July 19, 2004: The fourth-generation iPod brings neat innovations to the popular audio device, including the Click Wheel interface recently introduced on the iPod mini.
“The best digital music player just got better,” says Steve Jobs in a press release on the day the product launches. And yet some people feel disappointed by the upgraded music player.
Fourth-gen iPod’s Click Wheel reinvents the device (kind of)
By 2004, the iPod was no longer a neat Apple accessory. Just three years after the original iPod’s launch, which famously put “1,000 songs in your pocket,” the gadget was becoming the control panel for a new music economy built around portable libraries, paid downloads and always-on personal taste.
The fourth-generation model’s Click Wheel looked like a small interface tweak. But with it, Apple refined the gesture that made those thousands of songs feel less like a database than something you could hold, scroll and own.
Apple was flying high when it launched the fourth-gen iPod on this day in 2004. Earlier that month, the iTunes Music Store sold its 100 millionth song. The iPod had moved well past its early adopter status to become a mainstream product with a massive impact — on Apple and pop culture at large.
Meanwhile, the rumor mill pumped out ceaseless reports that the fourth-gen iPod would deliver a top-to-bottom rethink of the device. Predicted improvements included a color display, support for Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, a new body style and up to 60GB of storage.
Many people found themselves a bit disappointed when the device turned out to be a relatively straightforward upgrade. It lacked many of the eye-catching features that Apple rumormongers previously speculated about.
Fourth-gen iPod brings a Click Wheel
The biggest addition was the same Click Wheel that Apple introduced with the iPod mini earlier in 2004. Rather than featuring a physical scroll wheel with separate buttons surrounding it, the iPod Click Wheel combined all the device’s controls. The new solid-state, touch-sensitive scroll wheel sat flush with the face of the iPod.
The fourth-gen iPod brought other small improvements, too. For instance, it was the first full-size iPod that could be charged via USB 2.0. This signaled Apple’s move away from the award-winning FireWire technology that had been a key part of the company’s “digital hub” strategy of the late 1990s.
Better battery life — and a smaller price tag
All of this came at cheaper price points, too. The 20GB version cost just $299; the 40GB version ran $399. Apple later launched a special-edition U2 iPod 4G in October 2004. A special Harry Potter Edition, preloaded with all of J.K. Rowling’s wizarding audiobooks, followed in September 2005.
Did the fourth-gen iPod click with you? Leave your recollections of this rockin’ device in the comments below.
