We’re used to seeing a lot of headphones aimed at little listeners here at , but true wireless headphones for kids like Belkin’s recently announced SoundForm Nano Wireless Earbuds for Kids are a very rare breed.
Designed for children age seven and up, the new Bluetooth headphones feature output limiting to keep the volume below 85 decibels (the current U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration limit for workplace exposure), ensuring that they cannot accidentally damage your hearing.
While sound quality often tends to be an afterthought for headphones designed for young people, that doesn’t seem to be the case here, with the Nano featuring 6mm dynamic drivers in each earcup.
They also promise a decent battery life of 24 hours in total, with up to 5 hours of uninterrupted playback, plus an additional 19 hours of juice offered by the charging case, while IPX5 water resistance should ensure they can withstand a fight of water gun.
Younger kids have smaller ear canals that often make headphones an irritating and uncomfortable experience, but Belkin is addressing that with a selection of included ear tips that are scaled down to a special extra-extra small size.
Equally minuscule is the asking price, with the Nano set to retail at $49.99 / £29.99 and will go on sale in late June 2022 in three colors.
Analysis: Could Belkin be with the kids with these headphones?
There’s an obvious reason why true wireless headphones have so far not been widely offered to younger listeners – these little headphones are always getting lost by adults, let alone easily distracted children.
But it’s also worth bearing in mind how kids see the world – seeing their parents and older siblings wearing AirPods makes those crazy colored tins they got for their birthday look totally bland, which means the SoundForm Nano can be a great success.
They’re cheap enough to replace if anyone gets lost, they have volume limits to prevent accidental hearing damage, and they should save parents’ sanity on those long summer car rides that can’t stand the Thundermans’ canned laughter and that Bluey anymore. theme song.
We can understand that parents are nervous about giving kids true wireless buttons, but we think Belkin is offering a good formula here.
Belkin is probably best known for its wide range of Apple accessories and chargers, but in the last couple of years the Californian company has made a big move into the smart headphone and speaker markets with its SoundForm brand.
Alongside the Nano and its premium noise-canceling Immerse headphones, which debuted earlier this year at CES, the company has also further expanded its audio portfolio with the launch today of another set of True Wireless headphones for adults.
The new SoundForm Play headphones feature 3 touch-controllable EQ presets for personalized sound and Dual Beamforming technology with 2 mics in each earcup for enhanced audio clarity on calls and will be on sale for $59.99/ £49.99 later this summer.