If you’ve ever been on either side of a motorcycle training scenario, you know that communication is important. While many people learn by doing, it’s difficult to know what to do (and things to change) if there isn’t also good communication between instructors and students. That’s where the latest release from Cardo Systems is meant to come in handy.
Cardo is one of the biggest names in rider communications on the planet. Using Bluetooth and Mesh technologies, its family of communicators helps untold numbers of riders stay in touch while they’re out enjoying their bikes. That’s cool, of course—but what if you’re not on a bike right now, and you need to stay in contact with someone who is?
Enter the Cardo Packtalk Edgephones. At first glance, it bears a resemblance to the kind of headset you might already be familiar with if you game. It has over-the-ear headphones, a thick headband, and an adjustable microphone on a stalk that you can position how you want while you’re wearing it. Where it differs is in its Cardo Packtalk Edge communicator integration—something you don’t find on other headsets.
Gallery: Cardo Packtalk Edgephones
See, the thing about motorcycle instructors (who may or may not also be parents of the riders they’re trying to teach) is that they usually also ride. That’s why offering a system like this makes a lot of sense, because you can take your existing Packtalk Edge (or other Cardo comms unit that uses Bluetooth) off your helmet and simply dock it in place on the headset. Now you’re able to communicate with your crew from the sidelines, no helmet required.
Cardo’s Packtalk Edgephones use a magnetic connection to easily secure your comms unit in the proper place on the outside of the headphones. The microphone uses passive noise reduction to keep your communications smooth. Worried about rain or wet course conditions? Cardo’s Packtalk Edgephones have an IP 54 rating, so you can keep using them even if weather conditions get a little damp. Speakers are by JBL for a quality sound experience.
Pricing and Availability
Cardo officially opened preorders for the Packtalk Edgephones on its website as of September 12, 2023. We’ll link it in our Sources. The system retails for an MSRP of $149.95 or €159.95 in Europe. Options that include a Packtalk Edge communicator are also available for an additional charge.
Prefer to check it out in person? Cardo says it expects to begin shipping the Packtalk Edgephones to authorized Cardo retailers later in September 2023.
