Patrick O’Neill created the olloclip, a clip-on lens system for the iPhone camera that sold millions and is now featured on the Apple web page for accessory designers as an example of compatible design.
Now O’Neill brings his clip-sense design to AirPods with an attachment solution for the charging case.
The Anchor is the inaugural product for Jura, a new Apple accessory company O’Neill started with his business partner, veteran automotive marketing expert James Wharton (Porsche, Landrover and Mazda).
The Anchor has a titanium tab that clicks into the Lighting port of the AirPods case. Small, curved wings on either side of the tab cup the rounded end of the case. On the other end is a carabiner made from titanium or anodized zinc alloy that clips to a belt loop, backpack or keychain.
Anchor for AirPods, a respect for the Apple aesthetic
Pre-order of the Anchor starts today on Kickstarter where one with a zinc carabiner can be had by early backers for $19. For $10 extra, the Anchor comes with the titanium clip.
Photo: JURA
O’Neill told Cult of Mac that all the prototyping is complete and production is ready for Anchor’s to be shipped in November. When he first launched olloclip in 2011, he got product to backers within 35 days of the close of the Kickstarter campaign, he said.
In fact, the first olloclip and how it evolved was definitely on O’Neill’s mind as he and Wharton developed the Anchor.
“If you go back to olloclip in those early days, you would have this little pouch that held the olloclip and when you wanted to take a picture you would pull it out of the pouch and clip it to the iPhone and there was a bit of fiddling,” O’Neill said. “I wanted to make it easier to carry when people were not taking pictures so I came up with the pendant system.
“I spent a lot of time thinking about that when it came to (the Anchor).”
There are a variety of cases made to fit the AirPods case. Jura wanted to create something that wasn’t a case for a case.
The Anchor is the first of many Apple accessories planned by Jura. Both O’Neill and Wharton love Apple products and want designs to be seamless with the Apple aesthetic.
“Apple makes some of the most beautiful products and we want to help people to stay connected in the most elegant, minimalist manner that we can do,” Wharton said. “We are being respectful of their product and design.”
