HitClips facts for kids

A HitClips player with an NSYNC song cartridge.

HitClips was a small digital music player made by Tiger Electronics. It was special because it played short, one-minute clips of popular songs from tiny cartridges. Imagine having your favorite song, but only the best minute of it, on a tiny chip!

HitClips first came out in August 2000. It quickly became popular with kids and teens because it featured songs from big stars like Britney Spears, NSYNC, and Sugar Ray. In the next year, more artists joined, including Destiny's Child, Backstreet Boys, and Pink. There was even a version called KidClips for younger children.

Tiger Electronics worked with major music companies like Atlantic Records and Jive Records to get the rights to these popular songs. HitClips was promoted in fun ways, including at McDonald's, on Radio Disney, and with Lunchables. By June 2002, over 20 million HitClips players and music cartridges had been sold!

In 2003, actress and singer Hilary Duff became the face of HitClips. The next year, Raven-Symoné took over as spokesperson. Around that time, the cartridges changed to a new, mini-circular shape and could play songs that were two minutes long. By then, more than 30 million units had been sold!

How HitClips Worked

HitClips players were small and easy to carry. You would plug in a tiny cartridge, and it would play a short part of a song. The sound was "low-fidelity mono," which means it wasn't super high quality, and the sound came from one speaker. But for many kids, it was a cool way to listen to their favorite pop hits on the go, long before smartphones and streaming music were common.

Popular Songs on HitClips

HitClips offered a huge variety of songs from many different artists. Kids could collect cartridges of their favorite tunes.

HitClips Cartridges

By June 2002, there were about 80 different songs available from more than 30 artists. Here are some of the popular songs and artists that were released on HitClips cartridges:

HitClips Disc Cartridges

Later, with the new mini-circular cartridges, more songs were released. These often featured newer hits and artists.

See also

• Pocket Rockers
• Tooth Tunes