Japan Airlines' Intriguing Headrest Speakers

Daddy Yankee is retired. You may have listened Bad Bunny, Peso Pluma or Rosalía on your neighbors video. 😉

I really dug JAL's new headrest speakers in first class. For me, it was high among the indisputably positive elements of JAL's new product.

In-ear or over-the-ear headphones eventually get annoying for me when used for long stretches (like on a long-haul plane ride), so this was a welcome alternative while minimally disturbing your neighbor, at least in first class. I was surprised by how effective it was, though sometimes the audio seemed to slightly lag the visual (not sure if that was a speaker issue or something broader with JAL's audio).

I really dislike the trend of people blasting their phones' audio in public spaces without their own headphones, but as you report, this wasn't like that at all.

I have a somewhat related question. Since there’s space for more than 1 person in the suite, is it possible for 2 people to listen to the IFE at the same time? Ie. connect 2 Bluetooth headphones, or use the audio jack and Bluetooth?

I dislike wearing headphones and would really appreciate this feature.

The main scenario I'd be excited about this is when trying to sleep. I like to have the TV at a low volume so I can doze off - would be great with this and non-disruptive to neighbors. If I was watching something more intently and wanted a higher volume - I'd put on headphones

Does it give you that surround sound experience with bass?

Got me thinking if a choice of ambient noise would work for this kind of setup like what you would get on the Calm app

headrest speakers ! It's completely meaningless . I thought they used Bone Conduction technology ! Also, the interior design is not beautiful, It looks like Japanese offices !

He may have retired, but his music videos live on forever.

@ Andrew B -- Unfortunately best I could tell, you could only connect one audio source to the entertainment at a time. What you suggest would indeed be a nice feature.

@ Mike O. -- While you had audio coming from both sides, I wouldn't describe it as a surround sound experience, so it wasn't as immersive as with a good pair of headphones.

@ Mike O. -- Hah, funny you say that, because I sleep with a white noise app at home. Fortunately the airplane engines serve the same purpose for me.

Great point. Hard to sleep with large noise canceling “cans” and falling asleep with AirPod type headphones in is just asking for one of them to fall out and get lost in the seat

I think if this catches on, I wouldn't be surprised if they add speakers throughout the shell of the seat for more of a surround sound experience.

I'm very excited for this for the Steven said. However, I definitely thought there was more of a technological breakthrough than simply angling the speakers. If that's really the case, I'm wonder why this couldn't have been introduced long ago. No one thought of it, or no airline wanted to test it and have it backfire?

Very interesting. Thanks for the separate post on this unique setup.

This concept has been around for decades. Intercity buses in Taiwan had these and they worked great!

I think it is useful if you want to listen to music while going to sleep. Headphone, bluetooth or otherwise, are a pain when sleeping. Kudos to JAL for trying something.

This is JAL and this is First Class. This is not Frontier. You are not traveling with Daffy Duck or going hunting with Pooh the Bear.

I was also expecting something like the bone conduction tech you can find in some high end running sunglasses.

However I agree with the other comments that falling asleep to music like this would be great and much better than dealing with headphones

When I first heard of Devialets concept headrest speakers, I thought they'd be interesting.

Then I paid close attn to what I did on a plane and there's a few areas I see a problem.

This set up is best for people who can sit in 1 position for a sustained period of time. If you're snug in one of those herringbone pattern seats, I guess it works as your position is pretty much fixed. (I hate those seats tbh)

But I'm happiest with seat width approaching 30in as it gives me space to shift around. In this setup i cant see myself with my head in the same position for lengths of movies at a time.

The other segment of a flight this might struggle would be meal times. I find myself always sitting up to eat over the plate. Can't quite imagine the mess I'd make trying to eat with my head back.

I still prefer the current setup of a Bluetooth headphone where I can even walk to the lavatory and not miss a beat.

I get that some users look forward to other niche cases where this suits their needs. From that I'd say this is more niche/gimmicky than a revolutionary development that solves problems for a wide spectrum of fliers.

Btw, Emirates is hinting they will have headrest speakers for Y cabins as well. Wonder how's that gonna work out wrt to noise pollution

I skip the app and play youtube full flight videos overnight directly. Can't sleep without them now.

I am still angry at JAL. But there's this Nikko hotel chain to check out, and there's a points program with rewards on oneworld JAL. Not sure. Do not want most mass market tourism in Japan, but some nice areas. Narita hotels, unis near Osaka. Vietnam franchises. I just keep talking to people about these Japanese companies that sell baby carriages for women with dogs, women pushing dogs around, dogs with legs, and they know all about it.