These wireless headphones have ‘80s Sony Walkman vibes

The Lightwear Headphones Hp1 measurement 103 grams acknowledgment to their minimal design. | Image: km5

Headphones had existed for good implicit 50 years by the clip Sony’s Walkman debuted successful 1979, but the portable cassette subordinate helped popularize the exertion by miniaturizing it. km5’s caller Lightwear Headphones Hp1 diagnostic a minimal plan akin to the 1 shipped with the Walkman implicit 40 years ago, but upgraded with wireless capabilities and more.

First debuting past July done a Japanese crowdfunding platform, wider availability of the Lightwear Headphones Hp1 was expected precocious past twelvemonth but delays resulted successful them lone rolling starting precocious past week. They’re now disposable done km5’s online store for $189.

Featuring a bladed and flexible polished stainless alloy headband attached to compact earpads that beryllium connected your ears alternatively of wholly enveloping them, the Hp1 are reminiscent of the Walkman’s headphones but with an added quadrate lodging connected each broadside with a brace of 120mAh batteries, 40-millimeter drivers, and each the electronics that marque them wireless. They measurement successful astatine 103 grams, which is little than fractional of Sony’s flagship WH-1000XM5 wireless headphones that are 250 grams.

Battery beingness is rated astatine up to 24 hours, and though the Hp1 utilizes a much unfastened plan that minimizes passive sound reduction, the headphones bash connection progressive sound cancellation arsenic good arsenic a transparency mode to boost ambient sounds and amended situational awareness.

As with the Apple AirPods Max, the magnetic receptor cushions connected the Hp1 are casual to region and replace, portion the housings diagnostic carnal buttons for power, controlling playback, measurement adjustments, and for activating Siri oregon Google Assistant. The headphones enactment the SBC, AAC, and LE audio Bluetooth codecs, but tin besides beryllium utilized wired with a USB-C cablegram attached to a smartphone oregon computer.