iPod was not the first product in this space
Sony Walkman was introduced in 1979
Eiger Labs MPMan F10, the first portable MP3 player, was introduced in 1998
Other products introduced include Personal Jukebox PJB-100, Nomad, etc.
iPod was different from PC. It was an information appliance indicating the direction of technology based product space in the future.
iPod was noticed because of its great design and high usability
Style and fashion were its appealing design features
Having said that, there was still room for improvement on both – design and usability
It took four generations of iPod before it tipped
In other words, it was successive iterations and applying the learnings from each release that made iPod successful
Compare iPod first and fourth generation and you’ll see a world of difference
The user interface and scroll wheel have evolved through the four generations
The much larger ecosystem around iPod was key to its success
The holistic design of iPod was firing together with marketing, sales and business model on all cylinders
All groups were going in the same direction
The parallel initiative of iTunes music store was critical to iPod’s success
Getting music companies on-board with iTunes was important
Steve Jobs turned the Gillette model on its head
Gillette sells razors at a loss to make money on the blades
Xerox earns major part of its revenue from paper and toner consumed by its copiers
Videogame consoles are sold at a loss to realize upside from game sales
Cell phones are sold at a loss to realize upside from network charges
Apple did the exact opposite
Apple earned margins on its razor (i.e. the music player iPod) and accessories while selling the blades (i.e. music) at the minimum
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