Technology

Dyson’s bizarre new headphones have a built-in air purifier

Published

2 years ago

March 30, 2022

Dyson’s bizarre new headphones have a built-in air purifier

Dyson is moving into headphones in essentially the most Dyson method attainable: the Zone, a pair of noise-canceling Bluetooth headphones with air purification know-how inbuilt, because of a bizarre-looking magnetic face visor. It’s each the strangest and most formidable product that the corporate has ever made.

At the moment’s announcement is simply an preliminary reveal of the Zone headphones forward of a fall launch date, and Dyson isn’t asserting particular particulars like worth or specs (together with how a lot the headphones weigh or how lengthy the battery will final) at the moment.

The objective of the Zone is to make dwelling in city areas extra snug by making an attempt to mitigate each air and noise air pollution.

The air purification half of the Zone doesn’t reinvent the wheel for Dyson. As a substitute, it miniaturizes the corporate’s current air filtration know-how into a singular type issue. The Zone pulls in air by way of every earpiece utilizing a pair of tiny compressors. The air is then filtered and piped by way of the (barely bizarre-looking) “visor” for the person to breathe in — sans a lot of the particles and pollution.

Regardless of what it appears to be like like, the visor doesn’t make contact together with your face like a masks would. As a substitute, it sits in entrance of your face, creating a spot the place a bubble of unpolluted air can collect and be breathed in. (The corporate confirmed off a separate attachment that might be clipped on in cases the place you may want a correct full-contact face masks, too.)

The Dyson Zone on the corporate’s testing platform, Frank.

Picture: Dyson

The visor snaps on by way of a sequence of magnets, permitting for it to be eliminated for those who simply wish to use the headphones as headphones. It additionally has hinges that flip it down so as to speak to individuals usually with out having to take off the entire equipment. The Zone’s filtration system additionally presents a number of settings for various ranges of exertion. For instance, for those who’re operating up a flight of stairs or making an attempt to catch a bus, you’ll breathe heavier (and wish extra air) than for those who’re on a leisurely stroll. There’s even an automatic setting that makes use of accelerometers to routinely alter the airflow.

Dyson says the Zone can filter out as much as 99 % of particle air pollution — though the filters aren’t reusable and can must be changed after a few yr. (The corporate says the precise period of time will depend upon how a lot air air pollution you encounter and the way actively you utilize the headphones.)

The headphone half is a bit more conventional, regardless of being a brand new product class for Dyson. The corporate says its objective with the Zone was to create “trustworthy” reproductions of a musician’s unique tracks. Noise cancellation is supplied by way of a mixture of passive cancellation from the general design and energetic noise cancellation by way of a sequence of microphones.

There are three completely different modes for noise cancellation on the Zone. Isolation mode has energetic ANC when the face visor is raised. Decreasing the visor routinely shifts into dialog mode, which disables ANC so you possibly can hear the individual you’re speaking to. There’s additionally a transparency mode, which filters out vital feels like automobile horns and sirens. Charging is completed over USB-C, and the headphones hook up with a Dyson Hyperlink app, which may present extra detailed info on the air high quality round you.

I used to be capable of attempt a prototype of the Zone a couple of weeks in the past, and it actually appears to do what the corporate claims. I might really feel the jets of air being pumped in entrance of my face — though I used to be indoors, so it was arduous to inform simply how a lot cleaner it was.

ANC labored properly, too (however, once more, a quiet lodge room isn’t the very best take a look at situation), and the audio high quality for music was good with out notably dramatic bass (which, arguably, was the corporate’s objective).

On the flip aspect, the Zone headphones are additionally very massive and noticeably heavy. Dyson has accomplished an admirable job of cramming all this know-how right into a pair of headphones, however they’re nonetheless comparatively larger and bulkier than, say, a pair of Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones. Moreover, the whirring of the compressors was nonetheless barely audible when the motors have been operating at quicker speeds and I wasn’t listening to music to drown it out, even regardless of the noise cancellation.

The Zone is actually some of the distinctive merchandise from Dyson (or seemingly any firm) that we’ll see this yr. There are nonetheless plenty of essential particulars we don’t know — together with worth and battery life. And whereas mask-wearing has been normalized significantly over the previous two years, we’ll should see whether or not clients will likely be prepared to embrace this extraordinarily odd-looking product.

Technology

Silo season 2 hits Apple TV Plus this November

Published

1 hour ago

July 28, 2024

Press Room

Silo season 2 hits Apple TV Plus this November

The end of the world just got a little closer. Apple confirmed that the much-anticipated second season of its postapocalyptic series Silo will start streaming on November 15th.

Based on the trilogy of novels by Hugh Howey, Silo is set in the distant future and follows the remains of humanity, who live in giant underground bunkers — the titular silos — to avoid the deadly world outside. The season 1 finale ended with a big twist that made it clear there’s a lot more going on than the show initially lets on. It also only covers part of the first book, so it’ll be interesting to see how much of the story the new season covers. Silo’s second season will see returning cast members like Rebecca Ferguson, Tim Robbins, and Common.

Technology

How to connect your AirPods to your PC and Android devices

Published

2 hours ago

July 28, 2024

Press Room

How to connect your AirPods to your PC and Android devices

Just because Apple’s AirPods are designed for other Apple devices doesn’t mean they will only work on Apple devices.

That’s right, you can use your AirPods on your PC or Android-running mobile device. It isn’t as simple as setting up AirPods with an iPhone or Mac, but it’s also not too complicated.

Follow these steps to connect your AirPods to a Windows PC or Android.

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AirPods and an Android (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

How to connect AirPods to a PC

Insert the AirPods into their charging case, ensuring they’re at least partially charged.
Open the top of your AirPod charging case, but do not remove the AirPods from the case yet.
Tap and hold the circular button on the rear side of the AirPod charging case for a couple of seconds until the light inside the case blinks white.

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The circular button on the back of the AirPod case (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

Now, open your PC’s Bluetooth settings by clicking the Bluetooth icon in the system tray (bottom right of the taskbar) or by searching for “Bluetooth” in your taskbar and selecting Bluetooth and other device settings.
Click “Add Bluetooth or other devices” at the top of the settings screen.
On the “Add a device” page, click the top option for Bluetooth.

Bluetooth and device settings on a PC (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

Click the AirPods option from the list of all Bluetooth discoverable devices.
Wait around 30 seconds, and you should see a connection confirmation screen once your AirPods and PC are paired and connected.

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Troubleshooting a failed connection

When you take your AirPods out of their charging case, they should automatically connect to your PC. If your AirPods are having trouble connecting to your PC, don’t panic. Close your AirPods case and your PC’s Bluetooth settings and simply repeat the pairing process outlined above. Your AirPods should automatically connect to your PC after a few seconds every time you remove them from the charging case. If, for any reason, they don’t, follow these steps:

Open your PC’s Bluetooth settings by clicking on the Bluetooth icon in the bottom-right system tray of your taskbar. Alternatively, you can search for “Bluetooth” in your taskbar and select “Bluetooth and other device settings” when it appears.
Scroll down to the Audio section under your Bluetooth list and click on the AirPods listing.
This should reestablish the Bluetooth connection between your PC and AirPods.

Remember that Siri is Apple-only, so you won’t be able to use the voice assistant while your AirPods are connected to your PC.

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Pair AirPods with your Android phone

Connecting AirPods to an Android device is similar to connecting to a PC. Before doing anything, you’ll want to ensure that your AirPods are charged and housed in their case.

Swipe down from the top of the screen on your Android device
Touch and hold the Bluetooth icon
Turn on Bluetooth
Tap Pair new device

AirPods and an Android (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

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Open the lid of your AirPod case, but don’t remove the AirPods from the case.
On your AirPod case, press and hold the button on the rear of the case until the case flashes a white light.
Your AirPods should show up in your Bluetooth devices list.

If you can’t find your AirPods in your Android Bluetooth devices list, check for them under “Available Devices” in your Bluetooth settings. You can also refresh the Bluetooth list by clicking More and then “Refresh.”

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Kurt’s key takeaways

And there you have it. Now, you can easily connect your AirPods to your Windows PC or Android device. Remember, if your AirPods don’t appear in your PC or Android’s Bluetooth device list, simply restart the Bluetooth pairing process. Also, note that Apple-specific features like Siri won’t be available with your AirPods if you use them from a PC or Android device.

What other Apple accessories or devices would you like to see become more compatible with non-Apple platforms and why? Let us know by writing us at Cyberguy.com/Contact

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Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson is an award-winning tech journalist who has a deep love of technology, gear and gadgets that make life better with his contributions for Fox News & FOX Business beginning mornings on “FOX & Friends.” Got a tech question? Get Kurt’s free CyberGuy Newsletter, share your voice, a story idea or comment at CyberGuy.com.

Technology

Marvel is bringing the Russo Bros. back to direct the next two Avengers films

Published

8 hours ago

July 28, 2024

Press Room

Marvel is bringing the Russo Bros. back to direct the next two Avengers films

During Marvel’s Hall H panel at San Diego Comic-Con, the studio announced that the Russo brothers have signed on to direct Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars — the former of which will see Robert Downey Jr, return to the MCU as Doctor Doom. Doomsday is due out in May 2026, while Secret Wars will follow in May 2027.

Doctor Doom showing up just as the Fantastic Four are about to arrive makes it seem like Marvel’s been cooking up a plan to send its beleaguered Multiverse Saga off with a bang — one that’s probably going to be orchestrated by a guy who looks just like Iron Man.