Looking for a new pair of in-ear headphones? Not convinced about Bluetooth buds but don't want the hassle of tangling wires? Nytro Labs has introduced a new product that might be of interest.
The US-based firm has launched Spin: retractable headphones, which it describes as "frustration-free, in-ear headphones" that will "simplify and improve the headset experience".
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A crowdfunding campaign is live on Kickstarter to raise $125,000 (£75,000) to bring Spin to market, with shipping of the finished buds due in November.
What is Spin? It's a patent-pending set of headphones that feature a dual-spool retractable design, housed in a lightweight aluminium unit inspired by Apple's EarPods case.
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The retractable system has been engineered by Nytro Labs in-house, with the dual-spool element managing the headset cable and 3.5mm jack cable separately – rather than at the same time.
Sound is transferred via spring contacts and a printed circuit board to ensure the quality of a phone call or your music remains the same, whether Spin is retracting or is locked in place.
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Meanwhile, the 9.2mm drivers have been custom-tuned to "deliver a balanced sound experience", while an omni-directional microphone with noise reduction has been installed for phone calls.
Nytro Labs co-founder Kevin Brennan said: " You would think with how far we've come with smartphones and the explosive growth in the audio space that this wouldn't be an issue.
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"For some, Bluetooth is an answer, but we prefer the reliability and ease of a wired headset, so we set out to solve the tangle problem in an elegant way," Brennan added.
If the Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign is a success, Nytro Labs will prepare Spin for commercial production by finalising the design and mechanism, confirm suppliers and carry out testing.
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Nytro Labs isn't the first company this year to use Kickstarter in a bid to bring a fresh product to the AV market.
Recently, Neil Young's PonoMusic and Musaic's multi-room music system have found success through Kickstarter – and Nytro Labs will be hoping for a similar result with its campaign.
For more information on Spin and to contribute, visit Kickstarter.
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by Pete Hayman