497: A "music jukebox", while a Hong Kong-based IP portfolio company called Pat-rights filed a suit claiming that Apple's FairPlay technology breached a patent issued to inventor Ho Keung Tse. The latter case also includes the online music stores of Sony , RealNetworks, Napster , and Musicmatch as defendants. Apple's application to the United States Patent and Trademark Office for a patent on "rotational user inputs", as used on
707-486: A colour liquid crystal display (LCD) or organic light-emitting diode (OLED) screen is used as a display for PMPs that have a screen. Various players include the ability to record video, usually with the aid of optional accessories or cables, and audio, with a built-in microphone or from a line out cable or FM tuner . Some players include readers for memory cards , which are advertised to equip players with extra storage or transferring media. In some players, features of
808-831: A crossfade mixer. Many such devices also tend to be smartphones . Many mobile digital media players have last position memory , in which when it is powered off, a user does not have to worry about starting at the first track again, or even hearing repeats of others songs when a playlist, album, or whole library is cued for shuffle play , in which shuffle play is a common feature, too. Early playback devices to even remotely have "last position memory" that predated solid-state digital media playback devices were tape-based media, except this kind suffered from having to be "rewound", whereas disc-based media suffered from no native "last position memory", unless disc-players had their own last position memory. However, some models of solid-state flash memory (or hard drive ones with some moving parts) are somewhat
909-462: A decline in sales of PMPs, leading to most devices being phased out, such as the iPod Touch on May 10, 2022, though certain flagship devices like the Sony Walkman are still in production. Portable DVD and BD players are still manufactured. Digital audio players are generally categorised by storage media: Some MP3 players can encode directly to MP3 or other digital audio formats directly from
1010-458: A few accessories, such as the now-discontinued iPod Hi-Fi , but most are manufactured by third parties such as Belkin and Griffin. Some peripherals use their own interface, while others use the iPod's own screen. Because the dock connector is a proprietary interface, the implementation of the interface requires paying royalties to Apple. Apple introduced a new 8-pin dock connector, named Lightning , on September 12, 2012 with their announcement of
1111-622: A few hundred dollars. Some DAPs have FM radio tuners built in. Many also have an option to change the band from the usual 87.5 – 108.0 MHz to the Japanese band of 76.0 – 90.0 MHz. DAPs typically never have an AM band, or even HD Radio since such features would be either cost-prohibitive for the application, or because of AM's sensitivity to interference. Newer portable media players are now coming with Internet access via Wi-Fi . Examples of such devices are Android OS devices by various manufacturers, and iOS devices on Apple products like
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#17330940424481212-537: A few months after the MPMan, and also featured a 32 MB storage capacity. It was a success during the holiday season, with sales exceeding expectations. Interest and investment in digital music were subsequently spurred from it. The RIAA soon filed a lawsuit alleging that the device abetted illegal copying of music, but Diamond won a legal victory on the shoulders of Sony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios, Inc. and MP3 players were ruled legal devices. Because of
1313-496: A given media player is followed by an increase in the number, for example an MP5 or MP12 Player, despite there being no such corresponding MPEG standards. iriver of South Korea originally made portable CD players and then started making digital audio players and portable media players in 2002. Creative also introduced the ZEN line. Both of these attained high popularity in some regions. In 2004, Microsoft attempted to take advantage of
1414-538: A menu option. Later revisions of the iPod added three more games: Parachute , Solitaire , and Music Quiz . In September 2006, the iTunes Store began to offer additional games for purchase with the launch of iTunes 7 , compatible with the fifth generation iPod with iPod software 1.2 or later. Those games were: Bejeweled , Cubis 2 , Mahjong , Mini Golf , Pac-Man , Tetris , Texas Hold 'Em , Vortex , Asphalt 4: Elite Racing and Zuma . Additional games have since been added. These games work on
1515-456: A personal computer to its companion music player. The product (which Fortune called "Apple's 21st-Century Walkman ") was developed in less than one year and unveiled on October 23, 2001. Jobs announced it as a Mac-compatible product with a 5 GB hard drive that put "1,000 songs in your pocket." Apple researched the trademark and found that it was already in use. Joseph N. Grasso of New Jersey had originally listed an "iPod" trademark with
1616-413: A popular standard format and as a result most digital audio players after this supported it and hence were often called MP3 players . While popularly being called MP3 players at the time, most players could play more than just the MP3 file format. Players also sometimes supported Windows Media Audio (WMA), Advanced Audio Coding (AAC), Vorbis , FLAC , Speex and Ogg . The first portable MP3 player
1717-432: A prototype into an aquarium in front of engineers to demonstrate from bubbles leaving its housing that the current design contained unused internal space. Apple contracted another company, Pixo , to help design and implement the user interface (as well as Unicode, memory management, and event processing) under Jobs' direct supervision. The name iPod was proposed by Vinnie Chieco, a freelance copywriter, who (with others)
1818-468: A spartan user interface and a smaller form factor, the iPod was initially popular within the Macintosh community. In July 2002, Apple introduced the second generation update to the iPod, which was compatible with Windows computers through Musicmatch Jukebox . iPods quickly became the most popular DAP product and led the fast growth of this market during the early and mid 2000s. In 2002, Archos released
1919-472: A special edition of the 5th-generation iPod . Like its predecessor, this iPod has the signatures of the four members of the band engraved on its back, but this one was the first time the company changed the color of the stainless steel back from a silver chrome to black. This iPod was only available with 30 GB of storage capacity. The special edition entitled purchasers to an exclusive video with 33 minutes of interviews and performance by U2, downloadable from
2020-473: Is associated with one host computer. Each time an iPod connects to its host computer, iTunes can synchronize entire music libraries or music playlists either automatically or manually. Song ratings can be set on an iPod and synchronized later to the iTunes library, and vice versa. A user can access, play, and add music on a second computer if an iPod is set to manual and not automatic sync, but anything added or edited will be reversed upon connecting and syncing with
2121-428: Is identical to that of the iPhone . Differences include the lack of a phone application. Both devices use iOS . The iTunes Store (introduced April 28, 2003) is an online media store run by Apple and accessed through iTunes. The store became the market leader soon after its launch and Apple announced the sale of videos through the store on October 12, 2005. Full-length movies became available on September 12, 2006. At
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#17330940424482222-966: Is nearest competitor in 2006 being SanDisk . Apple also led in Japan over its homegrown makers Sony and Panasonic during this time, although the gap between Apple and Sony had closed by about 2010. In South Korea, the market was led by local brands iriver , Samsung and Cowon as of 2005. European buying patterns differed; while Apple was in a particularly strong position in the United Kingdom, continental Western Europe generally preferred cheaper, often Chinese rebranded players under local brands such as Grundig . Meanwhile, in Eastern Europe including Russia, higher priced players with improved design or functionality were preferred instead, and here Korean makers like iriver and Samsung were particularly popular, as well as such OEM models under local brands. Creative
2323-546: Is typically stored on a compact disc (CD), Digital Versatile Disc (DVD), Blu-ray Disc (BD), flash memory , microdrive , SD cards or hard disk drive ; most earlier PMPs used physical media, but modern players mostly use flash memory. In contrast, analogue portable audio players play music from non-digital media that use analogue media , such as cassette tapes or vinyl records . Digital audio players (DAP) were often marketed as MP3 players even if they also supported other file formats and media types. The PMP term
2424-501: The EU , demand for MP3 players peaked in 2007 with 43.5 million devices sold totalling 3.8 billion euros. Both sales and revenue experienced a double-digit shrinkage for the first time in 2010. In India, sales of PMPs decreased for the first time in 2012, a few years after developed economies. The market was led by Apple with a share of about 50%, while Sony and Philips were the other major brands. Meanwhile, sales of Apple's best selling product,
2525-505: The Free Lossless Audio Codec (FLAC). Audio files purchased from online stores may include digital rights management (DRM) copy protection, which many modern players support. The JPEG format is widely supported by players. Some players, like the iPod series, provide compatibility to display additional file formats like GIF , PNG , and TIFF , while others are bundled with conversion software. Most newer players support
2626-548: The MPEG-4 Part 2 video format, and many other players are compatible with Windows Media Video (WMV) and AVI . Software included with the players may be able to convert video files into a compatible format. Many players have a built-in electret microphone which allows recording. Usually recording quality is poor, suitable for speech but not music. There are also professional-quality recorders suitable for high-quality music recording with external microphones, at prices starting at
2727-546: The Nike+iPod pedometer and the iPod Camera Connector. Other notable accessories included external speakers, wireless remote controls, protective case, screen films, and wireless earphones. Among the first accessory manufacturers were Griffin Technology, Belkin , JBL , Bose , Monster Cable , and SendStation . BMW released the first iPod automobile interface, allowing drivers of newer BMW vehicles to control an iPod using either
2828-556: The Philips Velo and Nino PDA before starting a company called Fuse Systems to build the new MP3 player, but RealNetworks , Sony and Philips had already passed on the project. Rubinstein had already discovered the Toshiba hard disk drive while meeting with an Apple supplier in Japan, ultimately purchasing the rights to it for Apple. Rubinstein had also already made substantial progress on development of other key hardware elements, including
2929-535: The Sansa line of players, starting with the e100 series, and then following up with the m200 series, and c100 series. In 2007, Apple introduced the iPod Touch , the first iPod with a multi-touch screen. Some similar products existed before such as the iriver clix in 2006. In South Korea, sales of MP3 players peaked in 2006, but started declining afterwards. This was driven partly by the launch of mobile television services (DMB), which along with increased demand of movies on
3030-755: The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in July 2000 for Internet kiosks . The first iPod kiosks had been demonstrated to the public in New Jersey in March 1998, and commercial use began in January 2000, but the venture had apparently been discontinued by 2001. The trademark was registered by the USPTO in November 2003, and Grasso assigned it to Apple Computer, Inc. in 2005. Separately, the earliest recorded use in commerce of an "iPod" trademark
3131-753: The United States District Court for the Northern District of California . Creative also asked the United States International Trade Commission to investigate whether Apple was breaching U.S. trade laws by importing iPods into the United States. On August 24, 2006, Apple and Creative announced a broad settlement to end their legal disputes. Apple will pay Creative US$ 100 million for a paid-up license, to use Creative's awarded patent in all Apple products. As part of
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3232-540: The Windows 95 and NT operating systems, which did not have native support for USB connections. In 1999 the first hard drive based DAP using a 2.5" laptop drive, the Personal Jukebox (PJB-100) designed by Compaq and released by Hango Electronics Co with 4.8 GB storage, which held about 1,200 songs, and pioneered what would be called the jukebox segment of digital music portables. This segment eventually became
3333-522: The iPhone , iPod Touch , and iPad . Internet access has even enabled people to use the Internet as an underlying communications layer for their choice of music for automated music randomisation services like Pandora , to on-demand video access (which also has music available) such as YouTube. This technology has enabled casual and hobbyist DJs to cue their tracks from a smaller package from an Internet connection, sometimes they will use two identical devices on
3434-405: The iPhone 5 , the fifth-generation iPod Touch , and the seventh-generation iPod Nano , which all feature it. The new connector replaces the older 30-pin dock connector used by older iPods, iPhones, and iPads. Apple Lightning cables have pins on both sides of the plug so it can be inserted with either side facing up. Bluetooth connectivity was added to the last model of the iPod Nano, and Wi-Fi to
3535-530: The "best of both worlds" in the market. Media players' firmware may be equipped with a basic file manager and a text reader. There are three categories of audio formats: Pixo Pixo was a company that developed infrastructure for hand-held devices. It was founded in 1994 when Paul Mercer, a software developer at Apple , left to form his own company. The company developed a system software toolkit in C++ for use on cell phones and other hand-held devices. Pixo
3636-477: The 2000s. Other non-phone products such as the PlayStation Portable and PlayStation Vita have also been considered to be PMPs. DAPs and PMPs have declined in popularity after the late 2000s due to increasing worldwide adoption of smartphones that already come with PMP functionalities. Sales peaked in 2007 and market revenue (worth $ 21.6 billion) peaked in 2008, albeit notably mobile phones that could play music outsold DAPs by almost three to one as of 2007. In
3737-425: The 6th and 5th generation iPod Classic and the 5th and 4th generation iPod Nano. With third parties like Namco , Square Enix , Electronic Arts , Sega , and Hudson Soft all making games for the iPod, Apple's MP3 player has taken steps towards entering the video game handheld console market. Even video game magazines like GamePro and EGM have reviewed and rated most of their games as of late. The games are in
3838-549: The CW100, under the brand name iAUDIO . In December 2000, some months after the Creative's NOMAD Jukebox , Archos released its Jukebox 6000 with a 6 GB hard drive. Philips also released a player called the Rush. On 23 October 2001, Apple unveiled the first generation iPod , a 5 GB hard drive based DAP with a 1.8" hard drive and a 2" monochrome display. With the development of
3939-518: The Music Store from either an iPhone or an iPod Touch and download songs directly to the device that can be synced to the user's iTunes Library over a WiFi connection, or, in the case of an iPhone, the cellular network . Video games are playable on various versions of iPods. The original iPod had the game Brick (originally invented by Apple's co-founder Steve Wozniak ) included as an easter egg hidden feature; later firmware versions added it as
4040-498: The Pixo OS that is used in ... the Apple iPod". Apple acquired the Pixo OS shortly after shipping the iPod and removed mention of Pixo from the "About iPod" display with a firmware update to the first-generation iPod. On April 9, 2007, Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced the shipment of its 100 millionth iPod, making the Pixo OS one of the most widely used embedded operating systems . With
4141-577: The South Korean giant Samsung Electronics . Sony entered the digital audio player market in 1999 with the Vaio Music Clip and Memory Stick Walkman , however they were technically not MP3 players as it did not support the MP3 format but instead Sony's own ATRAC format and WMA . The company's first MP3-supporting Walkman player did not come until 2004. Over the years, various hard-drive-based and flash-based DAPs and PMPs have been released under
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4242-478: The US. However, in 1988 Kramer's failure to raise the £60,000 required to renew the patent meant it entered the public domain. Apple Inc. hired Kramer as a consultant and presented his work as an example of prior art in the field of digital audio players during their litigation with Burst.com almost two decades later. In 2008, Apple acknowledged Kramer as the inventor of the digital audio player The Listen Up Player
4343-612: The Walkman range. The Samsung YEPP line was first released in 1999 with the aim of making the smallest music players on the market. In 2000, Creative released the 6 GB hard-drive-based Creative NOMAD Jukebox. The name borrowed the jukebox metaphor popularised by Remote Solution , also used by Archos . Later players in the Creative NOMAD range used microdrives rather than laptop drives. In October 2000, South Korean software company Cowon Systems released their first MP3 player,
4444-495: The ability to download music to FlashPAC. AAC and such music downloading services later formed the foundation for the Apple iPod and iTunes. The first production-volume portable digital audio player was The Audible Player (also known as MobilePlayer, or Digital Words To Go) from Audible.com available for sale in January 1998, for $ 200. It only supported playback of digital audio in Audible's proprietary, low-bitrate format which
4545-404: The actual player; instead, it has a small control on the earphone cable, with volume-up and -down buttons and a single button for play and pause, next track, etc. The iPod Touch has no click-wheel; instead, it uses a touch screen along with a home button, sleep/wake button, and (on the second and third generations of the iPod Touch) volume-up and -down buttons. The user interface for the iPod Touch
4646-500: The agreement, Apple will recoup part of its payment, if Creative is successful in licensing the patent. Creative then announced its intention to produce iPod accessories by joining the Made for iPod program. Portable media player A portable media player ( PMP ) or digital audio player ( DAP ) is a portable consumer electronics device capable of storing and playing digital media such as audio, images, and video files. The data
4747-505: The ancestors of digital audio players such as the Apple iPod. There are several types of MP3 players: British scientist Kane Kramer invented the first digital audio player, which he called the IXI . His 1979 prototypes were capable of up to one hour of audio playback but did not enter commercial production. His UK patent application was not filed until 1981 and was issued in 1985 in the UK and 1987 in
4848-419: The bass sound, even on undemanding tracks. This occurs when using EQ settings such as R&B, Rock, Acoustic, and Bass Booster, because the equalizer amplifies the digital audio level beyond the software's limit, causing distortion ( clipping ) on bass instruments. From the fifth-generation iPod on, Apple introduced a user-configurable volume limit in response to concerns about hearing loss. Users report that in
4949-593: The built-in steering wheel controls or the radio head-unit buttons. Apple announced in 2005 that similar systems would be available for other vehicle brands, including Mercedes-Benz , Volvo , Nissan , Toyota , Alfa Romeo , Ferrari , Acura , Audi , Honda , Renault , Infiniti and Volkswagen . Scion offered standard iPod connectivity on all their cars. Some independent stereo manufacturers including JVC , Pioneer , Kenwood , Alpine , Sony , and Harman Kardon also had iPod-specific integration solutions. Alternative connection methods included adapter kits (that use
5050-621: The cassette deck or the CD changer port), audio input jacks, and FM transmitters such as the iTrip —although personal FM transmitters are illegal in some countries. Many car manufacturers have added audio input jacks as standard. Beginning in mid-2007, four major airlines, United , Continental , Delta , and Emirates , reached agreements to install iPod seat connections. The free service allowed passengers to power and charge an iPod, and view video and music libraries on individual seat-back displays. Originally KLM and Air France were reported to be part of
5151-403: The core iPod development team. Time constraints forced Fadell to develop various components of the iPod outside Apple. Fadell partnered with a company called PortalPlayer to design software for the device; this work eventually took shape as the iPod OS. Within eight months, Tony Fadell's team and PortalPlayer had completed a prototype. The power supply was then designed by Michael Dhuey , while
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#17330940424485252-772: The deal with Apple, but they later released statements explaining that they were only contemplating the possibility of incorporating such systems. The iPod line can play several audio file formats including MP3, AAC / M4A , Protected AAC , AIFF , WAV , Audible audiobook , and Apple Lossless . The iPod Photo introduced the ability to display JPEG , BMP , GIF , TIFF , and PNG image file formats. Fifth- and sixth-generation iPod Classic models, as well as third-generation iPod Nano models, can also play MPEG-4 ( H.264/MPEG-4 AVC ) and QuickTime video formats , with restrictions on video dimensions, encoding techniques and data rates. Originally, iPod software only worked with Classic Mac OS and macOS ; iPod software for Microsoft Windows
5353-427: The device's screen and battery. Fadell found support for his project with Apple Computer and was hired by Apple in 2001 as an independent contractor to work on the iPod project, then code-named project P-68. Because most of Apple's engineering manpower and resources were already dedicated to the iMac line, Fadell hired engineers from his startup company, Fuse, and veteran engineers from General Magic and Philips to build
5454-418: The display was designed in-house by Apple design engineer Jonathan Ive . The original iPod's physical appearance was inspired by the 1958 Braun T3 transistor radio designed by Dieter Rams , while the wheel-based user interface drew on Bang & Olufsen's BeoCom 6000 telephone. Apple CEO Steve Jobs set an exacting standard for the device's physical design; one anecdote relates an occasion on which Jobs dropped
5555-659: The dominant type of digital music player. Also at the end of 1999 the first in-dash MP3 player appeared. The Empeg Car offered players in several capacities ranging from 5 to 28 GB. The unit did not catch on and was discontinued in the fall of 2001. For the next couple of years, there were offerings from South Korean companies, namely the startups iRiver (brand of Reigncom), Mpio (brand of DigitalWay) and Cowon . At its peak, these Korean makers held as much as 40% world market share in MP3 players. These manufacturers however lost their way after 2004 as they failed to compete with new iPods . By 2006 they were also overtaken by
5656-457: The drive with a typical file management application will not allow an iPod to properly access them. The user must use software that has been specifically designed to transfer media files to iPods so that the files are playable and viewable. Usually iTunes is used to transfer media to an iPod, though several alternative third-party applications are available on a number of different platforms. iTunes 7 and above can transfer purchased media of
5757-516: The first PMP, the Archos Jukebox Multimedia with a little 1.5" colour screen. The next year, Archos released another multimedia jukebox , the AV300 , with a 3.8" screen and a 20 GB hard drive. In the same year, Toshiba released the first Gigabeat . In 2003, Dell launched a line of portable digital music players called Dell DJ . They were discontinued by 2006. The name MP4 player
5858-473: The form of .ipg files, which are actually .zip archives in disguise. When unzipped, they reveal executable files along with common audio and image files, leading to the possibility of third party games . Apple has not publicly released a software development kit (SDK) for iPod-specific development. Apps produced with the iPhone SDK are compatible only with the iOS on the iPod Touch and iPhone, which cannot run click wheel-based games. All iPods except for
5959-422: The fourth-generation iPod Nano, FireWire charging ability has been removed. The second-, third-, and fourth-generation iPod Shuffle uses a single 3.5 mm minijack phone connector which acts as both a headphone jack or a USB data and charging port for the dock/cable. The dock connector also allowed the iPod to connect to accessories, which often supplement the iPod's music, video, and photo playback. Apple sold
6060-454: The globe and by 2005, more than half of all music sold in South Korea was sold directly to mobile phones and all major handset makers in the world had released MP3 playing phones. By 2006, more MP3 playing mobile phones were sold than all stand-alone MP3 players put together. The rapid rise of the media player in phones was quoted by Apple as a primary reason for developing the iPhone . In 2007,
6161-410: The go led to a transition away from music-only players to PMPs. By 2008, more video-enabled PMPs were sold than audio-only players. By the mid-2000s and the years after, Apple with its iPod was the best-selling DAP or PMP by a significant margin, with one of out four sold worldwide being an iPod. It was especially dominant in the United States where it had over 70% of sales at different points in time,
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#17330940424486262-694: The growing PMP market by launching the Portable Media Center (PMC) platform. It was introduced at the 2004 Consumer Electronics Show with the announcement of the Zen Portable Media Center , which was co-developed by Creative . The Microsoft Zune series would later be based on the Gigabeat S , one of the PMC-implemented players. In May 2005, flash memory maker SanDisk entered the PMP market with
6363-421: The hard drive based models were too big and heavy. To address these deficits, the company decided to develop its own MP3 player. At Apple CEO Steve Jobs’ direction, hardware engineering chief Jon Rubinstein recruited Tony Fadell , a former employee of General Magic and Philips , who had a business idea to invent a better MP3 player and build a complementary music sales store. Fadell had previously developed
6464-433: The head or the body; i.e. to add more memory). Today, every smartphone also serves as a portable media player; however, prior to the rise of smartphones in the 2007–2012 time frame, a variety of handheld players were available to store and play music. The immediate predecessor to the portable media player was the portable CD player and prior to that, the personal stereo . In particular, Sony 's Walkman and Discman are
6565-567: The iPod Touch can function in "disk mode" as mass storage devices to store data files but this has to be manually activated. If an iPod is formatted on a Mac OS computer, it uses the HFS+ file system format, which allows it to serve as a boot disk for a Mac computer. If it is formatted on Windows, the FAT32 format is used. With the release of the Windows-compatible iPod, the default file system used on
6666-432: The iPod Touch. Many accessories have been made for the iPod line. A large number have been made by third-party companies, although many, such as the iPod Hi-Fi and iPod Socks , have been made by Apple. Some accessories added extra features that other music players have, such as sound recorders, FM radio tuners, wired remote controls, and audio/visual cables for TV connections. Other accessories offered unique features like
6767-526: The iPod brand is the longest-running to be discontinued by Apple. Some versions of the iPod can serve as external data storage devices , like other digital music players. Prior to macOS 10.15, Apple's iTunes software (and other alternative software) could be used to transfer music, photos, videos, games , contact information, e-mail settings, Web bookmarks, and calendars to the devices supporting these features from computers using certain versions of Apple macOS and Microsoft Windows operating systems. Before
6868-464: The iPod interface, received a third "non-final rejection" (NFR) in August 2005. Also in August 2005, Creative Technology , one of Apple's main rivals in the MP3 player market, announced that it held a patent on part of the music selection interface used by the iPod line, which Creative Technology dubbed the "Zen Patent", granted on August 9, 2005. On May 15, 2006, Creative filed another suit against Apple with
6969-445: The iPod line switched from HFS+ to FAT32, although it can be reformatted to either file system (excluding the iPod Shuffle which is strictly FAT32). Generally, if a new iPod (excluding the iPod Shuffle) is initially plugged into a computer running Windows, it will be formatted with FAT32, and if initially plugged into a Mac running Mac OS it will be formatted with HFS+. Unlike many other MP3 players, simply copying audio or video files to
7070-481: The iPod, were eclipsed by the iPhone in 2011. DAPs continue to be made in lower volumes by manufacturers such as SanDisk, Sony, IRIVER, Philips, Apple, Cowon, and a range of Chinese manufacturers namely Aigo, Newsmy, PYLE and ONDA. They often have specific selling points in the smartphone era, such as portability (for small sized players) or for high quality sound suited for audiophiles . PMPs are capable of playing digital audio , images , and/or video . Usually,
7171-433: The iPod. Many third-party applications also allow easy copying of media files off of an iPod. While the suffix "Classic" was not introduced until the sixth generation, it has been applied here retroactively to all non-suffixed iPods for clarity. In 2005, Apple faced two lawsuits claiming patent infringement by the iPod line and its associated technologies: Advanced Audio Devices claimed the iPod line breached its patent on
7272-403: The iTunes 12.2 update. Belgian website Belgium iPhone originally found the images after plugging in an iPod for the first time, and subsequent photos were discovered by Pierre Dandumont before being leaked. On July 27, 2017, Apple removed the iPod Nano and Shuffle from its stores, marking the end of Apple's production of standalone music players. On May 10, 2022, Apple discontinued the iPod Touch,
7373-457: The iTunes Store from an iPod to a computer, provided that computer containing the DRM protected media is authorized to play it. Media files are stored on an iPod in a hidden folder, along with a proprietary database file. The hidden content can be accessed on the host operating system by enabling hidden files to be shown. The media files can then be recovered manually by copying the files or folders off
7474-424: The iTunes Store. In 2007, Apple modified the iPod interface again with the introduction of the sixth-generation iPod Classic and third-generation iPod Nano by changing the font to Helvetica and, in most cases, splitting the screen in half, displaying the menus on the left and album artwork, photos, or videos on the right. In mid-2015, several new color schemes for all of the current iPod models were spotted in
7575-455: The iTunes Stores, in a category called "iTunes Plus." While individual songs were made available at a cost of US$ 1.29 , 30¢ more than the cost of a regular DRM song, entire albums were available for the same price, US$ 9.99 , as DRM encoded albums. On October 17, 2007, Apple lowered the cost of individual iTunes Plus songs to US$ 0.99 per song, the same as DRM encoded tracks. On January 6, 2009, Apple announced that DRM has been removed from 80% of
7676-429: The last remaining product in the iPod line. iOS 15 was the last iOS release the 7th generation iPod touch received, as future versions from iOS 16 onward no longer support the device. Audio tests showed that the third-generation iPod has a weak bass response. The combination of the undersized DC-blocking capacitors and the typical low impedance of most consumer headphones form a high-pass filter , which attenuates
7777-747: The late 1990s following the creation of the MP3 codec in Germany. MP3-playing devices were mostly pioneered by South Korean startups, who by 2002 would control the majority of global sales. However the industry would eventually be defined by the popular Apple iPod . In 2006, 20% of Americans owned a PMP, a figure strongly driven by the young; more than half (54%) of American teens owned one, as did 30% of young adults aged 18 to 34. In 2007, 210 million PMPs were sold worldwide, worth US$ 19.5 billion. In 2008, video-enabled players would overtake audio-only players. Increasing sales of smartphones and tablet computers have led to
7878-444: The later generations have the buttons integrated into the click wheel – an innovation that gives an uncluttered, minimalist interface . The buttons perform basic functions such as menu, play, pause, next track, and previous track. Other operations, such as scrolling through menu items and controlling the volume, are performed by using the click wheel in a rotational manner. The 3rd-generation iPod Shuffle does not have any controls on
7979-557: The low-frequency bass output. Similar capacitors were used in the fourth-generation iPods. The problem is reduced when using high-impedance headphones and is completely masked when driving high-impedance (line level) loads, such as when using an external headphone amplifier . The first-generation iPod Shuffle uses a dual-transistor output stage , rather than a single capacitor-coupled output, and does not exhibit reduced bass response for any load. For all iPods released in 2006 and earlier, some equalizer (EQ) sound settings can easily distort
8080-417: The main computer and its library. If a user wishes to automatically sync music with another computer, an iPod's library will be entirely wiped and replaced with the other computer's library. iPods with color displays use anti-aliased graphics and text, with sliding animations. All iPods (except the 3rd-generation iPod Shuffle , the 6th & 7th generation iPod Nano , and iPod Touch ) have five buttons and
8181-428: The middle of 2010, iPhone sales overtook those of the iPod. Portable MP3 players had existed since the mid-1990s, but Apple found existing digital music players "big and clunky or small and useless" with user interfaces that were "unbelievably awful". They also identified weaknesses in existing models' attempt to negotiate the trade-off between capacity and portability: flash memory-based players held too few songs, while
8282-495: The music catalog and that it would be removed from all music by April 2009. iPods cannot play music files from competing music stores that use rival-DRM technologies like Microsoft 's protected WMA or RealNetworks ' Helix DRM. Example stores include Napster and MSN Music . RealNetworks claims that Apple is creating problems for itself by using FairPlay to lock users into using the iTunes Store. Steve Jobs stated that Apple makes little profit from song sales, although Apple uses
8383-549: The new technology, and instead young startups would come to dominate the early era of MP3 players. Other early MP3 portables included the Creative Labs Nomad and the RCA Lyra . These portables were small and light, but had only enough memory to hold around 7 to 20 songs at normal 128 kbit/s compression rates. They also used slower parallel port connections to transfer files from PC to player, necessary as most PCs then used
8484-427: The number of phones that could play media was over 1 billion. Some companies have created music-centric sub-brands for mobile phones, for example the former Sony Ericsson 's Walkman range or Nokia 's XpressMusic range, which have extra emphasis on music playback and typically have features such as dedicated music buttons. Mobile phones with PMP functionalities such as video playback also started appearing in
8585-507: The player's notoriety as the target of a major lawsuit, the Rio is erroneously assumed to be the first digital audio player. Eiger Labs and Diamond went on to establish a new segment in the portable audio player market and the following year saw several new manufacturers enter this market. The PMP300 would be the start of the Rio line of players. Noticeably, major technology companies did not catch on with
8686-432: The release of iOS 5 , the iPod branding was used for the media player included with the iPhone and iPad , which was separated into apps named "Music" and "Videos" on the iPod Touch. As of iOS 5, separate Music and Videos apps are standardized across all iOS-powered products. While the iPhone and iPad have essentially the same media player capabilities as the iPod line, they are generally treated as separate products. During
8787-610: The sixth-generation iPod, the maximum volume output level is limited to 100 dB in EU markets. Apple previously had to remove iPods from shelves in France for exceeding this legal limit. However, users who bought new sixth-generation iPods in late 2013 reported a new option that allowed them to disable the EU volume limit. Some have attributed this change to a software update that shipped with these devices. Older sixth-generation iPods, however, are unable to update to this software version. Originally,
8888-464: The store to promote iPod sales. However, iPods can also play music files from online stores that do not use DRM, such as eMusic or Amie Street . Universal Music Group decided not to renew their contract with the iTunes Store on July 3, 2007. Universal will now supply iTunes in an 'at will' capacity. Apple debuted the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store on September 5, 2007, in its Media Event entitled "The Beat Goes On...". This service allows users to access
8989-571: The time the store was introduced, purchased audio files used the AAC format with added encryption, based on the FairPlay DRM system. Up to five authorized computers and an unlimited number of iPods could play the files. Burning the files with iTunes as an audio CD, then re-importing would create music files without the DRM. The DRM could also be removed using third-party software. However, in a deal with Apple, EMI began selling DRM-free, higher-quality songs on
9090-412: The time. Eventually, Apple began shipping iPods with USB cables instead of FireWire, although the latter was available separately. As of the first-generation iPod Nano and the fifth-generation iPod Classic, Apple discontinued using FireWire for data transfer (while still allowing for use of FireWire to charge the device) in an attempt to reduce cost and form factor. As of the second-generation iPod Touch and
9191-525: The user the song currently playing. The first car audio hard drive-based MP3 player was also released in 1997 by MP32Go and was called the MP32Go Player. It consisted of a 3 GB IBM 2.5" hard drive that was housed in a trunk-mounted enclosure connected to the car's radio system. It retailed for $ 599 and was a commercial failure. The Rio PMP300 from Diamond Multimedia was introduced in September 1998,
9292-416: Was a marketing term for inexpensive portable media players, usually from little-known or generic device manufacturers. The name itself is a misnomer , since most MP4 players through 2007 were incompatible with the MPEG-4 Part 14 or the .mp4 container format. Instead, the term refers to their ability to play more file types than just MP3. In this sense, in some markets like Brazil, any new function added to
9393-454: Was acquired by Sun Microsystems in 2003, and Sun was in turn acquired by Oracle Corporation in 2010. In 2001, Pixo was rehired by Apple to adapt their system software for use in the iPod . The use of the Pixo OS in the iPod was never formally announced, although the first-generation iPod's "About iPod" display includes a mention of Pixo, and a Connectix biography of their VP of engineering Mike Neil mentions his role as "lead architect on
9494-474: Was contracted by Apple to determine how to introduce the new player to the public. After Chieco saw a prototype, he was reminded of the phrase "Open the pod bay doors, Hal " from the classic sci-fi film 2001: A Space Odyssey , referring to the white EVA Pods of the Discovery One spaceship. Chieco's proposal drew an analogy between the relationship of the spaceship to the smaller independent pods and that of
9595-452: Was developed for spoken word recordings. Capacity was limited to 4 MB of internal flash memory, or about 2 hours of play, using a custom rechargeable battery pack. The unit had no display and rudimentary controls. MP3 was introduced as an audio coding standard in 1992. It was based on several audio data compression techniques, including the modified discrete cosine transform (MDCT), FFT and psychoacoustic methods. MP3 became
9696-564: Was in 1991 by Chrysalis Corp. of Sturgis, Michigan, styled " i POD", for office furniture. As development of the iPod progressed, Apple continued to refine the software's look and feel, rewriting much of the code. Starting with the iPod Mini , the Chicago font was replaced with Espy Sans . Later iPods switched fonts again to Podium Sans —a font similar to Apple's corporate font, Myriad . Color display iPods then adopted some Mac OS X themes like Aqua progress bars, and brushed metal meant to evoke
9797-510: Was introduced later for devices that had additional capabilities such as video playback. Generally speaking, they are portable, employing internal or replaceable batteries , equipped with a 3.5 mm headphone jack which can be used for headphones or to connect to a boombox , shelf stereo system, or connect to car audio and home stereos wired or via a wireless connection such as Bluetooth . Some players also include radio tuners , voice recording and other features. DAPs appeared in
9898-517: Was launched in 1997 by SaeHan Information Systems , which sold its MPMan F10 player in South Korea in spring 1998. In mid-1998, the South Korean company licensed the players for North American distribution to Eiger Labs, which rebranded them as the EigerMan F10 and F20. The flash-based players were available in 32 MB or 64 MB (6 or 12 songs) storage capacity and had a LCD screen to tell
9999-554: Was launched with the second-generation model. Unlike most other media players, Apple does not support Microsoft 's WMA audio format—but a converter for WMA files without digital rights management (DRM) is provided with the Windows version of iTunes. MIDI files also cannot be played, but can be converted to audio files using the "Advanced" menu in iTunes. Alternative open-source audio formats, such as Ogg Vorbis and FLAC , are not supported without installing custom firmware onto an iPod (e.g., Rockbox ). During installation, an iPod
10100-542: Was released in 1996 by Audio Highway, an American company led by Nathan Schulhof . It could store up to an hour of music, but despite getting an award at CES 1997 only 25 of the devices were made. That same year AT&T developed the FlashPAC digital audio player which initially used AT&T's Perceptual Audio Coder (PAC) for music compression, but in 1997 switched to AAC . At about the same time AT&T also developed an internal Web-based music streaming service that had
10201-424: Was the top-selling maker in its home country of Singapore. In China, local brands Newman, DEC and Aigo were noted as the top vendors as of 2006. Samsung SPH-M2100 , the first mobile phone with built-in MP3 player was produced in South Korea in August 1999. Samsung SPH-M100 (UpRoar) launched in 2000 was the first mobile phone to have MP3 music capabilities in the US market. The innovation spread rapidly across
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