Miniso Dinosaur Speaker

MINISO, ca. 2019

Metal, silicone plastic, stainless steel wiring

Dimensions variable

Purchased in Guelph MINISO store, 2019

Personal collection

This is a Portable Dino Wireless Speaker [K02], produced by MINISO in 2019, producing high quality sound in a small compact cube. It is not just a speaker. It is in fact a vessel used to carry sounds by artists from all over the world. It is an object that makes a listener feel a variety of emotion in various points of their daily interactions and throughout their lives. The modern day “speaker or loudspeaker” was initially invented by Alexander Graham Bell in 1876, as a part of his telephone. However, modern day portable speakers like the one manufactured by MINISO only recently became available to the market. In 1994, Dr. Jaap Haartsen at Ericsson created the first ever bluetooth capabilities. With this, bluetooth-based speakers started to be created. With advancing technology, and in turn changing values in aesthetic and portability, speakers started to adapt to meet consumers needs. They were traditionally larger, multi-button machines, that had to be wired or plugged into a wall.

In general, speakers such as this one also provide a new levels of accessibility, especially for those with hearing loss, and other impairments in which traditional volume is not enough. Speakers allowed for many different groups of people to socialize and congregate. They were used readily in the wars to communicate information with soldiers and civilians alike. They have been a source of stories for children as they fell asleep into the present day, and offered access to narratives In various forms such as a podcast, or interactive radio segment. Throughout time, we can recognize speakers as an object of daily use both in a practical and leisurely sense. In isolation, they also access to content and critical information around the world, highlighting them as objects that are also media for sharing culture.

Clara James