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This crazy levitating Bluetooth speaker has a far better use

You could use the levitating speaker as a levitating speaker — or you could stick it to the wall

I listened to Rihanna on a levitating speaker. It didn't sound as good as Rihanna on a middle-range traditional speaker, though it certainly looked more interesting. If you have a small child, miss Sharper Image catalogues, or wonder how magnets work and also have a couple hundred dollars to flush, this may be the levitating speaker for you.

The Air2 — pronounced Air Squared — has two distinct parts. The floating speaker is a metallic island that fits easily in your palm. It has a mic, for making conference calls, and a micro-USB port, which connects to the USB slot on the slightly larger circular base for charging.

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Magnets! How do they work?
The levitation effect is created by strong magnets hidden inside the two pieces. Finding the magnetic sweet spot necessary to start the levitation is a little tough by hand; the device comes with a plastic placement tool which is less glamorous, but easier to use.

Because the speaker is a giant magnet, the levitating speaker also doubles as a magnetic speaker. A representative got the speaker, which basically is a noisy hockey puck, to stick to the phone in his pocket, and I stuck it to the brackets of a door. Here's that in GIF form:

Air2

Frankly, I see a number of trolling uses for a Bluetooth magnetic née levitating speaker. I'd place it in hard-to-reach places in someone's home, and play Tiffany at hours Tiffany should not be played. You can connect via Bluetooth from up to 33 feet away for up to 12 hours of playtime. Close your eyes, and consider the potential.

The device costs $199 and is available now on Amazon. The representative told me the levitation improves the acoustics, which I imagine could be true if the speakers themselves were of a better quality. But you don't buy a levitating, ultra-magnet troll machine for the sound. You buy it to bombard a roommate or spouse or child with 12 hours of "I Think We're Alone Now." Or you could just watch it levitate. I guess that's cool, too.


Air2