Subpac: Headphones for your Body

Advances in wearable technology are increasingly easy to come by in today’s world, capable of doing all sorts of things, from monitoring your heart rate on a Fitbit to tracking the air you breathe on the Wynd Air Quality Tracker. This past weekend, a new device caught the attention of many sports enthusiasts when Kyrie Irving of the Cleveland Cavaliers was found sporting a mysterious black vest at a press conference before an eventual impressive win against the Golden State Warriors in Game 7 of the NBA Finals.

A Vest Made for Immersive Sound and Bass

The black vest was later discovered to be a Subpac, a patent-pending tactile audio technology that allows users to feel sound. The vest sends low frequencies directly to the body and provides users with a new physical dimension to the music experience. The makers of the product insist that by wearing the vest, users will feel a similar experience to being at a club anywhere and everywhere.

The newest version of the Subpac, the M2, is fitted with new materials and designed for enhanced vibratory field and impact. The Subpac comes in an ergonomic vest shape, similar to a backpack, with a buckle in the front for maximum body contact and comfort while weighing in at a modest 5lbs (2.3kg) with a battery that lasts over 6 hours. Subpac’s tactile transducers or “bass shakers” operate similarly to a speaker but vibrations are conducted through the device’s vibrotactile membrane rather than through the air, resulting in an accurate, powerful and immersive experience that traditional speakers aren’t able to achieve.

MAKO enjoys seeing new innovations like this that have the potential to disrupt and profoundly improve industries. As the design is further improved, it isn’t so hard to imagine a world where this vest is used in a wide range of activities such as, flight simulations to prepare pilots, or perhaps they could even become common in everyday household use. If Irving is using this vest while practicing on the court, then perhaps it won’t be long before we start to see this vest being used in all kinds of environments by all sorts of people.

About: MAKO Design + Invent is the original firm providing world-class consumer product development services tailored to startups, small manufacturers, and inventors. Simply put, we are the leading one-stop-shop for developing your physical product from idea to store shelves, all in a high-quality, cost-effective, and timely manner. We operate as one powerhouse 30-person product design team spread across 4 offices to serve you (Austin, Miami, San Francisco, & Toronto). We have full-stack in-house industrial design, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, patent referral, prototyping, and manufacturing services. To assist our startup and inventor clients, in addition to above, we help with business strategy, product strategy, marketing, and sales/distribution for all consumer product categories. Also, our founder Kevin Mako hosts The Product Startup Podcast, the industry's leading hardware podcast. Check it out for tips, interviews, and best practices for hardware startups, inventors, and product developers. Click HERE to learn more about MAKO Design + Invent!