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haseena12 · 9 months ago

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The Evolution and Impact of Headphones

Headphones have become an indispensable part of modern life, serving as companions for commuters, gamers, fitness enthusiasts, and music lovers alike. Their evolution from bulky, wired devices to sleek, wireless marvels underscores significant technological advancements and shifts in consumer preferences. This article explores the history, technological progression, types, and societal impact of headphones.

A Brief History

The journey of headphones began in the late 19th century with the invention of the first pair by Nathaniel Baldwin in 1910. Initially, these devices were used primarily by telephone operators and the military. It wasn't until the 1950s that headphones became more accessible to the general public, largely due to the burgeoning popularity of portable radios.

The 1970s saw a significant leap with the introduction of the Sony Walkman, revolutionizing personal audio consumption. This era marked the beginning of headphones as a fashion statement and a personal accessory. The 1990s and early 2000s introduced in-ear headphones, offering greater portability and convenience, further cementing their role in everyday life.

Technological Advancements

The evolution of headphones has been driven by several technological advancements:

Wireless Technology: The shift from wired to wireless headphones, facilitated by Bluetooth technology, has provided users with unprecedented freedom of movement. This development has been crucial for fitness enthusiasts and those seeking convenience.

Noise Cancellation: Introduced by Bose in the early 2000s, active noise cancellation (ANC) technology uses microphones and speakers to reduce unwanted ambient sounds. This feature has become essential for travelers and those working in noisy environments.

Sound Quality Enhancements: Advances in driver technology, high-resolution audio codecs, and the integration of digital signal processing (DSP) have significantly improved the sound quality of headphones. Audiophiles now have access to studio-quality audio on the go.

Smart Features: Modern headphones often come equipped with smart features like voice assistants, touch controls, and fitness tracking. These integrations have transformed headphones from simple audio devices to multifunctional gadgets.

Types of Headphones

Headphones come in various forms, each catering to different needs and preferences:

Over-Ear Headphones: Known for their superior sound quality and comfort, over-ear headphones are popular among audiophiles and gamers. They provide excellent noise isolation and are ideal for extended listening sessions.

On-Ear Headphones: These are more compact than over-ear models and rest on the ears rather than enclosing them. They offer a balance between sound quality and portability.

In-Ear Headphones: Also known as earbuds, these are highly portable and often come with features like sweat resistance, making them ideal for sports and daily commuting.

True Wireless Earbuds: The latest trend in headphone technology, true wireless earbuds, such as Apple's AirPods and Samsung's Galaxy Buds, offer complete freedom from wires and often come with smart features and ANC.

Societal Impact

Headphones have had a profound impact on society, influencing how we consume media, communicate, and interact with our environment. They have:

Enhanced Mobility: Wireless headphones have enabled users to enjoy music and podcasts while engaging in various activities, from working out to commuting, enhancing productivity and entertainment on the go.

Created Personal Soundscapes: With the advent of noise-canceling technology, individuals can create personal soundscapes, allowing them to focus in noisy environments or find solitude in public spaces.

Influenced Fashion and Culture: Headphones have become a fashion accessory, with brands like Beats by Dre and Apple's AirPods shaping trends and cultural identity. Celebrity endorsements and collaborations with designers have further cemented their status as style statements.

Changed Communication Norms: The integration of microphones and smart features has made headphones a primary tool for communication, particularly in the era of remote work and virtual meetings.

Conclusion

From their inception as utilitarian devices to their current status as multifaceted gadgets, headphones have come a long way. They have not only revolutionized how we experience audio but also influenced our lifestyle and culture. As technology continues to advance, the future of headphones promises even more exciting innovations, further enhancing their role in our daily lives.

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reportwire · 2 years ago

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The Beats Fit Pro are now available in 3 new colors — and we got to try them | CNN Underscored

The Beats Fit Pro have long been our pick for the best workout headphones and the best wireless earbuds overall for good reason — they have a fantastic, secure fit, pack all of the AirPods Pro’s best features and come in a range of stylish colors. That range is expanding even more for 2023, as Beats just dropped three new color options for the Fit Pro that you can order right now. Now available…

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#underscored-electronics #underscored-headphones-earbuds

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munispeaks · 2 years ago

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Technics EAH-A800 review | CNN Underscored

Technics, the venerable Japanese high-end audio brand, came out of retirement in 2014, and has been building back with new takes on iconic turntable designs like the legendary SL-1200 DJ model. Lately the company has been stretching out into new categories, with a handful of full-featured headphones joining the lineup The EAH-A800 is the company’s entry into the over-ear Bluetooth flagship…

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#underscored-electronics #underscored-headphones-earbuds #underscored-reviews #underscored-testing

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noaroy312 · 3 years ago

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Raycon Performer Review | Recommendations

📷

Raycon Performer Review it is a genuinely youthful organization however in spite of the chances, organizer Willie Beam Norwood Jr searched out the need to drive this organization into the top. Presently, the brand is one of the most famous sound gear brands available. So in this article, we will investigate The Entertainer E55 earbuds, Raycon's top of the line earbuds available.

Chapter by chapter guide

Raycon Entertainer Survey

Upsides and downsides

Here is a brief glance of what we loved and didn't care for about the Raycon E55 The Entertainer.

Advantages Disadvantages

✔️Great plan

✔️Wireless charging

✔️Comfortable to wear ❌Overwhelming bass

❌Mediocre receiver

❌Lack of aptX support

raycon_the_performer_wireless_earbuds_earphone_headphone

Particular of UGREEN HiTune T1

Value: US$119.99

6mm graphene dynamic drivers

Bluetooth: 5.0

Reach: 10m

As long as 6 hours of consistent tuning in

Charging port: USB Type C

Convention: HSP, HFP, ACRCP, A2DP

Recurrence reaction range: 20 – 20,000Hz

Implicit receiver

Incorporates 5 silicone ear tips

The sound nature of the Raycon The Entertainer E55 Raycon e55 Review

raycon-earbuds-headphone earphone remote case_1024x1024

Raycon Earbuds Review Out of the crate, the Raycon E55 accompanies an exceptionally bass-weighty sound. Some eventual alright with it however other will not. We track down that the sound quality underscores a lot on the bass and low tones that it nearly muffles the vocals and lead instruments a considerable amount and messes the entire blend. This additionally cause an absence of detail in higher frequencies and mid tones.

Raycon Earbuds E55 Paying attention to music, the Raycon E55 generally messes with high-bass and low-mids. Most tones are truly discernible however the mind-boggling bass makes the general sound quality be sloppy and jumbled. This additionally brings about voices, lead instruments, and sibilants to need detail.

Sound quality score: 6.5/10

Given its value point, one would accept that it has all the most recent innovation available tragically, it doesn't accompany dynamic commotion dropping innovation, no EQ modes, and it additionally needs encompassing mode. You do, in any case, get a remote charging ability.

Amplifier: Utilizing the Raycon E55 for calls

Out of the case, the receiver nature of the E55 is genuinely awful. Utilizing it for calls or online video talk gatherings creates a discourse quality that is muted and does not have a ton of detail. Regardless, individuals on the opposite finish of the call are as yet ready to get you, however it's irrefutable that the sound quality is poor.

Amplifier score: 5/10

Besides, amplifier's commotion taking care of execution is very fair. It appears to battle in isolating discourse from encompassing commotion in a genuinely regular noisy circumstance like high way streets, the bustling road, and pet clamor.

📷

Fit: How does the Raycon E55 earbuds fit

E55-landing page primary picture lifestyle_1024x1024

The Raycon The Entertainer E55 earbuds are genuinely good and agreeable for in-ear earphones. They don't cause ear weakness from the strain within your ear as quick as the others available. Luckily, they accompany 5 distinctive tip choices, permitting you to track down a more agreeable fit and to oblige diverse ear shape and sizes. By and large, it's a lightweight.

With regards to dynamic way of life, the Raycon E55 earbuds are not great for running or working out at the rec center. They can undoubtedly tumble from quick stage developments.

Fit score: 7/10

Luckily, the earbuds are IPX4 appraised which shields it from sweat and minor water sprinkles. Moreover, like most in-ear earphones available, these don't trap heat inside or around your ear as much as the other. Which means you shouldn't perspire more when utilizing them while working out.

Controls and usefulness of The Entertainer

The Raycon E55's controls and usefulness are really clear. Out of the case, a solitary tap compares to play/stop/answer call/end call, a twofold tap skips tracks forward or in reverse, and a triple tap increments or diminishes volume.

raycon-earbuds-headphone earphone remote headphones piece_1024x1024

Leaf Earphone Action Right Headphone

Play/Interruption/Reply/End Call Tap 1x Play/Respite/Reply/End Call

Past song Tap 2x Next tune

Volume decrease Tap 3x Volume increment

Force on/Voice right hand/Reject calls Tap and hold for 2 seconds Power on/Voice associate/Reject calls

Force off Tap and hold for 4 seconds Power off

Lamentably, the Raycon E55 The Entertainer doesn't uphold any arrangement by means of applications. Moreover, there's no application accessible that can change its controls and sound settings.

Control score: 6/10

Luckily, the earbud accompanies volume controls out of the crate. You can, notwithstanding, still inquire as to whether you at any point wish to do as such.

How long does the Raycon E55 The Entertainer last?

The Raycon E55 The Entertainer is appraised to endure as long as 6 hours of consistent tuning in. The earbud case adds an additional a 36 hours of us by energizing both earbud to multiple times.

raycon-earbuds-headphone earphone remote earphones_1024x1024

Tragically, there are no data accessible with regards to the battery limit of each earbud and the case. We can just accept that the battery limit utilized for both earbud piece are about pretty much than 60mAh which puts forth the defense accompany 360 to 400mAh.

Battery score: 6/10

Notwithstanding being appraised to endure as long as 6 hours, there are earbuds out there that would already be able to endure as long as 9 hours. So assuming you need something that can endure longer, then, at that point, this merits thinking about while picking an earbud. Moreover, there are earbud cases out there that accompanies a beating 1000mAh battery limit, for example, the Eardopes B6 Master.

It is likewise significant that the Raycon E55 The Entertainer upholds remote charging, which is a decent expansion.

End: Our decision

All things considered, the Raycon E55 The Entertainer is a nice earbud. It's not modest, and that is an interesting point in case you're wanting to purchase this earbud. Moreover, the bass is overpowering. We felt that these earbuds are surged and it shouldn't be your first choice to purchase, except if in case you're somebody who favors a ton of bass when paying attention to music.

Criteria Score

Sound 6.5

Microphone 5

Fit 7

Control 6

Battery 6

Stability 7

Quality 6

Other than that, the Raycon E55 The Entertainer is satisfying gander at and it's a decent option in contrast to top of the line ones like the AirPods. In any case, it is ideal to observe that its sound profile is inclining towards warm with an overemphasis to bass, which generally speaking muffles vocals and instruments.

E55-landing page fundamental picture remote chagring_1024x1024

Trust we have assisted you with seeing more with regards to the Raycon E55 The Entertainer earbuds. On the off chance that you have any inquiries, remarks, or ideas, do tell us in the remark segment underneath.

Choices

soundpeats-3-se-survey tws-earbuds_f4db1eb2-40c3-4b14-b473-751c673bdb55_1024x1024

On the other hand, in the event that you have a financial plan of US$50, we suggest looking at the SoundPEATS Truengine 3 SE.

The SoundPEATS Truengine 3 SE is considered as the ruler of earbuds that are under US$50. It includes an extraordinary exhibition that is comparable to more costly ones and an amazing quality that is worth more than whatever you paid for.

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your-dietician · 4 years ago

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Best tech deals: Amazon Prime Day 2021

New Post has been published on https://tattlepress.com/latest/best-tech-deals-amazon-prime-day-2021/

Best tech deals: Amazon Prime Day 2021

CNN —

This article is part of CNN Underscored’s wall-to-wall coverage of Amazon Prime Day. To find all of our coverage, click here.

Whether you’re looking for a smart speaker, like an Amazon Echo or a Sonos One, or a massive TV to upgrade your home entertainment setup, Prime Day is here to deliver on some epic tech deals.

We’ll be working hard throughout the day to curate the best of the best — the biggest discounts on the class-leading tech that you’ll want to add to your collection.

AirPods Pro ($189.99, originally $249.99; amazon.com)

APPLE

AirPods Pro mix a stellar design with rich sound and active noise cancellation (ANC) that can effectively cancel out all the noise around you. They’re really that good, and they’re our top pick of earbuds for Apple users. At $189.99, it’s not an all-time low, but this is a really good deal.

EarFun Air ($44.99, originally $69.99; amazon.com)

AMAZON

If you want to spend less than less than $50 on a pair of earbuds that meet the mark, look no further than the EarFun Air. We declared these our best budget earbuds with strong sound, a comfortable fit and very long battery life.

Sony WH-1000XM4 Headphones ($248, originally $349.99; amazon.com)

AMAZON

Our top pick for best over-ear and noise-canceling headphones is at their lowest price ever. Sony’s WH-1000XM4 are just $248, down from $349.99, in your choice of black, silver or blue. These headphones mix comfort with world-blocking ANC and nearly 30 hours of battery life.

Jabra Elite Active 75t ($119.99, originally $179.99 amazon.com)

AMAZON

Our best earbuds for working out and running are seeing a mighty fine discount. Jabra’s Elite Active 75t are down to an all-time low of $119.99. These earbuds get a lot right, like a comfortable fit with sweat resistance, class-leading noise cancellation and long battery life.

Echo Buds (starting at $79.99, originally $119.99; amazon.com)

Amazon

Echo Buds

Amazon’s second-generation Echo Buds get a lot right and end up delivering value. They feature noise cancellation, strong sound that can be customized with an EQ and some of the best microphones we’ve tried on earbuds. Better yet, they’re down to an all-time low starting price of just $79.99 this Prime Day.

Echo (4th Gen) ($59.99, originally $99.99; amazon.com)

AMAZON

Not only is the latest Echo our pick for best smart speaker, but it’s down to an all-time low price of just $59.99. With three speakers inside, Echo can fill even large rooms with rich and crisp audio. Of course, you get instant access to Alexa out of the box too.

Amazon Echo Dot (4th Gen) ($24.99, originally $49.99; amazon.com)

AMAZON

The latest Amazon Echo Dot lets you ask Alexa to do just about anything — from checking the weather to controlling your smart home — all within a sleek spherical design. Our pick for the best budget smart speaker, the fourth-generation Echo Dot is 50% off and at its lowest price yet (you can also get the Echo Dot With Clock for $25 off).

Fire HD 8 Plus ($64.99, originally $109.99; amazon.com)

AMAZON

At an all-time low of $64.99, you really can’t go wrong with the Fire HD 8 Plus. As our budget tablet pick, it handles reading, web browsing, light gaming and emails with ease. The 8-inch display gives you plenty of room for binge-watching your favorite shows as well.

Echo Show 8 ($94.99, originally $129.99; amazon.com)

Amazon

Echo Show 8

The new Echo Show 8 made a serious upgrade this year, and its midsize design makes it perfect to keep on your desk or in your kitchen. The device now has a faster performance and an improved camera for better-quality video calls. The Echo Show 8 is the ultimate media hub, supporting applications including Zoom, Netflix and Spotify.

Amazon Echo Show 10 ($189, originally $249; amazon.com)

Amazon

We found the Echo Show 10 to be a great smart display that has all of the powers of Alexa complete with a big, rotating screen that can help keep you in view during video calls. It’s a bit of an investment at full price, but this lowest-ever Prime Day price makes it a great value.

Echo Frames ($174.99, originally $249.99; amazon.com)

Amazon

Echo Frames

Amazon’s futuristic Alexa-enabled glasses are seeing a sharp discount down to $174.99. Echo Frames look like normal glasses and feature built-in microphones so that Alexa can take your requests. Speakers are built into the frames and point right to your ears for personal listening.

Eero 6 Mesh Wi-Fi 6 Router ($129, originally $199; amazon.com)

Eero

The Eero 6 is our favorite mesh Wi-Fi router, thanks to its simple setup and wide, consistent coverage that can boost the Wi-Fi signal all throughout your home. This kit, which gets you a router and an extender, is an especially great pickup at an all-time low price of $129.

Ring Video Doorbell Wired ($44.99; originally $59.99; amazon.com)

Ring

We found the Ring Video Doorbell Wired to be a great value, offering many of the key features of Ring’s higher-end video doorbells (such as 1080p video and custom motion alerts) within an affordable and compact package. And it’s an even better buy now that it has hit its lowest-ever price of $44.99.

Ring Alarm (starting at $119, originally $199; amazon.com)

Ring

The Ring Alarm is our pick for the best home security system, thanks to its easy setup, responsive alarms and smooth compatibility with other smart home devices. And it’s currently at a steep discount, starting at just $119 for a five-piece kit (ideal for apartments) all the way to $199 for a 14-piece kit (ideal for bigger homes)

WD My Passport SSD (starting at $79.99, originally $119.99; amazon.com)

AMAZON

Whether you want to back up your data with ease or just need more storage, the WD My Passport SSD is powerful enough to handle the task and is our overall pick for best external hard drive. Better yet, it’s down to its recorded lowest price.

Blue Yeti Microphone ($108.33, originally $129.99; amazon.com)

Blue

The Blue Yeti is our pick for the best computer microphone, delivering excellent audio quality for meetings, podcasts and Twitch streams complete with four handy recording modes for both solo and group settings. We’ve seen the Yeti’s price drop a bit lower than this, but it’s still an excellent sale price on a superb mic.

Razer Kiyo Pro ($151, originally $199; amazon.com)

Razer

This is a huge discount on our favorite high-end webcam, which delivers excellent 1080p picture quality that will make you look vibrant under any lighting conditions as well as 60 frame-per-second recording that’s perfect for smooth streaming.

MacBook Air ($900, originally $999; amazon.com)

Apple

MacBook Air M1

There’s a reason the MacBook Air is our laptop pick for Apple users — the M1 chip inside brought new life into Apple’s entry-level notebook. It’s also $100 off at just $900 for the base model, which will be great for most users.

13-Inch MacBook Pro ($1,099, originally $1,299; amazon.com)

APPLE

If you need a little more speed over the MacBook Air, the 13-inch MacBook Pro pairs the fast M1 chip with a fan. And this lets it work harder (and run hotter) to make creative tasks run with ease. You’ll also need to push it to get the fan to kick in, and it lasts for nearly 20 hours on a single charge.

Elgato Wave: 1 ($99.99, originally $129.99; amazon.com)

AMAZON

The Elgato Wave: 1 microphone packs many of the same features as our favorite microphone for streamers in the Wave 3, including excellent audio quality and a handy companion app that makes it easy to mix all of your audio sources at once. However, if you want better onboard controls, you should consider the Wave 3.

Elgato Wave 3 ($130, originally $159.99; amazon.com)

AMAZON

As our microphone pick for streaming, the Wave 3 gets a lot right. gets a lot right. It’s one of the best-sounding mics and offers a companion app that lets you customize the experience.

Nintendo Switch Lite With 128GB MicroSD card ($199.99, originally $234.98; amazon.com)

AMAZON

While the Switch Lite is smaller than the Switch, it still plays nearly all the same games and comes in better colors. Plus, you’re scoring it with a 128GB microSD card that is just begging to be filled with games.

Nintendo Joy-Cons ($69.00, originally $79.99; amazon.com)

Nintendo

You can always use new Joy-Con controllers, whether you want to personalize your Switch with snazzy new colors or just need more gamepads for family Mario Kart night. You can currently score a pair in a variety of fun shades for a nice $69 — that’s $10 off and the lowest these things usually drop to.

Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales ($49.99, originally $69.99; amazon.com)

Sony

One of the best games for the PlayStation 5, Spider-Man: Miles Morales makes an excellent showpiece for Sony’s new console with stunning 4K graphics, smooth frame rates and near-instant load times. This is the lowest price yet we’ve seen for the Ultimate Edition, which also gets you a copy of Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered.

Razer Blade 15 ($1,389.99, originally $1,499.99; amazon.com)

Razer Store

Razer Blade 15 Base Gaming Laptop 2020

As one of the most popular gaming laptops on the market, this discounted Razer Blade 15 is one of the better Prime Day deals we’ve seen so far. With a 10th Gen Intel Core i7-10750H processor and Nvidia GTX 1660 Ti graphics built for serious gaming within a thin and compact build, the laptop has exceeded many gamers’ expectations, and it shows in all of the 5-star reviews.

Logitech G915 Mechanical Gaming Keyboard ($179.99, originally $229.99; amazon.com)

Logitech

It doesn’t get much better than typing on a mechanical keyboard. And this Logitech G915 TKL model is a strong option with punchy keys, a compact design and customizable lighting. And it’s $50 off for Prime Day.

Sony SRS-XB12 Mini Bluetooth Speaker ($29.99, originally $58; amazon.com)

SONY

This small but mighty speaker may not look like much, but its powerful volume and long battery life makes it a great outdoor speaker option. It’s portable design and waterproof casing make it the perfect summer accessory to bring your music wherever you go.

Roku Ultra ($69.99, originally $99.99; amazon.com)

AMAZON

The Roku Ultra gives you access to thousands of streaming services — all at up to 4K resolution — in a slim package that doesn’t pry your eyes away from the big screen. It’s our pick for best overall streaming device, and is back to its lowest recorded price.

Roku Smart Soundbar ($160.89, originally $179.99; amazon.com)

AMAZON

Our pick for best soundbar, Roku’s excellent soundbar features a low profile, powerful audio and smart pairing capabilities that are on par with much more expensive models.

Wemo Smart Plug ($18.47, originally $24.99; amazon.com)

Wemo

The best HomeKit smart plug we’ve tested, the Wyze Plug can turn any household gadget (such as your coffee machine or lamp) into a smart device that can be turned on and off via Alexa or Google Assistant. While we’ve seen its price drop even lower, this handy plug is a no-brainer at $18.

Whellen Selfie Ring Light ($11.19, originally $15.99; amazon.com)

AMAZON

Our choice for the best portable ring light clips directly to your phone for a glow on the go. It’s a perfect choice for upping your TikTok or selfie game.

Samsung Galaxy S21 (starting at $599.99, originally $799.99; amazon.com)

AMAZON

With three cameras on the back and a bevy of capture modes, the Galaxy S21 has one of the best cameras we’ve tested on a smartphone. For $599.99, an all-time low price, you really can’t do much better. It’s powered by a fast chip that makes Android seamless and has a large 6.2-inch display.

Apple Watch Series 6 44mm GPS in Product Red With Product Red Sport Band ($349.99, originally $429.99; amazon.com)

apple

As our pick for the best smartwatch, the Apple Watch Series 6 is a perfect pairing for any iPhone user. It can track your steps, take an electrocardiogram and even monitor your blood oxygen levels. And it’s a communication tool with the ability to send messages, emails and even take calls from your wrist.

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skyanfeeds · 4 years ago

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Walmart, Target, Kohl’s take on Amazon’s Prime Day in retail wars Fox Business

What CNN Underscored editors are hoping to buy on Prime Day CNN

Walmart just dropped its rival Prime Day sale early, and it’s massive — save up to 70 percent! Yahoo Lifestyle

The best Prime Day deals on headphones and earbuds The Verge

Are Amazon's Prime Day deals any good? We analyze today's best sales to find out TechRadar

View Full Coverage on Google News

#GlobalNews #GoogleTop

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newsupdated · 4 years ago

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These $119 Raycon earbuds are a solid and bass-heavy alternative to AirPods - CNN Underscored

These $119 Raycon earbuds are a solid and bass-heavy alternative to AirPods – CNN Underscored

(CNN) — The brainchild of multiplatinum recording artist turned reality television mogul Ray J and tech entrepreneur Ray Lee, Raycon began releasing various speakers, headphones and earbuds in early 2018, including the E50. Its sequel, The Performer E55 Pro, comes at a time where the audio hardware maker has somewhat become a major player, with a reported 1.5 million customers. An improvement…

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manallion · 4 years ago

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Best online sales right now

https://ift.tt/3fTiOQ9

(CNN) —

Today, you’ll find a deal on a refurbished Ring doorbell, a discounted LifeStraw and savings at Adidas. All that and more below.

Amazon

Lifestraw Personal Water Filter

A must-have for camping, hiking and even traveling, the LifeStraw ensures you always have access to clean water with its built-in filter you can drink right out of, and for one day only it’s on sale at Amazon. Pick one of your own (or a few for the whole family) for just $11.98 — the lowest price we’ve seen in over a year. And you likely won’t ever need to shell out for a replacement; Lifestraw is built to last with a microbiological filter that will provide 4,000 liters (1,000 gallons) of clean and safe drinking water.

Nordstrom Rack

Nike

Just do it — that is, shop this Nike sale. Right now tons of styles from one of the biggest names in activewear are on sale at Nordstrom Rack’s private sale event. There’s no promo code necessary to snag the savings, but you’ll need to shop soon — the sale only lasts until April 10 at 8 a.m. That means it’s time to load up on all the apparel, footwear and accessories you’ll need for your warm-weather workouts and beyond.

Adidas

There’s never been a better time to gear up for a new season of workouts at Adidas — indoor or outdoor — since the brand is offering up to 30% off sitewide with code SPRING. This is a Buy More, Save More sale, so you’ll save 20% off any purchase, 25% off orders over $125 and 30% off orders of $200 or more. The entire site, including shoes, apparel and accessories for men and women, is marked down during this sale to help you stick to your fitness goals.

The Home Depot

Spring has officially arrived at The Home Depot. At the mega home retailer’s Spring Savings Event, shoppers save up big on thousands of items necessary to usher in a new season, including outdoor power tools, cleaning products, grills, patio furniture and more. It’s just the occasion you’ve been waiting for to revamp your home and outdoor space.

Best Buy

Refurbished Ring Video Doorbell Pro

Keep an eye on your front door with a refurbished Ring Video Doorbell Pro from Best Buy, available today only for under $100. It comes with the same warranty as a new device and allows you to see who’s knocking via the Ring app, which provides a livestream, motion detection notifications, two-way communication and more.

Nebula Capsule II Smart Mini Projector ($459.99, originally $579.99; amazon.com)

Amazon

Nebula Capsule II Smart Mini Projector

Bring movie night outside (or onto any wall in your house) with a discounted projector from Anker’s Nebula. The Capsule II allows you to view your favorite movies and shows in crisp detail via a 200 ANSI lumen LED lamp, while its compact size (it’s comparable to a soda can) makes it ideal for on-the-go viewing. Plus, Nebula’s mobile app allows you to turn your smartphone into a remote control.

Samsung Galaxy Buds Live ($109, originally $169.99; amazon.com)

Samsung

Samsung Galaxy Buds Live

Underscored previously dubbed Samsung’s Galaxy Buds Live the most comfortable earbuds around, and now you can snag a new pair on sale. Amazon is marking down the buds in Mystic White to $109 — just $2 away from the lowest price we’ve seen. These bean-shaped buds nestle against your ear to deliver a robust soundstage. For more info, read our full review here.

Eight Sleep

Improve your sleep situation at Eight Sleep’s Sleep Better Sale. You can nab $100 off the Pod mattress, $50 off the Pod Pro Cover, plus 20% off all accessories with your Pod or Pod Pro Cover purchase. You’ll also score an additional $150 off the Pod or Pod Pro by stacking the code AFF150 on top of this offer. Essentially, it’s the sale of your dreams.

Madewell

Your new spring wardrobe is within reach, thanks to Madewell’s latest sale. For just one more day, take up to 40% off your purchase when you use code SPRINGITON at checkout. It’s your chance to save on everything from the brand’s signature denim to breezy tees and cute, warm-weather tops. Just be sure to add your favorites to cart soon.

Apple Watch Series 6 ($319.99, originally $399.99; amazon.com)

Apple

Apple Watch Series 6

If you’ve had your eye on the latest Apple Watch Series 6, you can save on the 40mm GPS Product Red version starting now on Amazon. This model is down to $319.99 — that’s $80 off the list price of $399.99 and the lowest price we’ve seen for this particular model. The discount will be automatically applied at checkout, but just be sure to snag yours before this hot item sells out.

Reebok

Reebok’s Anniversary Sale is on now, which means markdowns sitewide for members of the brand’s loyalty program (it’s free to join!). Use code YAY at checkout to take $30 off orders of $90 or more, so you can snag a wide range of sneakers and tons of activewear and accessories for less. And when you spend over $60, the same promo code will qualify you for a free three-pack of black face masks with your purchase — the cost of the masks won’t count toward your $90 purchase, but all you have to do is add them to your cart to see the savings.

Apple Magic Keyboard ($249, originally $349; amazon.com)

Apple

Apple Magic Keyboard

Add a Magic Keyboard to your fourth-generation iPad Pro for less right now. Amazon is marking down the keyboard to just $249, $100 off its usual price and the lowest price we’ve ever seen for the device. In addition to providing a top-notch typing experience for your iPad, the keyboard also boasts a trackpad, a USB-C port for charging, backlit keys and front and back protection for your tablet.

Jabra Elite 45h ($69.99, originally $99.99; walmart.com)

Amazon

Jabra Elite 45h

If you’re in need of an affordable pair of headphones, consider picking up a pair of Jabra Elite 45h from Walmart. Back down to just $69.99 (that’s its all-time lowest price) in both the black and navy colorways, these on-ear headphones are comfortable and look downright sleek. Though they lost points in our hands-on test for lack of active noise cancellation and the fact that they let in quite a bit of background noise during calls, this discount might just make them a worthwhile purchase for those who aren’t too concerned with blocking out sounds around them.

Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro ($189.99, originally $199.99; amazon.com)

Amazon

Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro

Samsung’s newest and best earbuds are down to one of the lowest prices we’ve seen, at $10 off on Amazon. Snag your own pair of Galaxy Buds Pro — our top earbuds pick for Android users — for just $189.99 in Phantom Black, Phantom Silver or Phantom Violet; just be sure to shop soon, as they’re likely to sell out fast. In our review of the buds, we found that they offer crystal-clear sound, feel great in your ears, boast a solid battery life and excel at letting in ambient noise when you want them to. Read our full assessment of the Galaxy Buds Pro here.

Chewy

Pet parents, this one’s for you and your furry friends. Chewy, the ultimate online pet supplies retailer, is hosting a Refresh Your Nest Sale right now, featuring savings on everything you need to turn your house into a home for your four-legged family members. Take up to 30% off scratching posts, beds, playpens and more, or mix and match three items, including food at water bowls, to get one for free. You could also opt for an e-gift card to use on a future purchase when you buy select furniture, crates and beds. Now that’s something to get tails wagging.

Apple iPhone 11 Pro (starting at $879.99; woot.com)

Apple

Apple iPhone 11 Pro

In need of a new iPhone? Woot! has some new, unlocked iPhone 11 Pro models up for grabs for as low as $879.99 for a limited time. Choose from Midnight Green and silver colorways, and select how much storage you need: 64GB, 256GB or 512GB. Your purchase comes with Apple’s one-year limited warranty, and the phone itself features everything you’ve come to expect from Apple’s ubiquitous device, including a Super Retina XDR display and Ultra Wide, Wide and Telephoto cameras. Read our full review of the 11 Pro here for more details.

Best Buy

Now’s the right time to stock up on discounted tech: Best Buy’s Outlet Event is on. Through April 18, you can save on clearance and open-box items, including appliances, TVs, laptops and more, not to mention a selection of marked-down refurbs. If you opt for an open-box product, Best Buy will list the condition so you know exactly what you’re getting. Plus, most items come with Best Buy’s warranty and the retailer’s Return and Exchange

For more great deals, check out CNN Coupons.

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Today, you’ll find a deal on a refurbished Ring doorbell, a discounted LifeStraw and savings at Adidas. All that and more below.

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Nebula Capsule II Smart Mini Projector ($459.99, originally $579.99; amazon.com)

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Samsung

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Apple Watch Series 6 ($319.99, originally $399.99; amazon.com)

Apple

Apple Watch Series 6

Reebok

Apple Magic Keyboard ($249, originally $349; amazon.com)

Apple

Apple Magic Keyboard

Jabra Elite 45h ($69.99, originally $99.99; walmart.com)

Amazon

Jabra Elite 45h

Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro ($189.99, originally $199.99; amazon.com)

Amazon

Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro

Chewy

Apple iPhone 11 Pro (starting at $879.99; woot.com)

Apple

Apple iPhone 11 Pro

Best Buy

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newsnextnow · 4 years ago

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Best Tech Products We Tested

(CNN) — No matter the time of the year, CNN Underscored is always testing a gadget or gizmo. We spend hours testing and the end result is finding the absolute best in each respective category. In 2020 we tackled a lot – headphones, true wireless earbuds, smartphones, tablets, laptops, televisions and external storage among several others. With each of these we work to identify a pool based on…

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freewillwork · 5 years ago

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SoundMAGIC E11C Earphones Wired Noise Isolating in-Ear Earbuds Powerful Bass HiFi Stereo Sport Headphones with Microphone (Gunmetal)

Features & details

🎧 REFINED SOUND: Reworked 10mm dynamic drivers give the SoundMAGIC E11C a fresh, accurate, and mature sound. Expect a balanced profile, with fine detail underscored by comfortable, warm bass.

🎧 ENGINEERED HOUSING: High grade machined aluminium is hand painted to form the E11C’s housing, matching a refined appearance with a tough and lightweight build.

🎧 PRECISION CABLE:…

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#fashion

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adcomhitech · 6 years ago

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Adcom M1 Earbud, The superiority of Sound inside a bluetooth Earpiece

Adcom India is a brand which is trending for its quality gadgets like Bluetooth Headphones at the most affordable prices. They've been a noteworthy player in sound for quite a while and widely popular headphone businesses. Available in two colors, Black & Rose Gold, the Adcom M1 Earbud has a pleasant coherent and semi-forward neutral sound. There’s nothing that seems exaggerated in its frequency response at all, and nothing that truly sounds recessed. The bass levels on this Earbud are generally linear.

The Adcom M1 is a very good sounding Earbud that had a good natural clean sound, but also missing a little bit of exciting factor. That doesn’t mean, it’s not enjoyable to listen to though, as it still is, and produces clean sound.

Adcom M1 has a one button control, which can be pressed easily. With the convenience factor, this Earbud provides a zeal of high quality sound. Its state-of-the art ergonomic design enables you to attend to your calls even while performing a rigorous physical activities like jogging or you are at the gym. The Adcom M1 is a minimalist in-ear design, which is snug and secure.

Moving on to its battery capacity, Adcom M1 has an inbuilt lithium-ion polymer battery with storage of 60 mAH, which enables you to use continuously for 4 hours of playtime. While it takes 1.5 hours to charge up the M1, which provides with a standby time of 80 hours. This innovative Earbud has a built in HD sensitive microphone, that inputs high quality voice for the listeners.

Adcom M1 comes with advanced 4.1 bluetooth technology, which enables pairing with all android, IOS and windows devices. The bluetooth operating distance is of 10 meters. For pairing up with devices, you have to press the button for 5 seconds or longer until the LED button flashes blue and red alternately.

Adcom M1 Earbud is purposely made for the right ear. The size of this headset is derived from the test date of our engineers which will be suitable with most person’s right ear.

Adcom India has an enthusiasm for sound with their headphones with mic. They center on giving premium sound arrangements that underscore mechanical Adcom advancement and outline and class. They pride themselves on conveying remarkable sound involvement in every last one of their sound frameworks, regardless of whether it is for individual stimulation or expert magnificence. You can locate extensive varieties of the best Wireless Bluetooth Headphone manufactured and presented by this organization.

There's a great deal of science and designing that goes into making a couple of earphones sound a specific way. The sound can be tuned in an unbounded number of ways, and getting a charge out of the sound experience is more about coordinating a couple of earphones to the music you're accustomed to tuning in to, as opposed to just picking by brand or looks.

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mrhotmaster · 5 years ago

Quote

Microsoft Surface Go 2, Surface Book 3, Surface Headphones 2, Surface Earbuds Launched: Here Is Everything You Need To Know Microsoft aims to give everyone a Surface from compact to solid. Microsoft has formally disclosed the new Surface Go 2 tablet, Surface Book 3 PC, Surface Headphones 2, Surface Earbuds, Surface Dock 2, and USB-C Travel Hub. Against the background of progressing lockdowns in various nations and vulnerability about the eventual fate of working from homes, Microsoft is underscoring that its equipment is intended to flaunt the abilities of Windows 10 and permit individuals to function just as learn, impart, and appreciate the diversion. With these new items balancing its arrangement of tablets, 2-in-1s, PCs, and frill, Microsoft says it needs to serve clients regardless of where they are and what. size of the gadget they need. Microsoft Surface Go 2 Cost And Determinations The new Microsoft Surface Go 2 tablet offers a bigger 10.5-inch 3:2 1920x1280-pixel screen in a similar body as its ancestor. It guarantees improved battery life and up to 64 percent quicker execution on the top-end variation which has an eighth Gen Intel Core M processor. The base model is valued beginning at $399.99 (roughly Rs. 30,500) and highlights an Intel Pentium Gold processor, 4GB of RAM, and 64GB of eMMC stockpiling. The very good quality model has 8GB of RAM with a 128GB SSD with a better quality CPU and is evaluated at $629 (around Rs. 47,970) or alternatively $729 (around Rs. 55,595) with incorporated LTE. The Surface Go 2 has a magnesium body with a coordinated kickstand. It weighs only 553g without a console spread. Other normal highlights incorporate one USB Type-C port, Microsoft's exclusive Surface Connector for charging and adornments, and earphones attachment, a microSD card space, double "studio" receivers, and a 5-megapixel webcam. Microsoft's Surface Type Covers in different hues for the new Surface Go 2 will be valued beginning at $99 (roughly Rs. 7,550). The gadget will go discounted beginning May 12 in the US, Canada, UK, Japan, Australia, and a few European nations. Microsoft Surface Book 3 Cost And Determinations The premium Microsoft Surface Book 3 separable 2-in-1 is said to convey up to 50 percent preferred execution over past models. It will be accessible in 13.5-inch and 15-inch renditions. The bigger model is said to present to 17.5 long periods of battery existence with improved force proficiency in reserve. You can likewise get a decision of discrete Nvidia GeForce GTX or Quadro RTX GPU for gaming or expert substance creation. Microsoft has utilized Intel's tenth Gen 'Ice Lake' Core i5 and Core i7 processors. The 13.5-inch model weighs up to 1.64kg while the 15-inch variant weighs 1.9kg, including the separable tablet and console base. Basic highlights incorporate Wi-Fi 6, two USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-A ports, one USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-C port, two Surface Connect ports, an SDXC card space, 5-megapixel front, and 8-megapixel back cameras, far-field sound system mouthpieces, and a completely illuminated console. The littler model beginnings at $1,599 (around Rs. 1,21,940) with a 1.2GHz Core i5 CPU, coordinated designs, 8GB of RAM, and 256GB NVMe SSD. The 15-inch adaptation can be purchased with up to a 1.3GHz Core i7 CPU, GeForce GTX 1660 Ti GPU, 32GB of RAM, and 2TB NVMe SSD, which will hinder purchasers by $3,399 (around Rs. 2,59,200). Surface Book 3 will go discounted globally beginning in late May. Microsoft Surface Headphones 2 Cost And Particulars Microsoft has additionally improved its Surface Headphones with 13 degrees of surrounding commotion decrease, better solid quality, and broadened battery life. The earcups would now be able to overlap level for simpler capacity, and on-ear dials can be utilized to change volume and foundation sound abrogation. Microsoft asserts as long as 20 hours of battery life and right around an hour of utilization with a five-minute charge. The earphones will be accessible in dark or platinum evaluated at $249 (around Rs. 18,990) beginning on May 12. Microsoft Surface Earbuds Cost And Particulars The fresh out of the box new Surface Earbuds genuine remote headphones are said to offer an agreeable fit and contact controls, in addition to coordination with Spotify. Three arrangements of silicone ear tips are incorporated, and Microsoft says it has structured custom drivers and tuned them to guarantee rich sound. The Surface Earbuds are intended for music just as voice calls and the transcription highlights of Microsoft Office. Battery life is appraised at as long as 24 hours altogether including the earbuds and charging case, with eight hours for every charge of the earbuds themselves. A 10-minute charge is said to convey as long as one hour of utilization. The Microsoft Surface Earbuds will be accessible in a solitary Glacier shading and are IPX4 evaluated for water opposition. They are valued at $199 (roughly Rs. 15,175) and will be accessible from May 12 onwards. Microsoft has additionally refreshed its Surface Dock and propelled another USB Type-C Travel Hub dock with quicker and progressively current ports. These are valued at $259 (roughly Rs. 19,750) and $99 (around Rs. 7,550) separately. At long last, the organization has additionally declared new Microsoft Ergonomic Desktop and Microsoft Bluetooth Desktop console and mouse sets. KEY SPECIFICATIONS DISPLAY 10.50Inch OS Windows 10 Home in S Mode RESOLUTION 1920x1080 FRONT CAMERA 5MP PROCESSOR Intel Pentium Gold Processor 4425Y STORAGE 64GB RAM 4GB REAR CAMERA 8MP ALSO SEE amazon.in Microsoft Surface Go Tablet (64GB, 10 Inches, Wi-Fi, Gold) – Click Here To Go The Page amazon.in Microsoft Surface Pro 7 Tablet 128GB, 12.3 Inches, Wi-Fi, Platinum) – Click Here To Go To The Page amazon.in Microsoft Surfaces RT 7XR-00030 Tablet(32GB, 10.6 Inches, Wi-Fi, Black) – Click Here KEY SPECIFICATIONS DISPLAY 10.50Inch OS Windows 10 In S Mode RESOLUTION 1920x1080p RAM 6GB STORAGE 128GB FRONT CAMERA 5MP REAR CAMERA 8MP ALSO SEE amazon.in Microsoft Surface Go Tablet (64GB, 10 Inches, Wi-Fi, Gold) – Click Here To Go The Page amazon.in Microsoft Surface Pro 7 Tablet 128GB, 12.3 Inches, Wi-Fi, Platinum) – Click Here To Go To The Page amazon.in Microsoft Surfaces RT 7XR-00030 Tablet(32GB, 10.6 Inches, Wi-Fi, Black) – Click Here KEY SPECIFICATIONS DISPLAY 13.30 Inch TOUCHSCREEN Yes RESOLUTION 3000x2000p PROCESSOR Core i5 RAM 8GB OS Windows 10 Home SSD 256GB GRAPHICS Intel Iris Plus Graphics WEIGHT 1.53Kg ALSO SEE amazon.in Microsoft Surface Laptop (Windows 10, 8GB RAM, 256GB HDD, Intel Core i5, Platinum Grey, 13.5 Inch) – Click Here To Go The Page amazon.in Microsoft Surface Pro 6 KJW-00001 Laptop (Windows 10, 16GB RAM, 1000GB HDD, Intel Core i7, Silver, 12.3 Inch) – Click Here To Go To The Page amazon.in Microsoft Surface Pro 6 Tablet (256GB, 12.9 Inches, Wi-Fi, Platinum) – Click Here KEY SPECIFICATIONS DISPLAY 13.50Inch OS Windows 10 Home RESOLUTION 3240x2160p TOUCHSCREEN Yes GRAPHICS Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti STORAGE 256GB RAM 16GB WEIGHT 1.91Kg PROCESSOR Core i7 ALSO SEE amazon.in Microsoft Surface Laptop (Windows 10, 8GB RAM, 256GB HDD, Intel Core i5, Platinum Grey, 13.5 Inch) – Click Here To Go The Page amazon.in Microsoft Surface Pro 6 KJW-00001 Laptop (Windows 10, 16GB RAM, 1000GB HDD, Intel Core i7, Silver, 12.3 Inch) – Click Here To Go To The Page amazon.in Microsoft Surface Pro 6 Tablet (256GB, 12.9 Inches, Wi-Fi, Platinum) – Click Here For Regular & Fastest Tech News and Reviews, Follow TECHNOXMART on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Subscribe Here Now. 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http://www.technoxmart.com/2020/05/microsoft-surface-go-2-book-3.html

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midewestcoast · 5 years ago

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Amazon is entering the headphones game with Alexa Echo Buds

Amazon has finally released their own earphones today’s unveiling of Echo Buds, a pair of truly wireless earbuds that work with Alexa. Preorders are open now for $129.99.

source https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/25/cnn-underscored/amazon-echo-buds-features-pricing-buy/index.html

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atlff18 · 7 years ago

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EIGHTH GRADE

For his first feature film writer director Bo Burnham owes everything to Elsie Fisher his 14-year-old star who just completed her own eighth grade of middle school when production started. Burnham doesn’t owe A24, the distributor, not composer Anna Meredith, not cinematographer Andrew Wehde, not the editor Jennifer Lilly who has the most film experience here, all key people who can really impact a first time film director. No, he owes all of Eighth Grade to Fisher who allows Burnham to capture every ounce of her physical and mental being not so much in an exploitative way—though you might suspect that is the case since the film is reality based and highly stalking at times —but in a very anthropological way that in a positive sense schools people on what internet life is like at this age. Which is not that much different from everyone else who experienced eighth grade before Facebook, YouTube and Snapchat, in terms of social anxiety. Today it’s just a more penetrating, omnipresence of social concerns.

The Story: Kayla is in her final year of middle school. She’ll be graduating and heading to high school and we get to follow her and watch her as she navigates this delicate time in her life. Eighth Grade is a “day in the life” narrative-based fictional film about Kayla, an only child, who lives with her dad Mark, played by Josh Hamilton (The Meyerowitz Stories (2017), Manchester By The Sea (2016), Frances Ha (2012)), who does his best to stay in touch with his daughter; to allow her to do her thing while also being concerned for her wellbeing; trying to have conversations with her though she just wants to be left alone. And we see her desire to be accepted by the popular girls, while crushing on a boy, Aiden, played by Luke Prael, and in turn, her friend Gabe, played by Jake Ryan, who crushes on her.

The Goods: What Burnham does best is write accidental maturity into these kids. That Aiden the cool, dreamy kid doesn’t even know how magnificent he is to Kayla, though he’s really scrawny and thin, especially as he makes child-like grimaces and accompanying sound effects in class. Yet he’s one of the most popular kids. And that Gabe is a nerd but his seemingly inherent gentlemanly qualities brush off of him like a dog shedding hair. A kid, a child, but one who makes Kayla dinner and shares her concerns about the future.

Eighth Grade is not a John Hughes film, it is not a Disney film with kid actors from Disney Channel shows. It is not innocent comedic Napoleon Dynamite (2004) fun. And it’s not this year’s Lady Bird (2017) as some media outlets are saying. It sort of touches on all of the schematic pieces of these entities, such as capturing the ticks and sounds young people like to make, the natural dialogue of “likes” and “ums,” or the quirky clothing and hairstyles of kids and teachers, done here as well if not better than in Sixteen Candles (1984) or Welcome To The Doll House (1995), or in Richard Linklater’s Dazed And Confused (1993). And the subculture that exists in the hallways, between lockers. But Eighth Grade is dark, the lighting is dark, the music is at times cold and isolating, whether that is all done on purpose or whether it was created this way in post-production based on inexperienced filmmaking…it’s as if we’re on another planet. Which often times we are when trying to recognize and understand kids of this age, or ourselves, when we were in this limbo between childhood and adulthood.

And if you think of the world of Eighth Grade, whether it’s this film, or the actual moment in time—our actual eighth grade—it really is like a level of Dante’s Inferno and Burnham and the crew he works with here have nailed that in every scary, alienated, other worldly way without leaving the reality of the true situation. It’s not a documentary but it documents with accuracy this year in Kayla’s life, just as Michael Apted documented kids from seven years old and up…called the UP series, following the same people from age 7 to age 56, and is still going, and just as the Michael Apted title explains his long term biography project Eighth Grade does the same thing. It’s an anthropological title, a history term paper title, it’s a milestone, a moment, a term used for the eighth year of a child’s education. It can’t get any dryer than that. Like National Geographic, as their motto says, “to increase and diffuse geographic knowledge,” Eighth Grade, as would be fifth grade, or twelfth grade, or say the year in a college freshman’s life on campus, provides us with something more than just a Hollywood top 40 soundtrack movie with adolescent guys having sex with pies.

In that regard, Eighth Grade is more like Fish Tank (2009), written and directed by Andrea Arnold, a fictional slice-of-life look documenting the daily events of 15-year-old Mia who lives with her single mother which won the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. And yet not at all like Thirteen (2003), a well-lit professional-looking film shot in a handheld style that involves thirteen-year-old girls in a pattern of self-destruction, and stars Holly Hunter, again, a single parent. To further describe where Eighth Grade fits into the narrative film structure of this genre.

The original music in Eighth Grade, composed mostly of electronic music by Anna Meredith, adds more of a Nicolas Winding Refn (Valhalla Rising (2009), Drive (2011), The Neon Demon (2016)), feel at times. There is definitely a science-fiction underscore to the film. When we consider the effects the internet and social media have on Kayla’s young mind, the way Burnham captures late night screen time with Kayla, in bed, always with her purple earbud headphones on, sort of hiding from dad, and the world, in the darkness of her room with the single light of her cell phone…it’s no different than any other cold, electronic, robotic, A.I. image in any science fiction film dealing with lonely astronauts.

Or like in the films of Refn where the central characters are often loners where the camera follows them and stays with them all day allowing us—with electronic music—to crawl under their skin like nano bots and go along for what is usually a dramatically creepy ride.

The music proliferates the fantasies and fears of the young person experience, more so than music from a Hughes film, but not dissimilar to Sophia Coppola who does this quite well in nearly all of her films, using musicians like electronic synth-heavy bands and artists like Squarepusher, Air, Klaus Schulze, Oneohtrix Point Never and the more accessible Avicii, or deadmau5.

Even bigger, wide reaching films have an original electronic score most of which lends itself well to suspenseful or psychological moments, in recent films like Game Night (2018), score by Cliff Martinez, and Phantom Thread (2017), soundtrack by Radiohead guitarist Johnny Greenwood. Greenwood was nominated for an Oscar in the Original Score category for that film and recently scored Lynne Ramsey’s You Were Never Really Here (2018), which, starring Joaquin Phoenix, is much more common in tonality, music wise, electronically, to contemporary films like Drive, and Tron: Legacy (2010), and curiously Burnham’s Eighth Grade. Both films in fact—You Were Never Really Here and Eighth Grade—have tracks that are siren-like in their attempt to interpret scenes where sirens might be required for both a) the characters in the film, as sort of red flags, and b) for the audience in enhancing the “alarm” of character distress.

This kind of music is nothing new. Hans Zimmer of Inception (2010), Interstellar (2014), The Dark Knight Rises (2012), uses nearly all synthesizers and electronics; as does Steven Jablonsky, composer of the Transformer films. That same highly affective synthetic sound logic is found in the X-Files TV show and films, Scarface (1983), The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2011), the Blade Runner films, Hackers (1995), big film and TV stuff. But indie films too have a pedigree of electronic music as part of their original soundtrack. John Carpenter, the sci-fi and fantasy indie film king, composes a lot of electronic music for his films, the most noticeable and recognizable being the theme from his Halloween films, but also Escape from New York (1981), The Thing (1982), They Live (1988), Ghosts of Mars (2001), etc. And a near wordless action nail-biter like Terminator (1984) relies heavily on electronic music that drives the tension and suspense of that film like few others.

The point of all of this is two things: a) the electronic music you hear in Eighth Grade works against the character, is a cold partner to the artificiality and falseness of social media, and creates a subtext of “alien presence” in the sense the soundtrack synthesizer is the voice of a world outside of reality, at best symbolizing the world of overbearing self-consciousness young people exist in at this age, and b) if that is so, then the upside is that Kayla’s character beats this sound around her, rises above it and conquers this monster-alien’s monolith alarm warfare in times of greatest challenges within the film.

Even when we hear a contemporary song, like one from Selena Gomez or Katy Perry, it is not the party anthem of good times, one that appears on a soundtrack you can download on iTunes or buy at Walmart, but instead is often muffled in the film by kids conversing or by earbuds and quickly replaced by Meredith’s electronic composition which we surely come to recognize as representative of Kayla’s true psyche. And that music, it’s almost like the black alien goo from the Spider-Man comics which eventually takes over the bearer’s body and goes on to become Venom, taking over the mainstream pop music of Eighth Grade.

But Kayla rises above all that, and that is the film’s most successful aspect. It gives this character’s story a positive punch in the end.

The Flaws: My problem is it’s all just a little too dark, that the film goes to the dark side of eighth grade angst and isolation more than I’d like it to. Which makes the film stand out, I recognize that, and for which it also makes the film better than most in this category. I find the music a little too invasive, but that’s the point too…that all of this social media stigmata and middle school distress is overbearing. And the music gives the film a signature that neither Kayla nor the audience can shake. Is that what reality is like? Are we affected by technology and people around us, our place in society, to such a degree it gives us a mark of disgrace, of shame, and an aura of neurosis? I don’t think so. In reality. At least not permanently. But yes, in the movie, the electronic compositions are so strong they put a UPC code-like stamp on our Kayla that leaves us very little hope for a positive future. In that regard Eighth Grade feels more like a monster movie than a young adult drama.

Comedy is what we need a little more of here, if we wish to retain the sense of realism Burnham has done so well with here. If we could laugh at ourselves a bit more in Eighth Grade, laugh with Kayla, watch Kayla laugh a little at herself and some of her circumstances, not in a Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) way, or in a Clueless (1995), Amy Heckerling way, or in a Mean Girls (2004) way—but in a Matt Damon laughing at Robin Williams way in Good Will Hunting (1997), or in a Tom Berenger trying a stunt jump in The Big Chill (1983) way, or in a Rachel Getting Married (2008) wedding craziness relief like family toasts way…if we have these comedic personality traits in Eighth Grade, the comedy of life’s weirdest moments would seem more real than it does here in what we only see as a series of reactions that for Kayla express disappointment and embarrassment.

That realistic lighting and those humiliating parents and that awkward bathing suit at the swim party, that the prospect of a relationship with someone we have a crush on, those “realities” aren’t real enough in the end without the ability to laugh at something, anything, which is what kids do with their friends—seeking comfort from the madness of this time in our life. True, that doesn’t always happen. Some kids don’t get that outlet, the outlet of life-like friends, or sports, or after school programs…or that opportunity to vent while just hanging out with friends after school watching TV and laughing at body noises and funky odors. In the film Eighth Grade, we get a glimpse of that and see that Kayla does in fact have those options, yet we only really see her drop her guard, loosen up, on one or two occasions which are far outweighed by the more humiliating, self-conscious, constricting horrors in her head.

Working with limited budgets, cast, equipment, you’re talking a school full of kids, a community, a shopping mall, a high school where the eighth graders shadow high school students…sure, there are a lot of successful quantities here. And in that regard Burnham has made a great film. Correction, Elsie Fisher has made a great film, as laden as it is with oppressive dark matter of the universe.

The Call: Spend the ten. Eighth Grade is shy of being a master piece but it’s a fantastic dramatic debut for Burnham who by trade is a comedian. His previous directing work is with TV and cable comedy stand-up specials with the likes of Chris Rock, Jerod Carmichael and himself even though there’s rarely any comedy in this film. The original electronic music by Anna Meredith is at times mostly highhanded and sometimes terrorizing; the film could use a few more real-life comedic moments to punchline Kayla’s most difficult moments. But Elsie Fisher offers herself up for the cameras like a pro. Meryl Streep has nothing on her. It’s more than acting though. She’s sacrificing herself for the good of the film. Burnham has a lot to be thankful for. And so do we. Gucci!

Eighth Grade is still on the festival circuit and will receive a rating closer to release date. Running time is 1 hour and 34 minutes.

By Jon Lamoreaux

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