I ditched music on my Android cellphone and went again to my iPod

As an old-school techie whose adolescence have been spent tinkering with tape decks and moveable CD gamers, I discover that fashionable Android telephones are nothing wanting miracles of engineering for audio consumption. They’ve received a display screen that rivals my high-end tv, a DAC chip that’s by all measures clear, near-lossless wi-fi streaming, extra storage than you possibly can shake a stick at, and sufficient processing energy to run a small datacenter.

But, after I wish to sit down and truly take heed to an album, the cellphone is usually probably the most irritating software in my pocket. Between the fixed pings from Slack and the AI-generated discovery feeds that maintain attempting to shove viral tracks down my throat, the easy act of listening has change into a chore. It shouldn’t have been this manner. A completely linked machine just like the cellphone in your pocket, with entry to virtually each observe in existence, ought to provide one of the best listening expertise. However, in follow, it’s simply not true.

That frustration is why, regardless of gaining access to one of the best Android telephones and iPhones round, I nonetheless flip to a gaggle of iPods for my music listening. It seems that in 2026, one of the simplest ways to take pleasure in music is to journey again to 2006. Whereas everybody else is preventing with subscription worth hikes and discovery algorithms, I’ve discovered sanctuary in a tool that doesn’t also have a Wi-Fi chip. And if the rising shift again to retro tech on the whole, and iPods specifically, is something to go by, I’m removed from alone on this shift.

Let’s be sincere in regards to the present state of music apps on Android in the present day. Whether or not you utilize Spotify, YouTube Music, or Tidal, the expertise is not nearly your library. The enshittification of all these apps has been continuing at a gradual however regular tempo. Each time I open YouTube Music, I’m greeted by a “Samples” tab that appears suspiciously like TikTok. AI DJs interrupt my stream to inform me what they assume I wish to hear primarily based on present traits. The app offers a loud, cluttered expertise that prioritizes engagement metrics over the precise artwork of the tune. There’s additionally the cyclical motion of playlists, particularly on Spotify, which appears to floor the identical well-liked tracks each single time. Discovery is mainly lifeless except you truly put the time into actively perusing sources like AllMusic for the newest releases or studying music critiques on-line.

The distractions transcend the apps themselves. Most of our listening in the present day occurs on a cellphone, which, sure, is extraordinarily handy. You may pay attention at dwelling, pay attention on the go, and, to a good diploma, pay attention offline. However if you end up attempting to lose your self in a posh progressive rock album or a traditional swing jazz recording, a notification a few LinkedIn connection request is most positively a vibe killer.

Even in “Do Not Disturb” mode, the temptation to examine a notification or scroll by a feed is all the time there as a result of each time you’re adjusting your playlist, that notification is true there. Might I train extra self-restraint? Maybe. However my cellphone actually doesn’t make it simple. Shifting my music to a devoted machine, nonetheless, solved this immediately. Once I maintain my iPod, I’m doing one factor and one factor solely. I’m listening. Which, when you take your music severely, is crucial factor.

Smartphone-driven nervousness isn’t a uncommon phenomenon. I endure from it too. We’re consistently reachable, consistently up to date, and consistently “on.” At evening, earlier than I lastly flip off the lights and fall asleep, I’m nonetheless checking the information, social feeds, my e mail, and my inside and exterior Slack teams. Utilizing a smartphone as a major music participant means you’re tethered to that world.

The iPod gives a sanctuary. It doesn’t know the place you’re or what you’re doing. It simply holds your music and performs it again. This lack of connectivity is its biggest function. It creates a tough boundary between your digital life and your leisure time. Once I go for a stroll with the iPod, I’m really disconnected. If somebody wants me, they will wait half-hour. That stage of peace is more and more exhausting to seek out within the fashionable tech ecosystem. Belief me, it hasn’t been simple to interrupt away from the cellphone. I nonetheless discover myself reaching for a phantom notification at occasions. However that simply reinforces why I exploit an iPod and vinyl for many of my music listening, and change over to an audio streamer and self-hosted music server after I crave fashionable comfort.

We have now spent the final decade perfecting the haptic engine — the Taptic Engine when you’re on an iPhone — however a vibration motor beneath a glass sheet won’t ever beat the tactile perfection of the iPod click on wheel. In 2026, we’re surrounded by flat, fingerprint-prone rectangles that supply no give in any respect. There’s something immensely satisfying in regards to the bodily “click on” of a button. It offers a stage of suggestions {that a} touchscreen merely can not replicate.

The most important benefit right here is blind management. I can attain into my pocket and skip a observe, play, or pause with out ever taking a look at a display screen. On my Android cellphone, I’ve to wake the machine, doubtlessly bypass a lock display screen, and hunt for a software program button. Even with always-on shows and media controls, the friction is increased. The iPod was designed from the bottom up for one-handed, sightless navigation. It stays a masterclass in usage-led industrial design that feels extra related now than it did 20 years in the past. After all, I may write paeans to the great thing about the Dieter Rams-inspired industrial design of the {hardware} itself, however I digress. Virtually 25 years on, it is a machine that, in typical Apple style, simply works.

Trendy flagship telephones have unbelievable battery life, however they’re additionally doing unbelievable quantities of labor. Between 120Hz refresh charges, 5G modems, and heavy background processing, your cellphone is all the time preventing a shedding battle in opposition to battery life, even in a world of 9,000mAh battery-equipped telephones. Even when you aren’t actively taking a look at your cellphone, the machine is trying to find alerts, pinging towers, and managing background information. Enjoying high-resolution audio over a Bluetooth connection or streaming by way of Wi-Fi drains that battery even sooner.

My iPod tells a distinct story. The unique iPod claimed and supplied a full 20 hours of listening. My totally refreshed iPod gives a magnitude increased. Since I changed the unique spinning exhausting drive with a microSD adapter, there are not any shifting components and considerably much less energy draw. I’m presently working 512GB of storage paired with a considerably bigger battery that lasts weeks, not hours. I can go on a week-long journey and by no means take into consideration a charger. As a result of the machine isn’t looking for a 5G sign or refreshing a social media feed, the vitality effectivity is staggering. The iPod has no GPS to trace your motion. It has no microphone to pay attention for “Hey Google” instructions. It’s a devoted software that does one job and does it for a really very long time.

The economics of music listening in 2026 is irritating, to say the least. I’ve misplaced rely of the variety of occasions Spotify has elevated its subscription charge. Whereas subscription costs proceed to climb, lossless tiers typically include a good increased premium. We’re, clearly, simply renting our music and paying by the nostril for that privilege. In case you cease paying your month-to-month charge, your total library vanishes.

If a licensing deal falls by, your favourite album would possibly disappear from the platform in a single day. This risk isn’t an “if,” however a “when.” Even altering political stances can imply that your favourite artist would possibly pull their discography from the platform. Switching between platforms isn’t simple both, and it boils all the way down to paying for exterior providers to plug into your accounts and hoping that every one your playlists get transferred by.

There may be additionally the query of audio high quality. Whereas Spotify lastly rolled out its “Hello-Fi” tier, the price is astronomical in comparison with a normal plan. On an iPod, I can load up high-resolution information that I personal. I purchased them on Bandcamp, ripped them from CDs and information, or downloaded them from digital shops. I personal these information. No one can determine to take them away from me. In lots of instances, this consists of reside recordings, B-sides, and even leaked demo tracks that no industrial streaming service hosts. I’m not paying a month-to-month tax to entry my very own style. For the price of one yr of a music subscription, you should buy a used iPod and sufficient storage to carry hundreds of high-quality tracks perpetually.

Which brings me again to my earlier level. We have now change into passive shoppers of music. We open an app, hit “Advisable for You,” and let the algorithm determine our temper. This has led to a cultural shift the place music has change into background noise moderately than a major focus. Heck, well-liked music is being designed to be shorter simply to accommodate the eye span of a viral Instagram reel hook. We don’t take heed to albums anymore; we take heed to vibes, and name me old-school, however that isn’t for me.

The iPod, for higher or worse, forces you to be your personal music curator. You need to manually handle your library. You need to determine which albums are definitely worth the space for storing. This intentionality adjustments the way you pay attention. When it’s important to select to place an album in your machine, you usually tend to truly take heed to it from begin to end. You start to understand the sequencing of tracks and the artist’s intent. In case you don’t prefer it, you don’t simply instantly change over to the subsequent observe. You keep in mind that this was an artist who didn’t vibe with you, and also you’ll take away the document out of your rotation. There’s studying in that. The iPod doesn’t care about what’s trending on social media. It solely cares about what you might have determined is vital sufficient to take heed to. It turns music again into an energetic interest moderately than a passive background listening expertise. I’m not one to take an ethical excessive floor, however as an novice musician, that speaks to me deeply.

I’ll maintain it easy. No, it’s not. In case you thrive on discovering new artists each single day, the iPod isn’t going to work out for you. In case you depend on good audio system and a seamless multi-room audio ecosystem, there are methods to shoehorn an iPod into the system, nevertheless it’s a hack job and a further expense that the majority wouldn’t hassle with.

Nevertheless, there’s a rising group of people who find themselves exhausted by the do-it-all nature of recent smartphones. And satirically, this transition again to an analog or extra intentional existence is being led by the very individuals who grew up in a smartphone-native atmosphere. If you end up scrolling by Instagram when you are alleged to be having fun with a brand new document, or in case you are bored with your music being interrupted by commercials and notifications, a devoted participant is the reply. It’s for the one who values high quality over amount.

As for me, going again to the iPod wasn’t nearly nostalgia, although that actually performed a job. It was a sensible choice, amongst many others, to be extra within the second. Between utilizing Focus Modes and the Do Not Disturb mode on my Android cellphone, to taking pictures extra movie, gathering extra vinyl, and listening to music by way of an iPod, it’s all a part of a concerted effort to be extra within the second. My Android cellphone remains to be one of the best software for navigation, communication, and even on a regular basis pictures. It simply isn’t one of the best software for the duties I take pleasure in probably the most anymore. And music listening ranks excessive up in that listing.