Nonlinear Studio's clip-on Amplifiear gives iPad audio a needed boost

While most folks find the speakers on their iPads adequate, they can be difficult to hear clearly in noisy environments or when they're several feet away. Recently, we covered an accessory that amplifies the iPhone4 by about 13 decibels. Now, to help the third-generation iPad (and the earlier iPad2) be all that it can be, Evan Clabots and his team at Brooklyn's Nonlinear Studio have come up with a similar clip-on solution that simply and effectively boosts output - the Amplifiear.

"The problem with the speaker in the iPad is that it's projecting backwards," Clabots explains. "You lose a lot of the definition as the sound goes back, especially losing a lot of the higher frequencies."

Nonlinear is using Kickstarter to bring the Amplifiear to market and from the looks of it, they'll meet the necessary pledges to actually begin manufacturing. If all goes well, the durable ABS plastic accessories should begin shipping this summer for about US$15.

"It's such a simple geometry, taken from an old gramophone," Clabots said. "It just clips on, and it just works."

Source: Nonlinear Studio

Check out Nonlinear's Kickstarter video below to learn a bit more about the Amplifiear.