Here’s a great idea for making tangle-proof earbuds. It’s so simple, I’m surprised no one has thought of it before.
To prevent your earbud wires from tangling when not in use, join them together using a Ziploc-like zipper.
By pinching the two wires together into a single wire, they become tangle-proof, like a piece of thick, rubbery string. The two wires are simply unzipped when you want to use them.
The idea was dreamed up by London design student Lee Washington, who has made a short video to demonstrate them in action — see below.
“The prototype was made very basically with a sandwich bag seal,” says Washington. “It was just designed to demonstrate the concept.”
As yet, Washington doesn’t have a manufacturer. He’s talking to his professors this week about patenting the idea. He now regrets making the video, which is fast becoming popular. He’s afraid his idea will be ripped off.
“This could go either way,” he says. “Either the video will get very popular and someone at Apple will eventually see it or someone will do the idea themselves. That would be a pity.”
Indeed. We wish Washington the best finding someone to market his brilliantly simple idea.
