Gizmobaba induction speaker review: all the fun, minus the hassle

Published On: January 23, 2015

“These magic speakers need no connections at all to reproduce sound”

Induction speakers is the next big thing when it comes to smartphone or mobile phone accessories, as intriguingly, they can reproduce audio being played on a mobile phone without any form of physical or wireless connection (like Bluetooth). This induction speaker arrived at our labs courtesy Gizmobaba.com, an gadget and novelty site, which is among one of the many sellers selling his product online and offers after-sales support to buyers as well. Moving on to the gadget itself, we have tested it out thoroughly and here is what we have to say after having used the Gizmobaba induction speaker.

The Gizmobaba GB142 speaker essentially comes in form of a rectangular plastic box that houses the side-firing speakers and has the battery compartment and the electronic circuitry required to make this speaker system work. In terms of look-and-feel, the product offers a simple and subtle look, clad in black. The top of the speaker offers a plain surface where users can place their mobile devices and listen to tunes. To increase the appeal, the device features a matte-rubberised finish, which offers some grip for the mobiles if the speaker is placed on an incline.

The USP of the induction speaker is that it amplifies the audio being played by any mobile phone and that too without the use of any connectivity medium, including Bluetooth or a wire. We will come to the details in a bit, but before we do, let’s talk but the specifications of the devicel.

The Gizmobaba induction speaker comes with twin 1-inch speakers placed on either side of the box for sound reproduction. Internally, the system relies on a ‘D’-class amplifier to power the whole apparatus, offering a total power output close to 4 watts RMS. In simpler words, it’s loud enough to fill a room with sound easily. To make this system work, all you need to do is install three AA batteries in it and switch it on. You can also make use of a 5V power adapter or your smartphone charger if you are short on batteries. To make it work, just play any audio on the device loudspeaker and place the mobile device on the induction speaker, and voila, it will automatically grab the audio playing and amplify using its circuit and play it back from the bigger speaker without considerable delay.

Although it sounds very simple,a lot of technology has gone into the making of this induction speaker. No, it’s not using a microphone to capture sounds and replaying them using its bigger speakers. It’s far more complicated than that. Essentially the device houses twin magnetic transistors or magnets wrapped up with copper wire placed under the area where the source loudspeaker is generally placed. Using these transistors, the Gizmobaba induction speaker reads the audio signals in the form of magnetic impulses that the loudspeaker on the mobile phone generates.

The result of grabbing magnetic impulses is that there is very little or unnoticeable lag in the audio reproduction which is great. In addition the sound reproduced is good, since the speaker on your phone is only contributing to the impulses and not governing the sound quality. Overall, the experience is quite nice, though the lack of a dedicated volume control on the speaker system could be a pain at times. The speaker system offers decent volume and sound quality up until 70 percent volume levels, but the quality degrades after that since the plastic resonance chamber of the induction speaker is not good enough for reproducing quality audio at higher volume levels.

The three AA batteries in the speaker system generally last for about five hours when the audio is played at about 50 percent levels. Anything louder would directly affect the battery life, though if you have a spare power bank lying around you can hook it up and enjoy music for several hours without power adapters or worrying about wasting too many batteries as well.

Priced at Rs 1,899, the Gizmobaba induction speaker is a unique gadget that requires nothing more than a mobile phone to be an ideal audio accessory. It’s small and lightweight, and you can literally carry it anywhere you go and listen to music when you need. There are several other accessories available in the market at this price point, even branded ones, but the novelty this brings to the table is amazing. It’s a great conversation starter too.