Happy 7th Birthday, iPod!

Seven years ago today, Steve Jobs introduced the first ever iPod. The first iPod was available in 5 and 10GB models, and charged via FireWire. It was 0.78 inches "thin" and weighed 0.41 pounds.

The iPod has become the world's most popular line of portable media players with around 70% of the portable media player market share. Since the original iPod (now called iPod Classic), there have been 4 other models of iPod, 3 of which still remain in the product line.

In 2004, the iPod Mini, Apple's second iPod was introduced as a smaller alternative to the iPod. The iPod mini was available in 4 and eventually 6GB models at a time when the original iPod was available in up to 40GB. The iPod Mini made it through two revisions before being replaced by the iPod nano.

Apple's 3rd iPod was the iPod shuffle. The tiny "stick" shaped design had no screen and no clickwheel, however it has a similar button layout to the clickwheel. The iPod shuffle used the "shuffle" feature that was introduced in previous iPod models to play songs. Apple has updated the iPod shuffle a few times since then, however the biggest change was the form factor change cutting down the size to about one inch diagonally.

In 2005, Apple dropped the iPod Mini in favor of an even smaller flash based music player. The iPod nano was and is the world's most popular music player. It was originally available in 1, 2, and 4GB models in the first generation, and now in the 4th generation 8 and 16GB models are available.

The iPod Touch is Apple's most advanced iPod. It very closely resembles the iPhone, Apple's entry into the mobile phone market. It has a large touch screen and no clickwheel. It has every feature that the iPhone has except for the camera, 3G cell network access, and the ability to call like a phone. The iPod Touch is the only iPod with a built in web browser, or even the ability to access the internet. The iPod Touch is now in it's 2nd generation, however there isn't much difference between the two models.