Apple's ditched iPods no longer core as music moves to phones

The iPod Nano and iPod Shuffle have played their final notes for Apple.
The Original (1st Generation) iPod was introduced in 2001The Original (1st Generation) iPod was introduced in 2001
The Original (1st Generation) iPod was introduced in 2001

The company has discontinued sales of the two music players in a move reflecting the waning popularity of the devices in an era when most people store or stream their tunes on smartphones.

The iPod product line still remains alive, though. Apple plans to continue selling its internet-connected iPod Touch.

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In a show of its commitment to the iPod Touch, Apple doubled the storage capacity of its top-of-line model to 128 gigabytes. That version costs 300 dollars (£230).

An iPod Touch with 32 gigabytes of storage sells for 200 dollars (£152).

The Nano and Shuffle came out in 2005 as less expensive and smaller alternatives to Apple's standard iPod.

The Cupertino, California-based company stopped updating the Nano and Shuffle several years ago.

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Apple has long predicted iPods would gradually fade away as more people bought iPhones or other smartphones capable of playing music.

The company's sales of iPods peaked in its fiscal year 2008 when the devices generated revenue of 9.2 billion dollars (£7bn).

The then-nascent iPhone accounted for 1.8 billion (£1.4bn) in revenue that same year.

Last year, the iPhone generated revenue of nearly 136 billion dollars (£104).

Sales of iPods have plunged by so much that Apple no longer provides specifics about the devices in its financial statements.

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