Apple has turned broken links on its music website into a tiny trip back to the 2000s. To mark the iPod’s 25th anniversary, Apple Music now hides a playable replica of the original click-wheel iPod on its 404 page.
Besides a “Page not found” error, you get a monochrome screen, nostalgic song previews, and a secret Brick game tucked inside. All of these are free, so you don’t need an Apple Music subscription to check it out.
How to find and play the hidden iPod on Apple Music?
To find the hidden iPod, you need to visit a nonexistent page on music.apple.com, and the virtual player pops up. However, this easter egg works only in a web browser, so the Apple Music app won’t show it.
The replica includes the scroll wheel, menus for Playlists, Artists, Songs, and Settings, plus options for shuffle, repeat, backlight timing, and click sounds. On desktop, you can navigate with arrow keys and Enter, too.
The replica nails the details, from the click wheel to the monochrome screen. You can navigate with arrow keys and Enter on desktop to browse Playlists, Artists, and Songs. You will also find options for Shuffle, Repeat, Backlight Timer, and Click sounds.
The music library on the hidden iPod has nostalgic songs from Coldplay, Gorillaz, Daft Punk, Eminem, Britney Spears, and others. However, these are previews, not full tracks. So the songs play only 30 to 90 seconds, depending on the length of the original music.
Where’s the secret game hiding?
There’s another easter egg inside the iPod easter egg. Open Settings > About and hold the center button for five seconds. That launches Brick, the Breakout-style game included on the original iPod. The game has a bit of Apple history behind it, since Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak helped create Breakout at Atari in the 1970s.
Apple discontinued the iPod line in May 2022, but the iconic music player has been making a surprising comeback, with Gen Z helping fuel a renewed interest in iPods.
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