Turn your smartphone into a playable wind instrument with this USB-C mouthpiece

By Andrew Liszewski , a senior reporter who's been covering and reviewing the latest gadgets and tech since 2011, but has loved all things electronic since he was a kid.

An Italian startup called Artinoise has created an unusual USB-C accessory for mobile devices that turns them into playable musical instruments. The Zefiro looks like a flash drive or a tiny vape, but by gently blowing into one end, it can be used to play simulated instruments with even less skill than what was needed to play those plastic recorders in grade school.

The Zefiro is being made available through a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign looking to raise just over $5,300 to fund production. According to the company, “We have been developing and manufacturing musical instruments for years; now we just need to collect pre-orders for our latest creation and kick off manufacturing!”

Those backing the campaign early can preorder a Zefiro for €22 (about $24), while full retail pricing is expected to be €42 (around $45), with shipping estimated to start in February 2025. There’s also a €39 (around $42) Pro version of the Zefiro with an added accelerometer for more expressive performances.

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