September 7, 2005: Hello nano

Rumors of a cell phone that ran the ubiquitous iTunes software had run rampant for years. Such a phone was finally revealed in a joint presentation by Apple and Motorola. Most were disappointed with the candybar phone that featured a less-than-intuitive interface, and artificially and maddeningly, limited the number of songs on the phone to an anemic 100 tracks.

Never one to disappoint, Steve had something else up his sleeve, er in his pocket. In a moment that should have been reserved for a chorus of boos aimed at the ROKR, Steve produced the iPod nano from his jeans's watch pocket.

People were stunned by the small size, the color screen, and 4 GB of flash storage. Just as stunning were the color options: white or black! While the nominal point of the soiree, the Motorola ROKR has seemingly disappeared without a trace the nano went on to become one the most popular iPods.