After relocating its corporate headquarters from Denmark to Tampa, Florida just three years ago, N-ear has hit the ground running in the U.S. and now used by agencies across the country. The company’s micro-speaker earpieces for two-way radios tout high-performance and comfortability. Sales representatives Jamie Tonge and Sara Drees recently spoke to OFFICER Magazine about what separates N-ear from a crowded market.
The company was founded by Mads Stærke and Jesper Martini in Copenhagen, Denmark in 2018 and due to the demand, it related to the U.S. in 2019. They were able to use cutting-edge research to design what they believe is the most comfortable earpiece in law enforcement.
"We make the earpiece from micro speaker and hearing technology, so it is very comfortable," says Tonge. “(Officers) wear it 8 hours a day and don’t even realize it is there. It’s game-changing for them.” The earpieces were first worn by a SWAT team in Denmark and have since expanded to law enforcement agencies around the world. Tonge says that law enforcement has been the company’s main focus and that everyone from SWAT teams, patrol officers, surveillance units and bike patrol can benefit from the earpieces.
“It all goes back to comfortability. Traditionally, law enforcement has use the acoustic tube two-way radio earpiece which has not been updated in 50 years. You sit in your car all day and you are patrolling by a highway so it can be a little loud, or you are pulling people over. In all scenarios you have an earpiece in,” he says. “With a regular acoustic tube, it causes ear fatigue, so you pull the earpiece out. With the N-ear 360 earpiece, you can’t see it and you can’t feel it in your ear. You really do get all day comfort so much that you don’t realize it’s even in your ear.”
The Tampa Police Department, Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, Broward County Sheriff’s Office, San Diego Sheriff’s Office, Denver Sheriff’s Office, Idaho Sheriff’s Office, and Indianapolis Sheriff’s Office are just some of the agencies that have been using N-ear’s earpieces.
Drees says that from talking to officers and agency officials, the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. “They think it’s a game-changer for them because what they are used to is a big, bulky earpiece that causes so much ear fatigue,” she says. “When it comes to the N-ear 360, you can go 12 hours with that earpiece in and you won’t feel it at all. It’s also very discreet, which is also very important for the type of work they do.”
She stressed that what separates N-ear from its competitors is the comfortability of the earpiece. “No matter who the target market is, you’re usually keeping it for hours at a time, so it’s important to have something that is comfortable, so you don’t have to keep taking it in and out all the time. That keeps our officers safe, which is very important.”
Dees says the earpieces are designed to last 3-4 years and come with a 2-year warranty. “The N-ear 360 is very durable. It can withstand many different types of weather conditions. Rain, heat, wind, none of those are going to be an issue with our earpieces.”
Tonge says that the looks of the N-ear 360 can be deceptive. “While the earpieces may look fragile to the naked eye, it’s actually very strong. That’s why we really stand behind the 2-year warranty and really do believe that this may last 3, 4, maybe 5 years depending how you take care of it,” he says, adding that some officers have reported getting into altercations while wearing the earpieces and that they have held up great without any issues.
N-ear recently released its latest product, the N-ear 360 Flexo. Unlike the original N-ear 360, the Flexo can be used in either ear. “A lot of the SWAT teams I work with, there are a lot of officers who are ex-military and have hearing loss in either ear, so they really benefit from being able to use it in one ear one day, and the next ear another day,” says Tonge. “With the Flexo, nothing changes, just the ability to use it in either ear.”
View video of the full interview with the N-ear team at Officer.com/21266926
Paul Peluso | Editor
Paul Peluso is the Managing Editor of OFFICER Magazine and has been with the Officer Media Group since 2006. He began as an Associate Editor, writing and editing content for Officer.com. Previously, Paul worked as a reporter for several newspapers in the suburbs of Baltimore, MD.
