Ever since the iPod’s heyday a decade ago, I was been wondering whether Apple in its pursue of miniaturization might eventually come around engineering an iPod shuffle of sorts that would be entirely embedded inside the firm’s In-Ear Headphones.
But as Apple hit the brake on iPod innovation amid rise of the iPhone, my dreams have remained mere wishful thinking — up until now. A German company called Bragi has created a tiny earbuds that contain an embedded MP3 player, a comprehensive fitness tracker and a host of other features.
The Dash, as it’s called, is being billed as the world’s first wireless smart in-ear headphones with a built-in music player and a range of performance tracking features aimed at fitness nuts.
The device is operated via a touch sensitive surface that registers horizontal and vertical slides and taps, allowing you to skip tracks, adjust volume and more, even when running or cycling.
The embedded music player has four gigabytes of storage, which should be enough for about a thousand songs.
In addition to a three-axis accelerometer for tracking pace and distance while running, cadence while biking or the number of laps in the pool, the device is capable of measuring your body temperature and fitness metrics such as heart rate readings and oxygen saturation levels.
Other features include a 32-bit ARM chip, a digital signal processor, a cool LED lightring, Bluetooth 4.0 connectivity, an ambient microphone for the transparent audio feature and more.
For those wondering, the Dash’s built-in 100 mAh battery provides about three hours of music playback and charges in less than an hour.
Priced at a rather steep $300, the Dash will ship in April 2015.
You can pre-order yours over at the Bragi store.
Source: Bragi