Perhaps an actual portable CD player, high-fidelity or not, is not everyone’s cuppa. I mean, sure, some of us appreciate the retro aspect and the memories it brings back, but damn, can you imagine lugging around a CD pouch stuffed with compact discs? Well, this is where a pseudo CD player, such as the Snowsky Disc, comes in. Also from the folks who still believe in that shiny, circular media, which has now been pretty much relegated to bird deterrent duties, the Snowsky Disc lets you treat your sound holes to up to 8,000 songs without a trailer hitched to your truck.
You can pack thousands of tracks from your albums onto a microSD card, which supports up to 2 TB, and enjoy them whenever, wherever, without being at the mercy of the cellular signal or Wi-Fi. Perfect for fervent aficionados of high-resolution music. Though, it can also stream music over Wi-Fi thanks to AirPlay support.
Intentionally designed to look like a portable compact disc player, the FiiO Snowsky Disc blends nostalgic inspiration with modern audio tech, built around a minimalist sound system engineered purely for music enjoyment. Under the hood, it sports a dual-DAC audio architecture carefully tuned to deliver clean, detailed, and natural sound across all file types. It can drive everything from sensitive in-ear monitors to power-hungry full-size headphones.
Audio chops aside, the real star of the show is the circular touchscreen. It mimics a spinning disc inside a CD player while serving a very practical purpose: touch controls. It also displays album artwork, adding visual flair, and for the crooners out there, it can even show lyrics where supported. Yay. This screen also works in tandem with the FiiO Control smartphone app.
Connectivity is fully covered. Wired, you get dual headphone outputs: 3.5 mm single-ended and 4.4 mm balanced. Wireless, LDAC Bluetooth handles high-quality audio, while built-in Wi-Fi supports additional features, including firmware updates. And yes, it also supports USB audio output. With USB DAC functionality, it can double as a digital audio hub for laptops, phones, and hi-fi setups. Thanks to the S/PDIF output, it can even slot into a traditional home audio system.
Interestingly, the player also offers retro sound effects that let you explore classic audio flavors. Honestly, I was cool with everything until this, which made me blurt out, “Why. Why, FiiO?” Anyhoo, moving on. There is a built-in battery rated for up to 12 hours of continuous playback.
The FiiO Snowsky Disc Portable Music Player is expected to drop sometime in January 2026 for US$80.
Images: FiiO.
