4 ms·

THIS is really interesting. There are lots of high quality players nowadays (called Hi-res or DAP), but most of them with very custom / outdated android. Fiio h

THIS is really interesting. There are lots of high quality players nowadays (called Hi-res or DAP), but most of them with very custom / outdated android. Fiio has the ability to sideload android apps with M6 and M9 models, but no open app store. Most of these high quality players work well for music, some of them can even be used as USB sound card, but none of them has a specific audio book app / handling - except of course Apple iPod. With android 12 and a size pretty similar to old iPod classic or iPod touch, the NW-A300 Walkman device is very interesting to me. Slightly too large, but it could run Apps like substreamer (with Navidrome) and AudioBookShelf. I really hope the battery can be replaced and it is repairable without too much hazzle. Similar high quality devices / brands - some of them > 1000$: - Sony (NW-A55) - Fiio (M6, M9, M11) - Hidizs (AP80) - Shanling (M2X, M3X) - iBasso - Astell & Kern - Ruizu - Hiby (R3) - Lootoo - Luxury & Precision / L&P - Cowon

28304283409234 4y ago
What is the software support cycle on this walkman look like? Android 12 is next year's outdated Android.
- sandreas 4y ago
  If it is a stock android it's quite possible that an open variant could be supported some day. These walkman devices have several advantages over smartphones: - Better audio quality (obviously, some also have balanced outputs) - Better Bluetooth high quality transmit standards (LDAC, aptX, etc.) - Smaller form factor (most of the time, some of these are bulky) - Control buttons Something I don't know: Do they support earphone remotes? I bought an LG G5 H850 with a bang & olufsson audio module (Hi-fi plus) - pretty good so far and cheap (< 100$). - Lineage OS support - Audio Jack - Pretty small form factor - support up to 2TB micro sd - an interchangeable battery But it is still to big and the lack of control buttons is pretty annoying, even if earphone remotes are supported.
  - yarg 4y ago
    There's something dirty about the fact that we have to hope that one day we'll be able to install our own operating systems on a linux device.
  - noxvilleza 4y ago
    Also better amplification - many smartphones don't have the power to drive more demanding pairs of headphones. > earphone remotes I've had a variety of DAPs, and they almost all support both Bluetooth controls, as well as inline volume up/down. Not sure what else you'd mean by 'earphone remotes'.
    - sandreas 4y ago
      > Not sure what else you'd mean by 'earphone remotes'. Basically every remote that is on headphones with a cable. Apple devices can nearly all be controlled by e.g. the remote of EarPods, from iPod to iPhone, even MacBooks with 3,5mm plug support these controls: vol+ [upper button] play / pause [middle button] vol- [lower button] next [double tap play] previous [triple tap play] fastfwd [double tap play AND hold on second tap] rewind [triple tap play AND hold on third tap] Unfortunately Apple uses CTIA specs and most non Apple devices use OMTP - so EarPods do not work the same way on Android devices and Android apps often do not support all of these shortcuts. https://thecablesland.com/ctia-vs-omtp/ https://thecablesland.com/ctia-vs-omtp/ Apple really did a good job for the controls, but the hardware (earpods) are really poor quality compared to similar priced in ears (e.g. house of marley or soundmagic e50c).
      - noxvilleza 4y ago
        Gotcha, I didn't know the names off-hand but turns out this doc I'd read does have them specified[https://source.android.com/docs/core/interaction/accessories/headset/jack-headset-spec https://source.android.com/docs/core/interaction/accessories...]. I don't have any Apple products so definitely something that flew under my radar.
    - diffeomorphism 4y ago

28304283409234 4y ago

What is the software support cycle on this walkman look like? Android 12 is next year's outdated Android.

sandreas 4y ago
If it is a stock android it's quite possible that an open variant could be supported some day. These walkman devices have several advantages over smartphones: - Better audio quality (obviously, some also have balanced outputs) - Better Bluetooth high quality transmit standards (LDAC, aptX, etc.) - Smaller form factor (most of the time, some of these are bulky) - Control buttons Something I don't know: Do they support earphone remotes? I bought an LG G5 H850 with a bang & olufsson audio module (Hi-fi plus) - pretty good so far and cheap (< 100$). - Lineage OS support - Audio Jack - Pretty small form factor - support up to 2TB micro sd - an interchangeable battery But it is still to big and the lack of control buttons is pretty annoying, even if earphone remotes are supported.
- yarg 4y ago
  There's something dirty about the fact that we have to hope that one day we'll be able to install our own operating systems on a linux device.
- noxvilleza 4y ago
  Also better amplification - many smartphones don't have the power to drive more demanding pairs of headphones. > earphone remotes I've had a variety of DAPs, and they almost all support both Bluetooth controls, as well as inline volume up/down. Not sure what else you'd mean by 'earphone remotes'.
  - sandreas 4y ago
    > Not sure what else you'd mean by 'earphone remotes'. Basically every remote that is on headphones with a cable. Apple devices can nearly all be controlled by e.g. the remote of EarPods, from iPod to iPhone, even MacBooks with 3,5mm plug support these controls: vol+ [upper button] play / pause [middle button] vol- [lower button] next [double tap play] previous [triple tap play] fastfwd [double tap play AND hold on second tap] rewind [triple tap play AND hold on third tap] Unfortunately Apple uses CTIA specs and most non Apple devices use OMTP - so EarPods do not work the same way on Android devices and Android apps often do not support all of these shortcuts. https://thecablesland.com/ctia-vs-omtp/ https://thecablesland.com/ctia-vs-omtp/ Apple really did a good job for the controls, but the hardware (earpods) are really poor quality compared to similar priced in ears (e.g. house of marley or soundmagic e50c).
    - noxvilleza 4y ago
      Gotcha, I didn't know the names off-hand but turns out this doc I'd read does have them specified[https://source.android.com/docs/core/interaction/accessories/headset/jack-headset-spec https://source.android.com/docs/core/interaction/accessories...]. I don't have any Apple products so definitely something that flew under my radar.
  - diffeomorphism 4y ago