The Apple iPod has experienced a somewhat turbulent existence, fighting against competing mp3 players and a variety of mix ups that resulted in some angry customers.
The iPod, released in 2001 by Macintosh after iTunes launched, has been a headliner in the news ever since. The first device, sporting the ability to play just over 1,000 songs, had everything that users needed to play their songs whenever they wanted.
Except for battery life, that is. This problem, eventually resolved by apple, helped lead a revolution that has taken the world by storm.
The iPod, since its early days as a MAC only system, has since changed to run in Windows as well, giving it all of the advantages it needs in order to make it to number one and stay there. About a year after the original iPod was released, Macintosh made several more with larger hard drives.
After the massive success of the iPod for Mac systems, Macintosh released versions that would work with Windows as well, while offering larger hard drives for both system types. This hit into all of the markets, which went to making the iPod a great success in Europe and the United States.
Quick on the heels of the new and improved iPod came the iPod mini. This cheaper alternative to the iPod offers the same functionality at a smaller size and a lower price. This product only enhanced the iPod movement, and made certain it stayed on the headlines.
The latest favorite Apple iPod player is the iPod Shuffle. This cheap iPod lets you hold half a gig of songs that will randomly be selected from iTunes every time you hook it up and shuffle them so you never know what song is next.
This function can be disabled, which also makes it very versatile. This device is designed for those who are not comfortable buying the more expensive iPod.