Oxymoronic wireless headphones for Apple's iPod Shuffle II
Wireless headphones with wires!
(Credit: Arriva)Back in March, I reviewed Arriva's sports headphones, which feature a unique cord design that does a remarkable job of keeping the headphones' earbuds securely in your ears. The fledgling company hinted that it would be creating "wireless" headphones for Apple's second-generation iPod Shuffle, and we now have our first concept photo of what the headphones will look like. The irony is that the headphones aren't wireless in the traditional sense (Bluetooth, IR, or RF), but they simply have the tiny Shuffle II integrated into the headphones at the back of your neck.
Arriva's founder Ben Blouse explains:
"We have designed a docking station smaller but a mirror of the Shuffle II station and extended the slot 13mm down into the clip section, which fits snugly. From our testing, the weight and fit work great and the lack of speaker wire is wonderful--which is our wireless goal."
He adds:
"Yes, this was [created in] Photoshop, but the final product will be very close to what you've seen. We are not selling the Shuffle [to go with the headphones] but Apple knows what we are up to and have not said anything except we can make our headphones in all the Shuffle colors, which we are."
No word yet on what they'll cost or exactly when the company will begin shipping models, but hopefully by this summer.
Hunkered down in New York City, Executive Editor David Carnoy covers the gamut of gadgets and writes his Fully Equipped column, which carries the tag line "The electronics you lust for." He's also the author of "Knife Music," a novel. E-mail David. Follow David on Twitter. 
Too bad - if they dipped a bit lower to the base of the neck, they might actually be worthwhile.
back of the head where it would be fighting gravity and cause uncomfortable
tugging at the ears. If they were to design this to fit at the back of the head,
they'd be cutting out everyone with long hair and has a ponytail. It's a
Photoshopped product image anyway.
I've tried the full size Sennheiser RS140 headphones - they are extremely good. Got them from Hifi Headphones (http://www.hifiheadphones.co.uk). Maybe it's time to give wireless iPod earphones a try...
- by amygus81 October 20, 2008 10:46 AM PDT
- They look ok but I'm not sure. Haven't heard good reviews about these headsets. Anyone have the JayBird <a href="http://www.jaybirdgear.com/jaybird-wireless-headphones-overview.php">Bluetooth wireless headphones</a>? They look pretty cool but want to do my homework before coughing up the $$. Looks like they have good reviews.
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