N3: An open source portable audio player

[scorche]

As I see it, Rockbox is already on it's way to having a 2.5'' drive DAP.

A minor correction: The Archos hard drive units use 2.5" drives, so Rockbox already has 2.5'' drive DAPs.  

[Bagder]

They had an IRC meeting about the N3:

http://open.neurostechnology.com/irclogs/neuros-2007-06-30.html#tsa129

(was announced here: http://open.neurosaudio.com/node/894)

[talos321]

Just a reference point to the size 2.5 players would be since some probably haven't seen one in a long while.

 I'm like some of the others. I would prefer a large storage player. I would be perfectly happy for a compromise somewhat on physical size. Here's a size reference.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1428/712344616_3d47d9ffb1.jpg?v=0

The first is our beloved Gigabeat f40,
The second a CEC Hi-x6, x8 had the larger screen (which didn't make the port cut),
The third is the Vosonic vp6230 much  larger and thicker due to 3-4 card slots sticking out of it.


Side view:
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1363/712344604_f557ce3858.jpg?v=0



Gigabeat on top of 2.5 player
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1249/713611040_0100fed363.jpg?v=0


Moderators don't consider this as a port request, this is a reference on the size that 2.5 drive players could be.  I'm more than willing to purchase a 2.5 drive player if this slightly bigger size could be obtained.  The CEC is not really much bigger than The Gigabeat. The Vosonic is what the 2.5 players of the past resembled.

[scharkalvin]

The reason for (eventually) having to do an open sourced hw player is that all the currently available players which were reverse-engineered will soon be out of production and no longer available on the used market.
(Well, used 1g-5.5g ipods will probably be available for a LONG time because so many of the damn things were made.  Replacement parts are even still available.)
But other players of choice such as Gigabeats will eventually dry up.  Only the Sansa E200's and C200's are currently being made.  Hopefully the new Sansa view will not be a locked down, un-rockbox-able DRMed monster.
So if we want to have a platform for an open source player to run on, eventually some form of open hw player WILL be needed.  

[GodEater]

That's as maybe, but we still disagree with the choice of components in this one - because they're NOT all open.