Retro Headphones with Modern Features - August EP640s
| Reuben Howe
Allowing for compatibility with older tech while bringing the cutting-edge in ease-of-use and modern minimalization to the table is a mission Daffodil have been inspired to mirror from one of our closest suppliers August International.
Usually, it’s shown in their Set Top Boxes still supporting SCART despite also including HD reception and Dual-Tuner technology, or their Bluetooth adaptors supporting both 3,5mm and Optical Audio while including a 3.5mm to RCA converter too!
The EP640s are a subtler approach to that same design philosophy and pack the best in modern headphone tech into a chunky retro frame for the technology of today in the shell of yesteryear.
Retro Style Headphones History
Tell your mum it’s not a phase or rave about how literally everything being made right now has Bluetooth (lamps, speakers, keyrings, you name it) because it’s the mid-2000s! I can hear half of you excitedly finding a pair of ripped jeans and the other half checking that this isn’t a nightmare…
Regardless of your experience in the 2000’s, fashion swings and tech development went hand-in-hand. We had pop and pulpy colours accentuate the futuristic nature of this brand-new wireless world we lived in all at the same time as run-down loose-fitting clothes. Truly, a time to be alive.
Headphones managed to break away from being professional or practical and because the status and fashion symbols that boomboxes were the decades prior (With the added benefit that headphones kept the audio private). Later in the decade the technology began to take itself seriously, with its newfound impact on fashion and style.
The key player towards the end of the 2000’s was Beats, a classic look by today’s standards that set the tone for sleek, enclosed, colour-centric design. While the colour chosen might have always been black, the coverage and gloss made the headphones pop in a whole new way.
Retro Wireless Headphones
The EP640s from August embody that curved design, low-metal visibility and over-ear comfort bringing the style in to the 2020s! These Retro Bluetooth Headphones certainly look the part, but the specifications are modernised for the best connection and audio playback possible.
Bluetooth Version 4.1 with NFC One Tap Connection
At the inception of Bluetooth, the wireless connection being made in under a minute was impressive. Nowadays, we can do better. The Bluetooth 4.1 chipset enables high-fidelity audio transfer and minimal packet loss chance.
Connecting your device in the first place doesn’t need to be a matter of waiting for them to scan, hoping they see each other and not the printer in the office downstairs, and then finally hearing the connection beep. Instead, NFC uses Near Field Communication to connect directly in just a moment within a few centimetres. This close communication jumpstarts the Bluetooth connection which then has the usual range of up to 15 meters!
Switching from device to device, or reconnecting to the headphones each day is reduced to a single tap.
Headphones with Microphone for Calls
Another new development in headphone tech is the minimalization of microphones. Headsets, like those used by Air Traffic Controllers for ages, have always has microphones attached. However, the fact that the microphone can now be entirely internal inside a pair of headphones is the real show of development.
The EP640s have no mic arm or external attachment, they simply pick up your calls and meetings through the headphones themselves. With the drive to minimise technology came the realisation we could combine them, making products that support triple the features in the same amount of space…
Dive Deeper into your Audio
The over-ear design has remained popular, even as headphones were compacted into earphones and earbuds. The intrusion of earbuds isn’t always comfortable, and the larger unit of a retro pair of headphones will provide more comfort and freedom. Not to mention, the internal space available limits how powerful earphones can be, whereas headphones can have driver units up to 50 mm across on each ear!
The Ep640 use 40mm drivers for a balanced and deep sound without too much power-draw. Lasting up to 15 hours, the decision seems to have been the right one. Being able to use these daily for a commute and only need charging at the weekend is fantastic. The battery, of course, is just another change from the early days of Bluetooth!
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