You know you’ve been there.

On the train, next to the guy on a plane, walking down the street, or waiting for class to start. Earbuds are everywhere.

And just like every seven months or so since the iPod first became more than “just” a brand, there’s some folks out there looking to cast doubt on Apple’s chokehold on the MP3 player market. Today’s article on Trendsetting Millenials seems to think that the Zune and/or Sansa have a chance if more and more 30 somethings and above take the plunge and invest in iPod-mania.

I dunno…that hasn’t seemed to stop those crazy kids yet, at least from what I can tell. Commuters and students alike all appear to be addicted to their iPods, and the scenario below…not sure this one’s playing out just yet (exerpted from the article):

Flip ahead to October 2006, and imagine the following interaction between a hip Dad named Jim and his perpetually annoyed, self-pitying daughter named Daisy:

Jim: “Daisy, I’m thinking of getting an iPod!”

Daisy (rolling her eyes, scoffing): “You’re getting an iPod?”

Jim (becoming giddy): Yeah! Which one should I get?! Which color?! I heard they just released a bunch of really ‘dope’ Nanos!”

Daisy: “That’s so lame, Dad. iPods are so 2005. I’m gonna go paint my nails black and listen to The Ramones.”

I’m in the middle…not 15 (though still listening to the Ramones) and not a parent (though still giddy over my new Nano [gulp, 4th iPod] that is a shiny purty pink). But I just don’t see the depth and breadth of the iPod’s hold on the market being shaken because they become “uncool”. There are many many other ways they could shoot themselves in the foot, though — I certainly don’t think they’re be on top of the market (especially at the level they’re at) forever. But I’d be more inclined to think that trying to keep hold of everything their users do, via “pesky” things like DRM will still be what causes their leader status to fade.

They have a great product, they’ve done a killer job marketing the darn thing, and they have customer evangelists at every corner. As well, doesn’t the price point on iPods make them more of an adult indulgence anyway? Youths might have been the bulk of the early adopters, but I could see ‘keen-to-upgrade-my-blackberry-with-every -new-feature” types, even if they’re not tech-heads, being more of a sustainably lucrative market anyway.

Even if I feel like I’m swimming in a sea of earbuds sometimes, it hasn’t stopped me yet from enjoying the 1.41 ounces of music that sits so comfortably in my hand, purse or pocket. They’re not perfect, I could think of at least one feature I’d like to see incorporated into my portable catalog of 1000 songs (but that’s an entirely different post), but they’re definitely more than a trend.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, October 10th, 2006 at 2:56 pm and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.