The Playlist Player moves digital music away from your dusty old PC in the study and positions it as a desirable consumer object to accompany a “separate” hi-fi system. The device is based on the rich physicality of vinyl records and turns digital playlists into tangible objects that you can touch, treasure, drop, lose or spill beer on.
Playlist Player from Martin Skelly on Vimeo.
The moment of insight that sparked this idea was the realisation that people invest a lot of time, thought and effort into compiling playlists for occasions, events, special people or moods, but will rarely play them again after that occasion has passed.
There are two parts to the design: the player, and the record box containing five different coloured covers. Once the playlists are chosen and synced to the player with a memory stick, the user customizes the outside of the sleeve with artworks of their choice. This could be photos of a memorable night, someone special, or typed and hand drawn tracklists. Once the record is placed on the player the music begins, illuminating an outer ring of lights. As the playlists plays, rings of light visible through the translucent record move towards the centre of the disc, like a
needle tracking on a record. These lights represent time and not the number of tracks, meaning that your music must be enjoyed from start to finish without the temptation to skip tracks, fast forward or rewind.
The design reference is retro professional and the material choice is reminiscent of the classic seventies hi-fi design.
Martin is a digital product designer who makes working products for real people. He is an all round creative designer with a passion for digital product designs. He combines engineering principles with sound industry design concepts to create highly desirable products.
(Via Martin Skelly)
