There’s been a lot of nostalgia for the iPod the past few months for reasons I’m not quite sure about. The downside of always being connected is that we’re constantly in a state of being overstimulated or experiencing information overload. Some being drawn to devices that are more single focus and less attention grabbing, like the iPod was back in the day (pre iPod touch).

When I saw this TinyPod accessory/case making the rounds on social media, I initially dismissed it as a waste of time. Pretty much all the benefits it touts are benefits you get….just from having an Apple Watch. And while the idea of using a scroll wheel is cute, I don’t think you’ll get that far with it as an interface element. Presumably, this scroll wheel is somehow emulating the Digital Crown. Seems like this company is trying to cash in on this low key vibe for people buying iPods again.

Apple Watch could be a great iPod

As I thought about this more, and looked at this product again, I was reminded of something. For the first few years of life for the Apple Watch, the tech press looked at it as an iPhone replacement. This is what was going to kill the iPhone and dominate in its stead.

Obviously that didn’t happen.

But from time to time I remember that I wanted, and still want, the Apple Watch to be a replacement for the iPod. Specifically, the pre iOS iPods that focused on music, podcasts, audiobooks and video. And on some level, this happened, The Apple Watch does pretty much everything the old iPods did, minus being a video player. Ten years later, the novelty of doing these things from my wrist still hasn’t worn off. It is an experience that remains futuristic.

The “problem” with the Apple Watch is that its a multi-purpose device that morphed into a fitness focused device. And while there are media apps on watchOS, none of them are great, and there is lot of friction in those experiences.

Getting to a specific song that’s not on the Home page of the Music app takes way too many taps. Interactions like this are probably designed to be done with Siri, which is fine, but more often than not I’d rather just use touch. Its kind of a hassle that you can’t play audio from the speaker, even if most of the time you really wouldn’t want to. Last I checked, you can still only use a relatively small amount of your watch’s storage for media, regardless of how much space you have left. The media apps on watchOS are okay at best.

The iPod, with its click wheel driven interface, made navigating the device and getting to your media incredibly quick and easy in a way the Apple Watch really doesn’t, because it wasn’t really designed to do that.

This product makes me wish Apple explored the idea of an Apple Watch, or some kind of wearable that was just media focused, and less app focused. All while keeping the convenience of wearing this device on your wrist. That product would suck all the air out of the movement to buy iPods again.

Anywho, If nothing else, TinyPod’s marketing page is good reminder of all the cool things your Apple Watch can do right now, that aren’t health & fitness related.

Link: TinyPod