alt Hacker NewsŠkoda DuoBell: A bicycle bell that penetrates noise-cancelling headphones
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What do you call it when a car manufacturer has a little bicycle division? Is it still greenwashing or is there a more specific term?
hopefully this is because it's a prototype, but doesn't solve the #1 problem with these type of thumb-lever rotating bells: everything (including the axle) is plastic and they break if you look at them funny. The hammer-type with plastic hammers or hinges don't work either; maybe solve the "actually make a noise" problem first.
This is amazing. Would be great if emergency vehicle sirens could also adopt these findings. I feel like they're beyond painfully loud these days.
Fun fact: Škoda means "pity" or "damage" in Czech, can also be used as "what a shame".
Happened to be the company founder's surname.
I believe devices intended to block necessary external environmental sounds should be prohibited while driving, including cycling.
Remember that a horn is a safety feature.
A slightly more controversial, but equally effective solution would be to glue an angry toddler to your handlebar.
Can't wait for ads delivered via this method.
Am I nuts or is "regular bike bell" exactly the kind of sound that ANC does not cancel well?
How about cyclists stop cycling on sidewalks?
Here's my hot take: just get rid of bicycle bells and horns altogether. When's the last time you heard one and were usefully informed about some behavioral change to avoid accident? How often does that happen as opposed to needless use of the bell/horn, or not noticing it for whatever reason (let's be charitable and exclude use of ANC headphones, but include general noise levels and boy-who-cried-wolf). How often is it just a jump scare, making traffic less safe?
Just ride/drive a bit more thoughtfully so you don't hurt people, even if they're deaf.
> Its a simple analog solution to a digital problem
That's such a beautiful statement
my Bose quite comfort headphones will still allow any non-regular noise through, I believe that is by design for this very reason. Do other brands not do this?
My trick after biking 10+ years in Amsterdam. Never use your bicycle bell, instead try to predict their trajectory and bike around it. Ringing your bell is always a gamble because everyone responds differently
Is it available for sale?
looks like one of those things the ad agency (AMV BBDO) claims to have invented just in time for awards season
Oh great let’s have even more noise pollution because pedestrians won’t get out of the way of cyclists who are trying to beat their personal best time on their commute to work.
What if you would rather stay in the bicycle lane instead of terrorizing pedestrians? Quite a lot of taxes were paid for those lanes. Use them, and stay out of my headset.
Intentionally deaf people hate this one trick.
I carry air horn. Great for dogs and aggressive cyclists. Pedestrians have no obligation to jump into ditch, to clear walking path for speeding cyclists!
This is one of those ideas that sounds a bit like marketing fluff at first, but the underlying problem is actually very real
Well, if you’re on a bicycle and you can see the pedestrian is not paying attention (whether they are on the noise-canceling headphones or are deaf themselves)… do the right thing and proceed with caution. Assume they don’t see you and prepare to stop. Wait for visual confirmation that they saw you.
That will eliminate the bulk of traffic “accidents” involving bicycle and pedestrian; it’s expected and common to do this in the Netherlands.
So where can I buy this thing?
I've noticed some trains are playing extremely loud announcements (Elizabeth line for example) which makes me think they're trying to penetrate headphones and earphones
Guess why I wear noise cancelling headphones on trains? Because of the excessive announcements!
(I mean seriously excessive. Because in the UK the answer to everything is to create another announcement or poster)
We need to stop the arms race
People don't tend to wear anc headsets when walking the Forrest.
Maybe the issue is the noise in the cities?
Where can I buy this??
Pretty cool if true!
That's nice and all, but the onus is really on the person walking on shared paths with noise cancelling headphones. My bell works fine, and I ring it before passing peds as the law requires, so I don't intend to waste money on a new bell anytime soon.
nice but it wont help with isolating earbuds
Oh great, cyclist gonna annoy me even in headphones
Not a single place to hear how it sounds.
For a device that ONLY produces sound touted as such a re-vo-lu-tio-na-ry device this is a massive marketing failure.
That's fantastic. Where can I buy one?
Absolutely crazy to be out in traffic with headphones, lead alone noise cancelling ones. I've never even dared to ride my bike on trails with earbuds, the whole thing seems crazy.
750 Hz. Baby crying sound is around 300-400 Hz and let me tell you my airpods pro definitely let me hear the baby cry. I think Apple built that as an obvious safety feature.
Interestingly, all the shrillness noises (chalkboard, balloon or polystyrene screech) are in similar frequency too.
> In real-world trials conducted on the streets of London in February, in cooperation with Deliveroo couriers, the bell proved so effective that couriers expressed a desire to keep it.
Of course they would, because a lot of them either don’t have any bell, or have a shitty ping-ping bell that doesn’t produce good sound.
The problem with headphones is not noise cancellation. It’s the fact they play music.
My regular Widek bell penetrates ANC, but when there’s music, ANC or not, it’s hard to hear. I’m struggling to believe the claims this bell is going to be significantly better.
I always hate having my headphones on ANC on the street. It makes me feel really exposed and disconnected. I tend to use transparency when out and about.
won't this just make the sound cancelation teams at the tech companies work hard to "improve" their features?
Living in a city you cannot stand so much that you wear noise cancelling headphones at all times. Commuting to work that you hate and manoeuvring between zombies looking at their phones, wearing noise cancelling headphones, and occasional cars recklessly opening doors or joining the traffic without looking in the mirrors. You even forgot the original goal of saving money because the rent eats 50% of the net salary and work eats every will to live. Here it is - the fruit of your glorious education and mean by which your mortgage is paid is bicycle bell. Thanks for reminding me to stay away from this miserable mess.
Just when you thought interacting with cyclists couldn't get any more annoying... introducing the Škoda DuoBell! New from Mattel!
A reminder that a gun [0] would also work as a bicycle bell that works despite noise-cancelling headphones.
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Reminds me of old Reich bells http://reich-cycle-bells.de and their „Trillerwerk“ (trill sound)