Japanese toy manufacturer MEDICOM TOY has released its first ever portable Bluetooth speaker — BE@RBRICK AUDIO 400%. It was developed by the Ukrainian company RINARO ISODYNAMICS, which specializes in the development and manufacture of audio systems
What is the peculiarity of the collaboration
BE@RBRICK AUDIO 400% is not just a new design of a bear figure, but a technological product — a redesigned audio system in the shape of a BE@RBRICK audio system.
The collab is based on BE@RBRICK 400%. It is the fifth of six figure sizes, 28 centimeters in height. The speaker is equipped with the QUAD’360TM omnidirectional sound system, developed especially for this collaboration by Rinaro Isodynamics, and four acoustic speaker elements encased in BE@RBRICK’s head. In this way, the speakers play in unison, ‘creating a clear 360 degree field of audio’.
In addition, the accessory has been enhanced with dual-speaker stereo connection technology for a more surround sound.
As the Ukrainian company notes, they spent ‘more than 20 thousand hours of engineering time’ to create the device, and during the work they created 214 newly-designed parts.
Due to the audio system and additional levers in the legs, the figure turned out to be heavier than standard ones. Its weight is 870 grams.
You can connect to the speaker via Bluetooth from iOS or Android devices: just click the main button. The volume and track switching controls are located in the left and right hands of BE@RBRICK respectively: you can control the volume or skip a track by twisting the left or right hand of the toy.
Other claimed features of the BE@RBRICK AUDIO 400% include: up to six hours of music play time without recharging, fast charging in an hour and a half with a USB cable, and a specially designed rechargeable battery that can be replaced later.
The limited edition BE@RBRICK AUDIO 400% is scheduled for release in November on the website and at select retailers worldwide. The device will go on sale in three designs: clear, smoke and black. It will be priced at $499.
What you need to know about BE@RBRICK
MEDICOM TOY, which produces BE@RBRICK collectible toys, was founded in 1996 by Japanese designer Akashi Tatsuhiko.
The bear figure, which has become the company’s trademark, was first created in 2001. At that time, in the year of celebrating the 100th anniversary of the release of Teddy bears for children, Akashi decided to present a ‘digital image of the bear’.
‘I wanted people to be able to immediately point to the Medicom toys among the hundreds of figures’, the designer explained.
BE@RBRICK has become a pop-cultural phenomenon and the basis of many collaborations with brands, artists, designers and heroes of contemporary culture. Thus, BE@RBRICK toys were created in collaboration with KAWS, Stussy, Chanel, Bathing Ape, Swarovski and French retailer Colette, as well as The Beatles, Daft Punk, ‘Star Wars’ movie universe, cartoons ‘Rick and Morty’ and ‘The Simpsons’.
What you need to know about the Ukrainian company RINARO ISODYNAMICS
Based in Ukraine, RINARO ISODYNAMICS has positioned itself as a pioneer in innovative sound development. It develops and manufactures audio technologies, including audio systems and headphones. One of the most famous headphones is Empyrean, created in collaboration with Romanian brand Meze Audio.
‘We believe that people should be able to tailor their music to their lifestyle and passions without losing sound quality. We aim to give people the tools to create a unique environment for listening to music that evokes their feelings and reflects their lifestyle’, Pavel Shymanovich, the company’s founder, tells us.
