Pleasant Surprise

I’ve had bad luck (of the self-inflicted variety) with my Bluetooth earpieces. I bought my first one a few months before the hands-free cellphone law went into effect in 2008. A few months later it went through the wash cycle and came out dismembered and totally non-functional. My second earpiece avoided laundry malfunctions because it resided in my briefcase when not in use. After years of jostling and pounding it too passed from this mortal coil.

Despite a resolve to keep a close eye on the third Bluetooth, I forgot that the tiny device was buried deep in the pocket of my workout sweater. It went through the washing machine yesterday. I felt a sharp pang of chagrin as I saw the red LED flash from the bottom of the drum. The good news, of course, was that the LED was flashing at all.

"Takes a washing and keeps on flashing"--not the same ring

Modern electronics equipment is both complex and fragile. Even brief exposure to water can ruin a cellphone or camera. Timex’ ad slogan from the ‘60’s, “it takes a licking and keeps on ticking” seems such a quaint anachronism that even Timex has abandoned it.

I dried the earpiece, recharged the battery, and tested both transmission and reception. Unlike its 2008 ancestor, this Jawbone 2 worked like a champ. Pleasant surprises, though they be trivial, brighten my day. © 2010 Stephen Yuen