Some people use a headset to take video calls. Others prefer a proper speakerphone that makes it easier for everyone to participate during multi-person meetings. If you’re among the latter, you’ll probably be interested to know about the new AnkerWork S600.
A portable speakerphone, the device comes with its own battery, so you don’t have to find a power outlet every time you move to a different location. It’s compact, too, so you can throw it in a bag when you go out, making it possible for your team to take a meeting while having lunch at a local spot. Even better, it’s designed with a number of features that should make it more interesting than your standard fare.
The AnkerWork S600’s headline feature is an all-new voiceprint recognition tech that can identify individuals based on their unique vocal characteristics. With this tech, the speaker can focus on an individual’s voice when there are multiple people in a room (e.g. you’re using it in the boardroom for a meeting), allowing it to not just amplify the sound of the target person, but also eliminate other voices and background noise. According to the outfit, the device can do this with 99 percent effectiveness, which will be quite impressive if that really proves to be the case.
To activate the voiceprint recognition, all people who plan to use the speakerphone should record a 35-second voice sample in the companion app. From there, the app will create a voiceprint and store it locally on the speakerphone, with the device using it for the recognition tech every time you’re in a video call.
While many speakerphones are meant to plug into a PC, the AnkerWork S600 is actually designed to work with smartphones. In fact, the top of the device can be lifted up to serve as a Qi2 wireless charger. That’s right, you can simply snap your Qi2-compatible smartphone on there to use it as a stand during video calls, all while feeding 15W of power to your phone at the same time. The charging pad offers multiple viewing angles up to 70 degrees, too, so you can find the most comfortable position for using your phone. It’s fitted with a 5W speaker with 360-degree sound dispersion, which, the outfit claims, will deliver rich and balanced acoustics in any space. It’s also fitted with dual passive radiators to enhance the low frequencies, in case you like a little more bass sound than what you can normally get.
To ensure it captures your voice at a good quality, the device is fitted with four high-fidelity microphones that perform automatic sound volume balancing within 9.8 feet and picks up sound from up to 26.2 feet away. That’s right, you can walk around the room and have the device pick up everything you’re saying loud and clear. Well, so you long as you don’t go past the maximum distance.
Anker is running a Kickstarter campaign for the AnkerWork S600. You can reserve a unit for pledges starting at $125.