Blackbox i10 noise cancelling earbuds tap into iPod / iPhone dock connector for power, pleasure
By Darren Murph 
posted July 23rd 2010 2:53PM
posted July 23rd 2010 2:53PM
[Thanks, Sharmee]
Active Noise Rejection now available for Apple devices, batteries not required
London, 22 July 2010 – Blackbox, the world's premier provider of best-in-class audio products designed for personal listening, today announced the launch of its exciting new i10 earphones specially created and designed for iPod and iPhone users.
In a UK first, the i10 earphones (£79.99 RRP) are powered directly by the device through Apple's unique 30 pin dock connector. The i10's are designed to improve the device's sound quality and provide a clear and authentic listening experience through Active Noise Rejection™ (ANR) technology. The earphones offer maximum comfort, wearability and style with an integrated monitor function and volume control which is ideal for listening to music on the go.
The i10 earphones provide an enthralling listening experience with deep bass, clear vocals and natural highs by cancelling 92% of background noise using ANR technology provided by Phitek Systems; a global leader in electro-acoustic technologies and active noise-cancellation. ANR is a unique patented technology that virtually eliminates disturbing background noise. It works by intelligently measuring the noise field in the ear, before calculating and reintroducing an 'anti-noise' response, resulting in near silence by continuously adapting to the prevailing noise conditions.
Neil Truckell, UK Brand Manager of Blackbox comments: "This product presents something truly unique for Apple and music enthusiasts here in the UK. Through its Active Noise Rejection technology, the i10s are the first earphones to operate without the need for external batteries and provide the ultimate upgrade path for iPOD/iPHONE users, keen to dramatically improve sound quality and comfort. Its competitive price point makes it an amazing addition to your device so you can simply enjoy music on the go. This is just one of the upcoming innovations from the Blackbox family."
The Blackbox i10 earphones are available to order now from Amazon.com and Play.com.
Technical Specification for the i10:
- iPod 30 pin dock
- Active Noise Reduction – Up to 92% (22dB)
- Passive Noise Isolation – Up to 30dB >1kHz
- Connector cable 800mm, Earphone cable 450mm
- Slide volume control
- Lateral, in-ear earphone with an ergonomic design and monsoon skin
- Power – supplied by iPod
- Comes with a set of 3 grommet sizes (S,M,L)
Interesting Concept...
@DaHarder
... now about that sound quality?
@DaHarder
Interesting indeed, but do you have to wear them correctly?
What about for charging and listening, which I often do when going to sleep?
more reason to drain the battery + not have a way to charge
I like my noise isolation earbuds that don't use battery and let me use it for my zune hd.
@bbqbspareribs
Woah... people own Zunes?
@YottabyteGames yes idiot. Not all people wants an iPod.
@mikmik111
Just making a statement; the Apple iPod does control most of the portable music player market. I owned one Zune, but since they were only Windows compatible it wasn't very useful.
@bbqbspareribs
lol, now 2 peeps here own a zune!
@YottabyteGames I own a Zune too. So that makes 3.
@joshl
Just 'cause I own a Zune dosent mean I like it. Actually I regret purchasing a Zune...
Great. Now my iPhone will last 3 hours with something else draining the battery.
@neonsocks -- do people forget that there are other iPods with dock connectors with longer lasting batteries?
Get some Ultimate Ears and Comply foam eartips. No extra white noise in your music, no power drain and will filter enough external noise that you won't hear the bus coming as you cross the street on a red light.
Is the recession over?
@Boyo Yes it is. If you can afford a $199 smartphone and a $100x24 months plan, you can afford to not use the crappy earphones that come with your device. I don't have experience with every brand of giveaway earphones, but the Apple round hard ones are absolute crap. If you don't want to spend a fortune on UE triple fi10v you can get some sony ex51's for $25.
Nothing about sound quality. All about premium price. Accesories shouldn't cost more than the main product...
@trihy Did you buy an iPhone 4 for less that $123? If so, I'd like to know where and how!!
@idrumgood sez nothing about 4, sez " iPod / iPhone"
@trihy
Headphones are definitely not accessories.
@HansImGlueck
Although all iPods which have a dock connector and iPhones are over £80 which is what he was suggesting.
@Dafrety
Go to Apples website, click on iPod Accessories, you will see headphones are listed as an accessory. If Steve Jobs says headphones are accessories, then headphones are accessories.
@snailfur Will you pay more than $100 for a wired headset? Sound is about moving air, how much air can move this tiny headsets? Well, the same as any other. You can make a couple of tricks to make them sound better, but thats it. Overpriced crap imho. $50 is more than enough for a sh**ty headset.
@trihy
Agreed. And not made in China. While not noise-cancelling or svelte, my Grado SR-80 cans kick butt.
I still like my Jh16's thnx tho.
Question: does iPhone 4 noise cancelation works with music or is it just for calls? Can it use the handsfree mic or is it limited to the additional mic in the back of the phone?
@marmaduke No, for noise canceling headphones to work there needs to be a mic very close to the ear. This is because the noise canceling circuitry needs to be able to produce a signal that is out of phase with the "noise" that is coming in from the outside. Since the mic on the iphone is never a constant distance from both ears and also because the speed of sound isn't constant, you cannot know the phase of the noise at the ear. The noise canceling for phones works differently. You have one mic that is close to your mouth and one mic that is "far" from your mouth so there is a slight time delay between two mics. But this delay is only significant for sound sources that are close to one of the mics. So sounds coming from farther away reach both mics at relatively the same time. Therefore, the phone tries tries to suppress sound that reaches both mics at the same time.
I'd buy them.....not for a garbage ass apple product but I would buy them.
I almost got hit by a car wearing a noise canceling earphone once.
@mikmik111
it is illegal (and mostly illogic) to use any earphone during driving (excluding medical reason).
Indefinite Implosion is right, I was just walking.
I am yet to get my license.
My girlfriend uses these when i'm not home for pleasure, not power.
@Elduderino2412 Oddly enough she uses them on her black box
Design looks DOA. Separate battery is a good thing aswell as being able to charge, like say from portable external battery.
They are available in Canada through Mediasonic. www.mediasonicinc.com.
sound quality is on par with others in this price range and the battery drain is really minimal as the noise cancellation circuit has been optimized.
they were getting over 80 hours of music out of 1AAA, so similar demands on the iPhone/iPod/iPad.
Gimme gimme gimme
Looking at it, I can all but guarantee it won't be compatible with the iPhone 4 bumper. Effing Apple...
What is the point of this device?.
Usually half the volume is enough for most song (using a noise cancel earbud or even a stock earbud),and most of the time full volume is unhealthy at all. This device is promising only one thing :power. So, i don't get it why some normal person will purchase it, to break your eardrum?
O_o
@magallanes the point is not to hear the external noise, which allows you to lower the volume even more.
damn.. im so old..
whats this "noise cancelling" thing for ?
back in the days, when having a walkman was such a luxury :)
my dear engadget, we did have noise cancelling earbuds without battery for Sony Ericsson. The HPM-88
http://www.sonyericsson.com/cws/products/accessories/overview/hpm-88?lc=es&cc=es#a
I have them and they do drain the battery but I can still use the phone a whole day.
Wow.....noise cancelling......never heard of that before......
Why is nobody asking the question: why doesn't Apple just include noise cancellation directly from within the phone? With call-capable headphones there would be two redundant mics. They already offer noise cancellation for calls, why not music?
@makkystyle My understanding is that the microphone has to be very close to the speakers for the noise canceling to work well, so using the iphone built in mic with any type of headphones to accomplish noise cancellation would not really work because of the inherent distance between the speaker drivers in the headphones, and the built in mic in the phone.