Connect your AirPods or Bluetooth headset to any device with a 3.5mm audio jack using this wireless dongle

Posted on 25/04/2023 by Sarang Sheth

Ever wanted to use your AirPods with the old-gen iPod or MP3 player? Or wanted to connect your new TWS earphones to the in-flight entertainment system in a plane? Or wanted to use your hi-fi wireless headphones to listen to LPs on your vinyl player? Well, chances are that none of those products come with great-quality Bluetooth (or any Bluetooth at all) to support your cutting-edge earphones and headphones… so the folks at Twelve South designed a dongle to save the day. Meet the AirFly Pro, a wireless transmitter that plugs right into the aux-output on your old device and gives it Bluetooth superpowers. Hook it to your car stereo, your old MP3 player or CD player, or any archaic device with a 3.5mm output, and it can suddenly transmit audio via Bluetooth to your earphones. The AirPlay Pro lets you pair as many as two sets of earphones or headphones to one playback device, so you and a buddy can both listen to music together without sharing a single pair of earphones (although there definitely was a romantic charm to doing that back in the day). The AirFly Pro works seamlessly with all the AirPods as well as any Bluetooth-powered earphones or headset, giving you crystal-clear audio without wires. It’s quite odd that Apple didn’t think of this dongle sooner…

Designer: Twelve South

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The beauty of the AirFly Pro is really in its ridiculously simple design. It comes with a rounded white design, reminiscent of the AirPod case, with the exception of a small wire emerging from the side, with a 3.5mm jack on the other end. There’s nothing unintuitive about how it looks, and a simple glance should give you enough of an indication that all you need to do is plug the dongle into the aux output on any machine. Once that’s done, switch the AirFly on and pair it with your headphones or earphones and you’ve got yourself a wireless audio setup. The AirFly Pro works with old devices like music players with 3.5mm ports, as well as the in-flight entertainment system found on most planes, and even car stereo systems (at least the older ones).

Twelve South makes three variants of the AirFly – an SE version that only supports pairing with a single set of earphones/headphones, a Duo version that ups the ante by letting you simultaneously pair two sets of earphones/headphones, and the Pro, which adds a surprising new feature – the ability to both transmit as well as receive audio. In the transmit mode, the AirFly Pro turns your playback device into a wireless broadcaster, but switch to receive mode and the AirFly Pro can receive audio, letting you stream music from your phone to your analog speaker system, or to your old car stereo through the aux input. A switch on the side of the AirFly Pro lets you toggle between transmitting and receiving mode, letting you entirely eliminate the need for an aux cable ever again.

The AirFly Pro comes with a built-in battery, which Twelve South says lasts over 25 hours on a full charge and charges via USB-C. The AirFly SE and Duo, subsequently, have a battery life of 20 hours. Don’t worry about needing an extra charging cable if you’re a lightning-cable loyalist, because the AirFly comes with its own USB-C cable in the box. It also comes with a cap and keyring that fits onto the AirFly’s audio jack, letting you carry it around with you on your keychain or a carabiner clip attached to your backpack wherever you go.

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Huawei somehow outdoes itself by launching the TalkBand B7 watch with a pop-out Bluetooth earpiece

Posted on 23/03/2023 by Sarang Sheth

If you thought the Watch Buds were weird, Huawei’s pushing the limits further with the TalkBand B7, a slim smartwatch with a pop-out Bluetooth earpiece. Giving complete Businessman-from-the-2000s energy, the TalkBand B7 comes with a detachable module that fits right in your ear, turning from wearable to ‘hearable’ in seconds. The screen itself detaches from the watch’s band to reveal the mildly chunky retro-style Bluetooth headset (from the Jabra days) that fits right in your ear. Unlike the Jabra earpieces from back in the day, however, this one has a 1.53-inch flexible AMOLED screen, and is basically a smartwatch in your ear.

Designer: Huawei

The TalkBand series isn’t particularly new, although its novelty hasn’t quite worn off yet. The B7, as its name rightfully suggests, is the seventh in the TalkBand series, but it still feels like some ridiculously fresh idea that challenges the stereotype of what a smartwatch should do/be. It comes with a curved display that sports a unique vertical format as opposed to the square and circular variants seen on most smartwatches. The TalkBand B7 does the usual, letting you check the time, weather, notifications, and even monitor your health and track your exercises, but goes above and beyond by also letting you check your blood oxygen saturation and even track your menstrual cycles. Strangely enough, the band lacks GPS and NFC, so it depends on your phone for location and won’t let you tap-to-pay.

A set of buttons on the bottom left and right of the screen let you pop the earpiece module out, letting you go from a wrist-worn device to a Bluetooth headset that’s perfect for calls. The module runs on Huawei’s Kirin A1 chip, with support for Bluetooth 5.2 for a strong connection with your smartphone. Dual-mic noise cancellation makes the TalkBand’s earpiece a perfect choice for audio or video calls in a relatively noisy environment.

The TalkBand B7 is currently limited to just the Chinese market, although a global launch is expected in May of this year. The TalkBand B7 is compatible with devices running Android 7.0, HarmonyOS 2, or iOS 9.0 and newer, and starts at CNY 999 (US$145).

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Unique bone-conducting wearable allows swimmers to listen to music and podcasts underwater

Posted on 18/02/2023 by Sarang Sheth

Swimming remains one of the most top-tier exercises, providing full-body cardio, resistance training, and the ability to stay cool while exercising all in one shot. However, it has one big disadvantage – you can’t listen to music while swimming. “One of the issues that swimmers face during workouts is that swimming sometimes can get monotonous. Over time it becomes quite boring to swim from one side of the pool to the other,” say the designers behind SONR, the world’s first swimming-focused audio device. Designed to be the swimming equivalent of popping AirPods in while hitting the gym, the SONR Music is a unique wearable designed to help swimmers listen to music, podcasts, and instructions while underwater. The puck-shaped device slides underneath your cap or goggles, sitting firmly against the back of your skull and uses bone-conducting technology to deliver audio to you. It’s designed to make you ‘hear’ audio by delivering vibrations to your inner ear via the bones in your skull. That means your ears remain free to either stay open or to wear earplugs while swimming.

Designer: SONR Inc.

SONR’s journey started with the eponymously named flagship device, which focused on allowing swimmers to listen to their trainers/instructors while swimming. Paired with a walkie-talkie that delivered the trainer’s speech in real-time, SONR allowed the swimmer to hear their coach even while moving through water. The SONR Music takes its predecessor’s technology and builds on it by adding Bluetooth functionality to the device. Pair it with your phone and the SONR Music lets you listen to tunes or podcasts while you swim. Create a playlist and you could be in the water for hours without getting bored… or have your workout/performance affected by intrusive, negative thoughts that could decrease your motivation and focus.

The SONR Music’s one-size-fits-all design makes it perfect for virtually anyone. It slips right under your cap or the strap of your goggles, and in just minutes, you’ll forget it’s even there. The device plays audio by delivering vibrations directly to your inner ear by circumventing the eardrum altogether. You can hear music while also listening to noises around you, or wear earplugs to hear your music/podcasts better. The device is designed to be water-resistant up to 5ATM, and here’s the kicker – it works just as well on land too, allowing you to use it while cycling, trekking, and exercising. Conversely, you could also use it while surfing or paddleboarding.

The SONR Music works with locally-stored files too, offering up the ability to swim in larger pools without having your Bluetooth connection stutter or falter. Athletes can directly store audio files (music, podcasts, motivational audio) onto the SONR Music and have them play back while swimming. The device has a battery life of 8 hours, and a built-in memory of 8Gb. Each SONR Music ships with a goggle clip, USB charging cable, and swimming earplugs.

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Galaxy Air earpiece concept uses hand gestures to interact with your phone

Posted on 14/09/2022 by JC Torres

Remember the early days of Bluetooth earpieces that looked like a piece of hard candy coming out of just one ear? Although we have long grown away from those designs toward more discreet TWS earbuds, it seems the design pendulum is swinging back to that position. Of course, the “stem” design of the likes of the AirPods isn’t that obnoxious, but it did tell designers that it was OK to go beyond conventions again. This design concept definitely breaks free from today’s common design trends and embraces some highlights of the past, all for the sake of delivering a new experience in controlling your smartphone without taking it out of your pocket or even touching any device at all.

Designer: Yash Saboo

There are a few ways that allow you to use your smartphone without touching it, at least for some of the most basic functions. You can command Apple Siri or Google Assistant by voice, or you can tap and swipe on your smartwatch for some functionality that’s available on your wearable. Voice control isn’t always feasible in all situations, though, and not everyone has a smartwatch. A lot of people have Bluetooth earbuds, and those at least let you control music and calls. The range of controls available here, however, is severely limited because you can only map a few taps or even fewer swipes to certain actions.

This Bluetooth earpiece concept blasts the door wide open by expanding the number of actions you can make. Instead of relying on limited taps and swipes, you’ll be able to use hand gestures made in front of your face or ear to control the smartphone in your pocket or on your table. A two-finger wave, for example, can accept or end calls, while twitching your index finger can make an emergency call. Of course, you can still use taps and swipes on the earpiece itself for media playback, freeing hand gestures for other actions like reading notifications or your schedule.

To make gesture recognition possible, you will definitely need more hardware than can fit in tiny earbuds. That’s why this design goes a bit back in time to reuse some designs from previous years. The over-the-ear design, for example, has mostly disappeared by now, but it’s utilized here to offer a secure fit for a bone conduction headset. Yes, this doesn’t go inside your ear but allows you to be completely aware of your surrounding even while wearing it. Unfortunately, that technology hasn’t exactly retained its popularity, but it’s still a better option in this context.

The most important part of the earpiece, however, is all the electronics that are crammed in a case that will hang behind your ear. It’s similar, in a way, to how some hearing aids try to hide those same parts, but this time there’s really no attempt to mask its presence. After all, it needs to be able to see what’s in front of your ear so that it can detect hand gestures.

It’s admittedly an unorthodox design that may or may not be uncomfortable to wear over long periods of time. The fact that it also works only on one ear makes it less useful for enjoying music or watching videos with stereo sound. It’s still an interesting take on how we can expand the ways to control our phones with hand gestures without having to wear smart glasses that open an entirely different can of worms.

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Every Apple AirPods design flaw solved by these conceptual Samsung earbuds

Posted on 31/03/2020 by Ruchi Thukral

As we adjust to this new normal, we are understanding the value of a good pair of earphones. Given that we are constantly on a video call with a co-worker/friend or isolating with roommates/family, earphones are a part of the heroes of our homes…of course, WiFi is the supreme leader of that list. Inspired by essential personal devices that help us during quarantine, Designer Felipe Duarte has created Yinyang earbuds for Samsung that are going to make you want to switch from your AirPods because it solves the major issues we face – the one-size that doesn’t fit all, the case which is an added device to charge, the bulky aesthetic, portability without the case and a charging solution if you lose the case.

The Yinyang earbuds are influenced by the duality of the millennia-old cultural concept of yin and yang. The Chinese philosophical thought behind the yin and yang is the balance between two forces that oppose and complement each other at all times. These conceptual Samsung earbuds are designed to reflect that philosophy by striking a perfect balance between user experience and portability. Yinyang earbuds are created to be the smallest in the market to that it can fit everyone (a problem I personally go through with my first-gen AirPods). The compact size will be achieved by getting rid of the ear tips.

The conceptual technology of the Yingyang earbuds that make it one-of-its-kind lies in the inflatable hook which secures the earbuds in place. It also features wireless charging and magnets on the rear end of the gadget so they can be charged on the back of our NFC-enabled cell phone, thus eliminating the need for a charging case (if there was one, I would humbly request it not to resemble a floss box). You can also kinetically charge the earbuds by keeping yourself moving (we all could use some extra steps and exercise right now!) if your phone dies. The Yinyang earbuds can also be attached to the lapel of the jacket – that is how portable they are and with the sleek aesthetic, you are upping your accessory game with your tech.

Felipe, if you are reading this, please make this happen once we are all back out in the world, thank you.

Designer: Felipe Duarte

When earphones become your MP3 players

Posted on 01/02/2017 by Sarang Sheth

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Wait. Earphone Charging Cases can be controllers too?!? Why didn’t anyone think of that! Instead of having touch sensitive earphones (with all their single-tap/double-tap commands that are heckin’ difficult to remember) just put controls on the case, right? The AK G-12 does precisely that. The charging case also acts as a controller (with a dedicated volume dial), a screen (that displays what song you’re playing), and even comes with microSD card support (allowing you to play all your music directly out of your charging case!). Bluetooth earphones ultimately rely on the mobile phone for music storage and playback, but the AK G-12 allows you to put the music IN your earphones, making it truly revolutionary.

I also give the design major points for the pen-clip detail on the charging case that allows it to fasten easily to pockets and more importantly, look like a harmless old LAMY pen (that’s less likely to be stolen). Brilliant!

Designer: Jeongdae Kim

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