IPod Mini

The iPod Mini (stylized and marketed as the iPod mini) is a discontinued, smaller digital audio player that was designed and marketed by Apple Inc. While it was sold, it was the midrange model in Apple's iPod product line. It was announced on January 6, 2004, and released on February 20 of the same year. A second generation version was announced on February 23, 2005, and released immediately. While it was in production, it was one of the most popular electronic products on the market,"supply shortages in Walmart: iPod Mini 2G, iPod Classic" - 2004 Walmart Announcement with consumers often unable to find a retailer with the product in stock. The iPod Mini was discontinued on September 7, 2005 after 1 year of being made, and was replaced by the iPod Nano.

The iPod Mini used the touch-sensitive scroll wheel of the third generation iPod. However, instead of the four touch buttons located above the wheel, the buttons were redesigned as mechanical switches beneath the wheel itself—hence the name ''click wheel''. To use one of the four buttons, the user physically pushes the edge of the wheel inward over one of the four labels. Like its predecessors, the wheel was developed for Apple by Synaptics. The click wheel was also used in the fourth, fifth and sixth generation iPods and the iPod Nano, from first generation through the fifth; however, in the Nano and 5G iPods onwards, the click wheel used was developed by Apple.

Above the wheel was a monochrome 138x110 LCD that displayed a menu or information about the selected track. Newer-generation iPods have since adopted color displays.

Models

Details

The two generations of iPod Mini were almost identical in their external features, except for two noticeable differences: the first generation model has gray control symbols on the click wheel, while those on the second generation matched the color of the body, and the player's storage capacity was etched on the back of the second generation body. Their major functional differences lay in their storage capacity and battery life. Both versions were 3.6x2.0x0.5 inches (91x51x13 mm) and weigh 3.6 ounces (102 grams). The case consists of anodized aluminium. First generation iPod Minis were available in five colors: silver, gold, pink, blue, and green. The gold model was dropped from the second generation range, likely due to its unpopularity. The pink, blue, and green models had brighter hues in the second generation; the silver model remained unchanged.

The iPod Mini used Microdrive hard drives ( CompactFlash II) made by Hitachi and Seagate. First generation models were available in a 4 GB size, while second generation models were available in both 4 GB and 6 GB versions (quoted as capable of storing roughly 1,000 and 1,500 songs, respectively) and eventually the second generation had the capacity laser etched into the aluminum case.

The battery life of the first generation of iPod Mini was about 8 hours, similar to the third generation iPod that was available when the Mini was released, which some criticised for its short duration. Apple addressed this problem in the second generation models, which had a nominal battery life of about 18 hours. However, the second generation iPod Minis no longer came with a FireWire cable or an AC power adapter, which were left out to reduce the selling prices of the new iPod Minis. iPod Mini batteries, like many Lithium Ion batteries, run down to 80% capacity after 400 full charge cycles. A proprietary