"Invisible headphones" may sound like something out of a science fiction movie, but fiction became reality with the announcement of the Noveto N1 at CES 2022.

Rather than physically plugging into your ear, the N1 uses what the company calls "smart beaming" technology to provide music that no one else can hear. It works by sending ultrasonic waves directly into your auditory system.

These ultrasonic waves create two pockets of audible noise around the user's ears, providing a headphone-like experience with 3D spatial audio. The bar also uses motion sensors to track the user's head and redirect the ultrasonic beams so that the audio is not interrupted by movement. [Had the N1 not been on the CES show floor, I would have been skeptical of such claims. But the N1 is the real deal, so much so that it was voted "Best Audio/Headphones" in Tom's Guide's Best of CES awards.

Noveto also stated that the N1 will feature AI-based facial recognition and "effortless" communication with smart assistants, i.e., you can talk to a voice assistant without having to say "Alexa" every time.

What about the other people in the room, Noveto claims that 90% voice reduction is possible at a distance of 3 feet, so as long as you are not near someone who is listening, you should not hear much extra noise.

Nevertheless, 3 feet is quite a large area, so this technology would not be suitable for smaller spaces, such as train cars or places that do not follow social distance.

The Noveto N1's design is not very portable anyway, so it is more likely to be used at home or in an office. On that note, the Noveto N1 is designed like a sound bar or wireless speaker, with fabric mesh on either side of the main panel, which is supposed to be the tracking camera. The center circle promises live feedback on your interaction with the N1. Apparently, the name HAL stands for "Heuristic Activity LED," but let's hope it has nothing in common with Arthur C. Clarke's killer AI.

The control buttons are on the top of the N1, with 3.5mm and USB-C ports. The speaker itself also offers wireless connectivity, with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi built in.

Production is currently underway, but it is not yet known when they will be available for purchase or how much they will cost. Either way, we plan to try it out as soon as we can.