Accessories from Motorola

Motorola today announced two audio accessories at CTIA Wireless 2008. The H690 (shown) is an upgrade to its H680 Bluetooth earpiece that adds active noise reduction techniques: a combination of dual microphones and echo-reducing software should deliver a much cleaner sound for call recipients, Motorola says. A redesigned earbud is also claimed to be more comfortable on the H690. Battery life is rated at 5.5 hours of continuous talk on the headset, which ships during the spring at a yet unknown price.

The American phone producer is also branching into speakers for the first time with the release of the ROKR EQ3. Designed primarily for music phones such as the ROKR E8 as well as portable music players, the speaker system folds out from a travel-sized block and attaches to a 3.5mm headphone jack rather than some 2.5mm cellphone jacks or Bluetooth. Motorola has designed the stereo to be completely independent of AC power and lets it run entirely from four AAA batteries for up to 12 hours, and includes an extension cable to allow FM radios to work without interference. The speaker is 130 x 35 x 35 mm large when closed and 270 x 18 x 35 mm when opened. According to data from the manufacturer, the device has a sensitivity over 70 dB and a Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) less than 10%. Pricing is yet unknown, shipping starts Q2 2008.