The iPod has been dying for a long time. The only model sold, and very hidden on the official site, is the iPod touch with the A10 Fusion chip presented barely two years ago. It is very strange to see one of these iPod touches being used on the streets, and almost everyone thinks that the mythical device will soon have its final end.
But be careful, because I said “almost” everyone. Throughout this week they have appeared concepts of what they called an ‘iPod Max’, who seek to awaken Apple’s idea of resurrecting the iPod, now focusing on the Apple Music service and its high-fidelity audio. It’s not a real rumor, but … does that make sense?
A “state-of-the-art” iPod for audiophiles?
In concept we can see something similar to a classic fifth generation iPod that preserves the click wheel but it has a bigger screen and more apps besides the purely musical. The hook, the excuse of this “iPod Max” would be a special device for audiophiles, those looking to play the songs in audio lossless.
For that, Apple would promote it with the AirPods Max, and it would integrate everything with new AirPlay technology with enough bandwidth to transmit all the data without compression. Of course, the iPod would include 512 GB of SSD storage to be able to store up to 50,000 songs in high fidelity.
The biggest disadvantage of this concept is that all the technologies it incorporates can already be found in an iPhone.
The idea is not at all bad, even if it is only for a very specific niche of people. But still, one would have to wonder if a concept like this “iPod Max” can really make sense. In the first place, all the technologies it integrates can be easily placed on any iPhone new generation, including storage up to 1TB.
Another point is that you would try put an additional device in the user’s pocket, which is already busy with an iPhone that’s getting bigger and bigger. I remember the days when we carried our Nokia-brick and our iPods, and I don’t really want to go back to that.
In my opinion, therefore, I consider this device to be something very unlikely. Maybe as a tribute, a last shot of the iPod range before its final farewell. It could be a very limited, very special edition of which very few units would be made. It could be a collector’s item, like the Mac 20th Anniversary, which is extremely coveted among devotees.
Possibilities? Almost nil. But concepts like this make one dream of the impossible.
