Smart Computing Article - Get To Know The iPod

Since 2001, Apple has sold 50 million iPod music players. In that time, the device has become as utterly synonymous to digital music as Coke has become to soft drinks, as Kleenex to disposable tissues, as Vaseline to petroleum jelly . . . you get the idea. Apple’s flagship iPod has seen a number of revisions, and the latest iteration raised the bar yet again. The 30GB iPod (shown here in white) is a little more pocket-friendly than the 60GB iPod. When asked about the possibility of adding full-color video to the iPod in 2004, Steve Jobs claimed that Apple was “focused on music because that’s what we think . . . the revolution is.” A year and a half later Apple rolled out its fifth-generation video iPod in 30GB and 60GB capacities for $299 and $399, respectively. Apparently the revolution has changed, and the iPod is leading the way. Available in black or white, the latest iPod can play music and display photos and videos on its backlit 2.5-inch color display. The 30GB iPod can store 7,500 songs, 75 hours of video, and 25,000 photos. The 60GB iPod can handle the same number of photos, but up to 15,000 songs and 150 hours of video. (Song capacity based on four-minute-long songs encoded in the default 128Kbps [kilobits per second]