Tag Archives: Audio

Why CMF’s New Milk Carton Speakers Are So Irresistible To Look At

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Everyone has held a milk carton, which is exactly why CMF’s new speakers are so hard to stop looking at. CMF, the budget sub-brand of Nothing, shaped its first Bluetooth speakers like gable-top cartons, a form that toy manufacturer John Van Wormer of Toledo, Ohio, patented in 1915 as the Pure-Pak. Your brain files that silhouette under breakfast, fridge door, and home before it even registers the grille. Then the colors and a deliberately mismatched knob finish the job. Black cylinders and bricks have run the speaker aisle for a decade, so a carton is practically a plot twist.

The CMF Speaker S ($59) and Speaker M ($109) launched October 12 at nothing.tech and select retailers, in white, dark grey, turquoise, and orange. CMF’s own product pages cite a carton’s sharp geometry as the inspiration, so the resemblance is deliberate. A sloped roof carries the knob where a carton’s screw cap would sit, and the M’s top fin doubles as a carry handle. The front panel and knob pop off, which turns each speaker into a base for swapping or 3D printing. Both are IP68 too, so the carton can sit on a patio table without a worry.

Designer: CMF by Nothing

The carton’s anatomy, rebuilt as a speaker face

A carton has three recognizable parts, and CMF kept all three. The sloped gable roof becomes the top edge of a folded color panel that wraps over from the front face. The sealed top seam becomes the M’s raised fin with a handle cutout, while the S settles for a round cutout in the corner. The screw cap, a carton upgrade Elopak dates to 1991, becomes a knob you press and turn. On the orange and turquoise models, a dark grey body sits behind the panel, so the color reads like printed paperboard around a core.

The grilles do the decorating. On the turquoise model the mesh is a deeper teal, on the orange it turns brick red, and on white and dark grey it goes black, so each face is a flat field with big circles punched in. The M stacks two of them, the S gets one, and a small pixel-style cmf wordmark sits above like a tiny brand stamp. An oval button with a white light bar is the only other mark besides the knob. That is very few elements, all of them deliberate.

Pint-and-quart proportions and a color system with a mismatched knob

The S measures 5.1 by 3.3 by 1.7 inches (130.5 by 85 by 44mm). The M stretches to 8.7 inches (220mm) tall at the same 85mm width, so the pair reads like a pint and a quart of the same product. Helen Sanematsu’s 1999 AIGA Journal essay on milk packaging argued that cartons get their punch from standing in rows, with color separating the varieties. CMF’s launch imagery lines up four colors across two sizes, which plays that exact game. Put them on a shelf together and you get a dairy case designed by someone with great taste.

Each colorway gets its own knob: a black X on orange, a white ring on turquoise, a red paddle on dark grey, and a teal paddle on white. That deliberate mismatch gives every speaker a single accent, like a bright cap on a carton. Pop it off and you can mix freely or 3D print your own, a habit that follows the CMF Phone 1, whose community printed everything from Lego-friendly backs to a foam dart launcher. We once featured a fan concept for a CMF speaker that went retro radio. The carton is the braver call.

Drivers, battery life, and durability behind the carton

The S pairs a 1.8 inch (45mm) driver with two passive radiators, unpowered diaphragms that beef up bass, for 10W. The M adds a 2.8 inch (70mm) woofer and 0.6 inch (16mm) tweeter for 35W RMS, a continuous power rating. Both claim 18 hours at 50 percent volume with Ultra Bass on, enough for a workday and the commute. A 10 minute charge buys an hour while you hunt for your keys. They survive 30 minutes in nearly 5 feet (1.5 meters) of water and passed a 30 inch (0.76 meter) drop test.

The S costs $59 and the M $109, and both are on sale now at nothing.tech and select retailers. That puts a distinctive object within impulse-buy range, which is unusual for a design this committed. It is the rare budget speaker that makes you want to rearrange a shelf. Van Wormer’s carton survived a century by being easy to hold, stack, and carry, and a portable speaker wants the same three traits. Somebody finally noticed a great speaker shape was sitting in your fridge door all along.

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Edifier’s $52 gaming soundbar lets you ditch your headset without losing voice chat

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Gaming soundbars became popular in the 2017s, but the trend faded; in the last couple of years, this category of audio accessories has seen renewed interest. Razer kicked off the new wave, with several mainstream brands and some offbeat makers releasing their own versions. Creative recently launched their B3 soundbar for gamers at a very affordable price, and now Edifier is upping the ante with an even sweeter deal.

The China-based audio accessories maker, known for high-end bookshelf speakers, has come up with a very cool-looking soundbar for gamers. Dubbed the Hecate G2000 Bar, the desktop audio boomer is all set to be available from 16 October onwards for a price tag of 349 yuan ($52), which is an introductory price slashed from the normal price of 387 yuan ($58).

Designer: Edifier

The G2000 Bar combines a compact footprint with an angular, mecha-inspired design intended to fit into a gaming setup without taking up much desk space. It will be available in black and white, with a built-in five-degree upward tilt that directs sound toward the listener rather than across the desktop. Five interchangeable themed stickers let users customize the front panel, while 12 RGB lighting effects, including rainbow and flowing-light patterns, add some visual flair. Lighting can be adjusted via the Edifier Connect mobile app or Hecate PC software.

Under the hood, the soundbar uses two 56mm full-range drivers with copper-clad aluminum wire voice coils, paired with two 60mm passive radiators. The arrangement is designed to deliver fuller audio and reinforce low frequencies without requiring a separate subwoofer. Output is rated at 3W per channel, or 6W in total, with peak power reaching 12W. The stated frequency response spans 67Hz to 20kHz.

For gaming, the G2000 Bar supports THX 7.1.4 spatial audio processing, which aims to create a more immersive, surround-like listening experience from a desktop soundbar. Six dedicated audio presets cater to different gaming genres, including first-person shooters, role-playing games, and racing titles. These modes give players a way to tailor the sound to different types of gameplay without manually adjusting equalizer settings.

The other notable addition is a detachable microphone mounted on top. It uses AEC 2.0 acoustic echo cancellation, a dedicated digital signal processor, and AI-assisted noise reduction to limit background sounds and reduce audio feedback from the speakers. This could make voice chat more convenient for players who prefer open speakers to a gaming headset, although performance will depend on the surrounding environment.

Connectivity includes Bluetooth 6.0 and USB sound-card input, allowing the soundbar to work with compatible PCs, laptops, mobile devices, and consoles. An independent 9V DC power adapter supplies power, while physical controls on the top metallic panel provide access to volume adjustment, microphone muting, and audio-mode switching.

With its compact design, customizable lighting, spatial audio processing, and integrated voice-chat features, the Hecate G2000 Bar brings several gaming-focused conveniences to an affordable desktop soundbar. Its initial pricing makes it an interesting option for players looking to simplify their setup without committing to a separate speaker system and microphone.

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Divoom Astrotoo Is a Desktop Speaker Dressed as a Retro Computer

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Desktop speakers usually have a pretty straightforward job and an equally straightforward appearance. That makes sense when all you want is music, but it doesn’t leave much room for personality. Divoom’s Astrotoo takes a different approach, putting a display and oversized physical controls into a speaker that looks like a tiny computer terminal. It definitely gives your desk something playful and personal, and your friends something to be jealous of.

The rounded housing and recessed side panels give Astrotoo the appearance of equipment from an imagined future, albeit one with chunky buttons. White, pink, and green finishes offer different levels of restraint. At roughly 4.2 by 4.3 inches across its base, it won’t need the space of a computer, although its upright screen certainly makes it harder to overlook than a conventional speaker.

Designer: Divoom

Of course, those buttons aren’t simply there to complete the retro disguise. Three raised mechanical keys, a joystick, and an orange Back button handle music and display functions. You can reach over to control playback without opening another app, though customizing the display still involves your phone. It’s a familiar division of labor, with physical controls for everyday actions and software for the changes.

Despite the pixel art theme, Astrotoo doesn’t limit you to blocky characters and low-resolution graphics. Its 3.95-inch IPS display has a 480×480 pixel resolution, accommodating photographs and detailed clock faces as well. That means you can keep a family photo beside your monitor without making room for another frame. Music visualizations are also available, if you’d rather have your speaker put on a show.

The Divoom app lets you change visual content and clock faces, giving the device something to do when the music stops. Weather and stock information bring a more practical side to that small screen. That said, another dashboard isn’t necessarily what a busy desk needs. A favorite picture might be a better companion than financial numbers quietly competing for your attention all afternoon.

Divoom positions the 20W speaker for listening nearby, so the desktop proportions aren’t entirely about appearance. Playing music while answering emails or listening to a podcast during a break fits that purpose. Of course, the power rating doesn’t tell us how balanced the sound will be. The styling is easier to judge than the audio, which needs listening rather than a specification sheet.

Bluetooth 6.0 handles wireless audio, while microSD playback lets you bring a collection of stored music along without keeping a phone connected. Wi-Fi supports the connected display features. There’s also a battery, with Divoom claiming up to six hours of operation. That’s enough to move it between rooms for a while, but don’t expect it to stay unplugged through an entire workday.

The $199.99 US price makes this a considered desk accessory rather than a casual decoration. Divoom lists approximately 3.5 hours for USB-C charging, so it probably makes sense to leave a cable nearby. You can dress the screen as a futuristic control panel, but there’s nothing futuristic about discovering that your tiny computer needs plugging in before the afternoon playlist.

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The HomePod is finally getting a screen (and a robotic arm) this October 13th

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Apple event names usually read like perfume ads. Wonderlust, Scary Fast, It’s Glowtime. So when invites landed this week for an October 13 event called “Welcome home,” the bluntness was hard to miss. Apple went with a literal doormat quote. Behind it, the HomePod is reportedly getting a screen, with Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman saying the headliner is a smart home hub unofficially called the HomePad. A new Apple TV 4K and a HomePod mini 2 are expected to tag along, and press are headed to an “Apple Experience” in Tribeca, which sounds like hands-on time.

The HomePod has spent nine years as the best sounding speaker you never ask anything. We have been daydreaming about a screen for it since October 2023, when we covered the rumored HomePod Max and its 7-inch display. Gurman now describes a 6-inch square screen on a polished metal arm over a round, perforated speaker base, a look reminiscent of the 2002 iMac G4. That is the sunflower iMac everyone nicknamed the iLamp, so Apple appears to be raiding its own attic. Echo Shows and Nest Hubs have spent years looking like phones stuck on cans, so a little desk lamp energy goes a long way.

Designer: Sarang Sheth

The HomePad comes in two versions, with a robotic arm model reportedly on the way

Visual Rendering of the HomePad from 2023

Gurman says Apple is building two versions, a tabletop model codenamed J490 and a wall-mounted one codenamed J491, and both need an outlet. The wall version drops the arm and round base for a thin square base with the speakers and microphones below the display. Both are meant to serve a whole household, recognizing who is talking, showing that person’s content, and hiding private info in a visitor mode. The interface reportedly borrows from Apple Watch and StandBy mode, with iPhone widgets and a single front camera for FaceTime. It also needs an iPhone for setup, so nobody is throwing their phone out yet.

Apple tried several ways of attaching the iMac G4’s screen before settling on one stainless steel arm, and Jobs listed himself as primary inventor on one of its design patents. A third HomePad is reportedly in development with a 9-inch display on a robotic arm that moves 360 degrees, which is basically Pixar’s Luxo Jr. lamp coming to life. We spotted this coming in 2024, when we covered Apple’s homeOS plans, magnetic mount and robotic arm included. The thick bezels are the odd choice, since Apple spent a decade shaving them off. On a screen you glance at from across the kitchen, they might just read as a picture frame.

Apple TV 4K and HomePod mini 2 get new chips and Siri AI

The current Apple TV 4K runs a 2021 A15 Bionic, and rumors point to either an A19 with 8GB of RAM or an A19 Pro with 12GB, which is what the iPhone 17 Pro uses. An N1 wireless chip is also rumored, adding Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and Thread, the low-power smart home radio that keeps gadgets chatting without clogging your router. Code in tvOS 27.2 hints that four HomePods can pair with it for surround sound and relay Siri requests so answers show up on your TV. A tweaked Siri Remote is expected too. Siri AI will likely stay exclusive to the new box, so your four-year-old Apple TV gets to watch from the sidelines.

The original HomePod mini arrived in October 2020 at $99 and still runs an S5, a chip first seen in the Apple Watch Series 5. Rumors say the sequel moves to an S9, with the N1 wireless chip and a new Ultra Wideband chip. Code strings reportedly point to the same fabric-wrapped sphere with a backlit touch top, in a lighter blue and white plus new green, pink, and black. Keeping the sphere is the safe call, though I still crave the Braun T3 vibes of that fan-made HomePod Nano concept we featured in 2023. The headline feature is reportedly Siri AI, so the tiny speaker might finally earn the smart in smart speaker.

LG and Schneider accessories, plus what Apple is saving for later

Apple reportedly co-developed a lineup with LG that includes a smart lock, thermostat, temperature sensor, video doorbell, and indoor, outdoor, and floodlight cameras, all expected to wear LG branding. Gurman suggests they won’t ship as early as the HomePod and Apple TV, though a stage cameo is still likely. Leaks describe a deadbolt with a keypad that rotates to open, a doorbell with a second downward-facing camera, and an outdoor camera sealed with O-rings and waterproof grease. Code in iOS 27.2 also lists a Schneider thermostat and temperature sensor with a “second-party” tag, which gets special treatment from the OS. That is a rare admission from a company that usually builds everything itself: HomeKit needs friends.

Earlier reports floated a HomePad price around $350, which is unconfirmed and absent from Bloomberg’s latest report. That would sit right next to the $349 the original HomePod cost in 2017, when we called it Apple’s tune-busting Fabergé egg. Apple hasn’t said whether the event will be livestreamed, and US pricing and availability are still unannounced. The Macs get their own event about two weeks later, so October 13 belongs entirely to the home. A camera shaped like an oversized lip balm tube, which sends text instead of video, is reportedly waiting until 2027. After nine years of being heard and never seen, the HomePod finally gets a face, and it is wearing a 2002 outfit.

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4 Times a Day the StillFrame Headphones Switch Jobs For You

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A lot of people spend the entire eight hours of a working day just sitting in front of their screens. You probably have your speakers on or put on your headphones to listen to some background music or for online meetings. But for those of us who don’t want to spend one-third of the day like this, we go through different “phases,” which means that the audio that accompanies us throughout the day also changes. From commuting to work to sitting down at your workstation to going on a dinner date and finally relaxing at home, you don’t want the same setting all day.

That’s the more interesting way to look at the StillFrame Headphones. Rather than asking them to create one uninterrupted listening session, imagine taking them through a day full of stops and starts. They offer Noise Cancelling and Transparency modes, Bluetooth 5.4 connectivity, a USB-C wired option, and dual microphones with noise control. Each feature has a place in that routine, even if no two days follow quite the same route.

Click Here to Buy Now: $245

The first part of the day for most of those who go to a regular office is the morning commute. You might be on a noisy train with a lot of people talking or walking along a busy street with a lot of city noise. StillFrame’s Noise Cancelling mode will help you focus on what you’re listening to and drown out some of the chaotic noise around you. It is always there as an option for times when you want to immerse yourself in your playlist or the next chapter of the book you’re listening to.

When you do need to let the world back in, you don’t have to turn off your podcast episode at a crucial moment. The headphones have a Transparency Mode option that’s there with a tap for moments when you need to order a coffee or you’re walking somewhere that requires your full attention. Just tap between the two modes for what you need at the moment without having to pause or stop what you’re listening to. It’s also a good reminder that the world isn’t always a distraction.

When you finally reach your office, you might have a scheduled meeting sometime during the day. StillFrame is useful even for work things, as it has dual microphones with noise control so you can shift from consuming audio to communicating with others using the headphones. That doesn’t mean every conversation will sound perfect in every environment. It does mean you can move from a podcast or playlist to a meeting without reaching for a separate pair of headphones just because your role in the audio has changed.

When you finally get home to your cozy bed, you sometimes still want to continue listening to that audiobook, start a new podcast episode, or let some soothing music lull you to sleep. You can choose to continue using your StillFrame headphones over Bluetooth 5.4 or use the USB-C wired option if you’d rather plug in. Either way, the wired option is an alternative to wireless listening and not a reason to assume the headphones will work after their battery runs out.

A few other details help round out the picture. StillFrame weighs 103 grams and has a stainless-steel headband, a minimalist frame, and 40mm drivers. Its ear cushions attach magnetically, making them easy to swap; the white model comes with extra pairs in light gray and turquoise. Battery life is rated at up to 24 hours per charge, though actual use may vary. Those details aren’t the main story here, but they help explain what you’re carrying from one part of the day to the next.

No pair of headphones can make a commute quiet, a meeting short, or a busy day slow down. What StillFrame Headphones offer is a set of ways to respond as those moments change. You can focus, let the world in, take a call, or settle into an evening listen. The best setting isn’t one you choose in the morning and keep all day. It’s the one that fits where you are now.

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This $249 Player Brings Back the iPod Wheel, and With It, the Lost Art of Owning Your Music

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Tangerine Sudo music player shown from front and back, with playlists menu on screen and tactile wheel below

Vinyl came back. Film cameras came back. Flip phones came back, and somehow so did wired earbuds, which I personally never stopped defending. The pattern underneath all of it is the same: we are worn out by devices that do everything, and we are rediscovering objects that do one thing properly and then leave us alone. Somewhere in there we also stopped feeling anything for a rented file sitting on a server in Virginia, billing us monthly for the privilege of maybe still having it next year. New Matter’s Instagram account follows exactly three others, two of which are Teenage Engineering and MSCHF, so you already know which shelf the company wants to stand on.

Sudo plays your music and does nothing else, which in practice means it plays your music without also delivering a Slack ping, an Instagram DM, a text from your landlord, and a reminder that standup started four minutes ago. The whole pitch is a return to a library you actually hold onto instead of one you rent by the month. A tactile wheel handles navigation under a small touchscreen, there is a 3.5mm jack for people who still care, and the thing charges over USB-C like it was born in this decade instead of just dressed for the last one.

Designer: New Matter

Silver Sudo music player held in one hand, thumb resting on the tactile wheel

I was today years old when I realized how much of my brain was still fluent in click wheel, which is the thing Sudo is actually banking on. Put that ring back under my thumb and twenty years of muscle memory wakes up instantly, skip and back and play exactly where they always lived, no glancing down required. That was always the trick Apple’s industrial design team pulled off and nobody since has bothered to chase, because a touchscreen is cheaper to spec and nobody in a boardroom can put a line item on “it feels right.” Stacking an actual touchscreen above the wheel here is a slightly confused hedge, the one place Sudo seems unsure which decade it belongs to, but it is still the first device in ten years willing to bet that a dial beats a tap.

Flip it over and the hardware starts talking like it means it. Visible hex screws at each corner is a tell I always trust, because a company hiding its screws is usually hiding how little you are meant to open the thing, and a company showing them off is telling you this was built to be serviced, not sealed. The logo on the back is a tidy little glyph, confident enough to sit off center and small. Four colors are on the table, although the Tangerine variant is clearly their highlight product. Personally, it gives me Rabbit R1 and iPhone 17 Pro, so maybe it’s time we move on from that hue.

Three silver Sudo players side by side showing the menu, a song list, and the now-playing screen

The software here is simple, in all the right ways. A flat list, playlists, artists, albums, songs, nothing algorithmic elbowing in to suggest what you should be listening to instead. Tagging a Radiohead track as lossless in the corner of the now-playing screen is a small, specific flex, aimed at exactly the audience that still argues about bit depth in forum threads nobody else reads. Letting the album art bleed and smear behind the menu is the one flourish the original iPod never attempted, because in 2004 nobody needed their MP3 player to have a mood. Whether that mood survives contact with a real shipping product is the actual question, not whether the renders look good, because renders always look good.

Nothing here guarantees Sudo ships the way its marketing promises, and renders have broken plenty of hearts before mine. But the instinct underneath it is correct regardless of how the hardware turns out. We spent a decade building devices engineered to never let us finish a thought uninterrupted, and somebody finally looked at that and decided the fix was a machine that simply cannot interrupt us. Whether or not Sudo is the one that pulls it off, it is asking the right question at exactly the right moment, and that alone is worth more attention than another iPod clone deserves on paper.

Four Sudo music players in a row showing Silver, Basalt, Forest, and Tangerine colorways from the back

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Samsung Galaxy Buds On let you listen to music without blocking your ears

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Clip-on earbuds have arrived in a big way, giving another versatile way to enjoy music whether you’re in the gym or making your way to the busy metro station. Rather than shoving the eartips deep down the ear canal, these buds are more comfortable and keep you aware of the environment at all times.

Huawei FreeClip 2 arrived late last year to turn up music lovers’ interest in this form factor, followed by the swanky CMF Clip Pro’s. Sennheiser jumped on the bandwagon with the Accentum Clip, and recently Bose came up with their second generation clio-ons. Predictably, Samsung has pulled the trigger with its first-ever clip-on wireless earbuds dubbed Galaxy Buds On, and they look impressive.

Designer: Samsung

So how are the Galaxy Buds On different from the other flagship clip-on buds in the tightly contested market? Do they have what it takes to bring to the active audio community what they desire out of such open-ear earbuds?

Clip-on design that takes comfort seriously

Samsung’s approach for this form factor is focused on rethinking how the bud sits on the ear. The Galaxy Buds On use an open-ear clip design that leaves the ear canal unobstructed, allowing wearers to listen to music while staying connected to conversations, traffic, or other sounds around them.

Samsung says it studied different ear shapes and ran simulations to determine the positioning of the speakers and battery. A larger contact area helps distribute pressure, while the elasticity of the connecting band is tuned to keep the buds stable during movement. That makes the design particularly relevant for walking, commuting and workouts where awareness matters as much as audio.

Bass that packs a punch

The audio hardware is also more considered than the unusual silhouette might suggest. Samsung has fitted the Buds On with TwinBoost speakers designed to emphasize lower frequencies, addressing one of the perennial challenges of open-ear audio – producing convincing bass without sealing the ear canal. An Audio Leakage Reduction system is intended to keep music from spilling excessively into the surroundings.

In conjunction, the automatic volume control adjusts playback according to the environment. Samsung claims up to 9.5 hours of continuous music playback from the earbuds, which puts the focus firmly on everyday usability rather than making the clip form factor a novelty.

Galaxy AI adapted for the open-ear formula

The more interesting bit happens when the Buds On are paired with a compatible Galaxy device. Samsung has integrated several Galaxy AI features, turning the earbuds into something closer to a hands-free interface. Users can launch Gemini Live through a voice command, while Quick Voice Memo allows a long press on the earbud to start recording without reaching for the phone. Those recordings can subsequently be searched through Bixby, provided the required Galaxy AI-supported device, Voice Recorder, and Bixby setup is in place.

Head Gestures take the hands-free idea further. Nodding or shaking the head can be used for actions such as answering or ending calls, dismissing alarms, or interacting with message notifications. For calls, the Buds On use three microphones alongside a bone-conduction-based Voice Pickup Unit and machine learning to isolate the wearer’s voice from surrounding noise. They are powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon S7 Gen 1 Sound Platform and a Class-D amplifier.

Samsung will launch the Galaxy Buds On in South Korea on October 27 in black for 299,000 won (roughly $220). A wider international rollout is planned, although regional pricing and availability have not yet been announced.

 

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Your Old Barbie Dolls Actually Become Speakers and Power Banks

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When I was young, a lot of my stuff was pink. Not just any pink. It had to be Barbie pink. I eventually grew into other colors, but those bright, familiar shades never lost their hold on me. They still remind me of afternoons spent inventing elaborate stories for dolls who, in my imagination, had unusually busy social calendars. Even now, a flash of that pink on an ordinary object makes me stop and look.

Gomi seems to understand that kind of attachment. Its Barbie x gomi Childhood Memories Collection incorporates recycled Barbie dolls and accessories into everyday electronics. The lineup includes Bluetooth speakers, power banks, wireless chargers, and tracker tags. These aren’t just devices dressed up in colors borrowed from a toy aisle. Actual doll materials go into them, alongside other recovered plastics, so the connection to childhood runs deeper than a coat of paint.

Designer: Gomi

The Brighton, England-based studio makes the limited-edition products by hand. Reclaimed plastics form marbled surfaces with patterns that vary from piece to piece. Gomi describes each design as unique, which is part of the appeal if you like objects with a little individuality. The visual variety matters, too: it lets the source material feel transformed rather than hidden inside a new product. A childhood toy becomes something you can recognize in the tech you use now.

On the Bluetooth speaker, recycled doll material is paired with an aluminum back plate and buttons. The contrast gives its playful surface a more practical, finished look. Gomi also lists fast charging and a modular, repairable design for the speaker. Those details matter because color can catch your eye, but an electronic product still has to earn its place in your routine. Repairability suggests that Gomi intends the speaker to be kept and used, not treated as a short-lived novelty.

The power bank makes the collection’s practical side even clearer. It has a 10,000 mAh capacity, USB-A and USB-C ports, and fast charging, according to Gomi. The company says it uses repurposed e-bike batteries and has a modular design that allows repairs and battery replenishment. If your phone runs low while you’re away from an outlet, that’s a problem it can help solve. Its childhood references are a bonus, not a substitute for the job it needs to do.

Wireless chargers and tracker tags broaden the idea beyond audio and backup power. Together, the devices raise a simple design question: Why should accessories we carry or leave out on a desk all look interchangeable? A charger doesn’t have to disappear into its surroundings, and a speaker doesn’t have to resemble every other black box on a shelf. The collection invites people to choose useful tech partly because they enjoy looking at it.

The reuse angle deserves attention as well. Giving discarded dolls a role in new products offers another use for their plastic, while repairable construction may help owners keep their devices longer. That doesn’t mean the electronics are impact-free, and Barbie materials aren’t the only recovered plastics in the collection. The more precise story is also the more interesting one: Gomi has found a visible, functional use for old toy materials instead of relying on nostalgia alone.

Distinctive design does come with trade-offs. If you fall for a particular pattern, you may not be able to return later and find another just like it. Gomi says only one of each power bank design is available; its listings show a $95 price, though availability can change. Anyone shopping primarily for technical performance should still compare specifications. Here, the draw is the combination of everyday function, an individual finish, and a material story you can see.

For me, the appeal starts with that familiar pink but doesn’t end there. Childhood Memories takes a material associated with make-believe and gives it an adult errand: keeping a phone charged, playing music, or adding character to a daily accessory. It doesn’t ask anyone to outgrow their affection for Barbie, and it doesn’t pretend a fond memory is enough to make good tech. Instead, it gives those memories a useful new form, ready to sit on a desk or travel in a bag.

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Logitech built the all-day work + play headset that doesn’t scream “IT department”

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Woman wearing off-white Logitech Zone Vibe Pro headphones outdoors

I don’t want to be the one to call you out on a fine Wednesday morning, but your tech bag is a mess. You’ve got the Work Headphones, the serious pair with that dorky boom mic that makes you sound like a podcast host on Zoom calls but looks absolutely ridiculous in the wild. Then you have the Life Headphones, the cool ones that are great for music on the train but make you sound like you’re calling from inside a wind tunnel the second you try to take a call outdoors. We all perform this dumb little headphone swap all day, every day, because for some reason the industry decided we needed two different tools for one job. It is a silly problem that is, nonetheless, deeply annoying.

Logitech apparently got tired of watching us all do this. Their new Zone Vibe Pro, which ships September 30 for $259.99, is a direct shot at solving this two-headphone nonsense. It’s a boomless, over-ear headset with AI-powered mics that nuke up to 93% of background noise, so you can take a meeting from a chaotic coffee shop and still sound like you’re in a library. It has sidetone to stop you from shouting on calls, a battery that runs for 30 hours with ANC on, and a design that won’t get you weird looks in public. It’s a genuine attempt to build the one pair you actually need, with a Business version arriving November 2 for $279.99 for the IT folks who need the paperwork.

Designer: Logitech

Lilac Logitech Zone Vibe Pro headphones resting on a desk beside a tablet

Lilac Logitech Zone Vibe Pro headphones on a wooden desk next to a tablet keyboard

A Design That Doesn’t Look Like Office Equipment

The first thing Logitech did right was get rid of the boom mic, which changes everything about how the headset looks and feels. Without that arm sticking out, the Zone Vibe Pro doesn’t have an ugly “work side.” Both earcups are identical, clean, and minimalist, with a shape that feels more sculptural than engineered. The earcups rotate flat for travel instead of folding, which is a clever way to dodge the cheap plastic hinges that always snap on other headsets. Offered in four colors, including a lilac that practically screams “I am not corporate hardware,” the design is a confident statement that your work gear doesn’t have to be embarrassing.

To make sure you can actually wear it all day, Logitech stole the best ideas from its own gaming division. The soft, padded head strap and dual-layer foam earcups are straight out of the gaming playbook, where comfort isn’t a feature, it’s a requirement for ten-hour sessions. The foam is soft where it touches your ear but firmer underneath, a small detail that creates a better seal for the noise canceling. It’s the kind of smart, practical engineering that you don’t notice until you realize your head doesn’t hurt after a three-hour meeting.

Woman wearing off-white Logitech Zone Vibe Pro headphones while holding a smartphone

Woman using a laptop while wearing off-white Logitech Zone Vibe Pro headphones

Mics That Actually Work Without a Boom

The magic trick that makes this whole boomless thing work is the AI-powered microphone system. This is usually where headsets like this fall apart, sounding great in a quiet room but turning into a muffled mess the second a barista starts the blender. To prove their point, Logitech had a presenter take a call while someone held a power drill next to her head; the call sounded perfectly clear. The system is smart enough to isolate your voice and kill up to 93% of the noise around you, which is a bold claim backed by a pretty convincing demo.

They also included sidetone, a feature that lets you hear your own voice in the headset so you don’t end up shouting on your calls. It’s a simple fix that stops you from becoming “that person” in the coffee shop, and it’s amazing how many headsets get it wrong. The listening experience is handled by custom 40mm drivers and an adaptive noise canceling system that adjusts to your environment in real time. Combined with the solid acoustic seal from the earcups, the audio performance is designed to be just as good for music on the subway as it is for a meeting with your boss.

Man wearing graphite Logitech Zone Vibe Pro headphones during a video call on a tablet

Battery Life That Lasts, Parts You Can Replace, and Where to Buy

You get a solid 30 hours of listening with ANC on, and a frankly ridiculous 66 hours with it off, which is long enough to make you forget where you put the charging cable. If you do run low, a five-minute charge gets you an hour of call time, which is the kind of practical spec that saves the day when you’re running late. In a rare move for a headset at this price, Logitech also made the earpads, headband, and even the battery replaceable. It’s a welcome nod to making products that are meant to last rather than be thrown away after two years.

The Zone Vibe Pro is available today on logitech.com for $259.99, hitting the US and Canada first. The Business version, which adds certifications for Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and Google Meet plus remote management tools for IT departments, lands on November 2 for $279.99 with a USB-C receiver. If you’re tired of juggling two pairs of headphones just to get through the day, Logitech has built a very compelling argument that you only need one.

Man wearing graphite Logitech Zone Vibe Pro headphones outdoors near a glass building

Man wearing graphite Logitech Zone Vibe Pro headphones while holding a smartphone

The post Logitech built the all-day work + play headset that doesn’t scream “IT department” first appeared on Yanko Design.

Bose Noise Cancelling Wired Earbuds are an absolute steal for $99

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Wired earbuds are making a strong comeback for good reason. You don’t have to worry about charging the case, freak out about the buds dying from battery degradation over the years, or fear losing them in transit or dropping them by accident. Bose has realized how big the wired earbuds market is turning out to be over the last couple of years, and they’ve created a pair of ANC wired earbuds that’ll please music lovers like me.

Ever since the introduction of QC20 in the 2010s, the US-based audio brand has seen a lull of many years as far as tethered options go. Since true wireless earbuds first made their presence felt, wired earbuds have been sidelined for the sheer convenience of use. Now driven by the resurgence, as celebrities and Gen-Z endorse the novel idea, there is a renewed interest among audio fanatics for wired options. Bose has gone a level ahead with its new wired earbuds, as they offer what only a handful of trusted makers are offering – the ability to have active noise cancelling baked in.

Designer: Bose

Unlike the passive wired earbuds, these make more sense in audibly chaotic situations like on a flight, walking down a busy street, or noisy neighbours around the block. Simply called the Bose Noise Cancelling Wired Earbuds (I just love that), they bring back the nostalgia with all the perks that come with tethered options like the in-line remote, and of course, the goodness of blocking out distracting noises with the QuietControl noise cancellation tech. Bose has chosen to go with the USB-C connectivity options, which makes logical sense for audiophiles who value high-quality audio.

Since we are talking Bose, the wearing comfort is top-notch with the three sizes of silicone eartips and a couple of stability wings. According to Bose, listeners can mix and match them to find the “fit that feels both comfortable and secure”. For taking calls, the inline remote has the usual three button controls – volume up, volume down, and the play/pause button in the middle. ANC comes courtesy of the two microphones on each bud, which constantly monitor the surroundings and provide adaptive noise cancelling. Like all TWS earbuds, the ANC can be toggled to Quiet Mode for full immersion, Aware Mode for being aware of the surroundings, and the ANC Off Mode to listen in the native state.


Sound quality is always on top of Bose’s priority list and these wired ANC earbuds are no different. They come with the proprietary Sound Design digital signal processing with support for lossless audio listening. The wired buds can output a fixed 24-bit/48kHz audio signal, which should sound crisp and layered. We also have to keep in mind the low-latency performance, which should make gaming and watching fast-paced action movies a whole lot better compared to TWS earbuds.

The only downside is the absence of a dedicated app control for the wired earbuds, which Bose should consider having, as they are a no-brainer. So, for now, the in-line mic handles all the controls. On the upside, you don’t have to worry about those distracting noises when the wire brushes against the clothing. The IPX4-rated earbuds are waterproof and dustproof against splashes and sweat, and come with a zippered carry case for easy carrying.

Arriving in three classy color options, the Bose Noise Cancelling Wired Earbuds up for pre-order at $99 are worth the money. They are all set to ship on October 13, so you better pull the trigger before the stock runs dry, which I’m sure will be the case.

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