Recommendations for a Portable Media Player/Boombox?

I am seeking to purchase a device that can produce high-quality music but is also portable, as my computer produces excellent sound, but it is not portable, and my .mp3 player is portable, but does not produce the best-quality sound.

These three devices have caught my attention, as they are visually-impressive, have received largely positive reviews, and seem to have many features, including inputs for modern devices, but I do not wish to limit myself to one brand, and also wish to receive feedback and advice from the other users of this forum before making a purchase.

I am seeking a device for the purposes of both providing background music for when I am relaxing, reading, or engaging in general conversation, and for providing music for parties and gatherings, that can also be easily transported when doing so is necessary, that produces high-quality sound, and can receive input from FM radio and any audio device that uses a 3.5 mm connector. Since I shall not be even considering a purchase until I can afford to do so, price is irrelevant to me. Does anyone here have an recommendations? I await your responses.

Also, why is it that many music-playing devices have interfaces that are specifically designed for IPods and IPads? I know that they are arguably the most popular music-playing devices in existence currently, but they are not the only such devices in existence, so I would like to see greater support for non-Apple music-playing devices. What does everyone else here say about that?

My recommendation: Build your own. Could start with a nice set of Logitech 5.1 speakers with subwoofer. Build a custom case to carry them in, and include a means of powering it if you want to take it to the park or something.

The TDK stuff looks awesome, but I've heard it in person and it lacks any presence. The sound is just empty and dead. They look great though.

I would go with TLHarrell and say the best bet really is to build your own or find an old boombox from the 80s or 90s and retrofit it to take a 3.5mm input.

There's a pretty decent guide at metkumods. There's lots of other pretty fun stuff there too. I would check that out before deciding.

And I would also check some pawn shops for old boom boxes. Sadly, there's actually a pretty big collector market for them, but they just have that look, you know?

I shall admit that I had not considered building my own media player, but I do appreciate the suggestion; D_Stilgar, that example that you provided was very awesome. I would definitely like to engage in such a project as that at some time in the future, although I am certain that I shall need to conduct some research, to better understand what components to use and how to assemble them, before I pursue such an undertaking.

After much thought and deliberation, I have decided to make my own stereo/boombox using aluminum plate with diamond pattern as the material for the case of the devices and the components of a car stereo system for the internal devices (i.e., a receiver with digital console and stereo speakers). This project shall likely be expensive, so I shall not pursue until I can afford to do so, but when I do, I shall likely post it here, to allow everyone else to share in my experience.