MP3 players originated from digital audio players (DAP).
In 1979, British inventor and businessman Kane Kramer designed a prototype DAP called the IXI. The IXI was the size of a credit card, included an LCD screen as well as navigation and volume buttons, and could hold its data on an 8MB bubble memory chip. It was capable of playing 3.5 minutes of audio, and though he filed patents for the device it never saw commercial production beyond 5 working prototypes.
The MP3 (MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III) standard was designed by the Moving Picture Experts Group. It was drafted as a standard in 1991, finalised in 1992, and published in 1993.
Audio Highway was the first company to report production of a portable MP3 player in 1996. The Listen Up player and Personal Audio System began shipping in 1997, but only 25 units were made. Its founder and CEO, Nathan Schulhof, is referred to by some as "the father of the MP3 player industry." The device allowed for transferring MP3 content to and from a personal computer.
Chat with our AI personalities