During my testing, I found that the speaker with longer-lasting battery life naturally happened to be the one I was most interested in (because there’s nothing more miserable than the chirp-chirp sound of a Bluetooth speaker slowly dying as you tried to play an album or a podcast). Others have rubber coating on their corners to deflect damage from falls or rubberized buttons meant to withstand splashes of water, all of which play into that IP rating.īattery: The way a speaker sounds will lure you in, but the battery life will determine whether you continue to use it.
The speakers I tested had at least some water- and dustproofing - but some, like the Ultimate Ears Wonderboom, can float in water like a rubber duck. Sometimes products are specifically tested for solids resistance, so you might see an IP rating of IPX7, indicating that it has resistance to water but wasn’t tested for dustproofing. The IP rating sometimes has two numbers like IP57 the first indicates how the product is protected against solids like dust, and the second indicates how the product is protected against liquids. The higher the IP rating, the more resistant it is. All of the speakers I tested were either waterproof or dustproof or both, but in some cases they were only slightly resistant to water or dust.Įach speaker has an Ingress Protection rating, which tells you how much protection it has against water or solids like dust. I’m not saying it should take a beating like Bruce Willis in Die Hard, but it shouldn’t shatter like a piece of glass when it hits the floor. When choosing speaker, consider how you plan to use it: Will it sit in a corner most of the time, or do you intend to bring it on outdoor adventures?ĭust and water resistance: A Bluetooth speaker is the Swiss Army knife of speakers - and if you are taking your Bluetooth speaker on frequent adventures, it has to be able to withstand some bumps and bruises. For my purposes the ideal weight is about one pound that’s big enough to project a good sound in a variety of spaces but small enough to throw into a bag for a trip. I’ve found that more rugged speakers weigh more, and smaller home-office speakers weigh less. The weight of a Bluetooth speaker varies more widely I tested many under one pound, but some can weigh up to about three pounds.
For context, most earbuds weigh little more than a stack of pens, and a pair of AirPods in a case weigh about 0.14 ounces. The speaker’s weight will help determine how easy it is to carry around. Weight and portability: Bluetooth speakers are mostly designed around the idea that you may want to bring them to different places, whether you’re blasting music in the back of your truck, at a campsite, or on your desk.
#Lofi boom speaker manual#
Use the links here to hop to what you’re looking for, or scroll down to learn more about how I tested.īest overall | Best portable | Best under $50 | Best with manual controls | Best smart | Best with wireless charging But there are others with such good sound quality - or at such a low price - that they’re worth compromising on ease of use. You tap that power button and you’re off to the races. Some of the best Bluetooth speakers I tested are also the simplest. And the market is saturated with different shapes, sizes, and sounds, giving you hundreds of options to choose from at a variety of prices.Īs the Strategist’s resident tech writer, I’ve researched dozens of models and tested 14 Bluetooth speakers over the past six months. Others sound great - with deep bass and clear vocals - but they have a short battery life or an overly complicated setup process. Some are so fragile you’re nervous to actually take them out of your house, which defeats the purpose. But not all Bluetooth speakers are good Bluetooth speakers. The joy of a good Bluetooth speaker is that you can listen to music anywhere without sacrificing great sound quality.
0 kommentar(er)
