Apple Sunset

iPod (1st generation, Scroll Wheel)

Discontinued 28 Apr 2003

Released

10 Nov 2001

Announced

3 Oct 2001

Launch price from

$399

Discontinued

28 Apr 2003

Lifespan

1 year, 6 months

Category
iPod
Status
Discontinued
Apple support status
Obsolete (Apple no longer services it)
Release type
All-new product
Replaced by
iPod (2nd generation, Touch Wheel)
Official Apple page
No longer available on Apple’s website
Tech specs
Apple specs ↗
Press release
Apple Newsroom ↗
More information
iPod Classic on Wikipedia ↗

Notes

The original iPod was a 5GB music player costing $399, which Apple said would hold a thousand songs. It weighed 185g and measured 102mm by 61.8mm by 19.9mm, and the battery ran for up to ten hours.

Everything was driven by a scroll wheel that physically rotated under the thumb, with four buttons set in a ring around it and a select button in the middle. The wheel sped up as it turned, so a long list could be crossed quickly.

FireWire did the transferring, and Apple made a great deal of its speed. A full CD moved across in under ten seconds and a thousand songs in under ten minutes, which the company put at thirty times faster than the USB players of the day. The same cable charged the battery.

The original iPod only worked with a Mac. It needed Mac OS 9.2 or Mac OS X 10.1 and iTunes 2, and no Windows version was made until the following year. A 10GB model was added on 21 March 2002 at $499.

Apple kept the 5GB version on sale at $299 after the second generation arrived in July 2002, and did not drop it until 28 April 2003.

It was announced on 23 October 2001 at a small event on Apple’s Cupertino campus, where the invitation had given away nothing beyond the line “Hint: It’s not a Mac.” It was released to shops on Saturday 10 November, priced from $399.

More in iPod

Release history

All iPod →

iPod release history

  1. 2014

  2. 9 Sept 2014

    iPod Classic 160GB (Late 2009) Discontinued

  3. ↑ about 5 years later
  4. 2009

  5. 9 Sept 2009

    iPod Classic 160GB (Late 2009) Released

    iPod Classic (120GB) Discontinued

  6. ↑ about 1 year later
  7. 2008

  8. 9 Sept 2008

    iPod Classic (120GB) Released

    iPod Classic Discontinued

  9. ↑ about 1 year later
  10. 2007

  11. 5 Sept 2007

    iPod Classic Released

    iPod (5th generation, Late 2006) Discontinued

    iPod U2 Special Edition Discontinued

  12. ↑ about 1 year later
  13. 2006

  14. 12 Sept 2006

    iPod (5th generation, Late 2006) Released

    iPod (5th generation, with Video) Discontinued

  15. ↑ about 1 year later
  16. 2005

  17. 12 Oct 2005

    iPod with Color Display Discontinued

  18. Oct 2005

    iPod (5th generation, with Video) Released

  19. ↑ 3 months later

  20. 28 Jun 2005

    iPod with Color Display Released

    iPod (4th generation, Click Wheel) Discontinued

    iPod Photo Discontinued

  21. ↑ 8 months later
  22. 2004

  23. Nov 2004

    iPod U2 Special Edition Released

  24. Oct 2004

    iPod Photo Released

  25. ↑ 2 months later

  26. 19 Jul 2004

    iPod (4th generation, Click Wheel) Released

    iPod (3rd generation, Dock Connector) Discontinued

  27. ↑ 1 year, 3 months later
  28. 2003

  29. 2 May 2003

    iPod (3rd generation, Dock Connector) Released

  30. 28 Apr 2003

    iPod (1st generation, Scroll Wheel) Discontinued

    iPod (2nd generation, Touch Wheel) Discontinued

  31. ↑ 9 months later
  32. 2002

  33. Aug 2002

    iPod (2nd generation, Touch Wheel) Released

  34. ↑ 9 months later
  35. 2001

  36. 10 Nov 2001

    iPod (1st generation, Scroll Wheel) Launch

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