Apple Music is still celebrating the iPod, although only if you know exactly where to look. On October 23, 2026, the iPhone Duo shipped, but 25 years earlier, to the day, Steve Jobs announced the iPod. Even as the spotlight falls on the iPhone Duo, Apple has quietly launched an almost fully working virtual iPod.
"Launched" may not be the right word, since you either have to know where to look or get Apple Music to return an error message. The iPod is hidden on the Apple Music online site, not in the app. It is aimed at subscribers stuck on PCs at work. On an iPhone or iPad, long-press the address https://music.apple.com/404 and choose Open, avoiding Open in Music, which simply launches the app. On a Mac, right-click the link and choose Open to get the full-size iPod.
The result looks like a typical web 404 page, but alongside the usual "page not found" message it says "Give this a spin instead." The text is set in Garamond, next to an image of an iPod. In almost every way it works like the old device. The click wheel lets you scroll through settings or roughly 1,000 tracks, and each step produces the familiar click. Selecting a song starts a progress bar, though the music itself is not audible, possibly because the rights do not extend to non-subscribers.
Few people are likely to stumble across the page, since it is an error page and most will only find it if told. Credit goes to Edward Munn, whose blog reported it first. Neither he nor AppleInsider can confirm it was created for the iPod's 25th anniversary, so it may have existed for some time. Readers who want to try it should do so soon, in case it disappears.
Source: AppleInsider · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing