We Didn't Set Out to Build Another MP3 Player

How a simple question about Spotify led us to create a new kind of music player.

Back in 2018, we started hearing the same question again and again.

Not from one customer.

Not from ten.

But from people all over the world.

They would ask us:

"Is there a music player that can run Spotify?"

"Can I get a Spotify player for my child without giving them a smartphone?"

At first, the question sounded strange.

Because at that time, the answer was simple:

No.

No MP3 player could run Spotify.

No MP3 player could install Apple Music.

No MP3 player could use Amazon Music.

In fact, almost every MP3 player on the market worked the same way.

You connected it to a computer.

You dragged music files onto it.

You listened to local music.

That was it.

Streaming music simply didn't exist in the MP3 world.

But something interesting was happening.

The questions kept coming.

And every year, there were more of them.

 

The Search Data Told Us Something the Industry Had Missed

In early 2019, we decided to look deeper.

We began analyzing search trends across Amazon and Google.

Thousands of keywords.

Hundreds of product searches.

And then we noticed something.

Searches like:

• "mp3 player with Spotify"
• "Spotify music player"
• "mp3 player with Spotify for kids"

were steadily growing.

To us, those weren't just keywords.

They were signals.

Signals that people still wanted dedicated music devices.

But they no longer wanted music devices designed for 2005.

They wanted music devices designed for the streaming era.

The industry hadn't noticed it yet.

But users already had. 

We Realized People Didn't Want Another Smartphone

The more we listened, the clearer the picture became.

People weren't asking for another phone.

They weren't asking for another tablet.

They weren't asking for more notifications, more apps, or more screen time.

They wanted something much simpler.

They wanted a device dedicated to music.

A device that could run Spotify.

A device that could play audiobooks.

A device that could carry their personal music library.

A device that could fit into a pocket.

A device that wouldn't constantly compete for their attention.

And for many parents, they wanted something even more specific:

A Spotify player for kids.

Without social media.

Without endless distractions.

Without handing a child a smartphone.

At that moment, we realized something important:

We weren't building another MP3 player.

We were building an entirely new category of device.

 

Designing a Music Player for the Streaming Era

Once we understood the problem, every design decision became easier.

It Had to Support Modern Streaming Apps

Spotify.

Spotify Kids.

Apple Music.

Amazon Music.

Audible.

TIDAL.

Deezer.

These apps are constantly evolving.

That meant the device needed a modern Android foundation capable of supporting new app versions for years to come.

Because nobody buys a music player expecting it to become obsolete after a year. 

It Had to Feel Natural to Use

Streaming apps were designed for touchscreens.

Not tiny displays.

Not mechanical buttons.

But we also knew we weren't building a phone.

The device needed to remain portable.

Comfortable.

Pocket-sized.

Especially for younger users.

After countless design discussions, we settled on a 3.97-inch display.

Large enough to enjoy Spotify.

Small enough to disappear into a pocket.

 

It Had to Respect Existing Music Collections

Long before Spotify existed, many music lovers had already built personal music libraries.

FLAC.

APE.

WAV.

OGG.

Thousands of albums collected over decades.

We didn't want streaming music to replace those collections.

We wanted both worlds to coexist.

That's why expandable microSD storage remained a core feature from day one.

 

It Had to Be More Than Music

As we continued speaking with families, another pattern emerged.

Parents weren't only using audio for music.

They were using it for bedtime stories.

Audiobooks.

Reading.

Learning.

Quiet moments before sleep.

So we expanded the experience.

Not toward more distractions.

But toward deeper listening.

 The One Rule We Refused to Break

Throughout development, we kept returning to a single question:

Does this help people focus on audio?

If the answer was no, it didn't belong.

That philosophy shaped everything.

Because we never wanted to build a smaller smartphone.

We wanted to build something increasingly rare:

A device with a clear purpose.

 

In 2020, We Shipped the First Units

After years of research, design, testing, and refinement, the first devices finally shipped.

For the first time, people searching for:

"mp3 player with Spotify"

actually had an answer.

Not a workaround.

Not a complicated setup.

A real product.

Built specifically for that purpose.

 

Looking Back

Today, we're grateful that we paid attention.

Not to industry trends.

Not to marketing reports.

But to the questions people kept asking.

Because those questions led us somewhere unexpected.

They led us to a simple idea:

Technology doesn't always need to do more.

Sometimes it needs to do less.

Less distraction.

Less noise.

Less interruption.

And more music.

That's the device we set out to build.

And years later, it's still the reason we keep building.

 

One More Thing

People often ask us whether we're a technology company.

A music company.

Or a hardware company.

The truth is, we're none of those things.

We're a listening company.

Because this product began by listening to users.

And every improvement we've made since then has started the same way.

By listening.