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Comment by alkonaut | Hacker News Reader

I'd pay for a thing that does streaming, is much smaller than my phone, and has good physical buttons. I don't want to run or sit in the gym with my huge iphone. But I also don't want to collect files, it has to support all the streaming services and I need to be confident it supports the ones tomorrow as well.

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If you are on Spotify or Amazon music, then there's Mighty [1]: iPod shuffle form factor, syncs with the aforementioned services, supports bluetooth and wired headphones.

If you insist on the "all the streaming services" part though, you probably won't find anything at all, because... Apple.

[1] https://www.bemighty.com

That thing looks really nice, and not too expensive either. Too bad it's only IPX4 rated, would have bought it instantly if it was better in that regard.

they have a waterproof version: https://bemighty.com/products/waterproof-mighty-vibe

Strange, that website redirects me to https://mightyaudio.eu/ which only the following products: "Mighty Vibe", "Carrying Case" and "Charging Cable".

Maybe it's not certified for the EU yet?

It seems that the waterproof version is a mod provided by an external company, and currently out of stock [1]. It's a bit more expensive, but also comes with a set of waterproof headphones.

[1] https://www.audioflood.com/waterproof-mighty-spotify-player-...

The device would just need to run Android to support all streaming services because Apple Music has an Android app.

So... What's wrong with these Sony's? They're exactly what you're looking for.

It does seem like the perfect device physically, but the article talks a lot about storage space, CPU speed and screen resolutions doesn't include the word "streaming" and only mentions one streaming service in passing in the last paragraph, unrelated to actual features.

Am I supposed to understand that since it's 2023 a music player does indeed mean "something used to listen to streaming services, not files", and that the fact that it's Android means that the regular streaming apps can be used without issue?

It's not obvious to me (And I'm a geek and regular Ars reader) that this thing even plays streaming music!

I’m 99% sure you can stream Spotify and similar on it. The last generation of Android-based Walkman can do that just fine.

I think they mention streaming briefly because the target demographic for this device is the kind of people who have their own hi-res files available.

I hope Sony fixed the battery life on those, because the last gen was underwhelming on that front.

If it only has wifi then you can only stream what you saved beforehand in areas where there's no wifi access.

But if it has a SIM slot with 4G/5G access then it's nothing more than a repackaged phone.

It doesn’t have cellular network AFAIK.

But again, the target users don’t bother with streaming much, the device just so happens to run android, and that makes running streaming apps possible.

Is there a streaming service in existence that doesn't offer offline playback? It's probably requires a subscription, but a streaming service that can't be used in deadspots or tunnels is kinda useless, don't you think?

> Is there a streaming service in existence that doesn't offer offline playback?

Youtube Music :^]

The YouTube music app has offline playback, if you have a subscription. It can proactively download recommended tracks to a local cache only when connected to WiFi

For me the streaming part is important - I usually don't choose what to listen to before leaving home.

> a streaming service that can't be used in deadspots or tunnels is kinda useless, don't you think?

I think all of them have buffering to pass any dead spot. Also bad reception is a thing of the past where I live and and 30 GB of data makes it all very seamless.

I explicitly mentioned downloads - I didn't mean buffering.

> For me the streaming part is important - I usually don't choose what to listen to before leaving home.

Pre-downloaded mixes are a compromise of discovery and offline playback

So click the "Download" button in Tidal/Spotify/Apple Music?

I mean, if you need cellular, then you're better served with your phone and this isn't for you. It also doesn't have to be for you - use your phone and move on.

> But if it has a SIM slot with 4G/5G access then it's nothing more than a repackaged phone.

A repackaged phone with a quality headphone jack and physical buttons? I'd love to buy that (but unfortunately it doesn't seem to have a SIM slot)

It's an Android device. It has wifi. I really don't see how Sony could prevent its owner from using Spotify (or any other Android app for that matter) on it.

That's why it has Android! For that exact reason, so that you can stream from any service! And you can also have files, yes!

Mate, it runs Android. Of course you can stream music as you can just download the apps to do so. That's the whole point of it running Android and not some other OS (because Android is a bloated hog, but it has apps).

I find it bizarre that you are into technology yet can't infer that.

Not available for sale in the US :(

Have you thought about Apple Watch? Sure it lacks the physical buttons, but from my experience it is quite responsive with sweaty fingers.

Edit: I stand corrected, see comment below.

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I don't believe you can download & save Spotify tracks on the watch itself - it still only operates as a companion app to the main iPhone one. So your only option is Apple Music which is a pile of shit.

It is somewhat of a recent addition, but you can now do that as well: download music and play it from Spotify without having your phone. I think they added it earlier last year, I was using it during summer.

What's the beef with Apple Music? Besides Discovery Weekly on Spotify, they seem about the same to me

Basically, unless you're all in on the Apple ecosystem, most products from Apple suck, compared to the alternatives. Businesses that are active in multiple markets tend to have worse products for each, compared to businesses that focuses on one market.

More concretely, Spotify for me has been a lot better than Apple Music for discovering new music, either via just browsing related artists, public playlists that include what I'm listening to or by following specific people I know have a similar taste to me.

I also like that Spotify includes a EQ that I've found helpful at times, when I cannot control the output device.

Lastly, I frequently change between OSes and devices (iPhone, Android and other hardware) and doing so with Spotify is really easy, it's just the same everyone. Unsurprisingly, it's not as easy with Apple Music. But that use case is probably very low on the priority for Apple, as mentioned before, they prefer to focus on people within their own ecosystem, which makes perfect sense.

Spotify beats Apple Music on performance alone. Search results and playback are instant on Spotify, but have a couple seconds' latency on Apple Music.

The Apple Music client feels like an Electron pile of shit, which is ironic because the Spotify Desktop client is actually Electron and manages to be more performant and feel more native despite that.

Samsung's Galaxy Watch can do that, if you're fine with Spotify and Youtube Music.

Maybe a smartwatch? The main reason for me to buy one was having music using spotify and blueetoth earphones while training.

Apple watch cellular

This only partially ticks the box of "physical buttons," but this is what I use and don't regret it. Apple Watch cellular paired with Bluetooth earbuds (I prefer Powerbeats Pro when running) is a delightful and magical experience that I highly recommend.

Have you considered using a smart watch?

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