Who's MP3 Player Would be Suited for Rewiring? .. For Big Buttons

Your post makes a great point about the state of product design where it evolves until it's no longer fit for purpose in the wider world.
With an ageing demographic one day us oldies will rise up and be counted (sometime after our nap).
I'd like a mobile phone with buttons you could hit within a second of pulling the thing out of your pocket without inadvertantly putting it into some inextricable unwanted mode.
The prime use of these things often ends up lost in the noise....pencil me in for the full 30 minute rant.
Sorry I can't actually answer your Q, as I neither own nor want want an MP3 player. I get sufficient audio jamming of my brain activity without adding to it.
Oh dear grumpy grumpy puss cat.
Del

Thanks Del.. And just fyi.. it's more of a 'project' than a personal project.. I personally lost interest in buying music before they started to give it all away for free.. For the most part, I'm still at it with the old AM and the FM ... I've seen the top of the audiophile mountain.. and it's not very pretty.

Joe,

I'm not sure how much the "low-end" tablet computers are going for, but I'm sure it's dropping. Just read about the multitude of new models that were shown at the annual CES show (Consumer Electronics Show).

Here's where I'm going with this, how about using the technology to your advantage? Take a 7" tablet PC with touch screen, and come up with a software interface that has LARGE buttons, and LARGE text. It would not be dropped in your pocket, but I don't think you are looking for that if you are going to put Pac-Man size push-buttons on your version.

I'm not an Apple® person, but I just started to wonder, I bet there may already be a "media player" app for the IPAD© that has large buttons and text. Now, the IPAD© would probably be too expensive to use, but I bet there are some tablets coming out that can be had for around $200 or less. How's your software skills? Start learning to write apps for an Android based tablet

Just one idea,

Tom D.

Ted,

Thanks but no thanks.. If you read my post.. I mentioned the nostalgic and the gloved..

I'm aware of the currently available selection.. I was programing touch screens to control audio/video systems when they still ran on rs-232. I even designed and created my own set of large 'on screen' buttons for the graphical user interface and programed all the associated macros..

I digress..

Lets just say this..

If I want an MP3 player.. I want mine made out of wood.. with a wooden handle and maybe wood buttons!? .. I want BIG buttons that you don't have to look at to use.. Buttons that aren't designed for fingers the size of pencil erasures.. ... I want my MP3 player to be beach friendly and have a built in class D amplifier and decent little paper speakers with infinite baffle!.. Oh.. and I want a power supply 10 times larger that last 10 times longer.. Like a D cell instead of a powered peanut..

...I'm not asking for a lot.. I'll even do the work myself on a quiet afternoon.

(just for laughs.. I actually saw a tip on line about operating a touch screen with gloves on) The dumb as hell advice!?!?! cut a small hole in the tip of your glove and pull out your finger to use it!!

come on.. really!? o m G!