iPod

A school district employee in New Mexico named Kristy Stock has been sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for being part of a scheme looking to steal and resell over 3,000 iPods. Engadget reported the devices were meant to go to Native American students.

While overseeing the program, Stock was supposed to use federal grant money to buy iPods to distribute to students. However, thanks to help from other conspirators including her friend James Bender and Saurabh Chawla, the group ended up shipping the stolen iPods to Maryland where they were listed on eBay before being sold at a “substantial” markup. Due to his own account having previously been suspended due to security concerns, Chawla was forced to use Bender’s eBay account to list the stolen devices for auction, with Bender serving as an intermediary. Later, between 2015 and 2018, Stock communicated directly with Chawla, providing info on the make, model, color and quantity of devices before agreeing on a price and putting them up for auction.

The iPod was already a pretty big deal by the time the fourth generation of the music player was released. And then the Click Wheel was introduced. As Cult of Mac noted, the control mechanism was already in place on the mini version.

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.

Given the success of the iPhone, it is perhaps all too easy to forget quite how groundbreaking the iPod was. In its latest ‘Today in Apple History’ piece, Cult of Mac looks back to the day in 2007 when the 100 millionth iPod was sold, making it the most popular Apple product in history at the time.

By April 2007, Apple had released more than 10 iPod models: five original iPods, two iPod minis, two iPod nano, and two iPod shuffles. The devices spawned an enormous ecosystem of more than 4,000 accessories, from cases to standalone speakers. Plus, upward of 70 percent of cars produced in the United States in 2007 offered iPod connectivity. Along with the success of the iTunes Music Store — the third-biggest music store in the United States at the time — the iPod represented Apple’s ascendancy to the pinnacle of the tech world… “At this historic milestone, we want to thank music lovers everywhere for making iPod such an incredible success,” said Steve Jobs in a statement issued by Apple. “iPod has helped millions of people around the world rekindle their passion for music, and we’re thrilled to be a part of that.”