23 October: iPod Day

iPod Day: The first ever iPod was released, this date in 2001. Here are 10 things you might not know about your music device:

1. There have been 25 different models of the iPod since its introduction. There are three current versions: the ultra-compact iPod Shuffle, the compact iPod Nano and the touchscreen iPod Touch.
2. The team of engineers commissioned to design the iPod included Jon Rubinstein, Tony Fadell, Michael Dhuey, and Sir Jonathan Ive.
3. The name iPod was suggested by Vinnie Chieco, and was inspired by the film 2001: A Space Odyssey, in particular the line "Open the pod bay door, HAL!" It refers to the white EVA Pods of the Discovery One spaceship. Chieco saw an analogy to the relationship between the spaceship and the smaller independent pods in the relationship between a personal computer and the music player.
4. However, when Apple looked into it they found the name was already in use. Joseph N. Grasso of New Jersey had originally listed the name "iPod" for internet kiosks, but these were no longer in use and Grasso agreed to let Apple use the name.
5. As well as playing music, iPods have been put to work in the business and education worlds as a way of delivering training.
6. The volume can reach 120 decibels, but when in France, beware of cranking up the volume, because it is illegal there to play your iPod louder than 100 decibels.
7. Although the iPod was released in 2001, the iTunes Store didn't come along until 2003. Customers bought one million songs in the store’s first week. There are over 43 million songs available on the iTunes Store in over 119 countries.
8. By September 2012, about 350 million iPods had been sold.
9. The first iPod ever made had 5GB of capacity (about 1,000 songs). It cost $399 and only connected with Macs. The original iPod had the game Brick (invented by Apple's co-founder Steve Wozniak) included as an easter egg hidden feature.
10. The world's most expensive iPod is the iPod SUPREME Fire, which costs over $200,000. The case is made of solid 24ct gold. The logo and navigation buttons incorporate flawless diamonds. Only about three of them have ever been made.