Sound Band Open Ear Bluetooth Headset: Noise-allowing Headset

Many mid- to high-end headphones have noise-cancelling features. But sometimes you need to hear what’s going on around you. That’s where open ear headphones come in. The Sound Band is one such device. It’s a Bluetooth headset that conducts sound through your bone and tissue. Your ears will be uncovered and you’ll be the only one who hears what’s coming through the Sound Band.

sound band wireless open ear headset

As I said, Sound Band falls into an existing class of headphones. Similar products include the earHero and the AfterShokz. What intrigues me about the Sound Band are its two omnidirectional MEMS microphones. Hybra Advance Technology, the company behind Sound Band, claims that the microphones have noise reduction and echo cancellation.

sound band wireless open ear headset 2

If they can get that part right, they might have a leg up on the competition.

Pledge at least $125 (USD) on Kickstarter to get a Sound Band as a reward (Hybra says the product will retail at $189). Or just take your earphones off for a minute. That’s an option too. I’m just putting it out there.

Panasonic announces bone conduction headphones, we go temples-on

Panasonic bone conduction headphones, we go temples-on

This year, Panasonic’s pretty much gone all out with a vast range of gadgets. Tablets, TVs, Touch Pens, cameras, and outrageous Hi-Fi. One smaller addition to the company’s portfolio was a pair of bone conducting Bluetooth headphones. The technology isn’t exactly new, but as more and more companies get onboard, they start edging their way into the mainstream. Panasonic’s take on them looks — at least initially — like a good start. At first, the design looks almost like any other wrap-around pair of sports headphones. Until, of course, you inspect closer, and realise that there aren’t actually any buds to place in your ears. The soft-touch outer material around the ear-hooks makes them feel nice in the hand, and adds to the sporty look. Unusually they are powered by a single AAA battery, that you sneak into the slightly bulbous section in the middle of the band. We were told, however, that this might change to a rechargeable solution when we get closer to the projected fall release window.

We were eager to see how the audio performed, but it’s fair to say that on a rowdy show floor this was pretty difficult. We were advised to put our fingers in our ears to initially hear the music, and then remove them while focusing on the music. In reality, even with ears fully plugged, hearing the demo song was pretty difficult. With ears fully open to the ambient noise, we couldn’t hear anything at all. The representative was sure to advise us that production models would be two to three times louder, and we’d go as far to say that even that might not be enough. One thing is for sure, they did definitely work, and the effect is still impressive. The product is pitched at more active use cases though, so it will be interesting to see how they work while on the move / run. Again, something that was a little difficult for us to explore, despite really wanting to. As stated above, these should see the light of day sometime in fall, and we really do hope they are louder. Price-wise, there’s no official word, but if you imagine $200 as a ballpark figure, you might not be too far off the mark.

Billy Steele contributed to this report.

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AfterShokz Sportz M2 Review: Decent Sounding Headphones, No Ears Required

The idea of AfterShokz headphones seemed sweet—the bone conduction sports headphones could pump music through your cheekbones instead of your ears. But the original headphones sounded pretty weak, and they came in fourth place in our Best Running Headphones Battlemodo. Now the second generation is here, with a claimed “21 total improvements” over the original. So I strapped them to the sides of my head to see what’s changed. More »

Tongue-Controlled MP3 Player Makes You Look Like a Bond Villain

Remember that Bond villain named Jaws? Maybe his teeth weren’t all about biting steel cables and whatnot. Maybe he was just listening to some tunes through his mouth. His evil employer might have just gotten this new gadget a few decades early. Yes, this thing plays music through your teeth.

mp3 player

The tongue controlled MP3 player comes from concept designer Aisen Caro Chacin. It lets you listen to your favorite music using bone conduction. Chacin calls it the Play-A-Grill. The grill sits on your teeth and sound is transmitted using bone conduction through your skull. Only you can hear the music as long as your ears are plugged.

There’s no word on price, but it must be expensive since it seems like it would need to be fitted to the individual as well. And wouldn’t your tongue keep hitting the buttons by accident?

[via BitRebels via Geek]