World’s Most Expensive MP3 Player

Portable digital audio players, more commonly referred to as MP3 players, have taken the world by storm since Apple released their original 1.8” 5 GB iPod in 2001. The iPod wasn’t the first MP3 player, though. The first of the modern successors to portable tape and CD players was produced in 1997 by SaeHan Information Systems. Their MPMan, later licensed to Eiger Labs for distribution in North America, held only 32 MB of music.

Since then, MP3 players have become as ubiquitous as cell phones—and they’re status symbols in the same way cell phones are, as well. A variety of expensive MP3 players have been released in the past decade. What follows are the most expensive MP3 players in the world.

Wowing attendees at CeBIT 2006, the TrekStor i.Beat Organix gold MP3 player was one of the first luxury MP3 players. Cast in 18 karat gold and covered with 63 one carat diamonds, TrekStor’s gold MP3 player sold for $20,000 on Amazon. The player’s technical specifications included a gigabyte of memory, a Lithium-polymer battery that allowed an operating time of twenty-five hours, an FM radio, SRS WOW surround sound and even an audio recorder for note-taking.

Over twice as expensive, however, is the Douglas.J Presidential MP3 player by London-based Meng Duo Ltd. When you order your own Presidential, you need to choose not only the gold used in the casing (white or yellow) but also the physical configuration of the diamond buttons set in the front of the player. This expensive digital audio player includes a gigabyte of memory, a 65k color screen for video playback and support for a plethora of audio and video file formats. The Presidential is possibly the most expensive MP3 player in the world at around $45,000. The price includes Class 85 membership to get you exclusive access to a small group of clubs as well as hand delivery of your blinged out MP3 player anywhere in the world.

World’s most expensive iPod - The iDiamond

A contender for the title of world’s most expensive MP3 player has recently surfaced, however, in the iDiamond. This diamond-encrusted version of the iPod Shuffle was offered as part of an auction at the Feast of Albion. The auction also included a chauffeured Jaguar XJ and VIP tickets to see Roger Waters’ final performance of Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon. The iPod and accompanying headphones are made of 18k white and pink gold. There are 430 diamonds on the iPod and another 118 in the headphones. While its estimated worth is around $40,000, its exact value is up in the air since it is a unique item sold as part of a larger auction prize. That fact means it could easily outclass the Douglas.J Presidential as the most expensive MP3 player in the world.