Festool is launching new hearing protection – wireless Bluetooth-connected earbuds (GHS 25 I) that they say are “your daily companion in the bodyshop or on the construction site.”
Festool says:
For good conversation. In safety. The ear protection for professionals.
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The Festool GHS 25 I earbuds are advertised as having a 25 dB NRR (USA specs have not been shared), and IP67 protection against dust, water, and sweat.
The charging case can be recharged via USB-C. Battery life is 13 hours for the earbuds. With the fully recharged case able to charge the earbuds, battery life is up to 38 hours.
The new Festool Bluetooth earbuds look a lot like the IsoTunes Free Aware Bluetooth hearing protection earbuds.
The IsoTunes have similar specs – 13 hours of runtime per charge, and up to 26 hours of additional runtime via the charging case.
The IsoTunes Free Aware earbuds are also IP67-rated against sweat, water, and dust.
These Festool-branded hearing protection earbuds will be launching in Europe in May 2023.
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Festool USA has not provided press materials, product details, pricing, or availability information, but their influencers have been posting about them on social media, suggesting their eventual release here.
If you can’t wait, the IsoTunes Free Aware earbuds are available now for $199. I’m afraid to guess how much the Festool-branded ones will cost.
Thoughts?
Are these just IsoTunes earbuds with Festool colors and labeling?
Personally, I think this is a missed opportunity for Festool to popularize their micro-sized Systainer. That would have been cute.
Jay
Did someone recently leave Ryobi for a promotion from Festool? When does the Festool bug zapper come out? And for only $249bare zapper, $349 with a battery…
Chris I
Oh brother.
Festool, the new Apple.
Df
Why not go with a brand that actualy has noise cancelation tech VS noise isolation…my sony earbuds wipe the floor with these
Stuart
Because noise cancellation does not provide any hearing protection.
Franco
Interesting, I did not know that they would not protect your ears.
Stuart
Isotunes and others will – those are marketed specifically as hearing protection products.
Consumer products, such as by Sony, Apple, or similar, are not sold as hearing protection products. Earbud designed to cancel out background noise on a bus, train, or plane, are not at all the same as those designed to protect against potentially damaging noise levels.
It’s kind of like the difference between auto-darkening sunglasses and an auto-darkening welding helmet. One is designed for comfort as one transitions from indoors to outdoors and vise versa. The other is designed for protecting your eyesight against welding light emissions.
https://toolguyd.com/noise-cancellation-headphones-vs-hearing-protection-earmuffs/
Jared
If it’s just another color for the isotunes and doesn’t cost a bunch more, why not? Somehow I don’t think the MSRP will be the same though.
Addison
I have had versions of these for a long time, be it Koss sound isolation, over the ear amplified range muffs, in the ear Walker’s, or my current favorite occupational music plug: JLab (about $20 on Amazon). I work alone, so last is an option in my case. I would not suggest paying $200 for things that hit the flood as often as these tend to do, but if Festool makes them, the real entertainment will be: how much will they cost, over 2X ISO Tunes?
Wayne R.
“For Pros”? If that’s humor, it’s too subtle for me.
Stuart
That’s what they advertise.
Chris S
Missed opportunity for wireless charging. If it’s for a “pro” I would think they would add a way to cover the port so it’s not full of dust.
My $35 JBL’s have wireless charging and sit inside the ear lobe and block most machine noise and once I use something louder like a planer, I can just throw a set of ear protectors over top without breaking the seal (unlike headphones that had a wire and would technically be defeating the noise protection by creating a gap).
I also just have a piece of electrical tape over the USB-C port and set it on the charging pad while in the shop.
I can buy 5 pairs of these for just 1 isotunes.
Franco
I have tried numerous times and can’t get used to earbuds; they fallout or hurt my ears.
So I bought these and the work great for me.
https://www.amazon.com/3M-Worktunes-Bluetooth-Hearing-Protection/dp/B0146A4SWA/
Kevin
Cash grab product if I’ve ever seen one. It’s definitely contracted out to Isotunes. If it wasn’t, they’d definitely be in violation of a design patent at a minimum I’m sure, as they’re completely identical in geometry. The only apparent difference, other than branding, is the length of the compliance foam eartip. I don’t see any value here. It’s a cheap driver that relies on the foam for isolation. It’s effective, but in a very low tech way, ergo, the markup is tremendous.
David
I hope they work better than the Isotunes Free Aware. Singularly the worst ear buds and hearing pro I’ve ever used.
Look at adding comply foam tips to your ear buds. You’ll pick up generally 5-10 DB Snr over what your ear buds provide.
Most commercial units don’t go through the process of testing and certifying as hearing pro since it’s not really a selling feature.
I like the isotunes pro. Maybe I’d even like the isotunes aware with a cord, but man the free aware lasted about a day before I found something else.