Pixo

Pixo was a company that developed infrastructure for hand-held devices. It was founded in 1994 when Paul Mercer, a software developer at Apple, left to form his own company.[1] The company developed a system software toolkit in C++[2] for use on cell phones and other hand-held devices. Pixo was acquired by Sun Microsystems in 2003, and Sun was in turn acquired by Oracle Corporation in 2010.[1]

Pixo
IndustryMobile software
Founded1994 (1994)
FounderPaul Mercer
Defunct2003 (2003)
FateAcquired by Sun Microsystems
SuccessorSun Microsystems
ProductsPixo OS

Pixo OS and use in Apple's iPod

In 2001, Pixo was rehired by Apple to adapt their system software for use in the iPod.[3] The use of the Pixo OS in the iPod was never formally announced, although the first-generation iPod's "About iPod" display includes a mention of Pixo, and a Connectix biography of their VP of engineering Mike Neil mentions his role as "lead architect on the Pixo OS that is used in ... the Apple iPod".[4] Apple acquired the Pixo OS shortly after shipping the iPod and removed mention of Pixo from the "About iPod" display with a firmware update to the first-generation iPod.

On April 9, 2007, Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced the shipment of its 100 millionth iPod,[5] making the Pixo OS one of the most widely used embedded operating systems.

With the 2014 discontinuation of the iPod Classic[6] and the 2017 discontinuation of the iPod Nano,[7] which did not run iOS,[8] Apple no longer sells a Pixo-based iPod.

References
  1. Markoff, John (27 February 2006), "He Helped Build the iPod; Now He Has Built a Rival", The New York Times, archived from the original on 2015-07-05, retrieved 4 January 2011
  2. Stroustrup, Bjarne, C++ Applications, retrieved 26 August 2012
  3. Yi, Matthew (16 August 2004), "Little-known startup was behind iPod's easy-to-use interface", San Francisco Chronicle, retrieved November 10, 2012
  4. "About Connectix". Archived from the original on August 6, 2003. Retrieved 2008-02-29.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  5. 100 Million iPods Sold, archived from the original on 16 April 2007, retrieved 4 January 2011
  6. "iPod Classic retired: Fans mourn as Apple quietly kills off its most iconic gadget". The Independent. 11 September 2014. Retrieved 11 September 2014.
  7. "Apple removes iPod nano and shuffle from website hinting at discontinuation". 9to5Mac. 27 July 2017. Retrieved 27 July 2017.
  8. "6G iPod nano hack just beginning of long road to nano apps". Ars Technica. 3 January 2011. Retrieved 2012-09-13.
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