An increased level of noise pollution is a phenomenon typical of any crowded room. In such conditions, it is very difficult to communicate with the interlocutor by phone, as there is no guarantee that you correctly hear each other against the sound background. In addition, people around you inevitably become passive listeners of your chatter. These factors prompted the developers to create a Hushme voice mask.
The prototype of the device was demonstrated for the first time at CES 2017. The muzzle-like product covers the lower part of the face, including the mouth, and is equipped with earphones, thanks to which the mask can serve as a full-fledged wireless headset. The mask can be activated via a smartphone.
A special feature of the Hushme design is filters that remove all outside noises, including extraneous voices. At the same time, the user’s voice will not be heard by others, which is extremely important in confidential conversations, whereas the telephone interlocutor will hear it perfectly thanks to the built-in microphone. But if necessary, the mask can act as a kind of portable loudspeaker.
The developers have released the prototype of the gadget, but its commercial launch requires fundraising via crowdfunding websites in late spring 2017. The estimated cost for preorder is $149.
