Friday, May 16, 2014

Pebble 2: A Music Player That Also Juices Up Your Gadget

The self-described 'artisans of emotional technology' at French design company Orée make beautiful keyboards, iPad sleeves, and charging docks out of wood, leather, and stone. All of which, arguably, enable a more sensual, humanistic touch experience than your more standard aluminum.


Now Orée is raising funds for a new addition to its gadget family. Like the first Pebble charging tray, the Pebble 2 is a round disc that can juice up a phone or a tablet. But unlike the original Pebble, this one also plays music. 'As a powerful conduit of emotions, sound was the natural next step in our endeavor for emotional technology,' says Orée founder and CEO Julien Salanave. So Salanave embedded the charging base with Bluetooth technology and a microphone.



Designing a portable speaker isn't for the unambitious--the market is saturated. Orée's Pebble 2, however, does something different: It renders a beautiful product relevant. If we get charging cords with our phone purchases, it seems unlikely we'd splurge on extra charging docks. But if we can play music without losing battery power, we're sold.


All of Orée's wood products are sourced from sustainably managed forests in France. The Pebble 2 is available now, on Kickstarter, for $250.


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