There is a wave of belief spreading around the Internet that instead of buying an MP3 player or iPod for your portable music, you could instead use a mobile phone. Mobiles have reached such a technological high in recent years that they’re more than capable of acting as an MP3 player, and indeed many of them also make excellent digital cameras, video cameras and entertainment systems.

So why not use a mobile phone instead and save the money?

They certainly have a lot going for them. For one thing mobile phones tend to have their memory on an SD card, so if you want to add more tracks to take with you, you could just insert a larger card. Most MP3 players don’t have that functionality.

Mobile phones tend to allow you to add and remove music through a drag and drop system from any computer, or even using bluetooth. With an iPod for example you have to use iTunes, that’s it.

Mobiles have replaceable batteries. Does an iPod?

Then there’s the price. With a mobile phone contract you can often get the phone for free, which is considerably cheaper than an iPod. So where are the drawbacks?

Well, firstly how many times have you lost your mobile phone? If you’re anything like me it’ll be more than twice. Losing an MP3 player or iPod is something you’re less likely to do, so if your mobile was your MP3 player that would be an awful lot of music to lose and then back up when the inevitable happens.

How often do you change your mobile? Most people do it every year, some more so than that. Having to upload all of your music every time you do that could be a real pain.

Then there’s the contract. If you’re not on a mobile phone contract you’ll have to purchase the handset yourself, and the mobiles that make good MP3 players aren’t cheap. You’d be paying a lot of money for something that was a phone first, and an MP3 player second. Until technology manages to seamlessly merge all of the requirements into one unit, without compromise, it’s best to keep them apart.