These smart earbuds can turn down the sound of a screaming baby!

Sitting near a screaming baby on a long haul flight is the stuff of nightmares. While many of us can be sympathetic, no one actually wants to listen to that for hours on end. But what if you had headphones that could actually turn down the sound of that screaming baby?

This is the promise of augmented audio, and the good news is, it’s not just a sci-fi fantasy – it’s already here.

Augmented audio allows users to filter, remix, alter, and even mute sounds via wireless earbuds. Unlike noise cancelling headphones, augmented audio earbuds can filter out specific sounds and actually turn down the volume of the things that you don’t want to hear, without affecting the sounds that you do want to hear. From a noisy office environment to the sounds of a screaming baby, augmented audio can help you choose what you want do and don’t want to listen to.

So, how do they work?

A leading augmented audio product is the Here One. These wireless augmented audio earbuds conisist of both a speaker and a microphone. The microphone ‘listens’ to the sounds surrounding the user and processes information about the soundwaves which allows specific sounds to be amplified or muted. The Here One works via Bluetooth with a smartphone app that also allows its wearer to listen to a perfect blend of whatever ambient sound they choose to listen (while filtering out that which you don’t want to hear), plus music, podcast, phone call or smart assistant. The Hear One promises that its earbuds can be worn all day so that there’s no need to remove your headphones to interact with the world.

Augmented audio has the power to change the way that we interact with technology in our everyday lives by making the interface between human and machine more seamless. Doppler Labs, the people behind the Hear One, have ambitious goals when it comes to wearable tech -

“We believe that audio and voice will be a key part of the next wave of computing. We believe that by moving CPUs, sensors, speakers, and mics onto the body—and specifically into the ears—we can make computing more immersive, more human, and get you out of your screen. We believe in order to achieve this, we must create products that are worn proudly, as much a function of fashion as a piece of technology.

Just as Microsoft put “a computer on every desk” and Apple put a computer in every pocket, our mission is to put a computer, speaker, and mic in every ear. “

So how much money would you expect to pay to be able to filter out the sound of a screaming baby?

The Hear One is available to pre-order for US$299.99. They’re shipping to the U.S. and Europe from the end of this year and will be expanding to other countries shortly thereafter.

What sounds would you want to filter out from your life?