Apple keeping even an old iPhone SE in its lineup would represent an upgrade over the last surviving product to bear the iPod brand.
There are reliably reported rumors that today’s Apple event will bring a 5G-capable update to the iPhone SE This has led some, notably Bloomberg’s sleuthing Apple reporter Mark Gurman, to clamor for Apple to keep the current iPhone SE in the lineup at $199. Gurman argues that having an iPhone available at such a low price would do wonders for Apple’s market share in many developing economies. As a bonus, he argues, it would mean an iPhone was available at the same price as the iPod touch , obviating that product’s market need and marking the end of what has long felt like a vestigial product. Coming on the heels of the Mac’s rebirth as the iMac, the iPod marked a new era for Apple, one that would eventually shift the bulk of its business to pocket-sized products and lead to it dropping «Computer» from its name. Even though the non-iOS iPods were discontinued in 2017, the iPod name has lived on in the iPod touch, the least expensive gateway to Apple’s mobile app ecosystem long positioned as an inexpensive device for pre-teens for mobile games and, of course, music. With its single camera, small screen, Touch ID-free Home button, large, notch-free bezels and headphone jack, the iPod touch is a trip back into iPhone history.
