iPhone 5 Release Imminent as iPod Shuffle and Classic Make Their Exits
The iPhone 5 has had an unprecedented popularity for a product that has not yet been released.
Its cousins, the iPod Shuffle and iPod Classic however, have been steadily declining in demand and could soon be phased out of the Apple family.
Rumors have been circling since late last year that Apple may soon be discontinuing its flagship music player, the iPod Classic and its convenience option the iPod Shuffle.
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The first indication of the end of the iPod Classic came at a press conference last year where former Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced that every model of the iPod would receive a redesign except for the iPod Classic.
Speculations have recently resurfaced that the iPod Shuffle could be joining the Classic on its way to becoming obsolete as various Apple advancements as the iPod Touch, iCloud and iPhone steadily increase in popularity.
Sources suggest that Apple now wants to focus on developing its touch screen products such as the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPod Nano.
The iPod Touch, first released in 2007, quickly became a techie's dream player and has remained the dominant Apple music device.
The latest generation of the iPod Nano, which has seen an upgrade in its OS, has also been made into a touch screen device.
The iPhone, whose latest generation, the iPhone 5, is expected to release on October 14, also works as a music player with Apple iTunes readily installed on its OS.
The iPod line as a whole made up only 8 percent of Apple's overall revenue in the fourth quarter of the 2010 fiscal year. iPod sales have especially suffered since the introduction of the iPhone.
Thus far in 2011, iPods have sold approximately 20 million units worldwide, in comparison to 50 million units worldwide just one year ago, and approximately 55 million worldwide in 2008.
