Why let your music be anchored down by being tethered to a wired speaker? Cut the cords and get a wireless Bluetooth speaker with powerful sound. But with so many portable Bluetooth speakers on the market, choosing the one that’s right for you can seem overwhelming. Here are some of our top picks, in various price points, to help narrow down your search.
Key Factors to Consider
Think about just how portable you want your speaker to be. If you’ll be carrying it with you to various locations, a more compact speaker with good battery life is probably the way to go. However, smaller speakers generally don’t produce as much sound and bass as those that are physically larger, so you’ll want to strike the right balance between size and sound quality. Budget is also an important factor with prices ranging from less than $50 for some decent mini speakers, up to almost $800.
Budget Speaker: Tribit Stormbox Micro
If you want to keep your tunes with you when you’re on the go, the Tribit Stormbox Micro offers great sound in a pocket-sized Bluetooth speaker. It delivers a decent amount of bass and volume for its tiny size (3.87 x 3.87 x 1.37 inches), and is waterproof and dustproof. Great for outdoor adventures. List price is $50.
Portability & Sound Quality: JBL Charge 5
JBL's portable Charge 5 speaker delivers surprisingly powerful Bluetooth audio from a compact, waterproof frame, making it the ideal travel companion for going just about anywhere. The cylindrical shape with passive bass radiators at either end results in a powerful bass depth underpinning the bright sound. The convenient PartyBoost feature allows you to connect several JBL speakers to stream the same audio. It’s also waterproof and dustproof, measures 8.7 x 3.67 x 3.76 inches, and comes in six colors. List price is $180.
Big Sound: Ultimate Ears Hyperboom
The UE Hyperboom is big – weighing in at 13 pounds – and it has big sound to match. This jumbo portable speaker has enough volume and bass to power a party and can fill a large room with sound. It can also wirelessly link to other UE Boom and Megaboom speakers to really get the party hopping. While it is portable, its size (7.5 x 7.5 x 14.3 inches) and weight mean you wouldn’t want to carry it too far. List price is $400.
Fire up the tunes on your new speaker, and check back for Olympus at the Canyons blog posts twice each month, with a variety of lifestyle and entertainment recommendations.