1mm-thick speakers could reshape smart glasses, smartwatches, and earbuds

By Simon Cohen Published November 18, 2024

XMEMS, the company that created the first speaker based on a microchip manufacturing processes, is getting set to release its next wave of tiny speakers. Known as Sycamore, the newest model is just 1.13 mm thick, and weighs only 150 milligrams, yet it can reproduce full-range sound over short distances — like the gap between your ears and the limbs of your smart glasses — according to xMEMS.

Sycamore is the latest step in the evolution of micro speakers. XMEMS’ first version could be used in wireless earbuds to reproduce high frequencies, but needed the help of a dynamic driver for bass. Its second product could do full-range sound, but was still limited to earbuds that seal the ear canal with a silicone tip. Sycamore is the company’s first micro speaker that reproduce full-range sound without the need of a closed, sealed environment.

The company is extolling the many audio benefits of the Sycamore driver as compared to traditional speaker technologies: “With its first-order low-frequency roll-off, it can match mid-bass performance of legacy drivers while offering as much as 11 [decibels] headroom in sub-bass extension. Sycamore also pushes the performance envelope on high-frequency sound — by as much as 15dB above 5KHz over legacy drivers.”

In other words, the Sycamore is expected to produce better lows and highs. It’s also remarkably robust, with an IP58 rating that makes it impervious to water and highly resistant to dust.

However, it’s really Sycamore’s size that’s expected to spur designers of electronics into creating better products. It’s one-seventh the size of a conventional dynamic driver package, according to xMEMS, and one-third the thickness. That difference alone could yield smart glasses with thinner, more fashionable limbs, thinner and more durable smartwatches, and open-ear earbuds that are smaller and sound better.

XMEMS also predicts that there will be other uses for Sycamore. With its high-frequency performance, it could act as a tweeter in automotive headrests, Bluetooth speakers, and laptops. The company thinks it could also yield clearer calls and greater privacy when used as an earpiece speaker in smartphones.

All of this is still speculative. XMEMS won’t be releasing Sycamore manufacturing samples to prospective electronics companies until the first quarter of 2025, and says that mass production won’t begin until October 2025. Still, with these timelines, we could see the first Sycamore-enabled products announced in time for CES 2026.