Comments on: Why I can't wait for the iPod to die

Don Reisinger wants to see the iPod die as soon as possible. Apple fans may not like that, but would it make things better?

[ReasonableGuy]

1 - Woz has not been an insider for years.
2 - Your headline and column are provocative, but inconsistent. What you want is not for the iPod to die, but for something new to come along.
3 - I strongly disagree on your criticism of the Nano. The Nano has been a big seller through its four versions. A joke? Hardly. Although there was not much difference between the first and second generation, the third added video which was a big change.
4 - Something new will come along without the iPod dying, but it will take awhile, because there are too many companies that believe in design by committee and focus group. On that route you usually get more of the same, because group design tends to inhibit, unless done in a certain way. Note the mimicking of the iPod wheel design in players by MSFT and others.
5 - In the end, the iPod won't die, it will evolve. Unless, of course, Steve decides to kill it off.

[doconn7]

Half page article and two pages of comments and reply's. I think you hit a nerve.
Alas no real content on either side of this.

[Blacksheep1982]

As others have said, it's called the iPhone, or in general terms, the media playing cell phone device. That is what will replace mp3 players in the future, there is nothing else if you think about it. Something has to replace something for it to die right. The Walkman was ousted by the discman. The discman was ousted by the mp3 player. All future formats will be digital and the only thing left to change is the device, which has already happened, merging the phone and the mp3 player with portable internet, gaming and television (through wifi).

[lovism]

huh? Itunes is third-party application? you confuse me.

Anyway, it's not even Apple's fault. They excel so much at designing and packaging a product and marketing it as an absolute object of desire, that the rest of the industry simply can't do anything effective to catch up. The ipod is not gonna be dead anytime soon, simply because the rest of the industry can't even come up with any design that's anywhere close to the sleek and clean design of the ipods. Compare to the ipod touch, the rest are just bricks.

[davidmcelroy_dotmac]

The writer of this piece either isn't very bright OR he's just trying to stir people up by saying irrational things. The nano and shuffle are jokes? Why? As with so many of the absurd points in this column, he just makes bizarre assertions and lets us assume that they're fact. Just for the record, I don't have either a nano or a shuffle, but for some people, they fit what THEIR needs are. They don't care about my needs. Or the writer's. I'm not going to put in the time or effort to point out all of the irrational things here. Others have done some of that successfully. The biggest thing that bothers me is that this seems to be another indication that CNET is joining Wired in trying to move in the juvenile direction of becoming a Gizmodo-like site which is best suited for teen-age boys or those without functioning brains.

[BigFatDuk]

the problem is, the walkman went obsolete because a new form of media came along to replace what it stood for- the cd replaced the tape, and sony was slow to get popular association of "portable cd player" with "walkman" as a brand. the difference is that the ipod, as a portable digital media player, will not be obsolete anytime soon. Other companies can come and add new features and maybe even a breakthrough aspect to portable media players, but apple is already in the game of portable digital media players so it will be hard for someone to dethrown them.

it will take a major breakthrough or a different medium entirely, and being that apple is years ahead of everything else at the moment as far as high tech is concerned (say what you will, but NOBODY can touch the ipod touch at the moment) and they don't seem content to sit on their hands, i just don't see it happening anytime soon.

i welcome competition, i just don't think we are close to overthrowing the ipod empire nearly as easily as we did the walkman, which didn't die without a fight.

[Vegaman_Dan]

Don- your responses to comments and criticism is a bit disappointing. You should really have a bit thicker of skin before belittling readers who comment on your work here. It simply isn't professional and reduces your own credibiity to that of a shouting blogger and not someone who has something insightful to say.

I think you should have just let the comments slide- it was clear the people who made the wild accusations were off their nut and didn't need any sort of response. Their own postings ridiculed them enough as it was. By answering them in kind, you reduced yourself to their level.

Just my $.02.

[kentonr]

Mr Reisinger, sir, I believe your article to be of little substance. As with MANY others, you have failed to see the big picture. The iPod is <i>already</i> dead. And <i>Apple</i> killed it.

People keep comparing the iPhone to other smartphones/cell phones, and that ideology is inherently flawed. Apple didn't try to fit an media player into a cell phone; they built a handheld COMPUTER and stuck a phone in it.

[esotarious]

What new product would there need to be? I think you fail to realize that for the first time we've got a medium that doesn't require new hardware to play new/higher quality content. That's the beauty of digital.....The only place to go from here is providing more/better support for lossless formats. That will really only happen if the public demands it and I don't see that happening anytime soon.

[iMsmart]

Why would people have more than one ipod? iI've met many people who talk about "yeah, my fourth one didn't crash" or "iI have two iphones and three ipods". Seems a bit silly to keep buying something that doesn't work properly: "maybe the next three I buy will work....I sure hope so"

[lkrupp]

" And how many times must we sit back and watch as Apple dominates the market without one real competitor to stop it?"

That's an interesting comment coming from a Windows Fanboy/Apple Basher like Don Reisinger. Oh the irony!

[3rdalbum]

@CouchGuy: Yeah, no manufacturer has anything like the iPhone. Except every smartphone manufacturer out there. The only thing the other smartphones don't generally do is allow you to pay for a download of a 3 minute music video with DRM. I consider that a point against Apple though.

[donsms]

oh boy,i warned you earlier about the fanboys going after you Don.

[fl1cku]

Re: transistor radios and Walkmans dying out....

Technology changed and they didn't keep up. Who anticipates that music and video won't be digital in format for the foreseeable future? If the media is digital, you're going to need something to play it on and who would bet against Apple keeping up with formats.

If they are going to die, it'll be the record industry making it too hard for a company to remain competitive and legal.

[stenniz]

Has anyone noticed that Mercedes Benz's don't go away, they just keep improving them year after year. Why would you want apple ipods to be any different.

[ckurowic]

Who cares what this punk kid columnist has to say honestly.

[stefstefstef]

wow, some of you guys are the ones who give Apple a bad name and push people towards PC more. Suggesting a guy get fired for a slightly anti Apple piece? Just crazy.

I will personally use whoever is best, brand attachments are for fools.

Really I think the ipod nano/shuffle is what keeps Apple going. Few people can afford the iphone.
I do not want to be using one product for everything anyway. At least until it has a MASSIVE battery life.

I guess Apple has a good mix of products just to bring the cash in, and ones which show off new ideas and directions.
The thing is, their marketing is so good, that too many people don't question the bad points about the products ie itunes and more importantly the AWFUL earbuds, that I see everyone wearing on the tube.

I agree it will fade soon though, stuff like this tends to go in cycles.

[n0th3r3]

I agree with you to a point, but I don't think Apple owes all of it's success to it's fluid interface. I think that the main reason is they were really the first to the punch. Mp3 players had been out for years but the mainstream wasn't convinced of any significant improvement over portable CD players. It wasn't until Apple started aggressively advertising them that they went from a novelty to a status symbol.

[farker1]

All those mentioning cell phones - I recently moved to the USA from Europe, and decided not to get a cell phone. You know what - I have not missed it. IN fact, it has been wonderful being out of touch when I am not at home or in the office. But life without my iPod or a PMP in general? Unthinkable.

[nahedh12]

Hmm...I liked Matt's response better. The iPod is already dead.