Before the ov21, thinksound only offered an earbud called the in20. President and founder Aaron Fournier acknowledges that the brand’s insistence on sustainable materials has limited its product development. Equipped with Trēva, the brand now finds itself capable of expanding its lineup.
“We’re a company that has always had sustainability as part of our mission,” he explained. “Historically, we’ve achieved this by using wood and other natural or recyclable components. That created a challenge with new product development because we had to minimize the use of plastic. Trēva offered us an opportunity to develop headphones in an environmentally responsible way while meeting our rigorous standards for acoustic performance.”
Trēva is based on cellulose derived from sustainably harvested trees. The polymer is USDA Certified Biobased, and the brands say it actually displays some acoustic properties. Its main utility is that it’s easy to shape and resilient even in thin strips. All that comes together to make it useful for specialty applications like thinksound’s.
“We now have the flexibility to create almost any audio product our customers desire, and we can do it in a way that we can feel good about,” said Mark Forward, chief marketing officer of thinksound. “Eastman provides the kind of technology and innovation that matches our ambitions as a company. We’re excited about the possibilities of what we can create together.”
The brand is also developing two wireless entries with sustainable materials — one over-the-ear and one earbud design.
thinksound ov21 Sustainable Headphone Performance and MSRP
thinksound claims that it tested the ov21 against competitors three times its price, endeavoring to optimize it. Using that math, it outperforms headphones that cost almost $1,000, according to the brand. Pre-order MSRP is $320, with delivery expected in October 2021.
Learn more at thinksound.com.
