It was widely assumed that when Apple bought Beats a few months ago we’d soon see a set of Apple-branded headphones that connected directly to the iPhone or iPad’s digital Lightning port, instead of the analogue headphone jack. But it seems like Philips has actually beaten Apple to the punch with its new Lightning-friendly Fidelio M2L ear goggles for iOS devices.
Now why would you want a pair of headphones that are designed exclusively for your iPhone or iPad? By connecting directly to their Lightning ports it means the digital-to-analogue conversion that usually happens inside your device can instead be processed inside the headphones. And that eliminates the analogue audio signal having to be sent through a long headphone cable during which it can be subjected to interference and degradation along the way. In layman’s terms it means you should be left with clearer, cleaner sound in your ears with a 24-bit digital signal being delivered directly to the headphones.
Available come December for just north of $US320, the Fidelio M2L headphone’s also feature 40mm magnetic neodymium speaker drivers with a closed back design to help improve bass performance, and what appears to be a swanky stitched leather hand band to help further emphasise your discerning tastes. [Philips via Pocket-lint]