iCap MP3 player can save your hearing / life, not your dignity

No, seriously -- you have to digest this quote. According to Gesten Technologies President Jeffrey Gesten: "If you listen to loud music through earbuds, then you are risking long term hearing damage; if you listen while you are jogging or bicycle riding, then you are risking your hearing... and your life!" Hear that kids? If you use any product other than the ridiculous looking iCap, you're practically playing Russian Roulette with Dr. Death. Speaking of the cap at hand, said wearable packs a 1GB MP3 player, an FM tuner, a voice recorder (really?) and a microSD slot for carrying around even more Boyz II Men tracks on your dome. It also touts external speakers, which should totally freak out any other jogger you happen to pass by. Those with enough fundage to buy something purely for comedic purposes can hand over $119.95 and begin to chuckle right now.

[martin @ Dec 19th 2008 5:58PM]

no thanks!

[Jason @ Dec 20th 2008 12:09AM]

That's okay, martin, onlookers may laugh for free.

[Loonie @ Dec 19th 2008 5:58PM]

Oh dear.

[alebuba @ Dec 19th 2008 5:59PM]

is this how i get the ladies

[Ayman @ Dec 20th 2008 2:39AM]

No thats how people smack your head thinking its a jukebox.... would work well with NCIS

[Pimpin @ Dec 19th 2008 6:04PM]

Chick magnet!!!

[The Dude @ Dec 19th 2008 6:05PM]

I'd rather risk my hearing with my buds than my procreation by with this cap.

[Platinum_Skeet @ Dec 19th 2008 6:08PM]

Wow I just want to see the infomercial with this. I bet it'll have the same actors as life alert....

[Alpinerover @ Dec 19th 2008 7:29PM]

With the iCap, you're always alone! Thanks iCap!

[Trial @ Dec 20th 2008 3:16PM]

"I've put the hat on and now I can't get any cute young men!"

"We're sending help immediately, Mrs. Fletcher!"

[Ben @ Dec 19th 2008 6:12PM]

Does it come with a headphone jack? I bet it comes with a pair of iPhoneys =D

[mkp @ Jan 10th 2009 8:25PM]

The specs sheet says it has an "Earbud / Line Out Jack" - note that it actually says earbud not just headphone.

http://www.icapmp3.com/specs-icap.asp

[UnixSystemsEngineer @ Dec 19th 2008 6:13PM]

The overdramatization reminds me of those infomercials.

You know the ones -- before I had the SuperCanGrabbingArm(TM), I was a bumbling fool in black-and-white grainy film. Every time I stood on a stool to get cans off of the top self, the cans would fall on top of me, giving me a concussion, I'd fall off the stool and break my neck, and so on.

God I love the "before" person. So helpless. So funny.

[Michael @ Jan 10th 2009 10:16PM]

Just like this...

http://www.hulu.com/watch/34460/saturday-night-live-jar-glove

[Horrorosa @ Dec 19th 2008 6:14PM]

iCap? more like iCaramba?!?!

[D @ Dec 19th 2008 6:18PM]

iCap? more like iCrap

[Chic Runner @ Dec 19th 2008 6:15PM]

Wow, this could be the lamest thing EVER.

The review of the Nike Hatphones on my blog was helpful and at least that looked somewhat wearable!

[djsic2 @ Dec 19th 2008 6:18PM]

"Back in school we used to dream about this everyday, would it really happen or our dream faaaade awwwaaaaay."

[SurferSeth @ Dec 19th 2008 6:19PM]

iCrap...

[PW @ Dec 19th 2008 6:25PM]

It's true that there have been increasing reports of people being hit by cars and such, while in their own little iPod world. This is just a minor cleanup of the gene pool in my opinion. I don't know that I'll ever end up dead wearing earphones, but I do know that I'll never be seen alive wearing this cap.

[jupiterthunder @ Dec 19th 2008 6:26PM]

Oh, Engadget. You laugh because you don't have one. Just wait 'til Billy Mays starts selling these babies. That man is just so convincing. Damn you mighty hooks! But my sliders are delicious.

[Blastar @ Dec 19th 2008 6:31PM]

Just another i-crap.

[Yipcanjo @ Dec 19th 2008 6:41PM]

Can we ALL stop with the "i+Word" naming convention? iCap, iPod, iMac, iAnnoy -- it's all getting old. This is 2008, right? Not 1998??

Let's move along...

[PW @ Dec 19th 2008 7:01PM]

Agreed. Strongly agreed.

[iEye #2 @ Dec 19th 2008 7:20PM]

iAgree,

the letter 'i' belongs to Apple products exclusively...

[Freestyle Farfetchd @ Dec 19th 2008 8:50PM]

It does iEye? That's a bummer for M/i/crosoft then.

[FILA @ Dec 19th 2008 6:44PM]

I NEED ME THIS, haha, the iCap. well just as long as Apple doesnt buy iHop Im good. Fucking iHOP was the first ones to ever start the i thing so back off apple, lol

[Sean @ Dec 19th 2008 6:53PM]

I think I'll have to kill you for that.

IT'S NOT SPELLED iHOP IT'S SPELLED IHOP

INTERNATIONAL HOUSE OF PANCAKES

Go die in a hole.

[Jason @ Dec 20th 2008 12:12AM]

Thanks, Sean, for representin'.

[User7 @ Dec 19th 2008 6:53PM]

It looks like something you find in a clearance bin for $14.99.

[Jason @ Dec 20th 2008 12:13AM]

No, it will have much more dust on it by then.

[Basta @ Dec 19th 2008 7:35PM]

Oh Lord!!! This is about as bad as the MP3 player sunglasses I saw for three hundred large at Action Sports the other day.

[Eric @ Dec 19th 2008 8:38PM]

Who would actually get caught dead wearing that?

[ac14 @ Dec 20th 2008 12:02AM]

according to the article, apparently no one.

[Ethan @ Dec 19th 2008 8:52PM]

You laugh now, but I could just see throngs of 'identity conscious' kids with these as the next step up of obnoxiousness from phone speakers.

Put NXT into one of those flat front caps. I think I just had a badgood idea.

[forumpostar @ Dec 19th 2008 10:38PM]

Are you all serious? You're putting it down because you don't like the way it looks? Because it doesn't make you look COOL? Forget about functional or useful. I didn't realize endgaget's reader base was made up of twelve-year-olds.

[Freestyle Farfetchd @ Dec 19th 2008 11:50PM]

The problem is it's neither of those either. Do you really want to have your music blaring out to random people as you run through the park? More imporantly, do the other people want that? I think not.

[Yeah @ Dec 19th 2008 11:57PM]

Yeah man, screw sex, I'm gett'n this nifty hat!

[Gesten @ Dec 20th 2008 10:31AM]

Thank you....I'm glad to see that at least one person on this site has a brain.

[Tankyu @ Dec 19th 2008 11:15PM]

I imagine it wouldn't be very comfortable looking at the screen while wearing this. Killer graphic though, it's a flying iBall.

[GreezyG @ Dec 19th 2008 11:29PM]

whoa thats πMP!! I for some reason keep getting $150 radios stolen from my car so I stopped bothering... this would be perfect for me :D
Only when I'm alone... and wanna stay that way though :P

[tekd @ Dec 19th 2008 11:31PM]

I'm pretty sure that if you're going to crank the sound up loud enough on external speakers that you can hear your music over outdoors noise you'll end up trashing your ears even worse than if you just lowered the volume on earbuds.
It's not like going to rock concerts is good for your ears just because you're not wearing earbuds.
Even riding the subway is bad for your hearing, and I'm pretty confident that it's better to be wearing the in-ear isolating earbuds set to a moderate volume (50% or so on an ipod) than to hear the screeching rumbles.

[bolezhinkov @ Dec 20th 2008 12:08AM]

i cap believe people would buy this.

[thesvtautox @ Dec 20th 2008 12:08AM]

is this using bluetooth? if it is, can i use it with winmo?

[thesvtautox @ Dec 20th 2008 12:09AM]

damn, wrong story.

[Jesse @ Dec 20th 2008 12:50AM]

I have the nike hat phones beanie and it is wonderful and only cost $30. It is cool because you can hide the ipod in the little sleeve and the speakers are movable and are next to your ear so you can turn the volume down without people around you hearing. Also its hard to tell its not just a normal beanie. I used them in class in college and no one ever realized I was listening to music.

[lololcats @ Dec 20th 2008 1:16AM]

Billy Mays here with an important product!

[feraligatr8 @ Dec 20th 2008 4:42AM]

this is the stupidest thing ever! I don't use headphones, I use my phone to play music and its way better looking

[Andrew K. @ Dec 20th 2008 11:17PM]

$119! (really?) Why not just buy an iPod Nano and strap it to your head.

[superhobo @ Dec 21st 2008 10:52AM]

People who play music aloud on this...or a mobile or mp3 player or anything...in public, should be kicked.