For the past 20 years the public has experienced three different generations of portable music players, each storing music in different forms. First there was the Walkman (portable cassette player) which used audio cassettes, then there was the discman (portable compact disc (CD) player) which used audio CDs, now we have MP3 players, which store music either via a hard drive or using flash memory. Today in Old vs New the father of get-up-and-go reminisces with his overachieving offspring. Here is what two of our readers had to say about each.

Tka Briscoe: Portable cassette players

What do you remember most about your Sony Walkman?

Mostly, I remember having to rewind, fast-forward and flip my cassettes to get to my favourite tracks. Nowadays, people take for granted just how useful the skip function really is.

Is there anything you miss about the Sony Walkman?

Well, I don't think there is anything really to miss about it. Nowadays, we have the same convenience in smaller packages with even better technology. On second thought though, I suppose persons from that generation, 'ancient people', may prefer the Walkman to MP3 players because of the ease of use. I guess to them it may seem more user-friendly as there is no loading music from computers or worrying about format compatibility and stuff like that.

Demi Wright: MP3 players

What do you love about your MP3 Player?

I love that I can always have all different genres of my music whenever I want, wherever I want. I'm not limited to one single artiste's album. So for the first time, I'm able to play music based on my mood at the time and I believe that's what listening to music is all about.

Comparison charts: Then and now

Portable Cassette Player -MP3 Player

Data storage: audio cassette 30 minutes of audio each side.

Data storage: flash memory, hard drives most can hold more than 1,000 songs.

Data access: serial access music is ordered and can only be accessed in that order.

Data access: direct access music can be accessed directly from one location to the next.