# Ear Extending Headphones Batphones Enhance Sound By Ayman | Published 2008-03-19 | Art & Design Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/batphones References: [yankodesign](http://www.yankodesign.com/index.php/2008/03/19/2-batphones/) & [matthiasries](http://www.matthiasries.com/product/batphones/batphones1.html) Adopting a simple, innovative design that takes inspiration from the known gesture of putting your hand behind your ear to enhance the sound, the shape of he **Batphones** also simulates the ears of bats, which are perfectly shaped for frontal hearing due to the bat's sonarsystem. Designed by Matthias Ries, these super cool looking **Batphones** [ear extensions](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/hear-hush-hoops) enhance any sound coming from in front of you, providing a cheap and fast solution when you need the volume turned up just a bit at movies, lectures, conferences or plays. The Batphones are made from a single piece of injection molded plastic and are not meant to replace traditional [in-ear hearing aides](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/hearvana-ai), they are rather designed for people with only slight difficulty hearing. They provide quite the [stylish fashion accessory](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/balenciaga-sculptural-earbuds) as well! ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 1.5/10 - Popularity: 14% | Activity: 22% | Freshness: 8% - Audience gender: 50% men, 50% women - Primary generations: Millennial, Gen X - Top markets: North America ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [Art & Design](https://www.trendhunter.com/artdesign) > [Design](https://www.trendhunter.com/design) ## Key Themes ### What's Driving This Trend - **Ear Extending Headphones:** Innovative design solution for people with only slight difficulty hearing - **Batphones:** Taking inspiration from the known gesture of putting your hand behind your ear to enhance the sound - **Frontal Hearing:** The shape of Batphones simulates the ears of bats which are perfectly shaped for frontal hearing. ### Who This Affects Most - **Headphones:** The design of Batphones can be applied to traditional headphones to provide a stylish and effective solution to hearing difficulties. - **Fashion Accessories:** Batphones provide quite the stylish fashion accessory as well, suggesting an opportunity for disruption in the fashion industry. - **Event Production:** Batphones can be used as a cheap and fast solution when you need the volume turned up just a bit at movies, lectures, conferences, or plays, suggesting an opportunity for disruption in the event production industry. ## Related on Trend Hunter - [Contoured Ear-Hugging Headphone Concepts](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/earbugs.md) - [Detachable Amplifier Headphone Concepts](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/nothing-headset-1.md) - [Sleek Enhanced Headphones](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/haptix.md) - [Hybrid Wearable Headphones](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/neckphone-tri.md) - [Dialogue-Enhancing Earphones](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/zvox.md) - [Earring Earbud Concept Designs](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/zhang-yunxib.md) - [Fashion-Forward Gadgets](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/openear-earbud-concept.md) - [Hearing Enhancement Earbuds](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/jabra-enhance-plus.md) - [Attention-Grabbing Hearing Aids](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/overtone-hearing-aid.md)