'Tiny Vinyl' - new 4" format

[somebodyelse]

I can't see this as much less of a gimmick than the 3" format Crosley tried to revive a few years back, but the market often has little to do with logic. From a practical viewpoint it won't work with existing players with automatic arm lift as the diameter's less than the standard inner groove, and to get the best out of it you'll need to rethink your cartridge alignment. It costs more than a 7" and the cover art is smaller than on CD.
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/202...pocketable-record-format-for-the-spotify-age/

 

[mhardy6647]

I mean... I have this
Kind of meta-tiny vinyl.

 

[somebodyelse]

It could do with something for scale - a bit bigger than a standard label?

 

[Power Pop 23]

I mean... I have this
Kind of meta-tiny vinyl.

View attachment 475046

What year was this offered ?

I recall the backs of the boxes of select brands of (sugar-sweetened) cereal came embossed and ready for play (after cutting them out)

https://www.discogs.com/digs/features/the-strange-history-of-cereal-box-records/

 

[Power Pop 23]

Yes, a gimmick.

My interest level would go up if a 3-D printer would allow me create this format at home.

 

[mhardy6647]

What year was this offered ?

I recall the backs of the boxes of select brands of (sugar-sweetened) cereal came embossed and ready for play (after cutting them out)

https://www.discogs.com/digs/features/the-strange-history-of-cereal-box-records/

In this particular case, I don't know. Found this one on the swap pile at the town dump (actually, technically transfer station) in Harvard, MA.
My sources tell me that we see images of the Bangles, Psychedelic Furs, and Bon Jovi on the... umm... disk. So that should narrow it down.

Post a picture.....any picture...part deux... - Page 130

forum.polkaudio.com

My interest level would go up if a 3-D printer would allow me create this format at home.

This is visionary. (I am not being particularly facetious, either!) Fame and fortune await you.
I say go for it!

 

[respice finem]

Reminds me of the forgotten Mini-CD format (8 cm)

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CH8y-XpWIAA30mh.jpg

 

[Chr1]

Reckon all vinyl is about maximising profit these days.
Therfore all of it qualifies as gimmick imho. 4",7", 12" etc

 

[respice finem]

Like in the "golden age" of HiFi sales - the max. profit was to make people buy the LP, the reel, the cassette, the CD of one and the same album.
Then again the remaster, the special edition... The market is a free IQ test sometimes

 

[Chr1]

Indeed. I grew up in the punk, new wave era, when it was all about coloured vinyl, gatefold sleeves etc. Just watched the Devo film on Netflix and was kinda regretting giving all my records away in the 90s. Had all their early singles. Lots of rare stuff. Definitely prefer the sound (and price) of my Flacs tho.

 

[respice finem]

I have maybe 50 left, and even bought a turntable after 30 years without, mainly to digitize them.
But I'm not going to buy more.

 

[MCH]

Reminds me of the forgotten Mini-CD format (8 cm)

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CH8y-XpWIAA30mh.jpg

Yeah I have a few of those, that came in a full sized box and had to be played in a full sized player, I can understand why they didn't go anywhere

Vinyl singles on the other hand were very convenient for parties, finding the right track in a full sized lp after a few cocktails wasn't easy haha

 

[respice finem]

There were some portable players, but IIRC they vanished quickly because of the even smaller MiniDisc players, and later mp3.

Sony CD Walkman D-82 8cm Portable CD Player

The Sony CD Walkman D-82 is the smallest portable CD players ever made. Unlike its sibling the Sony Discman D-88, the D-82 can only play 8cm CDs. The D-82 does not require an external battery pack, the battery goes inside the body of the D-82. It is available in black and white. The built...

www.just-cd.com

The format ended up as a cheap medium for PC drivers etc.

 

[mhardy6647]

Like in the "golden age" of HiFi sales - the max. profit was to make people buy the LP, the reel, the cassette, the CD of one and the same album.
Then again the remaster, the special edition... The market is a free IQ test sometimes

Thankfully we're so much less gullible now...

 

[respice finem]

Some are more,some less

 

[JeffS7444]

I'm awaiting the return of the flexi disc magazine, minus praise for the Soviet state and newsy stuff.

 

[respice finem]

There were postcards and stuff with these, even with a picture on the "record" itself.
The one in your post (or at least the template) might be made in East Germany (the characteristic 33 rpm logo).

Link in Polish, but easy to auto translate:

Pocztówka dźwiękowa – Wikipedia, wolna encyklopedia

pl.wikipedia.org

 

[MoreWatts]

"The First New Music Format in 20 Years Just Arrived and Fans Can’t Decide if It’s Genius or a Gimmick​

By Alexandra Plesa
What do you think?
Published on August 27, 2025 (Headphonesty.com)

'Tiny Vinyl' may be the strangest mix of music format and collectible yet.

The new format gives listeners no more than two songs per record, at 4 minutes per side.

How Tiny Vinyl compares with other vinyl formats​

Format	Diameter	Common speed	Typical runtime/side (good quality)	Max runtime/side (with trade-offs)	Typical weight
Tiny Vinyl	4 in	33⅓ rpm	up to ~4 min	4 min (format cap)	~15 g
7-inch single	7 in	45 rpm (most common)	~3–4 min	~4.5–5 min at 45 rpm; up to ~6–7 min at 33⅓ rpm with lower quality	~45–70 g
12-inch LP (album)	12 in	33⅓ rpm	~18–22 min	up to ~25 min with lower volume/fidelity	~140 g typical (also 150 g/180 g)

Rather than replacing full albums, Tiny Vinyl is closer to a two-track single made collectible. And while they work on standard turntables, listeners may need to turn off the auto-return or make sure their tonearm can reach the platter’s center."

Nah, history wouldn't repeat itself.... Would it?

 

[JeffS7444]

The one in your post (or at least the template) might be made in East Germany (the characteristic 33 rpm logo).

That might explain why the records are actually playable on both sides

 

[respice finem]

I thought they should then be one-sided, because the other side escaped to West Germany

by the way, I've been studying in Rostock short before re-unification (1986-87)