mp3/mp4 players

[cwc]

I have had it with my ipod and my friends ipod.
I am looking for a mp3 that I can usb mount and drop (copy with thunar or terminal) mp3 or mp4 to it.
mp4 is not necessary but I cant rule it out.

mp3 is the priority and the smaller the better.

Please throw me a bone.
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[eccerr0r]

Just wanted to mention that there's the USB-storage and the MTP (media transport protocol) USB media players protocol to write/read music/whatever to the device. I think the USB-storage ones are not the "right" protocol for these things unless the device is completely disabled while connected to the computer; if you expect it to be somewhat functional (able to browse/play media, etc.) then MTP is the better protocol.

MTP is supported by gvfs so they can be accessed as a "directory" in Thunar but are not normally visible as a directory because of its restrictions of file locking. USB storage, which by definition cannot lock (though you can fake it and risk data loss) you can access via normal directory traversal, of course.
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[szatox]

Honestly it sounds like pretty much any 30$ off-the-shelf mp3 player from 20 years ago. Apparently similar devices start at around 5$ now, so just risk it.
Those things tend to act like any other memory stick when plugged into USB port, no special protocols required.


Edit: an mp3 player does not have to be "functional" in any capacity at all when plugged into a PC. You have a whole PC on you, just use it instead in the meantime.
Edit2: there are models with a rechargeable battery as well as with a replaceable battery. Although I don't recall battery life to have ever been a problem, the latter might be a better option for very intense use. In particular if you have some A4 NiMH cells around. The ones with replaceable batteries look like thick pendrives, while rechargeable tend to be flatter, shorter, wider, and more rectangular, and come with a USB cable. instead of just a USB plug. Just in case you need some keywords to find the one in shape you prefer
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[eccerr0r]

The reason why is that an old phone will work just fine as an mp3 player, granted the size restriction might be an issue. These indeed multitask and hence MTP is the preferred protocol versus USB-storage. I'd venture there are a few music players that can likewise multitask even if it's not exactly necessary, or perhaps letting a PC as a charger while still allowing content modification, and these should be MTP.

While USB-storage is very nice, there are reasons why MTP/PTP were invented... In any case both USB-storage and MTP can be found, and it's not clear whether it's a restriction or not.
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Intel Core i7 2700K/Radeon R7 250/24GB DDR3/256GB SSD
What am I supposed watching?

[lars_the_bear]

I'm a big fan of the old Cowon D2 and similar. Tiny, great battery life, (almost) instant on/off, plays nearly any audio format, bookmark support, great sound quality, USB storage support, takes SD cards, blah, blah...

But I don't think you can buy them any more, even used. Smartphones killed this industry.

These days what I have is an old Samsung S10e -- very small, by smartphone standards -- which I rooted and stripped off everything that isn't needed for media playback, including all the cell stuff. That way it gets about a week's use between charges.

The problem with the $5 "mp3 players" is that they tend to have crappy sound quality, weird user interfaces, poor storage, and no support for uncompressed and hi-res formats.

BR, Lars.

[cwc]

Thank you for all the input. This is more that I expected. There is no clear choice for mp3 players due to additional options (bluetooth) and sound quality goals.
Now I am looking for bluetooth because I have a SHOKZ headphone.
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Without diversity there can be no evolution:)