Razer Project Hazel Is The Smart Mask Ideal
Razer is notorious for awesome conceptual works of industrial design made specifically for presentation at CES. While some of these projects have elements that make their way to finalized, market-ready products, some of the most outlandish projects never quite make the cut. With Razer Project Hazel, the times in which we live might well dictate the necessity for a final product.
Razer Project Hazel is still a concept. It's a smart mask, made in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic that commanded the masses throughout the year 2020. Razer was one of a select few companies that made the effort to convert manufacturing plants from their regular creations – gaming-focused peripherals – over to surgical masks. They pledged to manufacturer and donate up to a million surgical masks – but they wanted to go beyond.
They made limited numbers of Razer-themed masks in 2020 – but they were still just cloth, still just the basic design made with cloth. For CES 2021, they revealed a concept that envisioned a future in which the protective mask is smart.
Razer made quite clear with us in introducing this mask that they did not intend for THIS to be the final product. They've not made room for beards yet, for example. Instead, this is a mass of ideas.
Project Hazel has a rechargeable battery system that powers an air filtration system on the left and right of the mask. The battery system also powers LED lights that can act to highlight the face of the wearer at night or in dark spaces. Razer also included Razer Chroma RGB lighting in rings around each of the two air filters.
Microphones and speakers in this mask allow slight amplification of the voice of the wearer. This bypasses the issue of the natural muting of sound levels through any mask. This would be of particular importance with this mask with its large plastic shield, but voice amplification (Razer VoiceAmp) allows a natural (otherwise non-masked) audio level when activated.
Plastic shielding allows the user's face and mouth to be seen – further aided by the LED lighting within. This device's battery is charged with a wireless charging case that also provides UV light disinfection.
Cross your fingers Razer makes a slightly muted version of all this action in the near future. If the number of April Fool's Joke projects they've made into real products is any indication, a mask like this could be likely!