Gadget of the week: Music and more

What is it?

Quite simply, it's the device that changed the world of music: Apple's iconic iPod.

What's its history?

On October 23, 2001, Steve Jobs met a group of journalists to introduce them to a new product that was about the size of a deck of cards, could hold about 1,000 songs and was small enough to fit into anyone's pocket.

"In this new digital revolution, there is no market leader," he told them. "No one has found the recipe yet for digital music. We're introducing a product today that takes us exactly there, and that product is called iPod."

The iPod has since become the bestselling music device. It not only turned the fortunes of Apple, then a small company with a devoted following, but also revolutionised the way the music industry works, in many ways.

There have been six generations each of the iPod Classic and the iPod Nano two generations of the iPod mini and four generations each of the iPod Shuffle and the iPod Touch.

What role has iTunes played in its success?

iTunes predates the iPod by about a year. But when the first iPod launched, it proved an excellent platform to transfer music, rip CDs and manage a library. At the time the iPod came out, other similar services struggled to make content from computers sync properly with their music players. iTunes made this a breeze.

And when it introduced the ability to buy songs it took the music industry to a whole new level. Opening up the iTunes platform to Windows computers ensured a bigger reach, a new audience and the iPod's place as forerunner in its class.

Hasn't the iPhone's arrival dented its popularity?

Interestingly not. All iPhones may also be iPods but the success of the iPod Touch has proved there's still a market for people who want just their music (and maybe internet and gaming) in one funky separate device.

Which iPod models are still being produced?

There's the iPod Touch, which is the bestselling iPod and on its way to become one of the most portable gaming devices. The iPod Classic (sixth generation), the iPod Shuffle (fourth generation) and the iPod Nano (sixth generation) are the existing models.