portability vs tangibility

many people in the western world nowadays seem to love "old" music tech, but im talking about the people who weren't around to experience it. there are various crowds who favour vinyls, cds, cassettes and mp3 players, so i was wondering why this is?

to introduce today's method of listening to audio: portability of modern music. its so easy to go on your phone, install spotify or soundcloud or something, and listen. before, you would have to buy a piece of tech, and even then you wouldnt have seemingly infinite music, usually an album by itself. so naturally, the transition to mobile music was inevitable.

but people also love the feeling of holding something in your hands. its similar to wanting to buy a book instead of reading an online copy or investing in a kindle, or buying a physical cartridge for a game instead of purchasing it online, or hanging posters/prints in your room instead of quickly scrolling past pieces of art. it makes your chosen piece of media seem more permanent and special to you, to own it and admire it, and be reminded of its general existence through its... physical existence.

you're more likely to listen to a song on a cd player if you're bored, than listen to that exact same song online, because online there is so much to choose from- and before you can even choose, you get distracted by something else, usually through a notification or homescreen app.

there's also the minority of people who like really specific parts of media only attainable through the physical copies, like the bars along a crt tv or the crackling of a vinyl after its finished playing. part of the reason for this may be nostalgia.

overall, i think its really great that there are so many ways to enjoy media, and customise which ones you want. portability is the counterpart to tangibility.

thank you for reading,

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ callalillie ˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆