Forgotten Devices That Were The Ancestor Of The iPod.
Before the convenience of an iPod or cellphone to play your media files, we had some forgotten devices along the way. This is a list of the high-tech devices of the time that marked the evolutionary progress of portable media players. Since 2004, when they became affordable and compliant with all computers, iPods and cell phones have been great. We take it for granted that we can carry something pocket-sized that holds multiple gigabits. Then it plays or plugs into whatever we own nowadays. A large amount of our favorite movies, shows, and music goes wherever we go.
You really have to start at the beginning of sound. After all, before you could play media, you had to record it first. Prior to 1857, you had no choice but to play an instrument or go wherever music was being played. The first recording you could get was on glass. Yes, twenty years before Budweiser went into glass, sound did.
A French opera singer, to be specific. The Phonautogram was first introduced in 1857 by Édouard-Léon Scott de Martinville, a French inventor. Tuning forks would pick up vibrations and etch them on glass. It was developed to measure sound waves in speech. The downfall was that it couldn't play the sound back.
That was corrected by none other than Thomas Edison. In 1877, Edison advanced the idea of the phonautograph with his own invention, the Phonograph, which allowed the device to replay the recorded sound. A Phonograph followed the same basic principles as Scott de Martinville’s device. But Edison figured out how to reverse the process. Using a stylus, you would etch the vibration, which we now know as sound waves, into a rotating cylinder. This same machine would use the stylus to read those sound waves. And produce a sound that was amplified through a large horn.
A French opera singer, to be specific. The Phonautogram was first introduced in 1857 by Édouard-Léon Scott de Martinville, a French inventor. Tuning forks would pick up vibrations and etch them on glass. It was developed to measure sound waves in speech. The downfall was that it couldn't play the sound back.
That was corrected by none other than Thomas Edison. In 1877, Edison advanced the idea of the phonautograph with his own invention, the Phonograph, which allowed the device to replay the recorded sound. A Phonograph followed the same basic principles as Scott de Martinville’s device. But Edison figured out how to reverse the process. Using a stylus, you would etch the vibration, which we now know as sound waves, into a rotating cylinder. This same machine would use the stylus to read those sound waves. And produce a sound that was amplified through a large horn.
The Phonograph was nice to have in your home, but if you were on the go, the first portable media player was a big tuna can. Hailing from Switzerland, the Mikiphone, introduced in 1924, continued the evolution of portable media. It was still a wind-up machine, but you could keep it in a can and carry it with you.
Once cars were invented, people wanted to rock out during their drives. The radio was fine, but people wanted to pick what they jammed to. Highway Hi-Fi was the first way you could have the music you wanted in your car. This device was placed under the dashboard. And you could play special 7inch vinyl records.
The creator of this technology, Peter Goldmark, developed it at CBS Labs. Developed the technology specifically for the system with 7-inch discs that utilized 16.66 RPM. Regular 12-inch records were too big. And regular 45s didn't have enough playtime for two songs on a single side. They didn't want folks driving off the road trying to put on a new record every three minutes. These 7-inch records played for about an hour per side.
The creator of this technology, Peter Goldmark, developed it at CBS Labs. Developed the technology specifically for the system with 7-inch discs that utilized 16.66 RPM. Regular 12-inch records were too big. And regular 45s didn't have enough playtime for two songs on a single side. They didn't want folks driving off the road trying to put on a new record every three minutes. These 7-inch records played for about an hour per side.
We all know that Cassettes and CDs have a variety of portable players that ruled the 80s and 90s. But there were other devices that tried their hands in the game.
Digital Audio Tape.
DATs were introduced in 1987, and this was the first thing that could carry audio and data. With tapes that could have up to 180 minutes of audio. Sized about half that of a cassette, this was to be the next step. They record digitally at equal-to-CD quality if you're using a slower speed. It was a moderate seller in the professional music market. And later, it was successful as a computer storage device. But consumers just didn't catch on.
They were created like video recorders with a helical scan to record data. Instead of mere magnetism like other audio tapes. The Japanese industry used a much stronger tape format in a Pulse Code Modulation tape. But it wasn't made available for public use. So, the better product was held back, while the lesser product was made for consumers.
But what really killed it was that American companies were worried about piracy. The Recording Industry Association of America stood fast against the tapes. The microphone-to-recorder technology was the best up to that point. They were actually right, as a ton of bootleg concert recordings from the 1980s came from DATs. But they were also afraid of people selling illegal copies of music. So, with Sen. Al Gore on their side came the copycode. So, when you recorded a professional tape with the code, it would be distorted beyond being listenable.
DATs were introduced in 1987, and this was the first thing that could carry audio and data. With tapes that could have up to 180 minutes of audio. Sized about half that of a cassette, this was to be the next step. They record digitally at equal-to-CD quality if you're using a slower speed. It was a moderate seller in the professional music market. And later, it was successful as a computer storage device. But consumers just didn't catch on.
They were created like video recorders with a helical scan to record data. Instead of mere magnetism like other audio tapes. The Japanese industry used a much stronger tape format in a Pulse Code Modulation tape. But it wasn't made available for public use. So, the better product was held back, while the lesser product was made for consumers.
But what really killed it was that American companies were worried about piracy. The Recording Industry Association of America stood fast against the tapes. The microphone-to-recorder technology was the best up to that point. They were actually right, as a ton of bootleg concert recordings from the 1980s came from DATs. But they were also afraid of people selling illegal copies of music. So, with Sen. Al Gore on their side came the copycode. So, when you recorded a professional tape with the code, it would be distorted beyond being listenable.
Minidisc vs Digital Compact Cassette.
As the 1990s rolled around, digital technology was slightly upgraded, and we fought over it—or at least manufacturers did. In 1992, Sony released to the world the Sony MZ1. The first portable player to introduce the Minidisc. You might think, 'Well, it's just a small CD'. But that would be wrong. The selling point for this is that you could get 1 gigabyte of data on one disc. Which would be up to 45 hours of music. If you got the Hi-MD, the sound quality would be unbeatable. And it was re-recordable before CDs were.
It had great sound quality. They had a front loader for the disc. So you didn't have the problem of being careful not to break the door off. Plus, it had It had a lot of controls. The downside was its weight and poor battery life. The players did a killing in Asia and Europe. While they were available at Target and BestBuy. The Minidisc didn't really catch on in North America.
Instead, North America stood behind Philips/Panasonic's Digital Compact Cassette. D.C.C was like someone taking the wheel or fire and trying to reinvent it. It was just like a cassette, where you could record or play. The selling point was the increased sound quality of new releases. When you make a cassette of a cassette, there is sound loss. But this tape would keep the same quality no matter how many generations away it was from the source tape. And it slid open like a floppy disk.
With the two, it ended up being like the 70s/80s Betamax vs. VHS all over again. But there was no winner. There was market confusion that hurt both products. Plus, the cost of both was pretty high. Retailing at $50-$80 in 1992, which would be $110 to $175 in 2023.
It had great sound quality. They had a front loader for the disc. So you didn't have the problem of being careful not to break the door off. Plus, it had It had a lot of controls. The downside was its weight and poor battery life. The players did a killing in Asia and Europe. While they were available at Target and BestBuy. The Minidisc didn't really catch on in North America.
Instead, North America stood behind Philips/Panasonic's Digital Compact Cassette. D.C.C was like someone taking the wheel or fire and trying to reinvent it. It was just like a cassette, where you could record or play. The selling point was the increased sound quality of new releases. When you make a cassette of a cassette, there is sound loss. But this tape would keep the same quality no matter how many generations away it was from the source tape. And it slid open like a floppy disk.
With the two, it ended up being like the 70s/80s Betamax vs. VHS all over again. But there was no winner. There was market confusion that hurt both products. Plus, the cost of both was pretty high. Retailing at $50-$80 in 1992, which would be $110 to $175 in 2023.
Power CD.
You can thank Apple for this 1993 device. They created a division called the Mac Like Things. One of their main goals was to upgrade CDs. And make a portable CD player and a CD-Rom external reader. Their hard work produced the Power CD.
This device could also connect to non-CD-ROM Apple computer products like Powerbooks. Also, it reads photo CDs on its own. So you could hook it up to your television. And have your pictures on your screen like you were a movie star. That was a pretty good selling point. You couldn't add your photos to your phone or online in 1993. But you could put them all on a Photos CD and share them with whoever also owned the PowerCD.
So, this was the ancestor of any of the portable device readers or USB media. Built to look like any other stand-alone CD player. The speakers that came with the unit were a different color. The speakers that did match their color were sold later.
The 1993 price tag, you might ask, is $500. That would be over $1,000 in 2023. In 1993, you could buy a car for $500 and get a solid year's worth out of it. So, with the heavy price, and light market need, it went out in a few years. If you Google 'PowerCD' you'll see that Apple pretends it never existed.
You can thank Apple for this 1993 device. They created a division called the Mac Like Things. One of their main goals was to upgrade CDs. And make a portable CD player and a CD-Rom external reader. Their hard work produced the Power CD.
This device could also connect to non-CD-ROM Apple computer products like Powerbooks. Also, it reads photo CDs on its own. So you could hook it up to your television. And have your pictures on your screen like you were a movie star. That was a pretty good selling point. You couldn't add your photos to your phone or online in 1993. But you could put them all on a Photos CD and share them with whoever also owned the PowerCD.
So, this was the ancestor of any of the portable device readers or USB media. Built to look like any other stand-alone CD player. The speakers that came with the unit were a different color. The speakers that did match their color were sold later.
The 1993 price tag, you might ask, is $500. That would be over $1,000 in 2023. In 1993, you could buy a car for $500 and get a solid year's worth out of it. So, with the heavy price, and light market need, it went out in a few years. If you Google 'PowerCD' you'll see that Apple pretends it never existed.
Hit Clips.
Hey, you want to hear 60 seconds of the new N'SYNC song? That was the question asked by many late-1990s teen girls. Hit Clips was a bright and colorful potable music device. And you could literally attach them to a small key chain. Or on the zipper of your jacket. But they only played a minute of music. You would buy these cube-shaped cartridges that went into the player. And that was it.
The extra insult was that the sound was mono, really low-fi. Developed by Tiger Electronics, this device was first distributed by McDonald's but later saw a retail store release. Reviews would later backfire because it's only one minute of music for crying out loud. Who would see this as a long-lasting medium?
Hey, you want to hear 60 seconds of the new N'SYNC song? That was the question asked by many late-1990s teen girls. Hit Clips was a bright and colorful potable music device. And you could literally attach them to a small key chain. Or on the zipper of your jacket. But they only played a minute of music. You would buy these cube-shaped cartridges that went into the player. And that was it.
The extra insult was that the sound was mono, really low-fi. Developed by Tiger Electronics, this device was first distributed by McDonald's but later saw a retail store release. Reviews would later backfire because it's only one minute of music for crying out loud. Who would see this as a long-lasting medium?
At least that bear with a tape deck in its back could play a whole album worth of songs.
VideoNow.
This first carry-around video player was called the VideoNow. Released in 2003, this device's Personal Video Disc (PVD) stored up to 30 minutes of video that played back at 15 frames per second. It's in Monochrome with only 15 frames per second? Not a huge bell ringer.
You had to use software to edit and burn media onto blank PVDs. However, shows like Barney, Dora The Explorer, and Little Bill released shows on PVDs. These held on until 2005, before they were forgotten.
This first carry-around video player was called the VideoNow. Released in 2003, this device's Personal Video Disc (PVD) stored up to 30 minutes of video that played back at 15 frames per second. It's in Monochrome with only 15 frames per second? Not a huge bell ringer.
You had to use software to edit and burn media onto blank PVDs. However, shows like Barney, Dora The Explorer, and Little Bill released shows on PVDs. These held on until 2005, before they were forgotten.
Getting there.
This first real MP3 player came from Korea's Saehan in 1997. Named the MPMN F10, aka MP MAN. it was the next-to-last step. As MP3 technology was the final missing piece from being able to make iPods and transfer media online possible.
However, it was as heavy as a brick. And had a whopping 32 MB of memory. That's less than eight songs. So, it was just better to keep your cassette Walkman nearby. The makers of this should have realized no one would carry around something that heavy with such low use.
The music industry hated the idea of this device. Citing it could only be used to play stolen music. Over the years, downloads have all but phased out physical media.
The first attempt to have a single device that had a camera, video and music player came from the minds of Sony. Can you imagine a hand-held picture camera with headphones sticking out? Then you get the MW-MS70D. It's not a particularly memorable name. With its ugly design, low resolution, and low memory, this device soon went out the door. The heart was in the right place, but its application was not.
This first real MP3 player came from Korea's Saehan in 1997. Named the MPMN F10, aka MP MAN. it was the next-to-last step. As MP3 technology was the final missing piece from being able to make iPods and transfer media online possible.
However, it was as heavy as a brick. And had a whopping 32 MB of memory. That's less than eight songs. So, it was just better to keep your cassette Walkman nearby. The makers of this should have realized no one would carry around something that heavy with such low use.
The music industry hated the idea of this device. Citing it could only be used to play stolen music. Over the years, downloads have all but phased out physical media.
The first attempt to have a single device that had a camera, video and music player came from the minds of Sony. Can you imagine a hand-held picture camera with headphones sticking out? Then you get the MW-MS70D. It's not a particularly memorable name. With its ugly design, low resolution, and low memory, this device soon went out the door. The heart was in the right place, but its application was not.