The iPod Is Back? New $249 Music Player Brings the iPod-Style Wheel Into the Streaming Age

The iPod may have been discontinued, but its iconic wheel is getting a modern revival. New Matter has unveiled Sudo, a dedicated music player with a physical control wheel, offline playback, and planned streaming support, although the company has yet to confirm which streaming services will be available.

Expected to cost $249, Sudo is designed to combine the simplicity of a dedicated music player with modern streaming capabilities.

New Matter is currently taking refundable $50 reservations in the US, Canada, the UK, Australia, and New Zealand, while the final retail price has yet to be confirmed.

Sudo deliberately recalls Apple's classic player, but it is not an Apple product and does not use the original iPod click wheel. Instead, its physical wheel is paired with a 2.73-inch touchscreen, 64GB of internal storage, and microSD support for up to 1TB.

Can Sudo Bridge Offline Music and Streaming

Sudo's hardware combines features from older dedicated music players with controls aimed at modern listeners. The physical wheel and 3.5mm headphone jack suit users who want tactile controls and wired listening, while the touchscreen and Bluetooth connectivity give the device a more contemporary interface.

Its 64GB of built-in storage can be expanded with a microSD card up to 1TB, letting users keep a large offline music library on the device. Sudo measures 103.5×58.6×8.5mm and runs Sudo OS, with New Matter positioning it as a device focused primarily on music rather than the broader functions of a smartphone.

New Matter says Sudo will also support streaming, but the company has not yet confirmed which services will be available. That could prove important to the device's appeal, particularly for listeners who rely on services such as Spotify or Apple Music rather than maintaining their own offline libraries.

The device is rated for more than 20 hours of battery life and charges via USB-C. However, New Matter has yet to disclose some audio-specific details, including its DAC, amplifier specifications, supported formats, and Bluetooth codecs.

An Expensive Nostalgia Trip or a Modern Music Player?

Sudo is effectively trying to occupy the space between two eras of music listening. Its physical wheel, headphone jack, expandable storage, and offline playback recall dedicated players of the past, while its touchscreen, Bluetooth, and planned streaming support target today's listeners.

Online discussions about Sudo have been mixed, with some commenters welcoming its dedicated, distraction-free approach while others have questioned its expected $249 price and the lack of confirmed streaming-service support.

Users on Reddit have also raised questions about the device's undisclosed DAC, Bluetooth codecs, and audio specifications. Others have pointed to existing dedicated music players and older iPods as cheaper alternatives.

That leaves Sudo in an unusual position. Its physical wheel, expandable storage, and headphone jack tap into nostalgia for dedicated music players, while streaming support could make it more practical than an old iPod.

But with the device still in development, its final price, audio specifications, and streaming compatibility could ultimately determine whether Sudo becomes a serious modern music player or simply an expensive nostalgia trip.