Stop fumbling for your phone and control it with one easy-to-use, glove-friendly device.
Throughout my years of participating in countless outdoor activities, I’ve filtered through endless sets of earbuds, headphones, speakers and devices to try to find an easier way of listening to music while being active. I’ve also endured the repetitive and sometimes tedious task of reaching into my pocket to retrieve my phone.
I recently picked up a product called Chubby Buttons, a small device that controls your phone with the touch of five large, glove-friendly buttons. You can easily attach the control piece to your arm or handlebars with the supplied Velcro armband, or to any flat surface with its nano-suction material on its backside.
Chubby Buttons connects to your smartphone via Bluetooth and integrates with the controls on your phone. With the large, tactile buttons, you can change music and volume, answer calls, access voice controls and take photos. The Chubby Buttons control pad measures 10.5 cm x 4 cm x 1 cm and is durable in all weather, including rain. Chubby Buttons is easy to set up and provides everything you need, including batteries. It connects within seconds to your Android or iOS phone.
I’ve often thought about investing in an in-helmet speaker set up but the thought of changing it from helmet to helmet for each ride didn’t make sense to me. So, I resort to placing earbuds in the padding of my helmet as a temporary listening device. Then there’s the cumbersome task of trying to find the small fob attached to the earbud wire to change the song or volume making this method a dangerous nuisance. Chubby Buttons completely negates that problem with full integration to your phone in an easy-to-use design. It’s easy to attach to your arm on top of your jacket; or for other activities, Chubby Button’s nano-suction material acts as a suction cup to any smooth surface and is reusable and easy to clean.
Through your phone, Chubby Buttons also connects to any Bluetooth speaker or headset. This allows versatility with built-in headsets, wireless headphones and earbuds, and speakers. It is also easy to take remote photos with the device — once the phone is in camera mode, the Chubby Buttons’ plus button acts as the camera’s shutter button.
Chubby Buttons retails for US$74.99 plus a $15 shipping fee to Canada, and comes in three colour schemes: Tron (black), Hunter (green), and Patriot (red, white and blue). I would highly recommend the device for anyone who wants to easily listen to music or podcasts on their phone while keeping busy. I’ve now used it while motorcycling, gardening, cutting the grass, running, working in the garage, and oddly enough, while cleaning the house.
Chubby Buttons is a product I never knew I needed until I had one myself. You can find out more about Chubby Buttons at chubbybuttons.io.
