the 3D printed ‘specdrums’ ring lets you play music by tapping colors

specdrums are 3D -printed, app-connected rings that turn the world’s colors into your own personal sound machine. just place the ring on your finger and create beats and melodies by tapping on anything with color.

images courtesy of specdrums

users can tap colors from any source including their own clothes, objects surrounding them, or the specdrum 12-color keyboard. specdrums are musical rings that make the world your instrument by turning colors into sounds to create and mix any sounds, beats, and loops that all play through your mobile device. 

specdrums allow users to connect up to 10 rings to the iOS or android app, tapping colors to play musical pitches and sounds wirelessly through the app. various instruments can be chosen including different types of keyboards, synths, and drum kits, or other collections of sounds, like your own recordings and sound effects. the color of each sound can be customized to match specific colors you find around you, like your clothes. 

specdrums are being marketed as great for music education because they are low-storage, low-budget, and easy to set up and use. children can learn musical pitches with the help of color recognition, arrange colors in order to play a song, and create their own instruments by coloring sketches or cutting out construction paper. 

the silicon rings ship individually or in a pair ($65 or $100, respectively), utilizing motion and color sensors to create different sounds on various surfaces. you can buy one specdrums from january 7th for $65 at sphero.com, or a pair for $99. sphero says it’ll ship them a week later, on january 15th.