Decentralizing Amusement with a new toy
Last year, by targeted marketing or some other forgotten avenue, I discovered a revival of the once beloved portable CD player called RetraDisc. I immediately added it to my online wishlist that I fill with aspirational purchases that friends and family can reference when they want to delight me.
I’m no influencer and this isn’t a sponsored ad for the aforementioned product; I’m just truly excited about it. My friend was nice enough to gift me the device for my birthday back in February. After navigating quality assurance and (I suspect) tariff-driven delays, my much-desired RetraDisc arrived at my old residence in June.
Unboxing RetraDisc by Kickback, a late arriving birthday gift from a dear friend.
So what am I doing with a walkman style device in 2025? Anything you want to hear is online; just pick your platform, search, and play. There are two big reasons a product like this one appealed to me: dusting off and rediscovering old things, and decentralizing amusement. If you care to keep reading, I will explain.
Many people have discarded their old compact discs, and there are logical reasons to do so. Saving space is a valid argument; you no longer have to keep all of the cases and players around when streaming is right there. There’s no lamenting scuffs and scratches on a disc, causing skipping on what generally happens to be your favorite songs. I can go on and on about the drawbacks of the technology and how we’ve moved forward and left those pesky annoyances behind BUT I still have my CDs, nearly every purchase and burned mix from my teen and young adult years.
Yes, something sentimental that has me moving my physical music collection from one dwelling to the next and I’m in good company; my late grandmother did the same. I have her collection of vinyl, nearly 300 singles and LPs. Before her passing, we’d have 45 Fridays. I’d set the record player I once gifted her for Christmas on the glass dining room table and rummage through the (poorly preserved) collection. After cleaning the selected pressing, I’d give it a spin after guessing how good the playback would be. My grandmother didn’t talk much about the past, but some of the songs would get her chatting about the moments they popular. I unearthed new favorites through our Friday tradition: Bobby Bland, Booker T. & The M.G.s, Gwen McCrae.
Recently, Ed Zitron gave a monologue on his podcast Better Offline about the vinyl listening experience that I couldn’t agree with more. It’s easy to forget that simply listening to a good album is a valid and good way to enjoy oneself. That’s what I was after when I saw RetraDisc; the ability to kickback and just enjoy good music like I did as a teenager.
My music collection was hard-earned back then, spending what little money I had on an album that I might’ve only known one song from. As an open-minded listener with good instincts, my purchases were often worth it. The mixtapes we made back then were labors of love, sourcing the recordings (we won’t say how), thoughtfully ordering the songs, burning the disc (it took MINUTES), and handing it to your friend hoping they vibed with it. Everyone who has known me longer than yesterday knows that I have a deep appreciation for music. I want to make space to be alone with these works again, to get away from the passive consumption of music. I think decentralizing the music-listening experience (my second reason) is going to be key here.
Funny little card packaged with the RetraDisc.
We all agree that smartphones have changed everything about how we live our lives. They can meet nearly all of our needs, but recently I’ve been reflecting on what’s lost in having one device to rule them all. It’s no surprise we’ve developed this intense attachment to our phones. They are how we talk to people, get from place-to-place, date, read, ideate, share, stay updated on current events, and entertain ourselves. The smartphone and its network of apps is truly remarkable; but we’ve all become familiar with how it can be just as much a powerful force for mind-numbing distraction as it is for meaningful engagement. There have been countless times when unlocking my phone to do one thing has led me away from the intended task to a wholly unrelated one.
I didn’t plan on writing on like this; but to land the plane on the decentralization idea, I want to shift some of my appreciation and amusement away from the one-stop-shop that is my cell phone. I think it’s okay for a device to have a singular purpose. With RetraDisc, it’s only ever music-listening time. I’ve been playing the albums I forked over my limited funds to buy long ago. I’m reconnecting with some music that I truly forgot but still enjoy. The first disc I played when I charged up the cd player was Friendly Fires. The moment of repite on my sofa brought a big smile to my face. No choice fatigue, no skipping around: I just let the whole thing play. Somehow the fidelity of the sound is better than I remember too.
Physical music is one of my favorite forms of print design. The booklets combine the talents of so specialists: photographers, typographers, graphic designers, etc. PLUS, I love to read the credits and learn of all the producers, writers, and community members who helped bring the project to life.
OKAY, so what do I think about the RetraDisc? I love it so far. It’s bluetooth enabled, rechargeable, and has some recording features (idk if I will use). It’s been working well, aside from some small playback issues with bluetooth; but I like to listen with a corded headset to keep me from trying to multitask (haha). The real MVP is my diverse selection of well-kept CDs. I recommend it for anyone who couldn’t bring themselves to get rid of their music library and wants to put it to use again. Additionally, with the rise of AI music and the well-documented exploitation of artist by the major streaming platforms, I am glad to have the option to buy vinyl and cds again to support the artist directly. If I run out of space, I’ll hit Bandcamp and buy digital albums (did I mention the player has a micro sd slot?).
If the player breaks or malfunctions, I will update this post.