Wireless headphones are great, but are also perpetually limited by their battery life. But what if there was a way to get ‘unlimited’ playback time? And even better than that, what if that power was 100% sustainable?
JBL has been working on this problem and has harnessed the sun to create a pair of solar-powered wireless headphones.
They’re called the JBL Reflect Eternal much like Logitech’s solar keyboards, they don’t need direct sunlight to charge. So long as they are getting some light (including indoors), they stay juiced up.
That being said, you’re going to get the fastest results outside. JBL has estimated that an hour and a half of outdoor exposure will provide around 68-hours of playback, so long as the battery is fully charged.That number will apparently be bumped up to 168 hours of playback if it is charged for 2 hours outside. You can also listen to the headphones while you charge.
While it seems pretty difficult for them to not charge, there is a safety net option if their exposure to light has been low. The cans also include a USB port that provides 2 hours of playback from a 15 minute charge.
In terms of specs, the headphones include 40mm drivers with a 20Hz to 20kHz frequency range, a 3.7V / 700mAh battery, bluetooth connectivity (and can be used with multiple devices), voice assistant compatibility and a IPX4 rating. This means they’ll be fine to roll with at the gym.
Interestingly, JBL opted to crowdfund the Reflect Eternals. The target has already been hit, but interested parties can still contribute until January 15 2020 to score your own pair. There are two tiers left, with the cheapest starting at $144. This is 40% off what the RRP will be, and the campaign has set the estimated shipping time as October 2020.
But there is one rather big problem for us Aussies – they only ship to the U.S. and Germany. So if you want a pair of these solar powered lads you might want to ask a friend in one of these countries if they can accept the delivery for you. Alternatively, you could consider Shop Mate, which is Australia Post’s forwarding system that allows Aussies to buy stuff in the U.S.
You can watch the trailer for the Reflect Eternals here:
[Engadget]