Apple has not forgotten about iPod touch owners: It introduced the first new iPod since 2015 on Tuesday.
Although the iPod may appear to some to be out of date, its smaller size and lower price help Apple target a distinct market group than those who purchase its expensive iPhones. Apple's iPhones are experiencing a sales downturn, and CEO Tim Cook has stated that price increases have contributed to the slowing growth.
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Apple sold more than 55 million iPods at its peak in 2008. Apple discontinued disclosing iPod sales numbers in 2013, after selling less than 20 million of the music players. They're no longer prominently displayed on Apple's website or in Apple Stores. However, they continue to draw a limited audience.
The new iPod touch
The new iPod touch receives a minor hardware update. It will be powered by the A10 Fusion CPU, which is slightly older than the chips used in the most recent iPhones. The iPhone 7 also uses the A10 processor, thus it's approximately three years old. However, the A10 processor outperforms the A8 chip used in the 2015 edition.
The improved chip makes the iPod touch "twice as quick as before," according to Greg Joswiak, Apple's product marketing vice president.
It also implies that the next iPod touch will be able to handle Group FaceTime chats and augmented reality apps. Apple (AAPL) is also leveraging the product launch to advertise its future gaming subscription service, Apple Arcade, which was announced in March.
The iPod touch will also get a new 256 GB storage capacity to cater to users who need to keep a few additional music files. That is by far the most storage space that Apple has ever included in an iPod. The discontinued iPod Classic (the iPod with the click wheel) had a maximum storage capacity of 160 GB.
The new iPod touch starts at $199 for 32 GB capacity and goes up to $399 for 256 GB storage. It is available in space grey, white, gold, blue, pink, and red, and will be available for purchase online in 27 countries beginning Tuesday.
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