March 04, 2016

Bang & Olufsen BeoPlay S3 Review

March 04, 2016/ Nir Schneider

When you want good sounding audio packed into aesthetically pleasing enclosures, you turn to Bang & Olufsen. It's just what you do. This is B&O's BeoPlay S3, a weirdly shaped wireless speaker designed specifically for home use. The S3 is only a mono speaker, but it can easily be paired wirelessly to a secondary S3 speaker in a stereo setup. In other words, B&O wants you to eventually add another speaker so that you can enjoy a more spacious sound. It starts with one, but eventually you'll want to grow your speaker minion collection in order to create an immersive sound experience throughout your home – a la Sonos. But how does just a single S3 speaker perform all on its lonesome? You're about to find out!

January 29, 2016

Vifa Helsinki Portable Wireless Speaker Review

January 29, 2016/ Nir Schneider

Vifa might not be as big or as widely known as Bang & Olufsen, but it's easy to see why they're just as good when it comes to uncompromised audio. Vifa is a Danish company and like all good Danish brands, Vifa's Scandinavian design prowess is unquestionably embedded into every one of its beautifully crafted, one-of-a-kind products. The Helsinki is one of three wireless speakers under Vifa's umbrella, which were all named after Nordic city capitals – the $449 Helsinki, the $799 Copenhagen, and the $1,699 Stockholm wireless soundbar. Vifa's Helsinki is the most portable of them all, features a leather carry handle and a fashionable chic design with a total of six drivers under that petite Nordic body for authentic sound reproduction. So can this finally be the portable speaker to beat the JBL Xtreme, and is it really worth its price in sound? Catch out full review to find out!

September 14, 2014

Sony SRS-X3 Portable Wireless Speaker Review

September 14, 2014/ Nir Schneider

The thing about portable speakers is that while they make listening to music super conveniant and more social in a mobile lifestlye, most of the ones that you can actually carry around with you willingily aren't capable of providing a that low-end bass you otherwise hear when listening to a large speaker setup, which typically means you can't fit that kind of audio gear into your backpack or move it around as effortlessly as a more compact portable speaker like the $150 JBL Charge 2 and many others. We do know of one such device capable of delivering a convincing amount of bass while still being an extremely easy to carry wireless speaker, and that's the Bose SoundLink Mini. It wasn't until recently that we had trouble finding a portable speaker that was as small as the SoundLink Mini and that could also match its outstanding level of audio richness.

We're talking of course about Sony's SRS-X3. As of today, we think that it's Sony's best sounding portable Bluetooth speaker you can buy that's as moderately sized as many other highly popular and noteworthy alternatives such as the UE Boom, JBL Charge 2 and the Bose SoundLink Mini itself. Sony is clearly taking a jab at Bose with its similarly specced and more competitively priced SRS-X3 speaker. Can Sony's $150 SRS-X3 beat the more expensive $200 SoundLink Mini at its own game? Find out which of these can drop a more satisfying bass punch in our full review and comparison down below!

December 09, 2013

JBL Spark Wireless Speaker Review

December 09, 2013/ Nir Schneider

JBL's most recent speaker offerings can only be described as creatively ambitious. From the Pulse to the Voyager, and now the Spark, JBL is pushing ahead with some of the most uniquely designed and innovative speakers we've seen yet. But we're here to talk you about the Spark, not the AllSpark, but JBL's new and trendy Spark speaker. With a unique funky translucent design which just so happens to be Harman Kardon's signature weapon of design language choice, the Spark brings a visually fun play on wireless speaker styling. Jump into our full review to find out what we think about JBL's Spark, and how it compares to other wireless speakers!

November 27, 2013

id America TouchTone Wireless Bluetooth Speaker Review

November 27, 2013/ Nir Schneider

That’s right, id America has brought its own portable speaker to market called the TouchTone. This touch controls-featuring compact speaker is looking to compete up against some incredibly known brands in the audio world. And at $80, the TouchTone is asking for a piece of Ultimate Ears' ultra-compact and nicely balanced Mini Boom speaker, JBL's all-too familiar Flip speaker and many more that plague the shelves of electronic retail giants and the likes of Amazon and other online retailers.

But what does a case company have anything to do with audio gear? We asked the same exact question numerous times before, notably when Incase launched its line of headphones more than a year ago, we questioned the accessory brand's ability to put out decent sounding headphones. Needless to say, we were astounded by how amazing Incase's Sonic headphones actually turned out. So before we doubt another case company's ability to expand its line of products, we are giving id America's first ever speaker an honest shot as we go ears on with the new TouchTone portable Bluetooth wireless speaker. Be sure to head past the break for our full review!

October 01, 2013

Ultimate Ears UE MINI BOOM Review

October 01, 2013/ Nir Schneider

Ultimate Ears is expanding its portable wireless speaker lineup which up until today was only made up from a single offering, the incredible UE Boom speaker. A year ago Logitech introduced the UE Mobile Boombox under a joined Logitech UE brand which still exists today, however, Ultimate Ears is now coming out with its own near-identical version dubbed the UE Mini Boom. The $100 mini wireless Bluetooth speaker boasts a number of enhancements over its UE Mobile Boombox predecessor - namely wireless dual-speaker mode funtionality we've seen first introduced with the UE Boom, but carries with it the same familiar svelte rubberized design. What makes the UE Mini Boom a better speaker than its predecessor, or more importantly, should you invest in two for the price of a single UE Boom speaker in order to create a more affordable wireless dual speaker setup? Let's find out!

August 16, 2013

Eton Rukus XL Review

August 16, 2013/ Nir Schneider

We haven't reviewed many solar powered speakers on Gadgetmac, and that has partially to do with the fact that they're not a popular bunch to say the least. Though Eton has quite a few impressive new solar powered speaker offerings which are all wirelessly portable and can live off of the sun's powerful rays. Eton's reasonably priced new $200 Rukus XL is one of the more promising wireless solar powered speakers we know of. With a large adjustable solar panel and a built-in rechargeable battery, the Rukus XL can charge itself up while also sharing some its solar juice with any iPhone-shaped device that charges off of USB power through its charging dock-like compartment. On top of that, its got 8 speakers drivers under the hood so getting its point across during an eventful outdoors party won't be much of an issue. Going somewhere Amish? Then check out our full review on the Rukus XL's solar powered prowess after the break!