Why put your speaker on top of a table when you can just turn that whole table into a speaker? Here to help you answer that question is the team behind the Mini Troll, heralded as the world’s smallest resonance speaker. The latest project from Milan-based Vibe Tribe, this portable speaker promises to turn just about any surface into a speaker by way of vibration resonance technology. In essence, when you set the Mini Troll on, say, a desk, it spreads sound waves through the surface of the desk, thereby allowing you to create a giant speaker anywhere you want.
“In traditional speakers, the sound is propagated from a small membrane and this naturally limits the sound power,” the Vibe Tribe team explains on its Kickstarter page. “With Mini Troll, the sound is projected by the mass of the chosen surface, allowing much higher sound levels.”
The technology actually comes from the U.S. Navy, where resonance was first developed for use in submarines. But now, it’s being used for civilians, too. The Mini Troll features a “Resonance Core” that turns electromagnetic pulses into vibrations. These vibrations are then able to travel across any surface, therefore creating a portable, 360-degree speaker.
And while this little guy is quite powerful, it’s rather diminutive in size. Measuring just 1.6 inchjes tall and 1.6 inches wide, the Mini Troll will fit in your pocket when you’re not using it, and will attach to any host surface using a patented vacuum base. The speaker connects to your smartphone using Bluetooth, and has a range of 98 feet and a battery life of four hours.
Now available for pre-order on Kickstarter, early bird backers will be able to get one of these Mini Trolls for $25, approximately 50 percent of its retail price. You can also get the larger version of the Mini Troll (aptly named the Troll Plus) along with the Mini Troll for $73. The larger version is simply the more powerful version of the speaker, so if you anticipate throwing any raging parties in the coming months, this may be the version for you. Delivery is expected in July of 2017.
