NRA 2017: Etymotic GunSport Elite Rechargeable Electronic Earplugs

We gave up our over-the-ear hearing protection months ago, switching to a pair of Etymotic Research's GSP-15 GunSport PRO Electronic Earplugs. The little earplugs do everything we ask of them, but they run on #10 hearing aid batteries that gas-out after about a week once they're installed. It's not a big deal, since a box of 60 batteries costs less than $20 on Amazon. But, there's the constant anxiety of forgetting to pack a few fresh batteries for each outing.

It seems we aren't alone in wishing for a way to skip the #10 batteries panic since Etymotic showed a new, rechargeable version of its GunSport Pro, in-ear, electronic hearing protection at NRA's Annual Meeting today. The Etymotic GunSport Elite earplugs largely share the same performance specs as the #10-powered versions, but they charge in their own petite hard case. The only obvious difference between the old and new is the use of a push button to switch modes instead of the two-position switch found on the older GSP-15s. They'll run for 16 hours on a charge, and the charging station itself is rechargeable via USB, supplying about 20 charge cycles to the earplugs.

The new earplugs should be out in August 2017 with a $359 MSRP. An Etymotic spokesperson at the NRA booth said owners of the non-rechargeable versions will be able to trade up to the rechargeable versions for the difference in price.

• Up to 35-40 dB of blast and impulse noise protection
• One-button touch pad; two modes of hearing protection
• Hearing enhancement mode amplifies sound up to 5x
• Continuous noise suppression mode reduces nose up to 15dB
• Rechargeable earplugs- 16 hours of use
• USB Rechargeable base – 20 charge cycles
• Earpiece and case IP67 water resistant
• charging station LCD panel
• Custom fit option
• 1-year warranty
• NRR: 25dB
• Frequency Response: 40Hz-16kHz