Wired: Raising the Genius Bar: 7 Years of iPod Evolution

: Photo: Robyn Twomey/WiredIt has been seven years since Steve Jobs announced the first "perfect thing" in the fall of 2001. Since then, very few products have come to exact total domination in their respected fields like the iPod has. And really, no other gadget in recent memory (save for maybe the iPhone) has exploded onto the cultural cache with the same impact. Hell, your granny is probably listening to some Wu-Tang on her fourth-gen Nano right now.

Here, take a scroll down memory lane with us and see the evolution of the product from its initial rocky conception to its current button-free touchscreen interface. Come on, it'll be fun.

The Proto

Conceived Early 2001

Left: There were literally dozens of early mock-ups of the iPod that didn't make the cut. Cobbled together from foam and fishing weights, they all had one thing in common: the round control wheel adorning the front.
: Photo: Apple ComputerAnnounced: October 23, 2001

Unveiled by Snoop Jobby Jobs at a special event in October 2001, the premier iPod featured a gigantic scroll wheel, a $500 price tag (for a whopping 10 GB) and was solely compatible with Macs.: Photo: Apple ComputerAnnounced: April 8, 2003

The first major redesign of the iPod sported touch-sensitive buttons for menu access, rewind, fast-forward and play/pause. It also was the first iPod to drop MusicMatch support when iTunes 4.1 was unveiled with Windows compatibility. : Photo credit: Apple ComputerAnnounced: January 6, 2004

Apple's very first attempt at miniaturization of the media player resulted in a 4-GB model that was available in five different hues. Also making its debut was the touch-sensitive click wheel.: Photo: Apple ComputerAnnounced: October 26, 2004

In living color! After three years of monochrome displays, the iPod got a vibrant 2-inch color screen that was also adept at showing off pictures. For the first time, the line between music player and all-in-one media device started to bleed.: Photo: Apple ComputerAnnounced: January 10, 2005

We've noticed that Apple has a tendency to drop legacy features sooner rather than later (latest example: FireWire ports from the new Macbook), but ditching the entire LCD screen? WTF?! Turns out people kinda didn't care — especially when they found out this pack-of-gum-sized device had a sub c-note price tag. : Announced: October 26, 2004

Laser etched with the signatures of the band and festooned in a black and red paint job, this iPod was not exactly a huge commercial success. But for die-hard U2 fans, it was, uh, even better than the real thing.: Photo: Apple ComputerAnnounced: September 7, 2005

IPod Mini heir apparent, the first Nano was thinner, could be used to view pictures and was the world's first 4-GB flash player. But all was not well — critics took issue with a screen that scratched more readily than a crazed cheetah.: Announced: September 12, 2006

Sure, it looks like it could be a toddler's belt buckle, but this anodized aluminum wonder boasted some hefty specs: 0.55 ounces, 1 GB of memory and half a dozen color options. Fun fact: For a short period of time, Apple's website cautioned customers to "not eat the iPod Shuffle.": Photo: Apple ComputerAnnounced: September 5, 2007

The first iPod with a multitouch interface. The first iPod with WiFi. The first iPod without a click wheel. No matter if you think the iPod Touch is a Jobsend or just an over-hyped disaster, one thing is for certain: It's definitely the most radical re-imagining of the device since its inception.