The iPod nano Generation 5 was notable because of its impressive color choices. This model was available in nine colors: (PRODUCT) RED Special Edition, pink, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, silver, and black. The finish for the generation 5 nano is glossy and the case is made of aluminum and glass. It was available with 8 GB or 16 GB of flash memory (2,000 or 4,000 songs).
This iPod nano also features a video camera with an integrated microphone and speaker that takes advantage of its high-quality 2.2″ TFT display (240×376, 204 ppi). The video quality is H.264 VGA 640×480 at 30 FPS with AAC audio, but it cannot take still photographs. This iPod also has a built-in FM Radio with “live pause,” allowing pause and rewind up to 15 minutes.
This example is black, although this shade of “black” is reminiscent of the “space gray” colors Apple would later introduce.
This iTunes Apple Store brochure from 2003 announced an iPod giveaway. The cover is bright green with the iconic “silhouette” design featuring a person dancing in black silhouette carrying a white iPod and wearing white Apple wired earbuds. The cover reads:
“iTunes. It’s the world’s best jukebox software. It’s for Mac and Windows. It’s free. And it could win you an iPod.”
The back of the brochure has the headline “iTunes. Ready. Set. Download.” It includes the directions to set up iTunes online, thereby automatically entering to win an “iPod-a-day” until December 23, 2003.
iPod “Take One” store brochures (2004)—Each of these set of three 1-page brochures measures 4.375 x 6.5 inches and features an iPod (“Actual Size”) on the front with a bright pink, bright green, or bright blue background. The back features a photo of the back of the iPod photo with a description of features in an ink color that matches the front. The iPod image is perforated and can be punched out.
iPod mini “Take One” store brochure (2004)—This 1-page brochure measures 4.375 x 6.5 inches and features a pink iPod mini on a white background on the front with various features highlighted. The back has a quirky suggestion about naming playlists and a photo of the back of the iPod mini. The iPod mini image is perforated and can be punched out.
I remember picking up this catalog at an Apple Store in 2004. It is large for a catalog at 11 x 17 inches and is printed on heavy matte paper. Each spread features “lifestyle” photos of people using then-current Apple products in everyday settings. Each product is then described in detail including features, uses, and available peripherals. Full-page “case studies” from regular people using the products in real life are also included.
The first product featured is iPod. The 2004 models included iPod with scroll wheel (with a monochrome display), iPod Photo (color display), and iPod mini (monochrome display and available in four colors).
The next spread highlights the iMac G5. These were Apple’s second flat-panel iMac models that were available with 17 or 20-inch “widescreen flat panel” displays. The iLife apps are mentioned here in holiday contexts.
Apple “notebooks” are shown next, including the white 12 and 14-inch iBook models and the 12, 15, and 17-inch PowerBook G4 models. The AirPort Express is mentioned as a solution for streaming music and wireless printing in the home.
The last 2-page spread includes “A day in the life of a Genius,” and highlights in-store workshops and presentations.
The back page shows a map of the United States and the locations of all Apple Stores worldwide. Six happy Apple customers are also featured with their Apple Store purchases across the US.
This is a rare example of a dated Apple t-shirt created to celebrate the release of “The new iPod” (the iPod Generation 3) on May 2, 2003. Apple Store employees wore this t-shirt during the in-store release of the new iPod, and store visitors were given posters to commemorate the device’s release.
The front of the black t-shirt features a simple line drawing of the iPod Generation 3 that highlights its scroll wheel and four buttons under the LCD screen: back, MENU, play/pause, and forward. The screen shows the Apple logo.
The back of the shirt includes the stylized type “LIVE ON STAGE 5.2.03” in large size in the top-center, and adds a line of smaller text at the bottom-center of the shirt that reads “The new iPod. More than 7500 songs in your pocket.”
The t-shirt tag indicates it is a Hanes Beefy-T brand made from 100% cotton in size ADULT 2XL. It was made in Honduras.
In 1984 Apple premiered the iconic television commercial, directed by Ridley Scott, to introduce the original Macintosh computer. The commercial was televised to a national audience one time on January 22, 1984, during Super Bowl XVIII.
The commercial is described in detail on Wikipedia. Here is shorter version of the plot:
In a gray dystopian setting, a line of people march in unison. Full-color shots are cut in showing a female runner wearing a white tank top with a Picasso-like drawing of the Macintosh computer. She carries a large brass-headed hammer. A Big-Brother-like figure speaks on a view screen while police officers in riot gear chase the runner. The runner hurls the hammer at the screen, and in an exlosion of light and smoke, the screen is destroyed, leaving the audience in shock. A voiceover, accompanied by scrolling black text reads, “On January 24th, Apple Computer will introduce Macintosh. And you’ll see why 1984 won’t be like 1984.” The screen fades to black, and the classic multi-color Apple logo appears.
In 2004 Apple re-released this commercial at the San Francisco Macworld event. The 2004 version was identical to the original, except an iPod was digitally added to the runner’s waist, and she wore Apple white wired headphones.
This version of the iPod touch was originally marketed as the “new iPod touch” and designated as “iPod touch (Late 2009)” by Apple. Due to its similarities, this model is sometimes confused with the Generation 3 iPod touch, but the Generation 2 model is differentiated by the fact it cannot run an iOS version beyond iOS 4.2.1.
This iPod touch was released around the same time as the iPhone 3GS and shares many features (except the iPod touch did not have 3G/EDGE phone, A-GPS, digital compass, and integrated camera).
The iPod touch Generation 2 8 GB included a multi-touch 3.5-inch display (320×480), accelerometer, ambient light sensor, and 802.11b/g/n. It used a 30-pin connector, included a stereo headphone jack, and shipped with Apple’s standard earphones of the time.
The iPod touch Generation 3 was very similar to the iPod touch Generation 2 and was released around the same time as the iPhone 3GS. This iPod touch had features similar to the iPhone 3GS, except the iPod touch did not include 3G/EDGE (phone), A-GPS, digital compass, or an integrated camera.
The 32 and 64 GB Generation 3 iPod touch models are the same externally as the Generation 2, but had 50% faster performance, OpenGL graphics, and ran up to iOS version iOS 5.1.1.
The iPod touch Generation 3 included a multi-touch 3.5-inch display (320×480), accelerometer, ambient light sensor, and 802.11b/g/n. It used a 30-pin connector, included a stereo headphone jack, VoiceOver voice control, and shipped with the same Earphones with Remote and Mic as the iPhone 3GS.
Although the iPod touch Generation 4 has a design similar to the iPhone 3GS, its features more closely resemble those of the iPhone 4 that sold at the same time. (The iPod touch lacked the iPhone 4 features of 3G/EDGE phone, A-GPS, and digital compass.)
The iPod touch Generation 4 included a 3.5-inch Retina Display (960×640 at 326 ppi), FaceTime video calling (using Apple ID), an integrated microphone and front-facing VGA camera, 3-axis gyroscope, and a 720p camera (lower quality than the iPhone 4). However, the iPod touch Generation 4 allowed iMovie editing using the iOS version of iMovie available at the time.
The iPod touch Generation 4 used an A4 processor, 256 MB of RAM, and was available with 32 or 64 GB of RAM for storage.
The iPod 6-pin–to–4-pin FireWire Adapter was specifically included with the iPod Generation 3 (Dock Connector) to make it compatible with Windows computers. According to the iPod User’s Guide:
To use iPod with a Windows PC, you must have: • A Windows PC with 500 MHz or higher processor speed • Windows 2000 with Service Pack 4 or later, or Windows XP Home or Professional • iTunes 4.2 or later (iTunes is included on the iPod CD). To be sure you have the latest version of iTunes, go to www.apple.com/itunes. • iPod software (included on the iPod CD) • Built-in FireWire or a FireWire card installed, or built-in USB 2.0 or a USB 2.0 card and the optional iPod Dock Connector to USB 2.0 + FireWire Cable
Although all Mac computers at the time had a 6-pin FireWire port built in, Windows computers had many different possible ports. For Windows, the iPod Generation 3 could support three connectors: USB port (USB 2.0 recommended), 6-pin FireWire 400 port (IEEE 1394), or 4-pin FireWire 400 port (with included adapter).
The 4-pin FireWire adapter only supported data transfer, it could not charge the iPod.
