Wireless headset gets modded with a battery from a baby monitor for a substantial upgrade in battery life and substantial change in looks
Hunting for hardware news sometimes takes you places you've never been before or shows you things that will forever be etched in your mind. Our superchiefintendo Dave pointed me to this one and well, you can't deny that it's definitely a thing. What you've got is a wireless headset that's been modded to sport a hulk-sized battery and some wonderfully garish looks.
Posted over at SweClockers, Sweden's largest PC and hardware website, the project involved two key improvements (or regressions, depending on your view) for a Sennheiser GSP 670 wireless headset: A replacement battery that has four times the capacity of the original and a new set of gel-filled earpads.
Now it's worth pointing out that the GSP 670 isn't exactly a budget model and generally retails around the $200 mark, but the modder in question (who goes by the name Shogou on SweClockers and Old World Tech on YouTube) wasn't happy with the one-day battery life, not to mention that the ear pads had really worn out.
Cue some A-team music (well, a bangin' techno choon in the video), a collection of tools, and a judicious spot of duct tape. The end result is a headset that can only be described as 'unique'. But hey, if it works, it works!
The expanded battery life comes from the fact that the replacement lithium polymer cell is rated at 1500mAh, compared to the original 320mAh provided by Sennheiser. An Amazon Sweden listing for the item states that it's for a specific baby monitor but now the manufacturer can add wireless headsets, too (albeit with the use of drill being a necessary requirement).
I actually like what Shogou has done to get the battery to work with the headset, especially the post-apocalyptic vibe it gives off, with the drilling and duct taping. On the other hand, the replacement gel ear pads really don't work for me: Far too late-1980s, early-1990s in looks for my tastes.
But no matter how clunky and garish it looks, the whole project is really commendable. As someone who used to teach engineering, I love seeing folks ripping devices open and modding them for their exact needs. Not sure whether Shogou is really pleased with the end result or if it doesn't feel unbalanced with the new battery taped to the side, but I want to see more of this kind of stuff!