One of Apple’s greatest products ever was the original iPod. You might even still be using it today, but technology is always marching forward–in other words, you can’t figure out a way to connect it to your new Mac because those newfangled Thunderbolt/USB 4 ports don’t match up with the iPod’s FireWire connector.
There’s hope, though. All it takes is the right set of adapters, according to an X post by NekoMichiUBC, who was able to connect an original iPod to a 14-inch M4 MacBook Pro.
In case you’re not able to follow NekoMIchiUBC’s post, let’s start with the original iPod, which has a FireWire 400 port. It connects to the M4 MacBook Pro’s Thunderbolt/USB 4 port by:
- a FireWire 400 to FireWire 800 cable, connected to
- a FireWire 800 to Thunderbolt 2 adapter, which is connected to
- a Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter that connects to the MacBook Pro’s Thunderbolt/USB 4 port.
The photo in the post shows the iPod appearing in the Finder of the MacBook Pro, and while NekoMichiUBC doesn’t show the iPod’s library, it does show the General tab where you can adjust some iPod settings and even check for a software update.
If you want to try it yourself, the links in the above list go to Amazon where you can buy the gear you need. It’s about $100 worth of gear; the two adapters are Apple ones, which are more expensive than ones you can find from another company. There’s no guarantee it’ll work for you, but it’ll sure be fun to try.
Author: Roman Loyola, Senior Editor, Macworld
Roman is a Macworld Senior Editor with over 30 years of experience covering the tech industry, focusing on the Mac and other products in the Apple ecosystem. He is also the host of the Macworld Podcast. His career started at MacUser, where he received Apple certification as a repair technician (when Apple did that kind of thing). He's also worked for MacAddict, MacLife, and TechTV.