Happy 8th Brithday, iPod!

In October of 2001, Apple held a press conference to announce a new device called an iPod. Steve Jobs told the press, "You can fit your whole music library in your pocket. To have your whole CD library with you at all times is a quantum leap when it comes to music."




The iPod officially reached retail shelves on November 10th, and I bought my first iPod on November 30th. I had been a runner for 16 years, often accompanied first by a portable radio, and later by a Sony Walkman. When my running had to end due to arthritis in the toes, I became a hiker, with nearly daily jaunts in the forest preserves, or when time didn't allow a drive to the preserves, walking in the neighborhood. Since I'd had a Mac home computer since 1984, I easily transitioned to the iPod as a replacement for the Walkman, and it was a huge upgrade at that!

Though the original unit's 5 gigabyte capacity is tiny compared to today's 120 GB models, it held my favorite songs from my hundreds of CDs. My various iPods (and now iPhone) have provided hundreds of hours of entertainment over the years, both while walking and driving.

Ubiquitous? A worldwide phenomenon? A revolution? You decide what to call it, but consider that over 220 million iPods have been sold worldwide in its 8 years, and the iTunes Music Store has sold over 6 billion songs for those units, accounting for 70% of worldwide online digital music sales and making the service the world's largest music retailer.