Apple may kill iPod Classic and iPod Shuffle

Possibly following-up on a reference to a “product transition” mentioned in Apple’s last earning call, the company’s iPod Classic and iPod Shuffle may get retired indefinitely, reports TUAW.

The news would hardly be surprising. The Classic is an old-style designed iPod that’s essentially a music storage device that plays music. The Shuffle is essentially just a smaller music storage device no screen. With Apple’s push to a cloud-based business model, both devices seem like relics that no longer fit within the company’s long-term strategy.

It also doesn’t help that both devices are arguably the least glamorous in Apple’s entire hardware product line up.

I don’t see how either device could evolve into something better at this point either. The cloud-based storage strategy makes the Classic obsolete, and Apple’s iPod Nano is small enough in size that it could easily take the Shuffle’s place as Apple’s low-end iPod.

Apple is also planning to reveal some minor changes to its iPod touch, according to TUAW’s source. It’s unknown if Apple will make these announcements at its October 4 press event.