Headphones can be a headache, from accidentally yanking the cord out of your ear or tangling the wires in your pocket.
New York-based startup Alpha Audiotronics is looking to ease some of those woes with a new gadget called Skybuds, wireless earbuds that launched on Kickstarter Tuesday.
Skybuds are like a Swiss army knife for all your phone needs: Wireless earbuds, hands-free calls, a battery pack smartphone case and a charging/docking station for your earbuds when you’re not using them.
Earbuds are stored on both edges of the phone case at the very bottom. When you’re ready to use them, push the earbud and it’ll click out of the case. Plop them into your ears and press the button on one of the earbuds to play or pause your music. You can listen to music on one or both ears. If you receive a call, it works the same way to answer or hang up the phone.
The phone case has an embedded battery pack, so you can charge your phone on the go. The earbuds automatically charge when they’re inserted back in the phone case. You can charge the case using the USB connector, and it will also charge your phone and earbuds simultaneously.
The earbuds have silicone tips and are designed to be sweat proof. The case fits the iPhone 6 and 6S, and it is a little on the longer side to make room for earbud storage, but it’s flat and sleek. The earbuds don’t look super< obvious, like, say, these ear-free headphones, but it’s up to you if you want to run around looking like you’re wearing metal earplugs.
Skybuds owners can also download the Skybuds app, which has several features. You can check battery levels of the case and earbuds, or locate your earbuds if you lose them. The Skybuds app will help you connect the earbuds to any Bluetooth device, not just your phone. There’s also a charge control setting to dictate when the case automatically recharges your phone.
“It seems so strange that in the world we live in, we’re still tethered to our music devices,” Stephanie Lee, an Alpha Audiotronics co-founder.
Wireless headphones aren’t uncharted territory, though. There are a few Beats by Dre wireless products, including over-the-ear and in-ear models, though the latter still have a wire connecting the left and right earbuds. Bragi’s The Dash are similar to Skybuds in the sense that they’re basically giant earplugs.
What differentiates Skybuds from these products is that its wireless earbuds are very much a companion to your mobile device, not just an external accessory. The Dash can be paired to an app and it doubles as a fitness tracker, but the charging case is separate from your phone. The Beats headphones require you to charge them with a micro USB. With Skybuds, the battery pack phone case is what brings everything together.
The company envisions the product as one for people who are on the go. The battery for the earbuds lasts for three to four hours of continuous music play, but there’s enough battery in the case that, if you use it just to charge the earbuds, you could get 24 hours of use. If the case is used just to charge the phone, it gives an additional 50% battery life.
“This isn’t meant for someone who wants to sit down at their desk, put up some giant headphones and crank for 10 hours,” Jamie Roberts Seltzer, another co-founder, says. While this is the company’s first product, it does have other products in mind for people who do want a wireless audio experience at their desk.
