Eco Speakers

This is a review that I think will be of some interest to those of you that, like me, have to spend a certain amount of time in front of their computer and for whom the little things that live on the desk are a source of interest and possibly even entertainment.

In a bid to further ‘green up’ my personal life I took an extraordinary amount of time in choosing a pair of desk speakers. I wondered whether anyone had bothered to think ecologically when designing this seemingly unimportant object and, just like that, I came across the people at Merkury Innovations. A short time later I am the proud owner of a pair of Cardboard DIY speakers complete with a set of pencils to really make them my own.

I was pleased with the simple design, the easy set-up and the creative imagination that must have gone into making something as simple as a small cardboard box into a pretty effective rudimentary amplification system for small speakers. I wondered how I would do them justice with my infantile colouring skills and whether I would draw a scene or a person or maybe an animal on them. In the end I liked them so much ‘au naturelle’ that they sit there in the same way they arrived: clean pure natural cardboard with a hint of eco chic. If you are of a more artistic disposition, there are six pencils in the box to get you in the mood.

What about the sound? Ok, they are not going to win competitions, they are not going to compete with B&O or with a set of Harman Kardon speakers, but for a pair of inexpensive, unpowered, computer speakers they do remarkably well. They are much better than any of the free pairs I have so often received with a new computer and even slightly better than a cheap pair of plastic ones people sometimes buy at computer shops. In an office with little surround noise they do really quite well.

I love the unexpected portability aspect, they can easily be clasped down and taken on the road, they can plug into anything with a standard 3.5 mm jack. They do perform best in an office though, where they wouldn’t have to compete with the sounds of the sea or traffic or people in general.

All in all this is a great little desk addition, they do the job they are supposed to do and do it very well indeed and you can rest assured in the knowledge that the components are as ecologically minded as possible. They are reasonably priced at 14.99 USD and are available from the Mercury Innovations website

Some technical specification:
• Made from 70% post consumer recycled material
• Runs off your device power supply
• No batteries required
• Frequency response: 400 Hz
• Speaker: 57mm speaker, 8 Ohms
• Rated impedance: 1 W
• Max power input: 2 W
• Plug: Stereo 3.5 mm