It’s still cool to say iPod is losing its cool: A Guardian article today about iPods losing their cool reminded me of a two-year old post I made about a similar observation by self-appointed experts in what is and isn’t cool.
In the subsequent two years, about 50 gazillion iPods have sold. By the way, the Guardian article includes this non-sourced claim: “Sales are declining at an unprecedented rate.” I’ve tried, but I can’t discover where that factoid is from. I can find indications that rates of growth are a bit below plan and others that suggest “growth rate” has slowed, but I can’t find anything that backs up the Guardian’s claim that sales are declining — much less, that they’ve declined in an “unprecedented rate.” Indeed even in the latest official quarterly report, Apple reported that sales of iPods are up 32 percent from a year earlier. Note to math-challenged reporters: Declines in rates of growth are not the same as “declining sales.”
I have lots of complaints regarding Apple and their smugness and their legal department and their, well, I have a long list. But I’d never bet against the company’s ability to create cool products and cool marketing to support them.
