4 of the best portable speakers on Amazon according to users - including Bose and JBL
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Summer has arrived and it wouldn’t be complete without at least one BBQ, outdoor party or picnic. But is it really a memorable soiree without some banging tunes?
Mobile phone speakers have improved massively over the years, however it still doesn’t beat the sound of a proper purpose built speaker. Although taking a subwoofer into the back garden or to the park is not the most convenient option.
Bluetooth speakers let you combine the best possible sound with the easy of convenience. But with so many options available on Amazon, how can you possibly decide?
We decided to help you narrow it down to four speakers, ranging from the lower end of the price tag to a more expensive option, based on the devices with the highest ratings from users. Find out more in the sections below.
The highest rated portable speaker on Amazon, according to users, is this offering from BESNOOW. It has a 4.9 star rating, based on 117 reviews, and is available for £35.99 - down 40% from the usual £59.99 price tag.
It is designed to handle rough use and adverse weather conditions. BESNOOW says that it has an IPX7 rating for protection against water splashes and spills.
The speaker has 20W(2 x 10W) of stereo audio drivers and an advanced digital signal processor to provide well-balanced sound with minimal distortion. You can get 18 hours of battery life from a single charge - so no fear about running out of tunes this summer.
One Amazon shopper wrote in a five star review: “What can I say great travel speaker. Took it to a picnic with friends on a beautiful sunny day in the park to try it out. Super easy to carry around. Great sound. I’m not an expert but it was loud & clear. Very easy to use. Would definitely recommend it!”
If you are looking to take the party with you wherever you go this summer, you can’t do much better than this Bose speaker - at least according to Amazon users. Available from £109.95, it has a whopping 31,781 reviews with an average rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars.
Shoppers can pick them up in a variety of colours including the very eye-catching (in this humbler writer’s opinion) chilled lilac as well as more traditional black and white. There is a more expensive speaker available in stone blue for £119.95 - an extra ten quid.
If you are wondering exactly what you get for your money, it comes with Bose’s Proprietary Position Qtechnology which automatically detects the position of your portable Bluetooth speaker for optimal sound quality in any orientation or environment. It is waterproof, so you don’t have to worry if you get caught in a summer storm.
Bose claims that the speaker can get up to 12 hours on a single charge and it comes with a USB-C charging cable, so you don’t have to worry about losing the tunes at the BBQ. It is bluetooth so can pair with phones as well as other Bose devices within a range of 30 feet.
One Amazon shopper raved about the speaker in a five star review. They wrote: “Small, compact, with a solid base sound. Absolutely fantastic. Easy to set up, and worth every penny.
“I’ve just ordered a second one as you can pair them up. Battery life is good. Lasts all day and so far it’s never gone below 40%. Love that every time you turn it on it tells you how much battery life it has.”
A small but mighty speaker, the JBL Clip is perfect for taking with you on the go. It is a favourite with Amazon shoppers who have given it a 4.8 star rating based on 10,903 reviews.
The price starts at £36.50 and ranges up to £44.50 at a maximum, depending on which colour you pick-up on Amazon. The cheapest is the Clip 4 in black, while the most expensive is the Blue/ Pink model - but you can also get the speaker in red, blue, green, camouflage and white.
The JBL Clip 4 is designed to be stylish, waterproof and dustproof, so is perfect for all your adventures this summer. If your kids are looking for a portable speaker, this could be the one that ticks all the boxes.
Designed with an integrated carabiner (the kind of clip used by climbers which you may remember if you - or your kids - ever had a rock-climbing birthday party), it can be hooked directly to a belt, bag or buckle. JBL claims it has a 10 hour battery life, making it perfect for listening to music on the go this summer.
Amazon shopper Melissa was a big fan of the speaker and was one of the many users to give it a five star rating. She wrote: “I am very, very happy with the JBL Clip 4 portable bluetooth speaker. Once charged, it was easy to link by bluetooth to my Kobo Libra 2 ereader for an audiobook I had.
“The sound was clear and unbroken, and I would say the clarity was close to noise cancellation. The music I played also had no background noise of any kind.”
Yet another portable speaker from JBL is near the top of the user ratings on Amazon. It has a 4.8 star rating based on 74,650 reviews and ranges in price from £30.60 to £39.99.
Shoppers can pick up the GO 3 in a range of colours including white, black, red, blue, pink, squad (which is a camouflage like colour) and more. The mini-speaker comes with JBL Pro Sound, packing a loud punch and impressive bass.
It is waterproof and durable, so you don’t have to worry while carrying it out and about this summer. The speaker comes with an integrated loop that makes travelling with tunes easy and fun, no matter where you are.
Unlike the Clip, the GO 3 has a slightly shorter battery life of around 5 hours on a full charge. But it is still plenty of time to make sure your summer soirees have tunes.
In a five star review, one Amazon user wrote: “Remarkable sound quality given the product size. I tried several and found this to perform the best overall. Yes, it may not have the depth of bass as other speakers, but the ones I tested were considerably larger.
“Treble is clear with a surprisingly punchy bass (given the size). Volume holds it's own and is more than sufficient with good clarity at maximum volume. Battery life is reported to be 5hrs but can't confirm or deny that yet. It feels a solid , well made product and connectivity is simple and instant.”
What is the best portable speaker - or speaker in general - you have ever owned? Share your experiences with our tech writer by emailing [email protected].