Partnering with Speak Music Inc to harness its voice assistant Melody, Monster will release a range of voice-compatible headphones later this month.
The company claims the development will create the “world’s first voice-powered premium” cans.
While there are other voice-activated Bluetooth headsets on the market, the “premium” nature of their “world’s first” claim is largely up to interpretation.
The integration will, however, add a new element of hand-free usability to Monster headphones as users will have control over their listening choices by voice.
After downloading the Melody app from Google Play/iTunes and pairing it with their device, listeners can tell Melody to play a specific song, artist or album, change the volume level, skip or pause a track, or start streaming iHeartRadio, Spotify Premium, NPR and in the future, Tidal.
The feature will only be accessible if paired with compatible versions of Monster’s Elements, Clarity HD and iSport Freedom V2 fitness headphones to be released this month.
Interestingly, voice compatibility can only be accessed on the headphones via a data connection, not WiFi.
Monster has seen significantly reduced market representation through Australia in recent years. After being dumped by JB Hi-Fi on the back of poor sales the brand is currently being distributed by Ariston, a 60%-owned Harvey Norman company.
