The gadget-head dream is to have a plethora of gadgets combined into one device. A techno Swiss Army knife that can make our lives easier, better, less bulky, and prettier. The iPhone was, of course, revolutionary in its progress toward that goal, but as one Apple product has risen in esteem, another has fallen by the wayside.
The iPod is one of the most celebrated devices of this century thanks to the way that it has allowed consumers to carry around their music collection in their pocket, but to some, the iPod Classic now resembles a paper weight in terms of usefulness because you can’t make a call, send a text, play a game, or browse the internet with one.
And while some have condemned the iPod to the dust bin of history, there are others who have been clamoring for the now discontinued music player.
Two months after Apple announced the demise of its iPod Classic MP3 player, the model is selling secondhand for up to four times its original price as aficionados clamour to get their hands on one.
With a storage capacity double the size of any current iPods still being made, versions of the 160GB Classic – which can hold around 40,000 songs – are being sold as new via Amazon for up to £670 ($1,051 US). More than 3,000 of the models – the seventh, final version came out in 2010 – have been sold on eBay since the Classic was retired in October, most for between £350 and £500 ($549 and $784 US). Even refurbished older models now cost far more than the £229 ($359 US) for which the later generations retailed.
Don’t go rooting around in your closet for your old iPod in the hopes of striking it rich, though. While there is clearly an iPod Classic boom on sites like eBay, the increased awareness of that boom seems to have undercut it a little and, while still hefty, prices seem to be returning to earth with a few rare exceptions.
On Amazon, Apple is presently selling the 160GB Classic for $497. On eBay, you can find a pre-owned version of a 7th generation model for a couple hundred dollars or even less.
So, why the uptick in interest? Stuff magazine editor Will Dunn has a theory… that he shared in 2013 when he basically predicted this run on iPod Classics, according to the Guardian.
As long ago as January 2013, Stuff magazine recommended buying an iPod Classic before it was too late, predicting it would double in price as soon it went into retirement. Editor Will Dunn lamented the product’s demise: “There’s still a huge affection for the iPod Classic and it’s not hard to see why – Spotify might offer 20 million songs, but 120GB of music is more than most people need, and your iTunes library doesn’t carry data charges or a subscription fee. Also, I think the Classic is a more distraction-free listening experience – I’m more likely to get through a full album on one.”
The quest for storage space is not inconsequential. Getting all of that functionality into an iPhone takes up a lot of memory space and they aren’t that bountiful to begin with. But Dunn’s point about the splendor of a distraction-free music player is the one that really speaks to me.
While it’s nice to be able to do a lot of things with one device, sometimes its nice to do just one thing really well.
Source: The Guardian