Now, they don’t have to pay $10 just to sit through my Justin Bieber moments anymore. Lucky them.
Apart from watching movies and dining out, Singapore’s next most popular past-time would undeniably be Karaoke. Teo Heng, Party World and Ten Dollar Club are giants in the local karaoke industry which many of us frequent, whether it is for winding down after a long week with your date or simply thrashing around with your friends.
As much as Karaoke allows us to bring out the inner diva we all have (yes, guys included), it can also be frustrating sometimes when all the KTV rooms are booked and you are forced with the burden of the peak-hour charge.
However, we no longer have to go through that hassle and no longer will we be singing in the shower again, thanks to the geniuses behind a local start-up; Popsical, and their ingenius innovation, Popsical; an on-demand Karaoke System.
The Company
Singapore start-up, Popsical, revealed their on-demand Karaoke System on 24 January 2017, promising users with a “fluid karaoke-on-demand experience” through a karaoke system as small as a banana.
Popsical was co-founded in 2015 by three enthusiasts with a profound love for karaoke; CEO Faruq Marican, CTO Fadhli Rahim and COO Umar Abdul Hamid. The project was part of the Mediapreneur incubation initiative started by Mediacorp, to which chosen digital media start-ups are provided with mentoring, network opportunities and seed-funding for a year.
If you ever wanted to bring karaoke wherever you go, you just struck gold. Measuring 11.5cm by 11.5cm in length and width, 3cm in height and weighing in at only 150g, it is hard to differentiate between Popsical’s miniature karaoke system and a tub of hair wax. Popsical also comes in two distinctive colours for now, “Just Pink” and “Day Green”.
Also, Popsical’s karaoke system is able to stream over 20,000 songs in English, Chinese, Malay, Hindi and Tamil through a Wifi or LAN connection, providing free, endless karaoke entertainment through their free-to-download app hosted on both Google Play and Apple App Store.
The retail price for just the Popsical karaoke system is going at $199 until further notice, and it is equipped with 10/100 Ethernet for Lan, USB type-C, USB 2.0 OTG Support, HDMI 2.0A, a microSD Slot and in-built Wifi. Of course, it also comes with a standard 3.5mm Aux Out, so users are given the option to purchase their own microphones in the instance where they do not opt for the Popsical Karaoke Set.
Most importantly, Popsical has to be connected to the cloud through Wifi or LAN, for the streaming of songs and also for the user to update their playlists overtime. Connection to the TV is similar to a typical set-top box too, where a HDMI cable is all you need to start your song marathons.
Software
Just like a set-top box, the Popsical comes with its own physical remote control. But why would you want to do that when you can navigate the system with your phone or tablet?
Users can use the app to add songs to a waitlist, find a song and even control the speed and pitch of the selected tunes, similar to the user experience one would receive at Manekineko Karaoke. Most importantly, songs lists are constantly updated through their app, ensuring that you’re getting the bang out of your buck. Interestingly, if you’re the type to compete with your friends over who sang it better, you could also view your friend’s song choices through the app.
However, Popsical is providing users with an option to go premium at $9.99, to which a premium account is said to enable the user to access thousands of original music videos. Therefore, it is unconfirmed whether free-users of Popsical can access music videos at all when they belt out their favourite hits.
Timeline
Through its kickstarter campaign, Popsical has amassed over $41,583 since 24 January 2017, surpassing their $36,000 goal recently on 6 February 2017. Apart from receiving funds from their kickstarter campaign, Popsical is reported to be receiving investments from Quest Ventures, ACE Spring Singapore and Mediacorp. A pledge of $377 or more on their kickstarter campaign entitles early birds to one popsical, two microphones and a soundbar.
Production is estimated to begin in mid-February and Shipping is estimated to commence after mid-March, whereby Popsical intends to provide free shipping to Singapore and Hong Kong for the delivery of their products.
Will it work?
Whether one truly gets his or her value for money depends on whether Popsical allows for free-song updates further down the road. In a tech-scene where in-app purchases are lucrative cash-cows for many tech start-ups, it is difficult to have faith that we’ll have endless karaoke for the rest of our lives just for the price of $199.
Gone are the days where we have to book our karaoke sessions in advance, and gone are the days where we are forced to squeeze in a cold, tiny room. However, for those residing in multi-storey apartments, Popsical might pose as a nuisance to neighbours, especially for those with audiophile dads who invest ridiculous amounts of money on state-of-the-art home theater systems. Hence, Popsical might seem to be more attractive to individuals who can’t live without karaoke, to those who love karaoke so much that they virtually sing their sentences.
Jokes aside, I think as KTV-goers, there is nothing that can replace the excitement and high of impromptu karaoke sessions after a few drinks. Although singing at home might seem to be a more comfortable alternative, the karaoke-culture is so heavily-embedded into our culture, that it is just one component in a long list of activities of a good night out.
Needless to say, when I told my friends about Popsical, they went insane. Now, they don’t have to pay $10 just to sit through my Justin Bieber moments anymore. Lucky them.
