HAVE you ever jived to your favourite tune — without earphones and while underwater?
The Finis SwiMP3 1G allows you to do just that. Instead of earphones, this underwater MP3 player from US-based company Finis uses bone conduction speakers to deliver melodies directly into the inner ear. The result is clear audio, of a quality similar to that above ground.
The first time I listened to SwiMP3 while doing some laps in the pool, I was impressed by the sound quality and its ability to transmit music without earphones. Each of the two speakers is placed flush against your head, just over your temple bone and in front of the ear. There is a clip to attach each speaker to your goggle strap.
Bad news for divers, though — it is only waterproof up to 3m. The twin speakers are lightweight — I hardly felt their presence — and did not impede movement in any way. Also the speakers did not move or drop off at any time during my hour-long swim.
These speakers work above water, too — enabling you to continue listening uninterrupted even when taking breathers — but the sound is much clearer and louder
when your ears are submerged. This swimming companion fares well in terms of design and audio quality, but could do with better controls.
The marine jukebox only has four buttons and an indicator light on one of its speakers. All the basic functions of the player are achieved by pressing one or more of the buttons, and the light indicates everything from shuffle mode to low battery. I had some difficulty adjusting the volume — achieved by pressing and holding either the Previous Track or Next Track button. I often ended up switching songs instead when I released the button too early.
However, once you are familiar with the location of each control, it is easy to carry out the other basic functions like play, pause and next or previous track while swimming.
Songs are transferred by dragging and dropping the desired files into the SwiMP3 after plugging its USB connector into your computer. SwiMP3 has a shuffle function, and
also allows you to create playlists by making new folders.
You can manage the playlists by adding to, deleting or arranging the order of the MP3 or WMA files (only these two formats are supported) in each playlist folder. You can also drag and drop your music from iTunes or sync them from Windows Media Player.
SwiMP3 has a 1GB capacity, which amounts to about 240 songs. The green indicator light blinks rapidly when the rechargeable battery is near the end of its eight-hour life. However, you cannot see this alert when swimming since the speaker would be at the side of your head. So users have to check the indicator at the end of every swim.
The SwiMP3 is available at AxtroSports at the promotional price of $228 (usual price: $249), excluding GST, until Sunday.
