I have seen several "boom boxes" that allow you to record the CD that is playing, or a song on the radio, onto a tape. Well, we now have CD-Rs, and CD-RWs, so how about a "boom box" that can record a tape (or the radio-or even a microphone, assuming there is one) onto a CD-RW?
I don't know how much power it takes to "burn" a CD, so this may not be feasible for a battery-operated boom box. I suppose it could still be portable, but CD burning may be a real battery drain (like it will run out after 2 disks) but if you're recording yourself singing and then replaying it "just for fun" at a party, you'd probably move on to something else by then-CDs hold about an hour of music. There should, however, be a warning label stating that the boom box should not be moved while recording because it could mess up the recording on the CD. If you're using a CD-RW, you could of course record over the messed-up part but, like a tape, a CD-RW would probably not last as long if frequently recorded over. Regular CDs and CD-Rs (CD-R can't be recorded over) generally last 8 to 12 years before they are worn to the point of beginning to have problems (this assumes playing them on a regular basis, but putting them back in their cases and storing them well. If they're not used very much they'll last even longer-this makes them particularly attractive for archive/backup purposes.)
This may, however, be rather pricey...-- Dickcheney6, Feb 10 2009random, halfbakery