If it is "cheap" enough (~$100) I would buy it. BUT at the moment the market has cheap mp3 players and expensive Audiophile players and nothing really in between. (I bought a cheapest high-end possible).
I don't believe in audiophile functionality, but wanted good analog output, and uSD card support.
A real problem with making a mp3 player is that you need GOOD software, while pine normally makes without software, and leaves this to the community. So I can only see this project succeed if a software community is involved with it from the beginning.
I love to carry my HUGE collection with me, but that doesn't work with normal mp3 software since they create a database for their (unneeded) fancy features. I just want to pick the a directory (album) from the file tree and play the album.
I even don't use playlists.
Current players that support large uSD for audiophiles who have huge file-size per track (flac DSD ...), instead of huge amount of tracks (small mp3s); where the database stuff starts slowing / failing on the low power CPUs.
So I would love top have a pine player but it will need some software community, I am will to contribute to for my use case.
A solution might be to store the files in directories and only support database based features when a database is available which could be generated with a companion application on the connected PC.
Needed features:
- high quality audio HW, codec and analog amps
- uSD card(s), large xs; minimal 1, expect 2
- headset 3.5mm!
- Large battery life
- minimal audio file support: ogg, flac, mp3
- USB: work as USB mass storage (optional work as USB HQ output codec)
- optional BT: with enhance audio out codecs (which are mainly proprietary) and appliaction control and optional audio in for using the HQ HE to headset.
- control: buttons, touch, BT app?
I would challenge the SW community to come up with a iPodTouch like application for the pinephone.
Sso pine could later make a phone (like) device with better audio output if demand is there, or if no demand we still have a good media player
Mine 2c Paul