Conversation Piece
High-tech sound with old school look
January 12, 2010
Vicky Sanderson
SPECIAL TO YOURHOME.CA
Anyone over the age of 40 has probably had the "Oh my God, I'm turning into my parents" experience of explaining to a member of Generation X-Box how ma and pa used to listen to music back in the day.
Amusing, isn't it – the uncomprehending stare, the skeptical frown? "Wait, explain me to again what an 8-track was?"
Well, now you can confuse the little blighters even further. Show them Tristan Zimmerman's Phonofone, which uses passive amplification (that means, like, no batteries, dude!) to boost the audio output of standard earphones up to 55 decibels. Uhhhmm, that's roughly the maximum volume of most laptop speakers, so don't plan on using it to blast out CCR (Google that, my young friends!) at your next house party.
But we think that the Phonefone is a magnificent example of the simple elegance of science married to great design.
Watch for more cool products from the clever Zimmerman – and remember, you heard it here first!
In the meantime, the Phonefone is available from the ever-inspiring www.charlesandmarie.com for $500.
Check out more Conversation Pieces and read Vicky's On the House blog.
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