- Interest in the iPod is rising again, especially among Gen Z seeking digital balance.
- Tony Fadell believes Apple could reimagine the iPod for a purer music experience.
- A modern version could include USB C, Bluetooth and OLED while keeping focus on music.
- Apple is unlikely to revisit the past, but demand for a distraction free device is real.
Few gadgets inspire the kind of affection once reserved for the iPod. Not just appreciation. Affection. The kind that makes people trawl resale sites at midnight hunting for a well kept fifth generation model, or spend weekends swapping out old hard drives for flash storage just to keep a relic alive.
Years after Apple quietly retired the last of the line, interest in the iPod is climbing again. And this time it is not only millennials chasing nostalgia. Gen Z has discovered it too.
Search trends over the past year show renewed curiosity around Apple’s iconic music player. On Reddit and TikTok, modded iPods are everywhere. Bigger batteries. Expanded storage. Fresh click wheels in improbable colours.
For some, it is about aesthetics. For others, it is a deliberate attempt to escape the constant hum of notifications and algorithm driven feeds. A small rebellion against the smartphone era.
Apple officially discontinued the final model, the iPod Touch, in 2022. Long before that, the classic click wheel iPod had faded into history. The iPod Classic was the last true torchbearer of the original vision. Since then, the iPhone has swallowed its purpose whole.
Even the original designer wants a comeback
Now a familiar voice has joined the chorus. Tony Fadell, often called the father of the iPod, recently suggested there are smarter ways to build something like an AirPods device with an iPod inside it.
In his view, there is room for a modern reinterpretation. Not only to capitalise on nostalgia, but to offer a purer way to listen to music.
That word, pure, comes up often in conversations about the iPod. The appeal is not just about hardware. It is about intent. When you pick up an iPod, you are there to listen to music. Not to check messages. Not to scroll. Not to compare your life to someone else’s highlight reel. The click wheel invites focus. It asks for albums, not shuffled singles curated by an algorithm.
There is something grounding about owning your music library outright. Syncing tracks. Curating playlists by hand. The friction that once felt inconvenient now feels deliberate and even comforting.
Why Gen Z is rediscovering old tech
The resurgence of interest in the iPod fits neatly into a wider trend. Dumbphones are having a moment. Early 2000s cameras are back in fashion. Physical media is quietly resurging. In a culture that lives online, analogue tech feels radical.
Part of that is fatigue. Smartphones have become indispensable but also exhausting. Even former Apple design chief Jony Ive has acknowledged that smartphones have had less than positive effects on our lives. Anxiety, fractured attention, endless comparison. The costs are becoming harder to ignore.
An updated iPod would not fix any of that overnight. But it would offer a choice. A device built for one thing and one thing only. Music without interruption.
That does not mean it should be frozen in time. A modern iPod could retain the tactile charm of the click wheel while embracing contemporary essentials. USB C charging would be a given. Bluetooth would allow seamless pairing with AirPods. An OLED display could elevate the visual experience without turning it into another mini smartphone. The key would be restraint.
The reality check
Of course, there is a catch. Apple rarely looks back. The company prefers forward momentum, even when the past still resonates with its audience. It is easier to imagine a sequel to the Apple Vision Pro than a nostalgic reissue of a discontinued music player.
Reintroducing the iPod would also mean carving out space in a lineup dominated by the iPhone. That is a complicated business decision. Why sell a device that does less when the iPhone already does more.
Yet that is precisely the point. Doing less is the appeal.
With Apple marking major milestones in its history, there is always speculation about anniversary editions and celebratory products. A thoughtfully redesigned iPod could serve as both tribute and statement. A reminder that not every innovation needs to expand our attention. Sometimes it can protect it.
Will it happen. Probably not. But the appetite is there. In resale markets. In modding communities. In younger users discovering the joy of an album played start to finish. The iPod represented a moment when technology felt empowering rather than overwhelming. Bringing it back would not be about regression. It would be about refinement.
And in a world of infinite scroll, that might be exactly what we need.
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