As great as modern technology is, sometimes it can be a bit overwhelming. Smartphones today are capable of virtually endless tasks and are light-years better than mobile gadgets from a decade or two ago. Still, it’s hard not to have some nostalgia for “retro” devices like the Palm Pilot, the first Motorola Razr, or your trusty old iPod.
While doomscrolling X the other night, I saw that Quinn Nelson of Snazzy Labs had posted a short video about an iPhone app called “My Classic – Retro Console” that promises to turn your iPhone into an iPod Classic. It’s a very silly idea, but at a one-time price of $3, it was cheap enough that I decided to try it for myself. After living with my iPhone 16 transformed into an old-school iPod for about a day, I’m absolutely obsessed with it.
Using my iPhone like an iPod in 2024
So, what’s it like having an app turn your iPhone into an iPod? Honestly, it’s kind of amazing. The interface is almost identical to what you would see on an iPod Classic or an iPod Nano. The home screen shows options for shuffling your songs, browsing your music, seeing what’s currently playing, and a few app settings (plus an option to tip the developer).
You navigate the menu by using the virtual scroll wheel, which vibrates and clicks to mimic the feel of an actual iPod scroll wheel shockingly well. It feels fantastic for browsing artists and albums, but the real magic happens when you open the Cover Flow view, which looks just as incredible in 2024 as it did in 2007.
All of the music content in the app is pulled from your Apple Music library, including your saved albums and playlists. If you select the Shuffle Songs option, it starts playing a shuffle playlist from all the songs saved in your Apple Music library.
Objectively, this is nothing more than another interface for the Apple Music app. If you play a song from the My Classic app and switch to Apple Music, you’ll see it playing there, too. It’s not adding any new features. If anything, it’s a more limited way of interacting with Apple Music. You can’t search for songs or find music not already saved in your library.
However, that’s also why the app is so charming. Not only is the interface and iPod Classic UI executed so perfectly, but being forced to interact with my music in a simpler way has been so refreshing.
It makes me focus more on my music library without being distracted by new releases or other recommended playlists. I’ve found myself listening to saved albums I’ve not played in months because, in the regular Apple Music app, I typically listen to recommended playlists or new albums. I don’t know if that’s good or bad, but my music selections using My Classic have been different.
How to turn your iPhone into an iPod
Want to use this app to turn your iPhone into an old-school iPod? Thankfully, it’s easy to do and only costs $3. The My Classic app initially presents itself as a Game Boy simulator, but it takes just a couple of taps to activate the iPod interface. Here’s what you need to do:
- Open the App Store on your iPhone and search for My Classic – Retro Console.
- Pay for the app and wait for it to download.
- Select the Setting button.
- Select Device.
- Select My Classic.
A wonderful blast of tech nostalgia
In addition to the incredible execution of the My Classic app and the way it makes you listen to music, there’s also an undeniable nostalgia factor at play here.
I grew up with a 3rd-generation iPod Nano. I received it as a Christmas gift one year from my parents, and for many years later (until I lost it), that iPod Nano was a gadget I used nearly every single day. The interface of the My Classic app is exactly like the one used on my old Nano, so using the application has felt like teleporting back in time. It has brought back memories of me sitting at the computer with my cousin and syncing songs from our iTunes accounts to our respective iPods. Or playing The Sims Bowling on car rides to school. Not to mention discovering artists like Green Day and Switchfoot for the first time.
My iPod Nano went through a lot with me, and being able to bring back that experience to my iPhone is really something special. Maybe I’m feeling particularly nostalgic because of the holiday season, but this is one of the coolest mobile apps I’ve used this year — and one I think I’ll keep on my iPhone for a while to come.
