Digital music players at the beginning of the millennium were either big and clunky or small and useless with equally terrible user interfaces. As a result, Apple decided to revolutionize the way music lovers listened to music.

On this day, October 23rd, in 2001, Apple’s first generation iPod was released. Its innovations were its small size, 1.8” hard drive, and its easy-to-use navigation. Its scroll wheel was the first of its kind and revolutionized the entire music industry. Steve Jobs, cofounder of Apple, is responsible for changing the course of media and entertainment distribution.

From the first generation iPod, Apple has gone on to sell thousands of other handheld devices, such as iTouches, iPads, and iPhones.