After causing some stir in the summer when it was first announced, the potentially groundbreaking Phoenix solar-powered true wireless earbuds are now finally available for purchase.
Originally unveiled in August, the first-of-its-kind buds can be pressed using the Powerfoyle solar cell panel in the charging case.
The panel was developed in collaboration with another Swedish company and solar specialist Exeger and can continuously recharge with both sunlight and ambient light.
The earbuds themselves offer a similar design to the well-received Urbanista London headphones that were released in 2020.
They also have a similar feature set to its predecessor, with the Phoenix also offering Hybrid Active Noise Cancellation and noise canceling microphones for filtering out ambient sounds, enabling a transparency mode similar to Apple’s AirPods Pro 2 headphones.
The Phoenix offers a playtime of eight hours from the buds alone and a total battery reserve of 32 hours including the case battery – both numbers are good compared to the best true wireless earbuds.
The release of the Phoenix buds marks the second time Ubanista has released a set of headphones that use solar technology, with the Urbanista Los Angeles earbuds from late last year featuring Powerfoyle light source panels on the headband.
Priced at $149 / £139 (around AU$250), the Phoenix can be purchased direct from Urbanist Portal (opens in a new tab) as well as from selected retailers.
Analysis: eco-features can provide ultimate wireless convenience
Aiming to free listeners from both power and audio cables, the Phoenix’s convenient self-charging form factor (in theory) means we expect the latest Urbanista headphones won’t be the last buds to use a solar panel like this – assuming the word is as intended (we will post a review as soon as possible).
What is particularly encouraging about them, and something that will likely set them apart from future competitors, is that no corner seems to have been cut to accommodate the solar function. There’s noise cancellation and Bluetooth 5.2 on board, and pretty much every key feature we’ve come to expect from mid-range wireless buds.
That sunny goodness and impressive feature list won’t matter unless they sound good, of course, but if their fidelity matches their sustainability credentials, we’re sure they’ll make our list of the best earbuds. However, they are more expensive than many of the Urbanist’s other offerings, so they’ll have to bring their audio game to satisfy us.
For more Urbanista goodness, check out our reviews Miami urban planner behind-the-ear and Urban planner Stockholm truly wireless earbuds.