Something that has fascinated me is the idea that there are programs like the one I featured in this article: Songo#5. These programs turn the retro handhelds into portable, nicely made and tiny digital audio players.
I like the idea that it could give older retro handhelds new life. This program is installed via PortMaster, and it works a dream for a relatively new project on the scene!
Anyway, I briefly cover what it is, and what it does, but the point of this article I did was getting in touch with Riley, who is the developer of Songo. He covers what music means to him, how it influenced his program, and the general how and why he came to making this:
Personally, I like the idea that in some vague way there’s a tiny chance it could reduce some of the waste that I’m sure comes into play with these cheaper handhelds released constantly.
ANYWAY, I hope you enjoy this one. I really enjoyed putting the interview together!
I mean they‘re little Android devices so I expect them to pull that off. Most of them can comfortably run games like Hollow Knight or N64 roms.
No, these are Linux, not Android
That‘s rare for small handhelds but it doesn‘t really change anything.
It changes the way to build software for them and the (size of) the target audience a lot.
We‘re talking about running MP3s on them, you know? Something that has been done on much smaller devices for well over 20 years.
We’re talking about Nintendo Gameboy games on then, you know?
Something that has been done on slightly bigger devices for well over 30 years.
Oh, I do have an ancient mp3 player the size of a lighter. But I rarely use it anymore.
Yet I see myself using Songo#5 on this device. So I do appreciate the effort to provide this software for this kind of niche hardware.