Playaway
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Playaway is the name of a solid-state prerecorded audio player introduced in 2005 by Findaway World, LLC, based in Cleveland, Ohio. About the size of a deck of playing cards and weighing only 2 ounces, it comes preloaded with an entire audiobook or music compilation and can store up to 80 hours of audio. It is one of the lightest[citation needed] digital audio players in the world and sets an automatic bookmark when powered down.
The digital content is loaded at the factory and cannot be changed or copied by the end user. A 3 mm stereo jack provides output to earphones or an external amplifier. Power is provided by a changeable 1.5V AAA cell, allowing it to operate approximately 20 hours before battery depletion. There are approximately 4,700 titles[1] on Playaway and they are typically priced in line with the publisher's suggested pricing for the CD equivalent.
The Playaway is finding favor with public and school libraries, as it avoids the issue of damaged Compact Cassette tapes and Compact Discs.[2] Playaways have also found favor with the U.S. Military Library Program for troops serving abroad.[citation needed] However challenges do lie ahead as libraries and the military come under increased budgetary pressures in a down economy. Playaway has not yet been able to find a suitable model for any market not publicly funded by U.S taxpayers.
As this publicly funded market plateaus in growth and even recedes downward, it is uncertain what market, if any, will keep Playaway afloat. While Playaway was cited in the Inc 500's fastest growing companies, this growth is largely attributable to the sudden acquisition of a military contract as well the availability of public funding before the current economic downturn and reckless public spending during this time period. Playaway will have significant challenges ahead in coming close to maintaining any similar level of growth.
Playaway was designed to provide simple and immediate access to content. The simplicity behind the product (just plug in headphones and press play) has been especially popular among technophobes, busy multitaskers, and also the visually impaired.[citation needed] But critics argue that in an era where so many other devices exist, Playaway is merely adding another device into an already crowded mix, especially as an ever-growing portion of the population becomes technologically adept in the United States (Playaway has yet to create an overseas presence). Whereas today's devices like the iPod can hold immense amounts of content, Playaway cannot be copied over making it necessary to acquire each individual physical title separately. As today's trends are gravitating towards more advanced devices that combine various aspects of one's life (i.e. music, books, internet, phone, e-mail, calendar functions), Playaway continues to promote a strategy that seemingly counters this trend - creating an individual device for each experience.
[edit] References
- ^ As of October 2009 catalog listing
- ^ "Plug and Play Books - Library Launch". Norfolk County Council. http://www.norfolk.gov.uk/consumption/idcplg?IdcService=SS_GET_PAGE&ssDocName=NCC057137&ssSourceNodeId=&ssTargetNodeId=3018. Retrieved 2008-04-03.
[edit] External links
- playaway.com — Playaway home page
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