Full FeedThe future of technology and MP3 players
I want you to think about your parents or grandparents for a minute, and think about all the times they ask you for help with today’s current technology. I bet more times than not, they turn to you nearly several times a week for simple questions about their phones, computers, GPS, Internet, MP3 players, etc. If you think about it, technology discriminates against older people, as it benefits the young people as they are able to pick up new technology easily. Of course, there are classes such as computer classes that help teach the computer to older people, but those don’t always work. My question is, why not make a simple computer for anyone, especially older people, to understand?
Recently, Sony showed off a new type of MP3 player that specifically targeted the older generations, so they don’t have to always call when the pause button is pressed by accident and they can’t figure out what to do.
“When I was your age, we didn’t have any MP3 player”
If you opt in buying this Sony MP3 player for a relative and they immediately reply with that response and ask why should I want one now, take a few minutes to tell them all the neat features it comes with. For example, the MP3 player’s buttons are raised and clearly illustrated so there is no confusion as to where each function is located on the device. Our elders tend to have poorer vision as well as arthritic fingers, which makes it hard to press down on small buttons. However, with bigger buttons, said person can easily identify where each key is, and then press on it with ease. Have you ever found it tough to read text on your MP3 player, if yes, imagine how hard it must be for people with poorer vision than you. Fortunately, Sony took this into consideration when they made the text a light color contrasted against a dark background in order to facilitate reading.
Unfortunately, I’m not sure the exact dimensions of the device, but it is reported to be bigger than most MP3 players just to make it easier on older people. I know we all like small, concise iPods/MP3 players, but I think the Nano, Shuffle, or any other MP3 player is a little too small for older people. Lastly, I believe it is going to be available in two models, one being a 4GB model, and the other a 8GB model. Due to the small screen size, I highly doubt video playback is offered.
Pricing and Availability
At this time, there is no word on exact pricing or availability. I doubt the price would be too high since it’s a basic MP3 player with few extra functions. As for availability, hopefully it will be out soon because it would definitely make a great gift for many people who enjoy music but suffer from poor vision and arthritis.
The Future of MP3 players
Is this the future of MP3 players? Not exactly, but I imagine it to be part of the future. Whichever companies decide to target older people will definitely profit from it because not many companies have ventured in that direction. Sony is probably the first big name company to do something like this and I hope many other companies follow suit. When I am older, I hope there are still good tech products that suit my needs. As for the normal future of MP3 players, I feel that they will always be slimming down and adding more and more storage space, touch screens, Internet access, and Bluetooth. The iPhone is a classic example of how well music and phone can clash together to form a new, innovative device. Sometimes it does get annoying carrying both an MP3 player and a cell phone, so the future of cell phones will probably contain better music playback.
Our society keeps becoming more and more fast paced, and it’s up to great companies such as Sony, Samsung, Apple, SanDisk, and Insignia, just to name a few, to keep creating efficient devices that match our needs.
Read [Yanko Design]
Check out some more pictures of the MP3 player:
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I find this post really patronising and insulting. I know just as many ‘young people’ who are so-say used to picking up new technology, who can’t figured out how to program the TV recorder as I do ‘older’ people.
on April 4, 2009 at 02:58 PM - LINKMost of the reason anyone of any age can’t work technology is because a) they didn’t read the instructions and b) because they gave up after randomly pressing a few buttons and not knowing what they did, because they hadn’t read the instructions.
My mum is in her 70s and apart from a few basic questions when she first started, she’s happily using a laptop I passed onto her. And not just for surfing the net or writing in Word - she downloaded and installed Audacity after asking me for advice on how she could record things vocally. She learned for herself how to record, edit and save the files and then looked up on google how to get put them in iTunes and from there onto her iPod. All because she read the instructions.
Conversely, 14 year old nephew is clueless about anything more complicated than changing a battery, and his 17 year old sister can just about manage an iPod and iTunes but couldn’t work my iPhone and threw it in the corner in a huff after less than a minute. My mum asked a few questions and immediately started playing. Within 10 minutes she’d downloaded a free copy of a card game app and was winning.
Being old or young doesn’t automatically include or exclude you from technology. Your attitude about learning how to work it does.
Geek Girl,
I see where you are coming from, and I did not mean to insult anyone of any age. I see a lot of young kids these days that can text better than I can, and then I look at my parents and grandparents and they can’t work their electronics nearly as well.
If a child has no desire to learn how to work a piece of technology then they will not even bother with it and get discouraged, while an adult will mess up a few times but work hard and finally understand it. That’s also a valid point. However, if you think about a few DTV transition commercials, they often portrayed an old woman not being able to work a television set due to the DTV transition. In today’s society we often portray older people as not being able to work with technology as well as others.
That is just a stereotype and not always the truth. I wrote this post mainly to show that companies are being open-minded and willing to create devices that fit the needs of older people.
Hope this clears some things up.
on April 4, 2009 at 03:06 PM - LINKThe future of Mp3 Players ...
on April 7, 2009 at 09:21 AM - LINKHow can image it?
Natesh,
on August 3, 2009 at 03:35 PM - LINKPlease do not be misled by Geek Girl’s comment, you did not insult anyone. You were ABSOLUTELY correct! I am a caregiver of my mother - was of my mother-in-law until her passing, and of my father until his passing. My dad would have LOVED to be ‘technologically’ capable of handling a pc - he would have been right in there with the whole process - that was his make up! After his stroke, while his mind was affected to some degree, his ability to work any type of technology other than a remote became impossible. My mother, who is presently 88, loves to listen to old hymns, and when I take my husband’s ipod shuffle over and get her started, she will listen for hours! She HAS tried to learn how to make it work - over and over, but has had hemorrhaging in her eyes so is blind, and has Parkinsons disease so shakes. If I put it on a ‘home’ listening center, she can not hear it as she is very hard of hearing. So, even though her mind is clear, and the desire is there, the ability to manipulate the small little button is not. With her large CD player, she can ‘feel’ which button to push to play and pause - and is careful not to hit any other button. BUT can she see to ‘change’ one cd for another, so if I am not around to change the ‘Bible’ for a hymn cd, she is limited to one or the other. That is why I have tried a second piece of hardware - the shuffle. It puts the sound right up to her ears and she can hear it, but she can not work it, no matter how hard she tries! I teach technology and I do see kids that have problems all of the time, and yes, there are all ages who just can’t do the technology, but what you were saying about making something that would be more ‘user friendly’ for the senior and any handicapped person would be FANTASTIC!
It looks pretty easy to use and ideas such as using raised buttons are excellent but I just wonder if the shape and the overall look will put people of all ages off?
on November 18, 2009 at 05:16 AM - LINK