Why I Still Use An iPod

Talia Whyte Music ipod nano

I was waiting for the bus the other day and a young, Millennial-ish woman standing next to me notice that I was shuffling songs on my iPod nano.  She asked me what the small contraption was, and I told her it was an MP3 player with an FM radio.

“Interesting,” she said.  “I have never seen anything like that before.  Did you get that in Japan or China or something?”

“No, this is an Apple product that was discontinued a couple of years, unfortunately,” I said.  “But it is still a great product.  It is quite possibly Apple’s best product in my opinion!”

The iPod nano and shuffle were discontinued, but the iPod touch, which is basically an iPhone without data, is still available.  It is the norm today to stream music on your phone with one of the many music subscriptions, so it is not a surprise that MP3 players are going into an old technology grave.  However, after talking to the young lady about my reasons for still being an iPod fan, I may have convinced her that maybe using the mobile phone isn’t really the way to go depending on your music listening lifestyle.  Here are the reasons I gave her:

Battery life: Streaming music on a mobile phone can drain your battery really quickly, rendering you to always having to charge your phone.  Even if you download music onto your phone, listening to music in addition to reading social media and emails, gaming, using other apps, and making and taking phone calls will force you to have to use a phone charger at all times.  I know I’m an “old,” but I still need to use my phone to make calls and not worry about having a dead phone! Batteries on iPods and other MP3 players are specially designed for low power consumption for the single purpose of playing music.  The same is true for other single-purpose devices on the market like Kindle e-readers (not the Fire tablets) for people who only want to read books. I can play my iPod’s downloaded MP3s, podcasts or audiobooks for 30 hours straight or listen to the FM radio for seven hours before having to charge it again. It only takes about 10-15 minutes to recharge.  This allows my iPhone to have enough battery juice to power through the day for other purposes.

It’s Simple: I love listening to music and I don’t need an overly complicated device to do this.  I only need to press shuffle or select a specific playlist, artist or song to start listening.  Sometimes less is more and single-purpose devices are the way to go.

Compatible with a pedestrian lifestyle: I don’t have a car, so I do a lot of walking and taking public transit every day.  The iPod is lightweight and I bought a clip holder to put on my clothes or in my pocket and not worry about it.  I don’t like taking my phone out of my purse unless I really need to because I fear that it will get lost, stolen or even worse, break or crack the screen.  Apple products, especially mobile phones, are not cheap to replace, Y’all!

Play all the music I want without paying a subscription:  I digitized my whole CD collection many years ago, and I have over 3,000 songs on my external hard drive.  I have not purchased any new music in YEARS.  I don’t see the point of a music subscription since most of today’s music is trash.  I’m not a fan of the mumble rap/autotune/trap music craze going on right now.  I can just press play on my iPod and listen to an eclectic music selection ranging from Sade, Lauryn Hill, Bob Marley, Frank Sinatra, Erykah Badu, U2, Miles Davis, A Tribe Called Quest or other REAL music.

No need for an Internet connection: You need to always have an internet connection to stream music.  This doesn’t work if you are on an airplane, taking Amtrak or in an area with limited cell towers.  Yes, you could download the music, but why pay the money for a subscription?  I can play my iPod without disruption anywhere at any time.

Nike + and active lifestyles: If you have a later version of the iPod nano, it should have the Nike+ app, which tracks your running and walking.  I can clip the iPod onto my clothes when I go for my morning jogs.  It is a lot more efficient and lightweight than wearing an armband for the iPhone.  As a bonus, I don’t have to listen to Kevin Hart on the iPhone Nike+ app, but you still have to listen to Tiger Woods on the iPod app.  I guess that depends on who you have a lower tolerance for…

I will always be about that iPod life!