Technologies

You Can Turn Your Old Phone Into an MP3 Player. Here’s How

If you miss having an iPod, here’s the next best thing.

Back in the days before smartphones, it seemed like everyone had an MP3 player. The best-known device was the iPod, which debuted in 2001. It wasn’t the first portable media player, but it definitely helped popularize the idea of putting 1,000 songs in your pocket.

MP3 players continued to exist alongside smartphones for some time, and even added support for additional music file formats like WAV, AAC, WMA and FLAC. But as music streaming replaced the traditional practice of buying digital albums and tracks, it wasn’t long before having a separate music player felt redundant. iPod sales peaked in 2008 (the same year Apple launched the App Store for iPhones), and the last iPod was discontinued in 2022.

Still, just because you can keep all your music on your phone, that doesn’t mean it’s always the best idea. Let’s say you’re headed to the gym or going out for a run, and you don’t want to be tempted to check your messages. A separate portable music player gives you all your tunes without the distracting notifications.

Or say you’re somewhere with a poor signal: You’re riding the subway or driving through the woods, and you want to listen to a podcast. You can still access any episode that you’ve downloaded to your phone. But all those files take up precious storage space, which is probably already being used by your apps, photos and videos.

One solution is a 2000s throwback: keep all your music and podcasts on a separate device.

Before you rush out to buy a secondhand iPod or Zune, you might want to dig through that box in the back of your closet. Chances are, you already own a device that can be used as a dedicated MP3 player.

Your old smartphone is perfect for this task; it doesn’t have the classic iPod click wheel, but it can still run Spotify or hold the music files you own.

What are the requirements for turning an old phone into an MP3 player?

Your old phone probably no longer has a data plan. No problem: as long as it can still hold a charge and power up, you can play any track that you’ve saved in your digital music library.

If you can connect your device to Wi-Fi, you can use it to stream songs or podcasts. And if you download your files while your device is connected to your home internet, then you can take them with you wherever you go.

To save your songs and podcasts, you’ll need to use the latest version of your preferred music streaming app. Even if your old phone can’t upgrade to the latest system software, there’s a decent chance that it can still run Spotify, YouTube Music or similar apps.

Spotify can still be accessed on phones that were released eight years ago. You can download the app on any iPhone running iOS 16.1 (supported by devices as old as an iPhone 8 or iPhone X) or above. You have even more options if you use an Android phone: Spotify is supported on Android OS 7.0 (Nougat), which was released in 2016.

YouTube Music has similar requirements: you can download the app on iPhones running iOS 16 or above, and on Android phones running Android OS 8.0 or above.

SoundCloud can be downloaded on iPhones running iOS 16.4 or above, and on Android phones running Android OS 8.0 or above.

Apple Music has the fewest restrictions. The app can be downloaded on iPhones running iOS 10.0 or above, and Android phones running Android OS 5.0 or above.

How to put your music on your old smartphone

If you’re using a streaming app like Spotify or SoundCloud, you can download tracks, playlists and albums to listen to them offline. However, you’ll need to have a premium subscription to the service. (Spotify lets free users download podcasts.)

As for how much music, audiobooks and podcasts you can download, your main limit will be the amount of storage on your device.

Spotify lets you download up to 10,000 songs on up to five separate devices. You can keep your downloads indefinitely, as long as you maintain your Spotify Premium subscription and you access the app at least once every 30 days.

You can’t download individual songs separately on Spotify, but you can download albums or custom playlists. Tap the arrow icon to save the album or playlist to your library. Once they’re downloaded, they’ll be marked with a green arrow icon.

YouTube Music will let Premium users download an unlimited number of songs across up to 10 devices. To save a track for offline listening, tap the three-dots icon and tap Download. You’ll see a checkmark icon appear next to each saved track.

SoundCloud Go and Go Plus users can also download an unlimited number of tracks for offline listening. Tap the arrow icon next to any of your Liked songs and albums.

Apple Music subscribers can download up to 100,000 songs. Go to your library, tap the three-dots icon next to the tracks you want to save offline, and tap Download.

If you’ve purchased any songs or albums digitally, you can access those files from your phone’s music player app. And if you own CDs or other physical media, you might consider saving those tracks to your device with the help of an external disc drive.

Once your old phone is set up with your favorite tunes, all you need to do is find a pair of wired headphones and party like it’s 2005.

Don’t have an old phone? Here are some great portable MP3 players

If you don’t have an old smartphone lying around or don’t feel like setting it up, you can still buy a brand-new MP3 player. These modern devices are compact and easy to use. They’re relatively affordable, with some options under $100. And they include a headphone jack — arguably one of the most important components of a dedicated music player.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Wednesday, Jan. 14

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Jan. 14.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? It’s not too tough, but 8-Across stumped me, so I had to pass on that and fill in the Down answers to solve it. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Abruptly stop texting
Answer: GHOST

6A clue: Shaving kit item
Answer: RAZOR

7A clue: 2024 film role for which Mikey Madison won Best Actress
Answer: ANORA

8A clue: The ancient Chinese used compressed blocks of tea leaves as this
Answer: MONEY

9A clue: Shape of a round chart
Answer: PIE

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Dad’s dad, informally
Answer: GRAMP

2D clue: Capital of Vietnam
Answer: HANOI

3D clue: ___ layer, part of Earth’s atmosphere
Answer: OZONE

4D clue: How you might wake up after sleeping funny
Answer: SORE

5D clue: Cafeteria food carrier
Answer: TRAY

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

Technologies

Google Could Revive Last Year’s Bright Pink Color for the Pixel 10a

Google’s upcoming Pixel 10a is expected to launch in February with some new colors, including one popular ask.

The Google Pixel 9a is one of Google’s most affordable Pixel phones, and it includes one of the most frequently requested colors — bright pink. With the Google Pixel 10a rumored to launch in February, we’re already getting a hint at the colors the new model will come in.

According to Roland Quandt, a regular mobile leaker on Bluesky, the Google Pixel is expected to be offered in obsidian (black), berry (pink), fog (light gray), and lavender colors. However, it’s the berry hue that is intriguing customers.

A representative for Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

«I always love to see phones come in vibrant colors, and it’s especially welcome in more budget-friendly options,» said Abrar Al-Heeti, senior technology reporter at CNET. «Yes, we tend to slap a case on our phones anyway, but just knowing your phone touts a bold color can make it feel like more of a statement piece, rather than a bland piece of tech.»

Pink is one of the most requested color options for the Pixel phones. CNET sister site Mashable loved the color when it debuted on the Pixel 9. Phone rivals like Apple and Samsung are usually expected to offer a pink color option in their flagship and midrange phone lineups, so it’s not surprising to see the berry color on the Pixel 10a.

«I’ll say that Google loves having Pixel phones in pink,» said Patrick Holland, CNET managing editor. «The Pixel 9 and 9a come in peony (a bright, bold pink) and the 9 Pro in rose quartz (a more muted pink). The Pixel 10 series lacks any pinkish hues.»

Quandt also says that the Pixel 10a will have 128GB and 256GB storage models, and will launch in mid-February. That’s earlier than expected compared with the Pixel 9a, which was revealed in mid-March 2025 for a launch on April 10. In terms of specifications, we expect the Pixel 10a to be a modest upgrade compared with previous generations. According to leaks, the Pixel 10 is unlikely to feature a newer Tensor G5 chip, and it’s likely to retain the same overall design as the Pixel 9a.

One leaker, Mystic Leaks on Telegram, expressed disappointment and revealed additional specs, including the absence of a telephoto lens, UFS 3.1 storage, a Tensor G4 chip, a 2,000-nit display and no Magic Cue, which is Google’s AI feature for the Pixel 10.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for Jan. 14, #948

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle for Jan. 14 #948.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle is kind of tough. The blue category, not the purple one today, expects you to find hidden words in four of the words given in the grid. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including the number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: That’s not going anywhere.

Green group hint: End user or customer.

Blue group hint: Ask a meteorologist.

Purple group hint: Not noisy.