I'm seeing people move from music streaming, to a physical device. But I don't understand why they need a separate device for that?
@kev The Echo Mini software is awful. I have one and I like devices that do one thing well and where I don’t get distracted by all the other things it can do. I turn the mini on. I browse music (with effort). I play music. I’m done. Nothing else tempting me to open it.
But I also have the Doppler player app on my phone which works great as a non-cloud music player.
@kev I use an iPod with Rockbox, I really like the interface and the device is lightweight with a stellar battery. It encourages me to use my phone less, and it's great for things like the gym since I don't care if it gets scruffed up. I've also taken it cycling so I don't have to deal with cell dead zones and the lock button means no accidentally switching songs while it's in my jersey.
I definitely wouldn't buy a new device for this though.
@kev You've missed an important audience segment: those who never moved to streaming in the first place.
I've got three friends and family members who've bought a Snowsky Echo Mini over the past few months because they had iPods years ago, maintained their library, used Apple Music to sync to their phones, and found that Apple Muisc has become really poor for that task over the past six months.
There are probably other app/software solutions but these aren't techy people. A device where they can drag and drop files is much easier, conceptually, to use every day.
@kev I think the main reason is audio quality.
I'm a bit of an audiophile and from what I understand is the quality via impedance, audio file sizes like FLAC, etc are the main points. But they're soooo expensive that I cannot afford them
@kev Great question. Some of my students are doing this and they’ve talked to me at length about why they make this choice. Basically they love music, especially from previous decades, and they want the original experience of how people engaged with music back then. One of my students buys vintage portable CD players in order to listen to bands like MCR and the Strokes. Owning the media as a physical thing is also important, as is listening to music interruption-free.
@kev I think there is a growing discomfort with using the phone for everything. This lets people disconnect a little. And sometimes it's just nice to have a dedicated device for something plus it does not eat away at your phone's battery.
Oh and depending on the device, it is not quite that easy to transfer music over. On the iPhone, everything is siloed away in their own app. So you have to at least import them to your local music library before transferring them to your phone. Meh...
@kev A buddy of mine buys broken West German Dual turntables on the secondary market and lovingly restores them to their original condition, reselling them for a hefty markup to collectors. Used records are very easy to obtain now, especially in chain stores such as Value Village in Canada.
@kev I think that firstly, these devices have better DAC and other equipment. Because they can use all that space just for music hardware.
And the aesthetics are better. Using the phone for everything is boring. With a little inconvenience, you get to experience music as it was before phones.
@kev I could potentially see situations where the form factor is a consideration. If you're a runner or something and don't want the bulk of your phone. The FiiO Echo Mini doesn't seem to address those types of concerns though. Personally, I stream from my Plex server and just carry my phone and my Bluetooth earbuds, but it can be a little clunky.
@kev This could also be tied into a a growing undercurrent of people - especially younger people - wanting time away from smartphones and social media temptations.
@kev I have a separate music player because I spend a lot of travelling on trains, and there is no guarantee of good data on any of the routes. It's incredibly infuriating to start listening to an album only for it to stop 2 songs in, due to lack of connection.