Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Magnetic Induction Technology Headset Reviewed

Posted by timothy on from the crystals-don't-sound-so-hot dept.

Semi-Anonymous Coward writes "The first review of a wireless headset using Magnetic Induction technolgy has been posted at mobile technology website MobileBurn. The reviewer mentions that the technology provides almost 'crystal clear' phone conversations, which is better than most Bluetooth headsets he has used. The magnetic induction technology creates a 'bubble' around the user which increases the security of their communications. Is this the replacement for Bluetooth in Audio applications? It certainly looks like it..."

10 of 158 comments (clear)

  1. ~40 years old tech. by grub · · Score: 4, Funny


    The magnetic induction technology creates a 'bubble' around the user which increases the security of their communications

    Olde news, Maxwell Smart had this back in the 60's.

    --
    Trolling is a art,
  2. Yes, but can you use it... by MarkGriz · · Score: 5, Funny

    while wearing your tinfoil hat?

    --
    Beauty is in the eye of the beerholder.
    1. Re:Yes, but can you use it... by Orne · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Heh, you should see what happens when you put aluminum cans in a high power magnetic induction device... Whew, found some images at TeslaMania for before and after...

      When I was in school, the prof brought one of these into lab one day, and he was using it to railgun things across the room... They kept it locked up because some years before a student thought it would be funny to wrap a banana in foil and stick it into the machine, and it worked... picture a in your head a fine mist of burnt banana covering a good portion of a large freshman electronics lab, and that's close to the result. This site explains why with pictures.

  3. Great by jetkust · · Score: 4, Funny

    Now when i stand up from my computer I wont step on the chord, yank my neck, and break my headphones everytime.

  4. Re:Ummmm...I don't think so! by RickL · · Score: 5, Funny

    I'm glad its N-S to S-N. I hate it when it flips E-W to W-E.

  5. Strange use of terms. by fireboy1919 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    No phone uses magnets and induction?

    I can think of a device in a phone that does.

    The idea is that a coil of wire (known as an "inductor") creates a magnetic field due to an electric current that varies in strength (this is known as an "electromagnet"), which then attracts and repels it, along with a cone designed to move sound, from a permanent magnet. In other words, the movement of the electromagnet moves the cone, which moves the air to create sound. Clever isn't it? Modern, perhaps? The whole mechanism is currently known as a "speaker."

    I'm sure that this is neat and modern, but the naming scheme leaves something to be desired. What does "magnetic induction" mean in this case?

    --
    Mod me down and I will become more powerful than you can possibly imagine!
    1. Re:Strange use of terms. by aero6dof · · Score: 4, Informative

      Try this whitepaper. If they can get into the same cost range, it sounds like a nice technology for personal electronic communications.

  6. Not so private? by cruff · · Score: 5, Interesting

    The manufacturer's web site seems to be claiming that this gives some privacy due to the use of near field magnetic induction. However, magnetic field antennas (i.e. AM broadcast band ferrite loop stick antennas) are used commonly to receive signals. It seems that all one need do is make a loop antenna sensitive to the 13.5 MHz frequency used and you could listen in with a shortwave receiver. Unless, of course, they encrypted the signal.

  7. The big question by elvum · · Score: 4, Interesting

    The big question is security. Magnetic induction technology is in widespread use already - post-office counters, public address systems and ticket booths are often fitted with inductive loops for the benefit of hearing-aid users, who can pick up the sound from them directly by switching their aids to a special setting.

    The article doesn't say, but one hopes that the manufacturers have built some reasonably sophisticated security into their system - if not, then eavesdropping devices for them are already in widespread use. :-)

  8. Re:More ads by hudsonhawk · · Score: 4, Funny

    ...did you even click the link, or did you just look sternly at it and decide to make an angry post?

    Mobile Burn is a site that reviews cell phones and accessories.

    Auracomm is the company that makes the product in question.

    An idiot is a person of profound mental retardation having a mental age below three years unable to learn connected speech, such as the nice , pretty complete sentences used in the news item above.

    Go away now.