#TBT: This Is the Most Embarrassing Song on My iPod Mini
It’s throwback tech Thursday again, and it’s time to visit all of the old tech we’ve discarded (or hoarded, in my case) in our lifetimes. The other day when I was cleaning out my closet, I found my pink iPod mini from high school — slightly mortifying Coach protective case and all.
I was a junior in high school at the time, and I had to get the pink one. Upon reflection, my pink iPod mini was a bit of a foreshadowing for my current rose gold iPhone 6S (though when you compare the two, the iPhone is definitely more gold in color). If you recall, Apple didn’t produce very many of these. The iPod mini was only on the market from January 2004 to September 2005. It was then retired and replaced by the iPod Nano.
But it wasn’t the history of said tech, or even the story of how it found its way to my hands in the first place, that I thought about when I first dug it back up. Now that I found my iPod Mini again, my major question was: Does it still work? Oh, and: WTF is even on it? Luckily, since I am a hoarder and all, I still have old 30-pin charger cords hanging around, so I plugged my little iPod in and lo and behold, IT STILL WORKS. This little handheld time machine brought me back — with the help of Dashboard Confessional, Matchbook Romance, Death Cab For Cutie, The Get Up Kids, etc. Hey, emo music was a big deal, okay?
There were some artists that are still on my playlist today, like John Legend, and… okay, just John Legend.
And do you remember when your iPod used to actually have GAMES? Under “Extras,” there’s a Music Quiz game where your iPod will play a song from your playlist and you are given four options and you have to choose the right one. [Editor’s Note: I DID NOT KNOW ABOUT THIS!?!?!] There’s also Brick, crowd favorite, 8-bit and greyscale ping pong. There’s even Solitaire.
It’s pretty amazing to see what 11 (short) years of technological growth can do. The iPod Touch is fully loaded with up to 128 GB of storage and a front- and back-facing camera. It allows you to watch videos, access social media and download apps, and has colored displays. The teeny 4 GB iPod Mini definitely feels a little Jurassic, and yet, seeing it again feels a bit like seeing an old friend… and a glimpse of the teenage girl who loved it.
Do you have any throwback tech stories you’d like to share? Tell us in the comments below!