MP3 player history gets lost among the awesome capabilities of the MP3 player: music and video playback, incredible amounts of storage, increasing portability. Knowing about MP3 player history allows you to see just how far these devices have come in their short time on the market. Once a crude way to play music, MP3 players are now pretty much the only way to go.
The MP3 player (which is a format using digital audio encoding), was invented by a German company called Fraunhofer-Gesellshaft. Karlheinz Brandenburg, a specialist in electronics and mathematics, led research at the Fraunhofer Institut Integrierte Shaltungen Research Center to develop the first MP3 player. His research team, comprised of engineers from around the world, worked in conjunction with a man named Dieter Seitzer, a professor at the University of Erlangen who was familiar with audio encoding.
It took several years for the MP3 to be successful. Though Brandenburg began his research in 1987, they were not granted a patent for the MP3 in Germany until 1989. In face, in 1988 they faced such obstacles that they nearly terminated their project. By 1996 the US had given the MP3 a patent.
Although MP3 technology was developed beforehand, the first real MP3 player didn't come onto the market until 1998. Made by MPMAN, it had just 32MB of memory.
From there, MP3 players made advancements quickly. Storage increased; in fact, an MP3 player came out that could hold 2GB not long after the MPMAN. Unfortunately this MP3 player cost over $2,000, meaning it wasn't exactly practical.
Some of the bigger names in technology came out with their own versions of the MP3 player. Sony introduced the MC-P10, but as it wasn't compatible with MP3, it didn't do very well. Since then Sony has brought out several more versions of the MP3 player, finally making them compatible with MP3. Of course there's also Apple's iPod. If it's not the most popular, it's certainly one of the most famous.
These days there are so many MP3 players available, it could make your head spin. Choosing an MP3 player for you probably means doing a lot of research to determine what will meet your needs in terms of functionality and style.
 | Different types of MP3 players do a lot more than play music. If all you want is sound, you can find MP3 players that pack a lot of storage space at an attractive price. |
 | If you've got a good set of MP3 speakers, you can use your MP3 player as your primary source of music. MP3 players were originally designed as an alternative to cassette-based portable stereos, with the main advantage being more music in less space, and no cassettes to carry around. |
 | Sport MP3 players handle the vibrations and the occasional dampness that comes with an active lifestyle. |
MP3 players can pose a real danger of hearing loss or accidents to your child. Before you buy your kids a music player, discuss these dangers and safety rules with them. |
Want to know how to unfreeze an iPod? Get your trusty device up and running again with a few easy tips. |
