Lately there has been a lot of talk about Bluetooth wireless ultra-portable speakers and I finally caved in and decided that I needed to get my hands on one of these. I decided to try out the JBL On Tour iBT to see what all the buzz was about. These devices are supposed to provide instant connectivity to your apple devices so that you can stream your audio anywhere that you are. They have become pretty popular over the last few years and many of my friends already own these. I have seen a few different types of wireless bluetooth speakers in action, but have never actually owned one of my own portable speakers.

I decided to go ahead and order the JBL On Tour to fill that void that I have around my musical needs. You see, I am a total crazy music junkie and I like to be able to listen to the music that I have on my iPod, but I don’t want to be limited by my docking station or by headphones. I want to be able to move freely around my house and also to be able to move my speaker around where ever I decide I want to go. The JBL On Tour seemed like the perfect option when it came to being portable and I was right on that count.

When I received the package, I was pretty surprised about how light the speaker actually was. When I unpacked the box I pulled the JBL On Tour iBT out and kind of stared at it for a bit. It looks a bit like a miniature black UFO and is about 6.5 inches around. There are four little speakers spaced out in the 360 degree ring. The unit only weighs just over a pound, although by looking at it you might expect it to be a little bit more substantial and much heavier. Truth be told, a friend of mine thought it was a patio umbrella light LED light that you clip onto your umbrella and it actually looks just like that. I would have to agree after seeing a similar light set up at my mom’s house.

What’s included with the JBL On Tour iBT?

When I opened the package I saw the speaker, an A/C adapter, a connector cable for an iPod dock and a plastic iPad style stand that the speaker can sit in. I was happy to note that I had the ability to charge my apple devices by setting them into the JBL On Tour iBT speaker when it is plugged in via the A/C adapter. The one thing that was not included, strangely enough, was the batteries needed to power this unit without an adapter. I had to supply four double A batteries myself, but then again I always have plenty of those on hand. I buy the rechargeable ones so that I can just recharge them when they are dead. I usually have several sets charged and ready to go for whatever I might need them for, so that came in pretty handy when I discovered that I needed batteries to get this speaker up and running.

Features of the JBL On Tour iBT

Each speaker in the 360 degree ring features a built in microphone which I like to use to make FaceTime calls to with my friends. I didn’t have anyone tell me that it sounded like I was calling them from the bottom of a cement box, so I guess that means that the sound quality is not too bad for calls. The unit has an actual phone call button with integrated volume options too. There are several ports where you can add an A/C power cord, audio in (for a wired connection), an auxiliary device, and hook the speaker up via USB. There are some really great options available for portable speakers, but I chose this one because I had heard some good things about it.

The Pros

• The whole unit is extremely portable;
• The product has, on the whole, a pretty decent quality;
• The unit has 360 degree sound projection capabilities;
• The JBL On Tour iBT is the perfect solution for conference calls;
• It has a remote (very handy) for those across the room song changes;
• Comes with a speaker cover to keep your unit safe from heat, water, light and cold weather (perfect when you use the unit outside).

The Cons

• Pretty expensive price point at $200.00 but it can be found for as little as $150.00 if you purchase it online;
• Sound highs and lows not very clear, resulting in a flat sound that was decidedly tinny sounding listening experience;
• Does not come with any batteries, but you can buy some or use rechargeable batteries (as I did).

What I use this speaker for:

• When I take a shower, it works great in the bathroom;
• I take it camping with me in the summertime – perfect for sitting around the fire;
• I like to set it up in my boat when I go fishing;
• It’s perfect for sitting outside on my patio in the summertime.

I was excited when I first got the JBL On Tour iBT, but after a while my excitement turned to disappointment. The truth is that I am real music lover and I love to crank up those tunes, but this speaker doesn’t quite cut the mustard. I found that the sound quality fell flat and left me wanting to be able to turn up the volume more.

I am quite surprised that JBL didn’t pack a little more range into this speaker; they could have made it more powerful with a better bass option. I found that at higher volumes I experienced some feedback and distortion which kind of ticked me off. I really expected more, but the truth is this is not the kind of speaker that you can crank up too loudly. If you are okay with a moderate volume, this speaker might be alright for your purposes, but I prefer my music much louder.

>> Click here to check out the latest price, reviews and ratings for the
JBL On Tour IBT speakers at Amazon.com

Over the last few years there have been many different types of Bluetooth compatible wireless speakers that have come out and many people have tried a wide variety of these. I decided to try the Altec Lansing iMW725 because I thought it looked like something that would be perfect for my purposes. Right out of the box this speaker is sleek and long, black in color along with a remote control and a USB transmitter.

I have been downloading a lot of music on my computer for many years and I like to listen to it, but not when it means that I have to listen to it on my computer’s speakers. The sound quality is simply not that great. I also found that it was quite convenient to plug in the USB transmitter and set up a playlist on my computer using my music player program on the computer. This saved me a lot of time of burning countless disks that I could play in my car or on my home stereo.

The Altec Lansing iMW725 came with the following:

• A remote control;
• A USB transmitter;
• Rechargeable battery that lasts up to 7 hours
• Handy carry handle at the back of the unit

Extremely portable, but odd shaped

This unit weight just 3.5 pounds which is slightly deceiving when you pull it out of the box. It really looks like it should weigh a lot more, but I think that is because of the odd shape of the unit. The Altec Lansing iMW725 is 16.7 inches long, so it is quite long when you compare it to other speakers in its class. I really liked the fact that there is a handle notched into the back of the unit so you can just pick it up and carry it around – kind of like an old school boom box, except it’s not quite as heavy as a crazy boom box.

If you plan on connecting to these speakers with your iPhone or iPad, the range is limited to about 8-10 meters. However, when I connected it from my computer using the Class 1 Bluetooth dongle that’s provided with the speakers, I found that I could play music up to 300 feet or so (slightly less than 100 meters) away from my computer, which made it extremely simple for me to move that little speaker around with me as I moved from room to room in my house and also outside into the yard.

My experiences with the Altec Lansing iMW725

This speaker is also compatible with iPhones, iPads and any other device you own that has Bluetooth connectivity technology. I am outside a lot, so it’s nice to have the option to use this speaker with my computer or other devices, especially when I am not at home – am at a friend’s place or outdoors away from the house.

I took this unit with me on a recent camping trip and while I enjoyed the fact that this speaker lasted for a full seven hours of solid music playing time without crapping the bed. I also liked the fact that I could quickly charge the unit up at night by plugging the rechargeable battery into my portable charger. This was enough to allow me to play the unit the next night again for a full seven hours.

What I didn’t really like about the Altec Lansing iMW725

Although the sound that this speaker produced was not that bad, I have heard better. A lot of my music has a solid bassline and I found the bass on this unit to be pretty weak. I have to say that if I don’t get a solid booming bass out of my speaker, I tend to get kind of pouty, so the whole experience was a little disappointing for me.

A friend of mine has the Bose Soundlink which is a comparable product with much better sound (from what I can hear) although it is a little bit more expensive. My brother has the Jawbone Jambox which I thought was a better sounding speaker. The price on the Jawbone Jambox is the same as the Altec Lansing iMW725 and I think that I like the sound on that unit and the fact that you can personalize the look of the unit to what you want. You want a red speaker with red trim or a yellow one with blue trim or a red unit with orange trim, it doesn’t matter, you can customize it to your liking. I’d say that the iMW725 is a decent choice if you really like its design. Otherwise, for pure audio quality, you can do much better with the Bose Soundlink or the Jawbone Jambox.

>> Click here to check out the latest price, reviews and ratings for the
Altec Lansing iMW725 speakers at Amazon.com

Looks & Design

The Philips Fidelio DS7700 has one of the sleekest designs I’ve ever seen for a speaker, particularly one that is portable. It has an aluminum finish, which just looks fantastic. Aluminum shelling seems to be the trend now because it’s not only light but extremely durable. Most people are also unaware of the fact that the aluminum shielding is purposed to prevent any interference from cell phones. You might have come across certain instances whereby your speakers will start emitting a beeping noise whenever a  call or a text message is being delivered to your phone. With an aluminum shell, this problem is effectively eliminated.

The speaker itself comes with a cover that can be fitted on the front when you’re not using it. There aren’t any clasps to hold it in place but it is instead affixed via magnets. There’s a dock right in the middle of the speaker in which you can attach your iPod or iPhone. Although it says on its description that the speaker is usable with an iPad as well, it isn’t really practical because the weight is too much for the connector and the design is such that your iPad will be leaning backwards whilst pulling the connector with it. After a while, you’ll notice that the connector will have loosened up and wouldn’t be able to register the presence of your device, so you’ll do well to avoid using an iPad with this.

The design is fairly simple and the control buttons are kept at a minimum. To turn the Philips speaker on or off, you have a slider for that. The + and – signs are obviously for adjusting the volume and there’s bluetooth button for turning on the wireless function. For forwarding, changing songs, pausing and other functions, you can use your connected device so there’s really no need for all those unnecessary functions on the speaker itself.

Audio Quality

It has good volume and excellent clarity but if you tune the volume up really high, you can hear the strain on the frequency drivers and the bass will start to distort. For music listening on an average volume, it functions just fine but if you plan on using it to blast some music for a party, just don’t expect it to perform as well.

Size & Weight

The Philips Fidelio DS7700 is moderate in size, though it could certainly do better if it’s smaller and less elongated. It has a length of 13 inches so it might not fit that well into a small backpack. Another major drawback that it has is the fact that it weighs a ton. At 67.2 ounces, it’s the heaviest portable speaker that we’ve seen thus far. The second heaviest portable speaker (the Altec Lansing iMW725) only weighs 51.2 ounces. When you have speakers that weigh as much as 10 ounces, you can probably imagine how much heavier the DS7700 will be.

Verdict

On the whole, it doesn’t score that well in the size and portability department. It’s also rather pricey at $199. The only redeeming features that the Philips Fidelio DS7700 has would be its ultra sleek looks, build quality and the fact that it performs very well at low to mid volumes. To be honest though, there are much better alternatives out there if you’re willing to spend time to look for them. Hint: See our recommendations here.

>> Click here to check out the latest price, reviews and ratings for the
Philips Fidelio DS7700 speakers at Amazon.com

Sound Quality

The audio quality is great if you don’t plan on playing it out loud at booming volumes. A certain degree of distortion is noticeable once you tune it up to the higher volumes and you can hear the bass failing slightly. At mid volume though, the sound is crisp and clear and it can easily fill up a small room with its bass. An application can be downloaded if you wish to have control over the equalizer settings and to adjust the bass or treble levels.

It has an in-built alarm clock system as well but a major flaw here is that you have to activate the alarm manually every single day. For some reason, Sony had decided that alarm clocks shouldn’t reactivate automatically after each session. There’s also a problem with regard to its compatibility with older Apple devices however. Some of the older iPods models (before 2011) will have problems working with this speaker so you might wish to call up Sony to check on this first. Otherwise, you might be up for a nasty surprise. With the latest iPhone 5 out and all, you should also know that the Sony RDPX500iP doesn’t work with it unless you use an external adapter to connect it to the speaker.

Size & Portability

The Sony RDPX500iP isn’t exactly compact for a portable speaker. It has a length of 14 inches, a height and width of 6 inches each. How large is that? Well let’s just say that it’s almost twice as large as the average portable speaker. That essentially means that it’s easily one of the bulkiest portable speakers on the market. Likewise, it’s kind of heavy at 48 ounces (approx. 1.3 kg) so it just isn’t the type of speaker that you would want to lug around in your backpack during your travels.

Design

There’s also an Apple docket made specifically for Apple devices so that you can play your music from it. This dock is smart placed at the back of the speaker and it can be hidden from view when it’s not in use, which keep things simple and neat. To access it, you basically have to slide it out from the bottom. Since the product was developed with Apple product users in mind, if you wish to connect any non-Apple devices, you’ll have to connect it via another Audio In jack.

It looks sleek and its design is rather streamlined so it shouldn’t have any trouble fitting into any modern looking environment. One thing I like best about its overall design is that its controls aren’t littered haphazardly in a huge panel but instead, they are neatly placed on a top silver strip that runs along the top of the speaker. This gives it a majestic yet minimalistic aura.

As far as setting up the whole speaker goes, it doesn’t require much effort to do so. The only thing you have to do is to plug in the Sony RDPX500iP into a power socket and you’re good to go.

Verdict

The reason why the Sony RDPX500iP isn’t as popular as some of its comparable counterparts is simply because it’s really costly. Priced at $299, you would expect it to perform way better than some of the cheaper alternatives like the Jawbone JAMBOX or the iHOME Id50Bzc but it doesn’t. To be fair, it is one of the best Apple docking speaker currently available and it looks really good too but that will not justify its tremendous price.

>> Click here to check out the latest price, reviews and ratings for the
Sony RDPX500iP speakers at Amazon.com

General Features

The iHome Id50Bzc is slightly different from the usual portable speakers that you see on the market simply because it has multiple functions to it. Besides being a music-listening device, you can use it as a clock radio as well. Despite its deceivingly small size, the sound quality is decent enough for casual listeners. Audio enthusiasts would certainly find the iHome dissatisfying though. The audio settings like the bass and treble levels can be adjusted to suit your personal preferences. There is a slot at the top of the speaker in which you can attach your iPhone or your iPad but you do not have to use these devices in conjunction with the speaker if you don’t want to. Additionally, the speaker comes with an AM/FM tuner that makes it just like any other radio.

The front of the speaker has a rectangular display that shows the time, date, alarm and whatnot. Basically, it could function as a bedside alarm clock with additional features. The display brightness might be a little too bright to leave on at night though so you’ll have to tune it down if you plan on leaving it beside you while you sleep. 2 alarm profiles can be set on the clock radio and like any other alarm clocks, you have the snooze function as well. It does take a certain amount of effort to twiddle with the buttons and settings before you will learn how to program the alarms properly. There’s also a remote control device that comes together with the whole package so you could choose to use that as your wireless controller instead of your iPhone or iPad.

Audio Quality

This particular device has only 2 frequency drivers though so it may not be able to produce the best audio quality. At higher volumes and heavy bass settings, there is a significant amount of bass distortion but if you mostly listen to mid to high frequency songs, you should do fine with it. Considering its multi-function capabilities however, it’s really unfair to ask any more of it. If you’re not really looking for a speaker that has a dual function as a clock radio, you would do better to opt for more specialized alternatives in the likes of the Bose Soundlink (best sound quality) or the Jawbone JAMBOX and JBL Flip (for maximum portability).

Build & Design

The entire speaker is covered with a matte finish and its sides are lined with 2 thick silver stripes. The control panel is located at the top surface of the speaker, which is riddled with buttons for adjusting the modes, alarms, volume and others. In terms of its size, the iHome Id50Bzc looks like a rectangular box that can fit into your palm easily and portability isn’t an issue at all. It weighs quite a bit though, at about 45 ounces, which is expected with so many features fit into it.

Verdict

In essence, the iHome Id50Bzc is great as a multi-function, all-in-1 tool and it performs fairly well in all of these features but you shouldn’t count on it to deliver to you the best music listening experience.

>> Click here to check out the latest price, reviews and ratings for the
iHOME Id50Bzc speakers at Amazon.com

First Impressions

The initial impression that I got out of the Bose Soundlink Bluetooth Wireless Speaker was its surprisingly powerful sound despite the fact that it’s a portable Bluetooth speaker. It certainly does not lack in the sound quality aspect like most other bluetooth speakers that trade off their audio quality in return for lighter weight and reduced size but we’ll get more into that later.

If you’ve owned Bose speakers or you’ve read any Bose Soundlink review prior to this, you should know that its previous models were dock-based, whereby you have the capability to dock your iPod into it. This is no longer the case as Bose seems to be heading towards something new. Indeed, with this latest version of the Bose Soundlink, it’s simply a wireless speaker. Since it doesn’t come with an external remote control device, you now manage it directly using any smartphone, tablet or laptop that have Bluetooth enabled on it. The range of the wireless connectivity is pretty good as well at a maximum of 10 metres.

Looks & Design

A particularly attractive feature is the fact that it comes with an attached protective cover, which you can fold it down over the front of the speaker. Doing so will turn it off automatically. The impression it gave me was that of a large purse or a clutch bag. At least that’s what it looks like. When you want to use it, you can fold it backwards and it’ll act as a stand. The Bose Soundlink comes in 2 editions.

The original one that costs $269 has a black, plastic finish to it with a black nylon cover whilst the premium edition, which costs an additional $50, has silver brushed metal at the sides, a tinge of chrome near the edges and a dark brown leather cover instead. There’s no difference in terms of the audio quality though so you’re really paying an extra $50 for the enhanced looks. Design-wise, it’s really difficult to do any better than this. It looks and even feels classy especially with the leathery cover and metallic finishes.

Audio Quality

In terms of its audio quality though, it performs surprisingly well. Once you’ve taken a look at its specifications, you’ll understand why. It has 1 low frequency, 2 medium frequency and 2 high frequency drivers. That’s pretty impressive for a seemingly compact speaker. Just in case you don’t know how frequency drivers affect its sound quality, I’ll attempt to explain it here. These drivers essentially control how well the sound is produced at various frequency levels. Generally, the more frequency drivers a speaker has, the better the sound quality will be as a whole. So, if it comes with 2 high frequency drivers and only 1 low frequency driver, its ability to produce high frequency sound will be better than that of its low frequency sound. Low frequency sound basically indicates the quality of the bass effect. Most portable speakers do not focus on bass due to their meagre size and constrained dimensions. As such, a lot of portable speakers will seldom come with low frequency drivers as they’d rather focus on medium or high frequency sound. Indeed, again due to their physical constraints, many cheaper speakers only have 1-2 drivers while the more pricey ones will start to include a minimum of 3 drivers, with most of them focusing on higher frequencies for better clarity and pitch.

In relation to this, the Bose Soundlink does find space to fit in 5 frequency drivers, which are well spaced out to include 1 low frequency one and any speaker like this would have the capability to produce better sound quality.

A lot of users have commented in its incapability of delivering high-end bass for its price and that is simply unfair because portable speakers will never be able to compete with any other non-portable speakers with larger dimensions and weight. For the Bose Soundlink’s size, it does produce a decent level of bass effect already and it does so significantly better than any other bluetooth speakers that we’ve tested thus far.

Weight & Size

In terms of its size, it is pretty moderate with a length of 9.6 inches, a height of 5.1 inches and a width of 1.9 inches. If you’re wondering how heavy it’ll be, it weighs 40 ounces. That’s a good average for any bluetooth speakers that cost over $100.

Verdict

The Bose Soundlink certainly produces the best sound quality among its other counterparts. Its sleek looks and stylish appearance are also some of its most attractive features. With regard to its portability, perhaps you can find smaller ones that will be less heavy but you should also be prepared to lose out on the sound quality that you can get out of them.

>> Click here to check out the latest price, reviews and ratings for the
Bose Soundlink speakers at Amazon.com

Amazon Rating: 4.5/5
Amazon Reviews: 841
Price: $269
Dimensions In Inches (Length x Height x Width): 10.1 x 3.7 x 3.1
Weight (Ounces): 43.2
Minimum Frequency Response: 50
Maximum Frequency Response: 20000
Dock For Apple Devices: No
Remote Control Device Provided: No
Controllable With Phone/Tablet: Yes
No. Of Frequency Drivers: 5

Audio Quality

The Big Jambox  is one of the most popular bluetooth speakers being sold on Amazon, without a doubt. Indeed, it’s also one of our top choices within this bluetooth speakers chart that compares 10 of the best units currently available on the market. There’s a good reason for that.

Firstly, it’s one of the 2 set of portable speakers (the other speaker being the Bose Soundlink) that comes with 5 frequency drivers (1 low, 2 medium and 2 high) which means that it’s able to produce audio whose quality will be further enhanced by the availability of these drivers at various frequency levels. In comparison with this, the other speakers of comparable quality such as the iHome Id50Bzc, JBL Flip, Philips Fidelio DS7700, Soundfreaq SFQ and a couple of others only have 2-4 drivers. The Jawbone Jambox also has a radiator woofer located at the back of this device, which emits a really clear and well-balanced sound.

Size & Measurements

This is so despite the fact that the Jawbone Jambox has a comparatively small size compared to its various other counterparts like the Logitech Wireless Boombox or the Sony RDPX500iP. The Jambox measures 10.1 inches in length, has a height of 3.7 inches and a width of 3.1 inches.

To give you an idea, it’s about 1 1/2 times the size of a grown man’s hand fully stretched out so you can simply carry it around while gripping it with just one hand. It’s fairly light too when compared to other bluetooth speakers that are able to produce sound of a comparable quality. On average, similar speakers would easily weigh 15-20 ounces more.

Design & Looks

In terms of its appearances, you get the option of picking from 3 different colors and textures. The front grille where the sound comes out of has a couple of varying geometric patterns depending on the color that you pick.

For instance, the “graphite hex” edition has diamond-like cutting on its black grille whereby the “red dot” edition basically consists of a red grille with arranged dots. The third design includes a white-colored surface with wave textures on it.

Controls & Connectivity

The 6 main control buttons are positioned on the top of the speaker, 2 of which are for adjusting the volume and another 3 for pausing, playing or skipping songs. The last button has multiple functions to it such as to display the battery life, to pick up or put down calls and more. With regard to its connectivity, there’s a USB port (and a USB cable included) that you can use to attach to a computer or to recharge your speaker and at the side of the speaker, there’s an aux port for connecting any other devices that do not have the Bluetooth function.

There aren’t any Apple docks for this speaker nor is there a remote control device that is specifically provided for you but to be fair, most of the latest models of portable speakers do not come with these as well. The battery life is pretty lasting too and it lasted me about 12 hours before I needed to recharge it. There were a few short breaks in between though, so I would assume that their advertised 10 hours of continuous use is fairly accurate.

Its wireless range is about 10-12 metres if there are no obstructions between the speaker and the controlling device. If there’s a wall standing in between the two devices however, I’d say that the Bluetooth range would be significantly shorter at perhaps 7-8 metres.

Verdict

On the whole, the Big Jambox did really well in our testing. In fact, you’d be hard pressed to find any Big Jambox review that doesn’t end with a favorable verdict of it.

I’d personally rate it a high 9/10 if not for its price, which is a bit on the high side at $269. In terms of the overall sound quality, it trumps most other portable speakers with the exception of the Bose Soundlink, which still retains a noticeable edge over it.

>> Click here to check out the latest price, reviews and ratings for the
Jawbone Big JAMBOX speakers at Amazon.com