Apple to Shuffle iPod Displays Next Week at Retail Stores

9to5Mac reports that, starting next Wednesday, Apple Store customers will get a simplified experience, as the company is relocating iPod stock to accessory shelves. The changes will take place on Tuesday night next week in the US and will most likely reach Canada soon.

The changes will give the iPod – once a major product category for Apple – a well-deserved place in its retail stores and speed up the buying process: If customers want an iPod, they can now take one from the shelf without the need to wait for an Apple Store employee to bring one from out back.

The locations of the new shelves hosting the iPod were typically reserved for accessories such as Apple Watch bands, headphones, and iPhone cases.

Alongside the iPod relocation, the refresh will also pull Smart Signs – iPad 2 units used for detailing products in the Apple Store, as they sat near a Mac, iPad, or iPhone displaying relevant information – and will use Macs, iPads, and iPhones themselves to display that information. The new space will be used to place more test devices.

Sources cited by 9to5Mac say that some larger Apple Stores will retain a few so-called Smart Signs (the aforementioned iPad 2 devices), but, to avoid confusion, the company wishes to place more test products on the show floor instead of devices that simply display information. Sources say some customers were unaware that Smart Signs were just informational devices and were surprised to learn that they couldn’t use them as demo iPads.