3 nice bluetooth speakers for on vacation
The holidays are approaching for many, it is getting warmer outside and the beaches and parks in our beautiful country are in better condition than ever before. Many people will therefore visit these places and may want to bring a good Bluetooh speaker to enjoy music. But which speakers are a good choice? In this review, editors Laura and Jelle discuss three Bluetooth speakers.
Contents
1. Fresh ‘n Rebel Bold L2
We start this overview with the Bold L2 speaker from the Rotterdam company Fresh ‘n Rebel. According to them, the Bold L2 is ”Big on power, big on performance”. In addition, they report that the speaker must “overwhelm you in terms of bass” and must also be able to withstand a real sandstorm or heavy rainfall.
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Sound quality
To start with the bass, the Bold L2 fully lives up to the promise of a full bass. You notice that the emphasis has largely gone to that. If you like bass, you will like the Bold L2 sound. For the more ‘neutral listener’, however, it can be a bit too much of a good thing. The bass sometimes manages to push away the lower tones and voices in certain songs. In general, however, I would say that the speaker scores sufficiently for its price based on sound quality. I don’t know if the so-called 12-degree tilted drivers are a reason for this, but it certainly doesn’t make the speaker sound worse.
Hipperdeep waterproof design
Fresh ‘n Rebel prefers to appeal to a hip young target group. You can see that the company pays a lot of attention to the design of its speakers. Witness the fashionable and trendy speakers and earphones, which can all be ordered in different flashy colors. The Bold L2 is no exception. The speaker also has an IP67 rating, making it water and dust proof. So it should survive an afternoon at the beach.
A bit heavy though
According to Fresh ‘n Rebel, the speaker must also be easy to carry. But at 1124 grams, it’s not a lightweight. In a bag it takes up a lot of space and especially weight. The included lanyard does improve portability, but still not ideal in my opinion.
Buy Fresh ‘n Rebel Bold L2
The Bold L2 is for sale from 129.99 euros in the colors Dive Blue, Silky Sand, Dried Green, Brave Bronze and Storm Gray.
2. JBL Charge 5 Wi-Fi
It is actually quite special: JBL hardly changes the design of its speakers, and yet they are always eye-catchers. Plus: if you don’t see them, you will hear them, because if JBL stands for something, it is for powerful sound. Especially the bass that these speakers can produce is very impressive. Perhaps a bit too much for some, but luckily there is the JBL Portable app to adjust that EQ a bit.
Now with Wi-Fi
In principle, this Charge 5 is the same as its predecessor, but it is made of more durable materials and it has WiFi (WiFi 6). That is a big advantage, because the sound quality over WiFi is better than via the considerably less Bluetooth. Wi-Fi is also often just a bit more user-friendly: problems arise less quickly. Furthermore, JBL speakers are just very good and very suitable for holiday-like situations. Thanks to their water and dust resistance, you can even take them to the swimming pool or beach with peace of mind. A splash of water over it is no problem.
Lots of integrations
If you have a good party that gets out of hand, this speaker will last for 20 hours. Slightly less if you use it as a power bank, because that is also possible. The speaker can also be used in conjunction with Google Home, Apple AirPlay and Alexa, in addition to having Chromecast built-in and Spotify integration. I don’t think you will easily find a speaker that produces such a solid sound quality and is also at home in so many markets. Oh yeah, and it’s made from 90 percent recycled plastic. Is there also a disadvantage? Yes, for sure: where its WiFi-free brother comes in all kinds of fun colors, the Charge 5 WiFi is only available in black. And it costs a lot more: the original cost 179 euros, but for Charge 5 WiFi you pay 249 euros.
Buy JBL Charge 5 WiFi
The JBL Charge 5 Wifi is for sale for a suggested retail price of 249 euros in the color black. Unfortunately not yet widespread (MediaMarkt and Coolblue don’t have it), but it is there:
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3. Sonos Roam
Sonos is by nature more of a house brand, by which we mean that it is a brand with audio products for the home, but since a few years it also offers options for outdoor use. We had the Move that you can put in the garden, for example, but the Roam soon followed. It is the smallest speaker in the Sonos segment and it is quite different from all other speakers of the brand because it is intended for outdoor use (although we must say that it also participates very well indoors with all the multi-room possibilities).
The portable Sonos
Sonos Roam is very portable and compact, which makes it a nice speaker to take to the park, to a bungalow or to a garden party. Roam works with more than 100 streaming services and you can also use it with the Google Assistant (Apple AirPlay 2 or just directly if you have the Spotify app on your phone, for example. The advantage of this device is that it can be used both via WiFi and via Bluetooth works and that means you don’t necessarily have to have it in an app in a ‘home’ situation Roam does what its name says: it’s a bit more free to come and go where and how you want.
Party number
It is also in for a party: the IP rating is 67 (which makes it dust resistant and completely waterproof) and the battery life is ten hours. Charging can be done via USB-C, but also wirelessly. Does this device also have disadvantages? A bit yes: the design is exceptionally boring. It’s a black (or white) stick that you take with you and otherwise you probably don’t give the device a glance. Fortunately, the audio quality speaks volumes, because it is very good, especially for the size of this speaker.
Buy Sonos Roam
The Sonos Roam is for sale for a suggested retail price of 199 euros in black or white. Unfortunately not yet widespread (MediaMarkt and Coolblue don’t have it), but it is there:
