"I question the company's ability to sell into a tight consumer market right now at the iPod's current price," one analyst put it. "It's a nice feature for Macintosh users,'' another noted. ''But to the rest of the Windows world, it doesn't make any difference.'' Plus: "Clearly Apple is following Sony's lead by integrating consumer electronics devices into its marketing strategy, but Apple lacks the richness of Sony's product offering." As David Pogue summed it up: "'Breakthrough digital device' might be pushing it."

Apple fans were similarly unimpressed. According to a MacRumors discussion of the iPod as it was being announced:

Great just what the world needs, another freaking MP3 player. Go Steve! Where's the Newton?!

And:

Sounds very revolutionary to me.



hey - heres an idea Apple - rather than enter the world of gimmicks and toys, why dont you spend a little more time sorting out your pathetically expensive and crap server line up?

or are you really aiming to become a glorified consumer gimmicks firm?

And:

I still can't believe this! All this hype for something so ridiculous! Who cares about an MP3 player? I want something new! I want them to think differently!

Why oh why would they do this?! It's so wrong! It's so stupid!

And:

$400 for an Mp3 Player!



I'd call it the Cube 2.0 as it wont sell, and be killed off in a short time...and it's not really functional.



Uuhh Steve, can I have a PDA now?

Of course, not everyone was unconvinced. As one MacRumors poster put it:

Come on everyone, y'all are saying it sucks before you have even held it in your hand. I mean 5GB in a little tiny thing like that, it's amazing. I don't see anyone else making something like that. Do you?

Another person who saw the potential of Apple's portable computer? Bill Gates. At a dinner shortly after the iPod's launch, the journalist Steven Levy handed Microsoft's then-CEO one of the new Apple devices. Gates studied the machine, played with it, scrolled its wheel, pushed its buttons. His conclusion? "It looks like a great product."

Via @pourmecoffee

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