Fab Find Friday II

This thing is so cool!  Here's more about it:

Jawbone Jambox wireless brick speaker and speaker-phone.


The folks behind the Jawbone wireless Bluetooth headsets have always defied convention. When Jawbone was first introduced in 2006, the privately-held San Francisco outfit ran loud weed whackers during calls to emphasize the headset's ability to suppress background noises. More recently, Jawbone introduced voice dialing and information apps for its Icon-branded Bluetooth earpiece.

Now Jawbone is applying its craft to a small brick that doubles as a wireless stereo speaker and speakerphone called Jambox. It's meant to work wirelessly with smartphones, computers, tablets, iPods and any other Bluetooth devices.

You get surprisingly rich sound out of the palm-sized 12-ounce brick speaker, which is encased in rubber. Inside is a pair of powerful acoustic drivers and a tiny dome that Jawbone claims produces an audio spectrum almost as wide as the human ear itself. On the outside are volume and talk buttons, plus a 3.5mm connector for use when you don't have a Bluetooth device.

The Bluetooth range is up to about 33 feet, the company says. The built-in microphone (for speakerphone calls) only works with Bluetooth.

Jambox is compatible with Jawbone apps. An audio voice tells you if the battery needs charging or says the phone number of an incoming caller aloud. The voice also piped in when I first "paired" the Jambox to my iPhone during Bluetooth set-up, which was a cinch.

Jawbone pays attention to aesthetic design too. Jambox comes in four colors (mine was Black Diamond in marketing-speak.) It is packaged in a shoebox with the picture of an old-fashion boom box on the cover. The words underneath: "That was then…"

Because of its small size, light weight and sturdy build, you can throw Jambox in a bag and easily schlep it to an office, hotel room or vacation home. Jawbone claims battery life of about 8 hours for Jambox. (You charge it via Micro USB.) Its on sale in Apple and Best Buy Stores for $199.