Why use a DAP (Digital Audio Player)?

DAPs (Digital Audio Players) or PMPs (Portable Media Players), popularly known in Brazil as “MP3 players,” were very popular from the early 2000s until around 2010. At that time, the most famous models were Apple’s iPods and Sony’s Walkman devices, but there were also models from Samsung (YP-T10), Cowon (Plenue D), SanDisk (Sansa Clip), Philips (GoGear), Microsoft (Zune), among other brands.

With the popularization of streaming services and the rise of smartphones, DAPs ended up having their market share significantly reduced. Around 2010, there were no Digital Audio Players capable of running music streaming apps such as Spotify, but the first Android smartphones began to appear, and they featured headphone jacks.

In 2014, Sony was one of the first companies to bring an Android-based DAP to the market, launching the Walkman NW-ZX1. About a year later, the Chinese audio equipment manufacturer FiiO released the X7, its first Digital Audio Player running Google’s operating system. From that point on, PMPs began to gain popularity again.

With Android present in Portable Media Players, it became possible to download music streaming apps such as Spotify and Deezer and gain access to millions of albums from artists around the world. This led part of the audience that previously used PMPs to start looking for them again.

However, having the ability to run streaming apps—just as smartphones already did—was not a strong enough advantage to convince some people to buy a DAP. That was when Chinese companies began launching Digital Audio Players with more advanced DAC (Digital-to-Analog Converter) chips and more powerful amplification systems compared to smartphones, laptops, and older PMP models.

Nevertheless, as the output power of DAPs increased, their energy consumption also rose considerably. Even though the apps themselves did not consume many chipset resources, the battery would drain quickly, forcing manufacturers to use lithium-ion cells with increasingly higher capacity.

As a result, the Digital Audio Player market became flooded with increasingly larger and heavier models, as consumers wanted devices powerful enough to drive not only portable headphones (in-ears, earbuds, on-ears) but also over-ear headphones, typically used at home.

In August 2025, FiiO founder James Chung said in a post on the Chinese social network Weibo:

“In recent years, the output power of portable devices has been increasing, but there are still limitations, as we need to balance heat, size, weight, and battery life. This means we are getting close to the limit.”

In 2024, the direction changed once again with the launch of a DAP called the FiiO JM21. According to official specifications, this device is capable of delivering up to 700 mW from its balanced (4.4 mm) output at 32 ohms. Despite its massive power, it weighs only 156 g, is as thin as a smartphone at just 13 mm thick, and is compact thanks to its 4.7-inch display.

In the end, even with all these changes, there are still people who do not find it advantageous to use a Digital Audio Player, or simply feel that this type of device does not fit into their routine. Therefore, below I will explain the advantages and disadvantages of using a DAP.

Why is it interesting to use a DAP?

When using a DAP, there are several aspects that make it an interesting device for listening to music:

1 – More precise volume adjustment: there are numerical references, smaller volume steps, and three different gain levels [1] to adjust according to the impedance and sensitivity of the headphones.

2 – Physical buttons for music control: these allow you to perform simple commands such as play, pause, skip forward, or go back without turning on the screen, as well as adjust the volume.

3 – Battery consumption is not shared: greater energy efficiency, since there are no processes running for purposes other than music playback.

4 – Multiple connection options: there are more ways to connect devices, including:

• Bluetooth receiver: allows the user to receive audio data via Bluetooth from another device, such as a smartphone or TV.
• Coaxial S/PDIF cable with 3.5 mm to RCA connector: transmits audio to a DAC or an automotive audio processor (DSP).
• Line Out: transmits audio at a fixed maximum volume to an amplifier via a 3.5 mm or 4.4 mm to RCA or XLR cable.
• USB cable: allows audio transmission to a desktop DAC, using the DAP only as a player, without using its internal DAC and amplifier. It also allows receiving audio from a computer and using the Digital Audio Player as a USB DAC/amp or an “external sound card.”
• Bluetooth transmitter: for connecting Bluetooth headphones or speakers.

5 – Audio-focused hardware: circuitry designed to protect against interference and ensure better audio signal transmission.

6 – No distractions: while smartphones have many distracting apps, a music-dedicated device encourages focus and dedication to listening to albums and playlists.

7 – Headphone outputs: there are two headphone outputs—a 3.5 mm single-ended (SE) and a 4.4 mm balanced output. Meanwhile, smartphones with headphone jacks are becoming increasingly rare, and if you want to connect wired headphones to them, you will need to buy a portable USB DAC/amp, commonly known as a “dongle” or “headphone adapter.”

8 – MicroSD card slot: allows you to store music on the card or download tracks from streaming services for offline listening.

9 – Audio transmission with minimal interference: Android on DAPs is modified to ensure audio playback with as little interference from the operating system as possible. This is achieved by bypassing the SRC (Sample Rate Conversion) [2] applied by Android’s audio APIs and by granting exclusive OS-level audio access to the music app that is currently running.

10 – Higher output power: it is possible to use high-impedance over-ear headphones thanks to the higher output power compared to smartphones and laptops. For better performance, this power can be controlled using different gain levels.

[1] Gain levels allow for smarter use of the device’s available power, enabling more precise volume control. Low gain is ideal for high-sensitivity, low-impedance headphones (e.g., in-ears and earbuds), while high gain is ideal for high-impedance, low-sensitivity headphones (e.g., over-ears).

[2] SRC (Sample Rate Conversion) performs resampling, converting all audio files to a 48 kHz sample rate.

When does a DAP stop being interesting?

There are times when, depending on our routine or how we listen to music, a DAP may no longer be an attractive option. These include:

1 – High power consumption with Wi-Fi enabled: when Wi-Fi is turned on to use streaming services, power consumption tends to be higher compared to a typical smartphone. The alternative is to download music for offline listening, making sure to set the microSD card as the storage destination in the streaming app.

2 – High price: when buying a DAP, you are paying for all the features included and for its ability to play music independently, without relying on any external device. A cheaper alternative, when the features provided by a Digital Audio Player are not so important, is a portable DAC/amp.

3 – Features that may not be relevant to the user: having many available features does not always make a difference for everyone, as some people simply want a device that delivers better sound quality—even if that means using two devices, such as a smartphone plus a portable DAC/amp with Bluetooth receiver functionality.

4 – Becomes a second device to charge: depending on how the DAP is used, the user may need to charge it frequently alongside a smartphone, which can be inconvenient for some people.