Apple&nbsp;is discontinuing the iPod, more than 20 years after the device became the face of portable music and kickstarted its meteoric evolution into the world's biggest company.

The iPod Touch, the only version of the portable music player still being sold, will be available till supplies last, Apple said in a&nbsp;

Since its launch in 2001, the iPod took on a storm of competing music players before being eclipsed by smartphones, online music streaming and within the Apple pantheon, by the rise of the iPhone.

NEW YORK, NY - MAY 09:  Beats headphones are sold along side iPods in an Apple store on May 9, 2014 in New York City. Apple is rumored to be considering buying the headphone company for $3.2 billion. 

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The iPod has undergone several iterations since its inception featuring a scroll wheel, the capacity to store 1,000 songs and a 10-hour battery life. The version that has been carried till now&nbsp;—&nbsp;the iPod Touch —&nbsp;was launched in 2007, the same year as the iPhone.

Apple stopped reporting iPod sales in 2015.

Apple kills iPod Nano, iPod Shuffle as music moves to phones

Apple has discontinued sales of the iPod Nano and the iPod Shuffle in a move reflecting the waning popularity of the devices in an era when most people store or stream their tunes on smartphones.

Close up of a red iPod Touch, a red iPod Nano and a red iPod Shuffle on display in a store.

FILE- In this June 11, 2015, file photo, from left, an iPod, iPod Nano and iPod Shuffle are displayed at an Apple store in New York. The company discontinued sales of the iPod Nano and iPod Shuffle on Thursday, July 27, 2017, in a move reflecting the waning popularity of the devices in an era when most people store or stream their tunes on smartphones. 

Apple iPods Demise

This June 2015 photo shows, from left, an iPod, iPod Nano and iPod Shuffle at an Apple store in New York. The company discontinued sales of the iPod Nano and iPod Shuffle on  July 27, 2017, in a move reflecting the waning popularity of the devices as most people store or stream music on smartphones. 

Apple kills iPod Classic: another one bites the dust

The technology world went into mourning this week for the discontinued iPod Classic, but will we miss the old click-wheel music machine for long?

Copyright advocates are worried that the government's upcoming reform legislation will make it illegal to copy digital content from one format, such as a CD, to another, such as an iPod.

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Apple announced this week it is killing the iPod Classic with its iconic thumb wheel design.

In this photo from Oct. 23, 2001, the original iPod is displayed after its introduction by Apple.

After 20 years, Apple is saying goodbye to the iPod

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