It has been confirmed by Apple that the iPod Nano and Shuffle have both been discontinued and will eventually be removed from sale in all retail stores.
This marks the end of an era but at the same time comes as no surprise as neither of the models had been updated since 2015. Before that, we had not seen any updates since 2012. The move has been described as a “simplification” of the iPod range.
The release of the Shuffle in 2005 was considered innovative, albeit controversially, because of its lack of screen that left users unable to see which song out of their library would play next. In the same year, the iPod Nano replaced the iPod Mini and kept the screen. Arguably, the peak of the device came in 2015 when its 16GB memory could store up to 4,000 songs.
However, Apple have updated the iPod Touch lineup and now offer only 32GB and 128GB models at lower prices than before. Additionally, the iPod product page on the website has been changed to reflect that the iPod Touch is the only iPod now being sold.