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Comment by skyyler | Hacker News Reader

I find it interesting that you use that quote as an example of naysaying. Within a few months of the iPod's introduction, they introduced higher storage options. Though the Classic line never got wireless, the HUGELY popular iPod touch had wireless. Both of his complaints were eventually rectified by Apple in the iPod line.

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The iPod touch doesn't really belong here. It came out long after the iPod enjoyed massive success, and despite the name it wasn't really an iPod, but rather an iPhone without the phone parts. It's still called "iPod" but in terms of its functionality it's completely different.

But the iPod was already a huge success despite those shortcomings.

Apple seems to be good at figuring out which drawbacks are deal breakers and which ones are not.

Was it an immediate success? If these graphs are true [0,1,2], it looks like it took several years for it to really take off. It didn't really become a huge success until the end of 2004, the same year they increased storage capacity (for the second time), moved iPods to the click-wheel, and added the iPod mini. Also the iTunes music store was released in 2003, and added Windows support in late 2002.

"Apple’s total iPod sales climb past 10 million, with 8.2 million units sold in 2004 alone" [0]

[0] http://www.macworld.com/article/1053499/home-tech/ipodtimeli...

[1] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/28/ipod-sales_n_468000...

[2] http://www.idownloadblog.com/2015/01/29/apple-stops-divulgin...

It was an immediate success with Mac users. Some PC users tried to use them, I remember companies making combos of a FireWire PCI card and special software to try to use it. I almost did it myself.

The sales explosion really happened when they released it for Windows. All of a sudden a HUGE market was there and it snapped them up as fast as they could.

The iPod took a few generations to become that instant success we remember it as being.

Yes, they introduced higher storage options, but not until component prices dropped low enough for Apple to maintain their margins at the same MSRP. The iPod had already became a gigantic hit in its own right during the 6 years between the introduction of the iPod 1st Gen and when the iPod Touch brought wireless to the iPod family.

So other than some non-sequitur facts, what's so interesting? CmdrTaco's take is the classic example of tech spec-naysaying by pundits completely misreading demand in the market. Meanwhile, AceJohnny says that it may very well apply here, which remains to be seen.

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