A simple MP3 for my Dad?

[ProfessorDent]

I can sort of get him to work the CD player but that's as far as it goes. iPods are a bit fiddly and frankly I don't even have an MP3 myself. Is there a straightforward version with big keys? A shuffle ability would be good, so it becomes like a jukebox. The advantage is the sheer volume of songs.

BTW anyone know if it is possible to shuffle WITHIN a playlist, so if it is 1970s stuff on one playlist, you needn't go thru it in predictable order? Or will a shuffle always mix David Soul and Abba with Glen Miller and Noel Coward on another playlist?

[gingeroots]

Are any of these any good ?

www.rnib.org.uk/shop/Pages/Category.aspx?Category=usb_memory_stick_players

Huge gap in the market if not .

Or do they make something for children that would fit the bill ?

I had my mum using a Tomy cassette player in the past - big buttons ,simple .

[gingeroots]

PS sorry should have said - I don't actually understand what MP3 means or is .

[tribpot]

It's certainly possibly on an iPod/iPhone to shuffle within the playlist, so if you're having a death metal day (as I'm sure your dad does from time to time ) you can shuffle through those without suddenly getting a blast of Greensleeves in the middle.

I would have thought a music app on an iPod with big buttons would help with the fiddly - you don't have to use the inbuilt player app. Maybe something like this? Or this one is all controlled by gestures, not pecking at tiny buttons on the screen.

[ThinkAboutItOnBoxingDay]

I have the same challenge for my godmother. She is going blind and really missed books. Thing is how do we download stuff for her? She doesn't have wifi (or a computer). Any ideas?
I agree it is a big gap in the market.

[tribpot]

Most of these devices have quite a lot of accessibility features, such as voice control. They can't solve the problem of no wifi though!

For audio books, you could set up an Audible account and download books for her, although the device would need to be in a wi-fi zone for that to be feasible, really. A 3G enabled Kindle would solve the wifi problem but 3G is very slow for large files.

In a more low-tech way, she can of course borrow audio books from the library.

[OfflineFor40Years]

This http://www.eldergadget.com/index.php?section=articles_zoom&TAG=senior-friendly-guide-to-mp3-players-15170 is a US site but it might give you some ideas.

[OfflineFor40Years]

Oh bollocks, link not worked on tablet. Sorry.

[gingeroots]

thinkaboutit RNIB have stuff www.rnib.org.uk/shop/Pages/Category.aspx?Category=daisy_audio_players

Offline's link
www.eldergadget.com/index.php?section=articles_zoom&TAG=senior-friendly-guide-to-mp3-players-15170

[ProfessorDent]

Thanks, will have a look at these. The Cassette Player looks good, of course it's not an MP3 but you can play MP3s on it.

MP3 is really any small digital music player like an iPod, but iPod is Apple based.

Otherwise, looks like it's iPod shuffle as acc to the other links, most of these are just too small, expensive or fiddly.

[ProfessorDent]

Generally, the iPod nano looks the best, in terms of basic folders and bunging it on shuffle, you can see the songs when they come up. Order from Apple store, around £130 I think. Or iPod Classic, but that is pricier. You can buy them cheaper in the 'Refurbished' section ie they're second hand.

Never found any MP3s for the elderly, seriously how dumb is that?