If you recall, i reviewed their O ROKR and Thump 2 almost exactly a year ago, and i was pleasantly surprised when a white boxed beta of the Split Thump showed up today. They’ve really cleaned up the design quite a bit, and it is now possible to be far more 007 like with these… removable t-rex arm ear buds (with an adorable little classic oakley pouch for them, even with a divider in the middle to keep them from destroying each other) and the external buttons have been incorporated into the logo (which has been enlarged and aesthetically looks far better on the glasses)… and they are sounding better as well. Bottom line? These glasses can actually look like normal sporty sunglasses when you aren’t listening to music, giving you the flexibility the others lacked. Anyhow, take a look below for the unboxing, close ups, and a some photo comparisons between the Thump 2 and the and the Split Thump.

Oh, and if any of you are thinking ~ but wait some of the big tech blogs hated it… i just reread all those posts, and they have been following their predecessors who all hated the concept to start with - and its so sad that some of those sounded like whiny poor techy ipod lovers who probably aren’t huge fans of outdoor sports. But anyhow, i might be in a ranty mood… these are definitely making my potential gift list… although it says “coming soon”, i’ve heard that these will definitely be shipping in time for xmas.

I’m suck a sucker for the packaging… the new box seems much more compact and better first impression when you open it. (see old box here)

Also on design details, that mini Oakley Pouch is too cute. As a kid i remember the pouch being one of the classic oakley branding pieces i loved.

Here are the stickers that show you what is where as far as navigating is concerned…

Here is a direct comparison between the old Thump 2 and the new Split Thump… other than the obvious big changes of detatchable trex arm ear buds and the logo growing and taking on the buttons… the glasses themselves have streamlined down a bit, and you can also see how the little arms have been streamlined as well, and the shape of the lenses rounded slightly.

Click this image to view full sized: