My BTR17 slipped from my hand this morning and suffered minor damage. I was carrying smartphones and cables at the time, and I was handling the BTR17 carelessly. It fell from a height of 1.20 meters onto a concrete floor, landing directly on the volume control wheel. Thankfully, the BTR17 is light, and I think the impact was softened as the volume wheel rotated during the fall. When I picked it up, the damaged part was on the inside, not the outer surface. There were no functional issues, and no significant cosmetic damage occurred either. The fact that the protective case was on at the time may have prevented additional scratches.
I had always considered the possibility of my BTR17 falling, but I used to think the screen would be at risk in such a scenario. I assumed the weight distribution would cause it to land on the side with the USB ports, and in that case, the protective case would absorb the impact. However, that wasn’t what happened. While the placement of the volume wheel at the top corner makes it very convenient for adjusting volume, it is also the most vulnerable spot during a fall. Worse yet, it could completely break, leaving me reliant on the Fiio Control app for volume adjustment. This incident made me realize that designs with the volume wheel placed centrally and more protected are more practical. Such a design would also allow the protective case to provide better coverage.
The specs say the volume wheel is designed to endure 50,000 presses and 40,000 rotations. At best, this incident probably shaved off 1,000 from both of these lifespans. My dream of using the BTR17 for 50 years has drifted a little further away.
