Dyson’s debut wearable air purifier doubles as a pair of headphones (yes, really)
It looks like something straight out of a sci-fi movie
When you hear the name Dyson, what do you think of? Vacuums, certainly. Hairdryers, maybe. Fans and air purifiers? Only if you’re a die-hard. But what you certainly don’t think of is headphones. Or wearables. Or Terminator. Until now.
Dyson has revealed the Dyson Zone, the company’s debut air purifier and headphone combo. The sci-fi looking device primarily acts as a wearable air purifier, with the headphones as an accompaniment. The purifier targets city pollution, while the headphones offer high-fidelity audio.
So, what does the mean-looking Dyson Zone do?
As an air purifier, the Dyson Zone will focus on cleaning up the air you’re breathing in. The dust-sucking giant has used its 30 years experience of air purification to specially design its latest gadget.
In each ear cup, you’ll find a compressor that draws in air through dual-layer filters. It then projects two streams of the newly purified air to the nose and mouth. This air gets channelled through the visor, designed to stop the purified air being diluted by normal air, and to stop your glasses fogging up. The purifier monitors your breathing to adjust it’s power accordingly.
Powering the compressors in each ear cup, you’ll find Dyson’s smallest produced motor, which is quite an impressive feat. The company claims its electrostatic filters capture 99% of particle pollution, such as dust, pollen, and bacteria. With a carbon filter as well, the Dyson Zone can capture city gases like ozone and sulphur dioxide.
Coming to the headphones, Dyson promises high-fidelity sound. The company promises to deliver rich and immersive audio through the drivers. On the headphones, you’ll also find active noise-cancelling with a Conversation and Transparency mode included.
And did we mention the whole thing’s wireless? Dyson doesn’t do wires anymore, and that trend continues with the Dyson Zone. Powered by a rechargeable battery, you can use the contraption without plugging in to your phone.
The Dyson Zone has been a long time coming
Dyson explained that it’s actually been working on the air-purifying headphones for six years. If you think this design looks wild, be glad Dyson didn’t opt for earlier designs. Older iterations featured a snorkel-like mouthpiece and a backpack to hold the motor and inner workings.
As you may have been wondering, you can use the Dyson Zone without the visor. By default, the device plays music and purifies the air. But in Conversation mode, you can flick the visor away, so you can speak as usual and still listen to music.
The Dyson Zone is actually engineered with comfort in mind, believe it or not. The visor doesn’t actually come into contact with your face, so you won’t suffer from discomfort there. To hold the weight of all the inner workings, the Dyson Zone took the design for the headband from a horse’s saddle. It’s meant to distribute the weight evenly across your head. The ear cushions are also designed to offer a good seal, and still remain comfortable. You might get a bit heavy with such a large contraption on your head, though.
If Dyson’s latest contraption has you gasping for breath (that’s an air quality joke, if you didn’t get it), you’ll have to stay patient for a while. The air-purifying headphones will be released late in 2022, and we’ve got no specific month to expect them. Dyson has noted that timings will vary across countries. To keep up to date, you can also sign up to Dyson’s launch list.
Stuff says: The air purifier sounds like it’ll work a treat, as do the headphones. But you’d be forgiven for thinking never the twain shall meet. It’s certainly an interesting gadget, to say the least. If air purity is a big issue for you, then Dyson Zone may well appeal. A pair of headphones with a built-in mask isn’t the biggest selling point, even with air pollution increasing. One positive is that we know these will be of excellent quality, Dyson gear always is. But it’s hard to tell who the target market for this is, and hard not to laugh at the image of someone walking the street with these on.
Connor Jewiss
