MiniDisc - An Appreciation
What it is
Techmoan's 45-minute retrospective on Sony's MiniDisc, covering the first and last machines, ATRAC, MD-LP, Net-MD and HiMD. It argues the format deserves more credit than its US failure narrative suggests.
Why Hacker News recommends it
The standard recommendation for MiniDisc history, especially as a non-American counterpoint to the failed-format story.
- 5 people recommended it
- 5 different months
- 1 strong recommendations
- first 2019, last 2023
What HN commenters said
“Wonderful video about the format”
Appreciation of the MiniDisc format and its success outside the USA.
LeoPanthera, 2019-04 · Strong recommendation · in “Ask HN: Which great products didn't succeed?”
“TechMoan on Youtube have a few videos about the MiniDisc format for anyone interested.”
Techmoan videos about the MiniDisc format.
sorenjan, 2020-03 · Recommendation · in “Dumping MiniDisc Media”
“I recently enjoyed this mini-documentary”
Mini-documentary with a lengthy history of MiniDisc devices.
mikepurvis, 2020-10 · Recommendation · in “Building replacement proprietary battery packs”
“British viewpoint by Techmoan”
British viewpoint pushing back on the American-centric MiniDisc failure narrative.
zinekeller, 2021-06 · Recommendation · in “The MiniDisc: the failure of a forgotten format (2020)”
“Reference to Techmoan is de rigeur”
Techmoan's take on the MiniDisc craze.
NoZebra120vClip, 2023-04 · Recommendation · in “Minidisc FAQ: MDLP (“Long-Play”) Mode Topics”
Excerpts from Hacker News comments, linked to the originals. Summaries and labels were written by a language model from those comments.
Topics: minidisc, sony, atrac, retro tech, audio formats
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