Monster's headphones get their own voice assistant (update)
The company is releasing voice-compatible versions of its popular cans later this month.
Monster's latest team-up isn't with another star athlete or fellow accessory-maker: it's with music platform Speak Music Inc., which is lending the company its voice assistant named Melody. Monster says the partnership will add voice control to some of its headphones, making them the "world's first voice-powered premium" cans. The premium part may be true, but there are other voice-activated Bluetooth headsets out there. There's also bound to be more, considering manufacturers can now incorporate Amazon's Alexa Voice Service into their products.
World's first or not, Melody adds a new level of hands-free convenience to Monster's devices. You'll have to download the Melody app from Google Play or iTunes and pair it with your device. But once that's done, you can simply tap on the headphones when you want to tell Melody to play a specific song, album or artist. You can also tell it to skip/pause a track, turn the volume up/down or to access iHeartRadio, Spotify Premium, NPR and, in the near future, Tidal.
Monster says Melody works on either data connection and WiFi, so you can use the assistant anywhere you are. The no-phone voice command gestures are only available on the voice-compatible versions of Elements, Clarity HD and iSport Freedom V2 fitness headphones that Monster is releasing later this month. However, you can pair any Monster cups with with the voice assistant through Bluetooth.
Update: Corrected article to reflect that you can indeed pair Melody with your existing Monster headphones.
