JBL just announced a new pair of wireless headphones, called the Reflect Eternal headphones, and they have a pretty unique feature: they don’t need to be plugged in to charge. That’s because the headband is made of a special material — Powerfoyle by Exeger — that works essentially like a solar panel. If you wear them outside and it’s sunny, they’ll charge.
JBL claims that wearing the Reflect Eternal headphones outside for just two hours will yield about 168 hours of playtime. That’s 7 full days of playtime, which is outrageous. There are some stipulations to that claim, such as the headphones need to already be fully charged and it has to be really sunny for those two charging hours. The headphones are apparently capable of charging in indoor light, too, but it won’t work nearly as fast.
Right now, the Reflect Eternal headphones are in the crowdfunding stages on IndieGoGo. If you’re an early backer you can order the headphones for just $99. That price will go up to $165 later down the road. For those that do pre-order, the headphones are expected to ship next October (2020).
Of course, the Reflect Eternal headphones will still have a USB port so you can charge them the old fashion way. The headphones will have a couple of other features that are now pretty standard, such as support for both Google Assistant and Alexa and a transparency mode.
