Mp3 for my son?

CaoinDory · 02-10-2020 2:02pm #1

Hi guys,

I want to get my son an mp3 (or some other portable music player) for Christmas.

Hes only 11 but he loves listening to music. I dont want to break the bank (it's not his main present, just a side gift) but want him to be able to have wireless headphones with it... so I think it needs to be bluetooth capable?

Does anyone have any suggestions?

seamus · 02-10-2020 2:05pm

I got this for my daughter:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07V9MW642/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Haven't tried the bluetooth, but I assume it works. Fairly straightforward just copy files across via USB.

The Raging Bile Duct · 02-10-2020 2:05pm

Has he a phone with an SD card slot? Can remember the last time I seen anyone mention an MP3 player tbh. A Spotify membership means he can download songs to listen to when he's offline.

beauf · 02-10-2020 2:07pm

The easiest thing is a phone, since you have streaming service. But that has its own problems.

Recently got one of these. I was looking for one with a sleep turn off, which it does have but you have to set it everytime which is useless. Otherwise ok.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07BF86RK1/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

micks_address · 02-10-2020 2:08pm

CaoinDory wrote: »

Hi guys,

I want to get my son an mp3 (or some other portable music player) for Christmas.

Hes only 11 but he loves listening to music. I dont want to break the bank (it's not his main present, just a side gift) but want him to be able to have wireless headphones with it... so I think it needs to be bluetooth capable?

Does anyone have any suggestions?

does he have a phone yet? phones have taken over really from mp3 players... if not then some options here:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/recommended/tech/best-mp3-player-every-budget/

02-10-2020 2:08pm

There are plenty of inexpensive players on Amazon that would suit an 11 year old. I presume he has a PC or laptop that he has his music on?

CaoinDory · 02-10-2020 2:13pm

[Deleted User] wrote: »

There are plenty of inexpensive players on Amazon that would suit an 11 year old. I presume he has a PC or laptop that he has his music on?

At the moment all he has are CDs... I know we are quite behind the times.

Hector Savage · 02-10-2020 2:13pm

I can understand why one would look for a player thats separated from the phone, I am looking for a decent player that supports lossless audio and has a classic headphone jack .. wanna hook it up to bang and olufsen speakers, I believe there is some loss with bluetooth ?

02-10-2020 2:14pm

CaoinDory wrote: »

At the moment all he has are CDs... I know we are quite behind the times.

In order for him to get them on to a player he would need to copy the music over to a computer then on to the player.

CaoinDory · 02-10-2020 2:14pm

He doesnt have a phone but will be getting one once he starts secondary school. Hes in 5th class now. I just want something to ride him over.

o1s1n · 02-10-2020 2:15pm

I've always quite liked the look of Sony's recent line of MP3 players.

One of the cheaper ones might suit him

https://www.littlewoodsireland.ie/sony-walkman-nw-e394bnbsp8gbnbspmp3-player/1600291418.prd

CaoinDory · 02-10-2020 2:19pm

seamus wrote: »

I got this for my daughter:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07V9MW642/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Haven't tried the bluetooth, but I assume it works. Fairly straightforward just copy files across via USB.

Can I ask how you recharge that one? And how long it takes to recharge?

DopeTech · 02-10-2020 2:40pm

To be honest all the mp3 players these days look so over priced when you consider you can buy a basic android phone for under €100 that can get him access to a wider selection of music than any mp3 player.

If it was me I'd just buy him a basic android phone.

beauf · 02-10-2020 2:53pm

DopeTech wrote: »

To be honest all the mp3 players these days look so over priced when you consider you can buy a basic android phone for under €100 that can get him access to a wider selection of music than any mp3 player.

If it was me I'd just buy him a basic android phone.

The issue is you don't to give an 11yr the internet in their pocket.

A dumb phone and a dumb mp3 is the way to go.

I've gone the smart phone route but have gone back to dumb MP3 player for the most part. You can also use something like disney Circle+ but thats a huge PITA compared to simple and cheap MP3 player.

beauf · 02-10-2020 2:55pm

Hector Savage wrote: »

I can understand why one would look for a player thats separated from the phone, I am looking for a decent player that supports lossless audio and has a classic headphone jack .. wanna hook it up to bang and olufsen speakers, I believe there is some loss with bluetooth ?

There are different standards of Bluetooth some more HiFi than others.

If you want HiFi level of MP3 player you need to look here...
https://www.head-fi.org/forums/portable-source-gear.15/

beauf · 02-10-2020 3:00pm

Some wireless head phones and some smart watches are are MP3 players. But are expensive.

I'd prefer a kids lose or breaks a €30 MP3 player.

basskebab · 02-10-2020 4:53pm

Creative make some good devices. Here's a one with bluetooth, also works with wired headphones

https://www.amazon.co.uk/SanDisk-Clip-Sport-Wearable-Player/dp/B01LRX3K9Q/ref=sr_1_4?dchild=1&keywords=creative+mp3+player&qid=1601653858&s=electronics&sr=1-4

basskebab · 02-10-2020 4:59pm

If you want to get his music from CDs onto the player you'll need a laptop that can rip the CDs. Check you have a laptop with a CD/DVD drive. You can then use the laptop to convert the Cds into mp3 files that that he can then copy on his MP3 player

If you don't have a CD drive on a laptop you can buy external ones pretty cheaply -
https://www.currys.ie/ieen/computing-accessories/components-upgrades/cd-dvd-and-blu-ray-drives/cd-dvd-blu-ray-drives/dynamode-insixt-external-slimline-usb-cd-drive-black-04877726-pdt.html

gandalfio · 02-10-2020 5:05pm

beauf wrote: »

The issue is you don't to give an 11yr the internet in their pocket.

A dumb phone and a dumb mp3 is the way to go.

I've gone the smart phone route but have gone back to dumb MP3 player for the most part. You can also use something like disney Circle+ but thats a huge PITA compared to simple and cheap MP3 player.

Totally agree re internet access.
Is there any device Spotify can be used on that isn't a phone?
Or if using an mp3 player, where do you get all the music from to load onto it? Is there a site that has a vast selection for free?

endacl · 02-10-2020 5:10pm

beauf wrote: »

If you want HiFi level of MP3 player you need to look here...

HiFi MP3?!?

02-10-2020 5:31pm

gandalfio wrote: »

Totally agree re internet access.
Is there any device Spotify can be used on that isn't a phone?
Or if using an mp3 player, where do you get all the music from to load onto it? Is there a site that has a vast selection for free?

A lot of DAP's can side load Spotify or some even have it pre installed.
Those devices would be a bit much for an 11 year old. Price wise i mean.

_CreeD_ · 08-10-2020 4:01pm

If you're going with Wireless phones then the player is little more than storage and a UI. I'm not demeaning wireless here btw, yes you lose some quality with all bluetooth codecs but some of the current higher-end ones (AptX-HD, LDAC etc.) are pretty damn good and a fair trade off for the convenience in a lot of cases. Dedicated DAPs tend to give you better options only really if you're sticking with wired, then the quality of their DAC and output stages really make a difference, as long as you are prepared to invest in quality phones to match. On the downside most are based on relatively old android versions or worse have a proprietary OS where you are reliant on the vendor to regularly update their versions of streaming apps. I have some great quality players now basically gathering dust because I got sick of apps repeatedly falling out of compliance. When I do need to travel again more often I'm just getting a good portable DAC for my phone, otherwise sticking with it alone and my wireless phones.

Sorry rambling a bit. Back to the point, I would reconsider the recommendations above to get a cheap phone instead. Then use parental controls to lock it down to Airplane mode (or at least no SIM installed and Wifi locked under the parental control). You'll have better and more reliable software compatibility with all the features you need for playback to wireless, no need to splurge on a high end model for processing/dac etc. When you need to update content you unlock, then lock again when done.

WhatsGoingOn2 · 08-10-2020 4:06pm

How about this?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07KJY8QMK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_7PYFFb2CBF8RP

seamus · 08-10-2020 4:17pm

CaoinDory wrote: »

Can I ask how you recharge that one? And how long it takes to recharge?

Standard micro USB cable, like most electronics. Charges fully in 3-4 hours.

Padre_Pio · 08-10-2020 4:26pm

Get a cheap android phone, lock out the web browser, no SIM card.
That way he has a MP3 player, he can download apps (so long as you have a password) and he can maybe use spotify or something similar if you have it.

In time you can put a SIM in, maybe locked to only family numbers, then give him more features as he gets older.

Badabing1 · 12-11-2020 10:59pm

Hi
Have the same dilemma at the moment. I was thinking a tablet with Spotify, and would a Google nest mini play Spotify with the Spotify free account or would you have to pay for premium

13-11-2020 12:44pm

Me too: same dilemma.

My daughter (10) wants a phone but we think it's a bit too soon. iPods seem to be phones without SIMs (i.e. WhatsApp etc.)

Seems very hard to get an MP3 player that will connect with Spotify and a Bluetooth speaker? The Mighty Vibe has been mentioned here and keeps coming up on Amazon, but it doesn't seem that user friendly. Am I right to think you'd be plugging into a PC to add songs, make playlists etc?

13-11-2020 1:11pm

Deleted User wrote: »

Me too: same dilemma.

My daughter (10) wants a phone but we think it's a bit too soon. iPods seem to be phones without SIMs (i.e. WhatsApp etc.)

Seems very hard to get an MP3 player that will connect with Spotify and a Bluetooth speaker? The Mighty Vibe has been mentioned here and keeps coming up on Amazon, but it doesn't seem that user friendly. Am I right to think you'd be plugging into a PC to add songs, make playlists etc?

If a player doesn't have the ability to stream then you have to transfer music from PC onto either an sd card or the players internal memory.

beauf · 13-11-2020 1:47pm

Deleted User wrote: »

Me too: same dilemma.

My daughter (10) wants a phone but we think it's a bit too soon. iPods seem to be phones without SIMs (i.e. WhatsApp etc.)

Seems very hard to get an MP3 player that will connect with Spotify and a Bluetooth speaker? The Mighty Vibe has been mentioned here and keeps coming up on Amazon, but it doesn't seem that user friendly. Am I right to think you'd be plugging into a PC to add songs, make playlists etc?

That it in a nutshell. It very technical to get a device that has access to the streaming services, but can be locked out of everything else. You have to have a third party app that locks out all other apps.
Ironsically Windows Mobile used to do this.

Also if you use streaming services you are unlikely to have an offline copy of the music to be able to copy it somewhere else.

I've used a couple of Dumb phones with access to some sevices like whatsapp, and they were brutallly bad.

Badabing1 · 13-11-2020 3:27pm

Am thinking of this route, if someone can tell me if I'm wrong, would a tablet with Spotify account on it, then log into that Spotify account on the Google nest mini, and play Spotify songs through your WiFi, rather than Bluetooth?

gandalfio · 14-11-2020 12:12pm

Is it possible to take a disused smartphone, and delete/disable every app and feature apart from Spotify?

Mp3 for my son?

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