????曾經(jīng)有段時(shí)間，幾乎所有的分析師都會(huì)在投資報(bào)告中大談特談iPod。而如今，你很難再看到有哪篇投資報(bào)告會(huì)再提及iPod。用業(yè)內(nèi)分析師的話來(lái)說(shuō)，這樣一個(gè)銷售額僅占蘋果總營(yíng)收3%的產(chǎn)品已經(jīng)是“明日黃花”了。

????蘋果對(duì)待iPod的態(tài)度也令人玩味。一方面，iPod每年仍可以為蘋果帶來(lái)數(shù)億美元的營(yíng)收，因此蘋果并不想完全放棄該產(chǎn)品。但是與iPod相比，蘋果更看重的是iPhone或iPad的銷量。因?yàn)閕Phone或iPad的售價(jià)更高，有助于蘋果提升業(yè)績(jī)，進(jìn)而能夠不斷地超越華爾街的預(yù)期。再加上iPhone或iPad高企的利潤(rùn)率，就不難理解為什么iPod不受重視了。

????但是，iPod每年仍能為蘋果帶來(lái)數(shù)億美元的現(xiàn)金收入，因此它仍有存在的必要。蘋果雖然會(huì)繼續(xù)推出新款iPod，但原因僅僅是不想讓華爾街失望。也因?yàn)槿绱?，蘋果在最近iPhone 5發(fā)布會(huì)上同時(shí)發(fā)布了新款iPod Touch和iPod Nano。這兩款產(chǎn)品被巧妙安排在iPhone 5發(fā)布之后推出，既保證了宣傳效果又不至于搶了iPhone 5的風(fēng)頭。

????蘋果或許會(huì)慢慢地將iPod邊緣化。最終有一天，iPod對(duì)蘋果的業(yè)績(jī)的影響會(huì)變得微乎其微，消失在蘋果的產(chǎn)品線中，而普通消費(fèi)者或許絲毫不會(huì)介意。盡管如此，有一點(diǎn)卻是毋庸置疑，即用戶購(gòu)買每一部iPhone或iPad 也就等于是在購(gòu)買iPod。畢竟，這些產(chǎn)品集成了iPod的所有功能，無(wú)論從哪點(diǎn)上來(lái)說(shuō)，它們都是iPod的延伸。

????這就是iPod依然重要的原因。很顯然，曾經(jīng)風(fēng)靡全球的iPod終將退出歷史舞臺(tái)，但是它作為移動(dòng)音樂和視頻播放平臺(tái)，正在被整合到新一代功能更加強(qiáng)大的產(chǎn)品中。由此可見，iPod依然重要，iPod不會(huì)消亡，而是進(jìn)入到發(fā)展歷史的新階段。

????譯者：唐昕昕

????There was a time when iPod discussions made up nearly all the investor notes analysts sent out. Nowadays, it's hard to find a single analyst that'll even mention the music players in their advice to shareholders. At just 3% of Apple's overall business, iPods have become -- to borrow a term from analysts -- immaterial.

????Apple has walked an odd tightrope with the iPod. On one hand, the company doesn't want to totally ignore the devices, since they're still bringing in billions of dollars in sales each year. However, Apple would much prefer to sell iPhones or iPads over iPods. The company's flagship devices sell at higher prices, helping it to boost its performance and continue to beat Wall Street expectations. Add that to the high margins they produce, and it quickly becomes clear why iPods are an afterthought.

????Still, because iPods generate billions in cash for Apple each year, they've become a bit of a necessity -- the products that Apple will continue to release simply because it doesn't want to disappoint Wall Street. So, the company recently announced a new iPod Touch and iPod Nano at its iPhone 5 event. The announcements were strategically placed after the iPhone 5 was announced to all but guarantee they were given low billing in news stories.

????Does the average person care that Apple is slowly easing iPods aside until finally, its impact on its financials is so small that it can discontinue them? Not a chance. A solid argument can be made that every iPhone or iPad a person buys is really another iPod sale. After all, those devices integrate all of the features found in today's iPods. They are, for all intents and purposes, iPods on steroids.

????That's why the iPod really matters. The iPod as we once knew it is definitely going the way of the Dodo. But the iPod – a platform that allows consumers to play music and video while mobile – is morphing into its next state as a component in a product that can do more. And that's why it still matters: The iPod isn't dying. The iPod is simply entering the next phase of its long history.