iPod is a line of portable media players created and marketed by Apple Inc. The product line-up currently consists of the hard drive-based iPod Classic, the touchscreen iPod Touch, the compact iPod Nano, and the ultra-compact iPod Shuffle. iPod Classic models storemedia on an internal hard drive, while all other models use flash memory to enable their smaller size (the discontinued Mini used a Microdrive miniature hard drive). As with many other digital music players, iPods can also serve as external data storage devices. Storage capacity varies by model, ranging from 2 GB for the iPod Shuffle to 160 GB for the iPod Classic. The iPod line was announced by Apple on October 23, 2001, and released on November 10, 2001. All of the models have been redesigned multiple times since their introduction. The most recent iPod redesigns were introduced on September 1, 2010.
Apple's iTunes software can be used to transfer music to the devices from computers using certain versions of Apple Macintosh and Microsoft Windows operating systems.[2] For users who choose not to use iTunes or whose computers cannot run iTunes, several open source alternatives are available for the iPod.[3] iTunes and its alternatives may also transfer photos, videos, games, contact information, e-mail settings, Web bookmarks, and calendars to iPod models supporting those features.
Discontinued models of the line include the iPod Mini and the iPod Photo, the former being replaced by the iPod Nano, and the latter reintegrated into the main iPod line (now the iPod Classic).
In iOS versions prior to iOS 5, the iPod branding is also used for the media player applications included with the iPhone and iPad; the iPhone version is essentially a combination of the Music and Videos apps on the iPod Touch. As of iOS 5, separate apps named 'Music' and 'Video' are to be standardized across all iOS-powered products.[4] While the iPhone and iPad have essentially the same media-player capabilities as the iPod line, they are generally treated as separate products. In the last few years, iPhone and iPad sales have overtaken those of the iPod.
Contents[hide] |
[edit]History and design
The iPod line came from Apple's "digital hub" category,[5] when the company began creating software for the growing market of personal digital devices. Digital cameras, camcorders and organizers had well-established mainstream markets, but the company found existing digital music players "big and clunky or small and useless" with user interfaces that were "unbelievably awful,"[5] so Apple decided to develop its own. As ordered by CEO Steve Jobs, Apple's hardware engineering chief Jon Rubinstein assembled a team of engineers to design the iPod line, including hardware engineers Tony Fadell and Michael Dhuey,[6] and design engineer Jonathan Ive.[5] The product 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."[7]
Apple did not develop the iPod software entirely in-house, instead using PortalPlayer's reference platform based on two ARM cores. The platform had rudimentary software running on a commercial microkernel embedded operating system. PortalPlayer had previously been working on an IBM-branded MP3 player with Bluetooth headphones.[5] Apple contracted another company,Pixo, to help design and implement the user interface under the direct supervision of Steve Jobs.[5]As development progressed, Apple continued to refine the software's look and feel. Starting with the iPod Mini, the Chicago font was replaced with Espy Sans. Later iPods switched fonts again toPodium Sans—a font similar to Apple's corporate font, Myriad. iPods with color displays then
Click Adds to see more
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPod
