As you start making your adventure wishlist for 2013, audio brand BOOM are fueling the fire with a sneak peek of their newest product, the Urchin. BOOM is an audio line from the folks behind Polk Audio targeted at an active consumer who expects their products to keep up with their lifestyle. With the release of the Urchin, they've created a bluetooth speaker that falls in a category BOOM has identified as "R4A certified" or ready for anything. Their internal classification means it is IPX level 4 water resistant (5 minutes of direct spray with a hose), shock tested (50 drops at 10 feet) and dust sealed.
With a colorful removable silicone skin in 10 different hues, this little speaker is made to match any situation. The Urchin also ships with suction cub, custom designed carabiner and adhesive mounts in the box, so it really is R4A—beach sand, shower wall, back pack, or adhered to a dorm room window. The cuddly shape is defined by anti-sonic diffraction geometry producing clearer sound at louder levels than some boxier options on the market.
DEI - Lynda from frog on Vimeo.
In 2011, BOOM started collaborating with San Francisco-based frog design to hone their brand position and develop a line of innovative products. Frog kicked off the program with a multi city ethnographic research tour, spending extended amounts of time with groups of college students to observe the kinds of abuse users would put product through. The result was a design system language that will resonate on an emotive level and that defined the "R4A" build methodology. The Urchin, in stores February, is just the first in several 2013 releases based on the collaboration.
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Indeed. I worked on it along with the team at frog, and now at DEI in our Global Design Center.
MD