Liquipel nanocoating may well keep moisture from damaging the inner workings of mobile devices but if you're looking to share your tunes with friends at the beach or pool, you need something with a bit more output than the resident speakers. Grace Digital has just announced the release of a fully waterproof boombox for smartphones or digital music players that was first seen as a limited preview at CES 2011. The Eco Terra Boombox is fully submersible, waterproof and shock resistant, and can even keep cash and valuables safe and secure as it pumps out the music while bobbing on the surface of the water.
Part of Grace Digital's expanding Eco Extreme Gear line of products, the new Eco Terra Boombox for smartphones and media players is not merely water-resistant but IPX7 waterproof, including the onboard headphone jack. Its polycarbonate outer shell has rubberized impact bumpers and it features a clear waterproof compartment to the front and middle where the smartphone or media player is placed in a neoprene housing and secured using elastic retention straps. The stowed music player feeds audio into the Eco Terra via a 3.5mm jack, and there's also enough room in there for dry storage of some cash, keys and cards, too.
The Eco Terra features a specially-designed air pressure release valve that's said to keep the case watertight while also making it easy to open at low or high altitude. The boombox also floats and, if dropped (or thrown) in the water, will adjust itself so that the two 3-inch full-range speakers always face up. There are device control buttons on the top and it's been designed to play audio with the waterproof clear shell closed or open, the latter granting access to touchscreen devices when away from the water.
Grace says that users can enjoy up to 25 hours of continuous play from four C-cell batteries and, when on dry land, the bright orange, 14.5 x 7.75 x 5-inch (368.3 x 196.85 x 127 mm), 4.8 pound (2.17 kg) unit can also be plugged into the mains via an included AC wall adapter.
The Eco Terra is available now for US$149.99 and comes supplied with a nylon shoulder strap and some carabiner clips.
Source: Eco Terra