Lab+1

__Lab #1 - Compare and contrast a Sony Walkman with an Apple iPod__

The Sony Walkman’s physical construction is bulky and obese. The Walkman is difficult to carry and would have to be clipped onto one’s trousers. The weight of the device may be a nuisance since the user would constantly feel the large player at his/her side. Material used in manufacturing the Walkman feels cheap and easily breakable. Its buttons are mechanical, which would directly alter/make contact with the audio cassette each time a button is pressed.

The interface design is also bulky with protruding buttons along the top. In order for a user to find a song, he/she must fast forward/rewind through the cassette until the desired audio track is found. There is a lid in which the user opens and inserts an audio cassette into the player. There are a few jacks on the side of the Walkman along with additional switches. One of the jacks is needed to connect the Walkman’s headphones. The headphones are placed over one’s head and rests on both outer ears.

As for its technology and delivery of sound, the Walkman would use analog, a format that uses wave patterns. The magnetic head within the Walkman would read these waves and produce sound, delivered through its analog headphones. The Walkman’s technology is simple. There is no software involved. Only batteries are needed to power the device to move its mechanical parts.

The iPod’s physical construction is a slim, thin body with a minimal amount of buttons. All the buttons are located on the iPod’s front allowing everything to be easily visible. Its physical construction focuses more on the design and visual appearance, unlike the Walkman’s unattractive bulky box shape. The iPod’s designer first had the product’s form in mind, followed by the function to fit the form.

The interface design is relatively simple. The iPod is equipped with a click wheel that is touch sensitive, along with three buttons for controlling playback, a menu button to access properties and song lists, and a button in the centre that is used to mimic the “double click” of a computer mouse. The iPod has one jack for its earbuds, which unlike the Sony Walkman, are placed directly into the user’s ears.

Its technology and delivery of sound is in digital format. This format uses 0s and 1s, which is then interpreted by the iPod to produce an audio track and delivered to the listener through the iPod’s analog earbuds. The device is powered using a special battery, which has caused some controversy amongst Apple’s decision to not include an ASIC chip to save battery life (Sherman). The iPod is operational through the use of software. In essence, it is almost like a portable miniature computer, containing many computer components. This includes a miniature hard drive, lithium battery, MP3 decoder, and many other computer chips (Sherman). The technology allows users to store hundreds of audio files onto the device and allow users to easily access and play tracks at any point in time.

__References__

Sherman, Erik. “Inside the Apple iPod Design Triumph.” //Design Chain//. Web. Accessed on 05 Jan. 2010. []