Of late, speaker sales have been dominated by Amazon and Google, but Swedish firm Ikea is hoping to make a foray into the burgeoning audio devices market. Almost two years since Ikea announced its partnership with the Stockholm-headquartered consumer electronics firm Teenage Engineering, the first batch of products born of the collaboration will go on sale from February 1.
The Frekvens range (Swedish for “frequency”) of speakers will hit stores in the United States on February 1, and subsequently in other parts of the world. Teenage Engineering, a design collective, has prior experience in manufacturing speakers, including the iconic OP-1 synthesizer. The Frekvens range will be a natural progression for Teenage Engineering, which will be able to leverage the vast network of Ikea to reach more customers.
The two speakers in the new range include a USD 69.99 model and a portable variant which will cost USD 19.99. The latter can be paired with a belt clip, a USD-149 worth subwoofer, and a light-up base that costs USD 10.
Agencies
The Frekvens range (Swedish for “frequency”) of speakers will hit stores in the United States on February 1, and subsequently in other parts of the world.
“The Items got narrowed down towards sound,” Teenage Engineering founder Jesper Kouthoofd said. “What we said was ‘why do you have to hide speakers?’ They are furniture in their own right.’ Sounds should not be hidden. So when you start to build a modular system and add fronts and accessories on, it’s a more fun way to think about sound,” he added.
Home audio is not the only segment that the two firms are targeting. Other products in the range include lights, crockery, furniture, and other knick-knacks like a reflective raincoat and a cajón. Some of the devices like the speakers and smart lighting bulbs can be connected together.
“We know that for younger people spontaneity is key. The idea of gathering some friends could become a reality in minutes. What is needed to have a good party at home? That’s what we wanted to investigate with Frekvens. Together with Teenage Engineering, we have explored the possibilities of taking the party with us,” Ikea creative design leader Michael Nikolic said.
From Boombox To Wireless Speakers: How Tech Evolved Over The Last Decade
Autoplay
1 of 8
Tech Revolution In 2010s
Needless to say, the 2010s have been one helluva decade as far as tech is concerned. This decade has seen monumental and significant changes in terms of gadgets and everyday technology that we use in our daily lives. Be it the transformation of flip phones into wide touch screen smartphones or the world collectively moving on from digital cameras to high-res DSLRs, we have come a long way since 2010.
To show you just how major and significant these changes have been, we have compiled a list of gadgets which shows how tech looked back in 2010.
iPhone in 2010 vs iPhone in 2019
iPhones have undergone a massive change in the last decade. In 2010, iPhone 4 was launched which ran on iOS 6.1.3. It came with a 5 MP rear camera and a 0.3 MP front camera, a one-core processor with 512 MB RAM.
Fast forward to 2019, and the iPhones have changed for good. They no longer come with a home button, a small screen size, latches or chins. iPhone 11 Pro comes with a 12 MP triple rear camera and a 12 MP front camera. Add to it the powerful iOS 13, a 4 GB RAM along with 64 GB storage and Apple A13 Bionic Chip, and there you have it, a phone that is miles ahead of the old iPhone 4.
Walkman in 2010 vs Airpods in 2019
If there’s anything in the field of tech that has witnessed the most tremendous change, it is probably the way we listen to music. The era of the traditional Walkman with wired headphones and a socket to place the magnetic cassettes is long gone and has now been replaced by wireless, portable Airpods.
The once elaborate setup of dangling wires and a pocket device has now been replaced by the simplistic and minimalist design of the Airpods with rich, high-quality voice and quick access to Siri, the personal mobile assistant.
Isn’t it interesting how far technology has come in the last 10 years?
GPRS in 2010 vs 5G in 2019
Now that music has undergone a significant change, why should the mobile networks stay behind? Back in 2010, the most commonly used mobile network was 2.5G, or as it is commonly called GPRS (General Packet Radio System). The maximum speed of GPRS, in theory, was 115 kbps, however on most networks, it ran on a speed of 35 kbps.
In 2008, India entered the world of 3G which provided superfast speed of 3.1 mbps. In 2012, Airtel launched 4G services and dongles with a maximum speed of 21 mbps.
Finally, with the advent of 5G, an application, should be able to transmit data at the rate of 10 Gigabytes per second as per ITU. While the deployment of 5G has begun in some countries as of 2019, some people have also raised concerns about the adverse effects 5G can have on health.
Analogue Watch in 2010 vs Smartwatch in 2019
Gone are the days when our lives ran on the hour hand and the minute hand of the same old analogue clock. With the advent of smartwatches, the way we look at time has changed forever.
Smartwatches not only allow us to track the amount of calories burned during workout but also help us stay connected while we perform various activities. From receiving calls and messages instantaneously, to getting social media notifications, smartwatches perform all the tasks that an odd smartphone does.
What’s more? Several tech giants have ventured into the world of smartwatches and have whipped up amazing gadgets.
Agencies
Agencies
