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Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Dune Crafted Edition

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Dune Crafted Edition, this solution is meant to symbolise the art of craftsmanship, according to Bang & Olufsen. Bang & Olufsen and Cecilie Manz created the new Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Dune Crafted Edition together.

With the Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Dune Crafted Edition, another model variant of the Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 2nd Gen is available, which the Bang & Olufsen company first introduced to the market in June 2020 and called a Waterproof Bluetooth Speaker. Since then, they have dedicated themselves to this solution with various special models, the latest of which was created in collaboration with Danish industrial designer Cecilie Manz.

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 2nd Gen Waterproof Bluetooth Speaker

No matter where you go, no matter what you do, with the new Bang & Olufsen BeoSound A1 2nd Gen Waterproof Bluetooth Speaker you have the right companion at hand. Elegance in a particularly compact form, that’s how Bang & Olufsen advertises this solution, but also explicitly points out that despite the small dimensions, this is a solution that delivers convincing sound.

Inside, a 3.5-inch woofer and a 3/5-inch tweeter are at work and, driven by a Class D amplifier module with two 30-watt outputs, they are supposed to produce a sound pressure of 92 dB and a frequency range between 55 Hz and 20 kHz.

Of course, smartphones and tablets can be used directly as a source via Bluetooth 5.1, whereby this solution supports Apple Fast Pair, Google Fast Pair and Microsoft Swift Pair. If desired, two speakers can also be connected via Bluetooth to form a stereo pair.

Three integrated microphones, which are combined as an array, are said to offer excellent speech intelligibility during phone calls and also ensure that this solution can also be used for voice control via Amazon Alexa, Apple Siri or Google Assistant.

A 3.000 mAh battery guarantees a playing time of up to 18 hours, whereby this is fully charged again in a good two and a half hours via USB-C.

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Dune Crafted Edition

As already mentioned, the Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 2nd Gen has served as a model for many a special model, the latest in this series being the now announced Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Dune Crafted Edition.

It will be offered in a limited edition of only 100 numbered pieces and was designed by Danish industrial designer Cecile Manz.

“It was a pleasure to work with Cecilie Manz again, as we share a passion for modern craftsmanship and innovative design. For this special edition, we wanted to celebrate the iconic design of the speaker while exploring the material properties of aluminium by giving Manz, who originally designed the iconic A1, the opportunity to creatively design the aluminium grille. Based on this, a new and revolutionary technique was developed and integrated into the colouring process.”

Michael Henriksson, VP of Product Marketing at Bang & Olufsen

According to Bang & Olufsen, the unique gradient colour design created by Manz is handcrafted by bringing two colours together through a lengthy and demanding anodising process specially developed by Bang & Olufsen at Factory 5. After extensive research and many trials, Bang & Olufsen’s team of experts had developed a perfect method to combine the colours through colour gradients. Instead of spray painting, which would leave unwanted colour droplets on the grille, the colour is applied by anodising the metal, making each product unique.

  • Foto © Bang & Olufsen | Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Dune Crafted Edition
  • Foto © Bang & Olufsen | Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Dune Crafted Edition
  • Foto © Bang & Olufsen | Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Dune Crafted Edition
  • Foto © Bang & Olufsen | Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Dune Crafted Edition
  • Foto © Bang & Olufsen | Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Dune Crafted Edition

The shades of matcha green and red-beige on the aluminium grille blend seamlessly with the light grey underside of the speaker, according to the manufacturer’s description. The leather strap is reminiscent of the colour of sand dunes and features an aluminium plaque engraved with the Bang & Olufsen logo on one side and the number of the unique piece on the other.

“Over my many years of working with Bang & Olufsen, I have learned to love and appreciate aluminium, and the attention to detail that the company devotes to its products is absolutely inspiring. The colours I have chosen for this handcrafted edition are very reflective of my personality. I imagined these muted tones blending into each other, like the colours you find in nature: on a beach on the west coast of Denmark, overlooking the sea. The A1 feels like a round pebble in your hand, a piece of technology that feels warm and extremely comfortable, and whose main ingredients are functionality and aesthetics.”

Cecilie Manz, industrial designer

Prices and availability

The new Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Dune Crafted Edition is scheduled to be available from 24 March 2022 from Bang & Olufsen’s online store alone. As mentioned above, this is a limited edition of only 100 units. The retail price is listed at € 500,-.

Getting to the point

Considering that the new Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 Dune Crafted Edition is a portable Bluetooth speaker, the retail price of € 500 seems quite ambitious. However, this is supposed to be a limited edition of only 100 pieces, which comes with an extraordinary finish that was conceived by the Danish industrial designer Cecilie Manz together with Bang & Olufsen.

PRODUCTBANG & OLUFSEN BEOSOUND A1 DUNE CRAFTED EDITION
Price€ 500,-
BrandBANG & OLUFSEN
ManufacturerBang & Olufsen
DistributionBang & Olufsen
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Michael Holzinger

Michael Holzinger, founder and editor-in-chief of HiFi BLOG and sempre-audio.at, has been working for years as a journalist in the fields of IT, photography, telecommunications and consumer electronics.

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