Urbanista’s self-charging headphones have been given an upgrade, and I need them right now

The Urbanista Malibu solar speaker was my favourite gadget of 2023. This self-charging speaker may never run out of juice, as it’s powered by both indoor and outdoor solar light. This followed the release of the Urbanista Los Angeles headphones and Urbanista Phoenix earbuds in 2021 and 2022 respectively.

These headphones and earbuds take advantage of the Exeger Powerfoyle solar technology. Powerfoyle a unique material that converts both indoor and outdoor light into energy. Running on the same green tech, the Urbanista Los Angeles headphones and Phoenix earphones delivered great sound with minimal upkeep. Forgot to plug them in overnight? No problem. You’re morning commute is saved, as you listen and charge on the go. Imagine my excitement then, that at CES 2024 Urbanista and Exeger unveiled the second-gen models of both models.

Switched on

Both the upgraded headphones and earbuds offer true wireless capabilities, and the same self-charging material as before. The upgrades are to be found in the internal components, which have been made more power-efficient, as well as adaptive noise cancellation and a slicker design.

You won’t need to be shelling out more for the upgrade. In fact, both models cost less than their first-gen counterparts. Upon release, the Ubranista Los Angeles will cost $179/£149/€179, and the second-gen Phoenix will cost $129/£119/€129. That’s down from $199 for the original Los Angeles headphones, and $149 for the Pheonix.

Urbanista says that the new, upgraded Los Angeles headphones will have a 60-hour total playtime, but will effectively deliver virtually infinite playtime. When it comes to the Urbanista Pheonix, the buds deliver eight hours of uninterrupted playtime on a single charge. When paired with the charging case, that’s boosted to 40 hours.

The Urbanista Los Angeles and Phoenix will come in Midnight Black, as well as additional colours that will be announced later. They will be available at urbanista.com and global retailers in 2024.

Jack Needham

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A writer of seven years and serial FIFA 23 loser, Jack is also Features Editor at Stuff. Jack has written extensively about the world of tech, business, science and online culture. He also covers gaming, but is much better at writing about it than actually playing. Jack keeps the site rolling with extensive features and analysis.