How one dongle dilemma destroyer synced an unique iPod to their M4 MacBook

Key Takeaways

The unique iPod is taken into account iconic, however Apple has bullishly reduce help for legacy applied sciences through the years.
Apple has made controversial strikes, like axing the headphone jack, citing a need to push the trade ahead.
One X person efficiently synced a first-generation iPod mannequin to a brand-new M4 MacBook, and it solely took 3 separate dongles to realize.

The original iPod from 2001 is extensively thought-about to be one of the crucial iconic devices of all time. The product line helped reinvigorate Apple’s management place within the shopper tech area, and it performed a job in serving to spawn the iPhone and the iPad just some quick years later.

The primary-generation iPod stays ubiquitous within the public eye, but it surely’s not precisely probably the most accessible piece of tech to stand up and operating these days. That did not cease one X person by the title of NekoMichi from trying to sync his iPod through his brand-new M4 MacBook Pro.

Miraculously, this person was capable of efficiently sync the 2 Apple merchandise collectively, proving that something is feasible with a little bit of endurance and perseverance.

Associated

From iPod to streaming era: What we’ve gained — and lost

What began as iPod’s dream for “1000 songs in your pocket” has grow to be 100 million at our fingertips.

So as to take action, nonetheless, NekoMichi was pressured to embrace the much-maligned dongle life to its absolute excessive — the setup course of required three separate cable adapters:

FireWire 400 — Firewire 800 adapter cable
FireWire 800 — Thunderbolt 2 through Mini DisplayPort adapter cable
Thunderbolt 3 through USB-C — Thundebolt 2 adapter cable

With these stipulations in tow, NekoMichi managed to get the unique iPod to point out up and sync through macOS 15.2 Sequoia‘s Finder interface. Again within the day, for reference, iPods utilized the now-defunct iTunes software program to handle music and sync over person knowledge.

3 iPod nanos against an orange background of a person wearing jeans

Associated

I got my old iPod back up and running in 2024. Here’s how you can too

I broke out my previous iPod and uploaded new songs for some nostalgic, old-school music listening in 2024. Here is how I did it.

Rather a lot has modified within the tech trade because the days of the iPod

Symbolically, the unique Apple iPod is a relic of a bygone period

As an organization, Apple notoriously leads the cost in reducing off help for legacy applied sciences. In current a long time, the tech big has made decisive strikes in axing such {hardware} as the three.5-inch floppy drive, the CD-ROM drive, the FireWire I/O port, the three.5mm headphone jack, amongst different once-popular elements.

Apple’s bullish tendencies have performed an simple position in pushing the tech trade ahead.

Apple’s bullish tendencies have performed an simple position in pushing the tech trade ahead, however they’ve invited criticism and backlash alongside the best way. The corporate’s elimination of the headphone jack, in addition to its transition away from the 30-pin connector and towards the Lightning connector, come to thoughts as notably controversial strikes made by the tech big.

Person laying on bright color pop background listening to iPod playing Sound of Silence

Associated

Why using my old iPod wasn’t the simple listening hack I imagined

Retro tech is in, so I broke out my previous iPod and I am considering it is a extra of a short lived second somewhat than a full comeback.

It is fascinating to see the longer-term penalties of Apple’s heavy-handed method to {hardware} in motion. When you informed somebody in 2001 that their brand-new iPod would require 3 separate dongles to connect with a Mac within the yr 2024, I might think about that they’d have been downright baffled.

It is fascinating to see the longer-term penalties of Apple’s heavy-handed method to {hardware} in motion.

Apple cannibalized its personal iPod product line with the introduction of the iPhone in 2007, after which went on to discontinue its last iPod model in 2022. The place it was as soon as a revelation to hold 1,000 songs in your pocket, right this moment we’ve entry to thousands and thousands of songs on demand by means of Apple Music, Spotify, and different streaming providers. However, the iPod stays one of the crucial iconic tech merchandise of all time, cementing itself as an all-time nice.