Reader TTS

With their new “Everything Proof” range of outdoors wireless speakers, Altec Lansing are gearing up to establish itself as a major brand in the APAC region. The company has a rich 75-year

involvement with the audio industry, from providing speakers for Woodstock to developing the first iPod docking stations. After re-entering the US market last year and making it into the top

four brands for wireless Bluetooth speakers alongside companies like JBL and Bose, they say “it’s time for Australia to experience that success.” The company’s new Everything-Proof range

features caters to both the low and high ends of the market, with mountable Bluetooth speakers that come waterproof, shock-proof and dirt-proof. This feature was readily touted at the

company’s Sydney-based launch event for the range. Journalists present were treated to a showcase of the range’s durability, from the “indestructible-ish” Super Life Jacket speakers to the

more affordable Mini and Jacket H20 III speakers. Each comes IP67-certified and built around the company’s distinct style of frame, equal parts compact and rugged. Company spokespeople say

the last few years have been about reinventing what Alter Lansing means. “Innovation comes from consumer trends”, they said. While “audio is all about mobility,” they found that waterproof

speakers aren’t cannibalizing the sales of traditional wireless audio devices. Altec Lansing says they’re a “truly new” category, and one they aim to stoke and satisfy consumer demand for.

While all eight speakers featured at the launch incorporate the same caliber of durability, there are some differences to be found in terms of battery life. The mid-tier Mini Life Jacket III

offers up 16 hours of battery life, the Life Jacket III doubles that number to 30 hours and the Super Life Jacket delivers over two days of use on a full charge. The larger models even

boast built-in powerbanks installed independently from the speaker’s own power source and arrive with a mounting bracket. During the launch, Altec Lansing showed off video footage showing

the degree to which they’ve prioritized durability for the range. [embedded content] These speakers are set to be joined by a range of in-ear headphones that Altec Lansing told us would be

launching soon. Featuring built-in microphones and the same IP67 waterproofing as the company’s mainline speakers, they’ll retail for $49.95 and $99.95 respectively. Altec Lansing said

during the event that the early response to their re-entry to the market, headlined by their softer, multi-directional Omni range, has been a positive one. They say the new range has proved

itself a bestselling speaker for retailer Big W. The advent of the Omni range has even seen the company dip its toes into the wireless sound world, with a new Altec Lansing app allowing

users to connect and synchronize up to two speakers. The company indicated they intend to improve upon this and eventually offer support for an undetermined-but-greater number of outputs.

Distributed exclusively by Powermove, Altec Lansing’s range of everything-proof wireless speakers can be found in Target, Big W, Anaconda and Good Guys retail outlets. The Mini H20 retails

for $59.95 alongside the $119.95 Jacket H20 and $149.95 Mini Life Jacket. Meanwhile, the full-blown Life Jacket retails for $229.95 and the high-end Super Life Jacket arrives for $449.95.

The Omni Jacket Mini, Omni Jacket and Omni Jacket Ultra retail for $179.95, $299.95 and $449.95 respectively.