Very portable Bluetooth speakers?
April 21, 2017 9:34 AM   Subscribe

Looking for recommendations for a Bluetooth speaker along the lines of this one that I can pack in my projector bag for times when no others are available. Ideally loud enough for 3-4 kids watching a movie inside to hear without complaining, and with an option to connect via USB.
posted by ryanshepard to Shopping (16 answers total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
This is sort of the default for speakers these days, so there are zillions. Your example is a broken link, so hard to narrow it down... Size?
posted by acm at 9:36 AM on April 21, 2017


Response by poster: Sorry - correct link. The goal is something I can fit into a digital projector bag.
posted by ryanshepard at 9:40 AM on April 21, 2017


I have a JBL Flip that I think would serve your purposes (except it doesn't connect to USB).
posted by General Malaise at 9:51 AM on April 21, 2017


why not that one? seems cheap and well-rated. there are probably plenty of reasonable options

I have a BoomBox Rex that works great for me, so you could check out the Boombotix site for some hardy and good-sounding variants. they hold a charge pretty well...
posted by acm at 9:52 AM on April 21, 2017


Not sure why you don't like that one but I've used the Sony SRS-HG1 which works over wifi, bluetooth, USB and line in, has a good battery and is really loud if you turn it up. Slightly bigger than the one you linked to, not sure how small you need it to be, still pretty small.
posted by GuyZero at 9:54 AM on April 21, 2017


oh, sorry -- I thought you meant charging via USB rather than input that way. that's trickier but not imposible. ima let you sort through the sizes for yourself, because I don't know much about projector bags.
posted by acm at 9:55 AM on April 21, 2017


Oh maybe the Sony SRS-X11 would be better - really small. Still 10W which should be loud.
posted by GuyZero at 9:56 AM on April 21, 2017


Response by poster: why not that one? seems cheap and well-rated. there are probably plenty of reasonable options.

Looking for MeFite direct experience w/the loudness requirement noted in the post. This is in part about my sanity vs. a bunch of kids.
posted by ryanshepard at 10:59 AM on April 21, 2017


I have an Anker Soundcore A302 and can testify that when cranked, it is very loud with good bass.
posted by The otter lady at 11:18 AM on April 21, 2017 [1 favorite]


We've been pretty happy with the Logitech UE series speakers. They don't make the one we have anymore, but I think the "Wonderboom" is the smallest one they make right now. They run around $100 it looks like, so considerably more than the one you linked to. Beyond good sound (and plenty of volume), they have decent batteries and are very simple to use.
posted by bonehead at 12:13 PM on April 21, 2017 [5 favorites]


Seconding the UE-series speakers, of which I own a (discontinued) UE Mini Boom and a UE Roll. I personally would try a UE Roll for this, as it's a relatively flat, thin device with omnidirectional sound. It's a bit larger than the thing you linked to, and doesn't have a built-in USB DAC (so you can charge with USB but you can only play back over Bluetooth or standard analog line-in/headphone jack), but it's very loud for its size.
posted by Aleyn at 3:45 PM on April 21, 2017 [2 favorites]


Came to recommend the anker soundcore. Glad to see it's mentioned. It's about the size of two remotes stacked together. We love for playing music/audiobooks when working around the house. We use it constantly.
posted by Suffocating Kitty at 7:05 PM on April 21, 2017


I bought one of these a few years ago, and it has been really great, everyone else in the family constantly borrows it to listen to music or whatever via their phones. I can hear it pretty clearly from a few rooms away when it's turned up. It connects via the headphones port, and is usb chargeable.
posted by glitter at 6:42 AM on April 22, 2017


My UE Boom is amazingly loud, comes with a built-in bungee so it's easy to mount, and it's waterproof. I'd buy it again at twice the price.
posted by Jesse the K at 4:59 PM on April 22, 2017


I have a Bose bluetooth speaker that I play music on at Girl Scout meetings, which are loud and in an enormous room. My speaker's walked off at the moment so I can't check the model, but it's a Bose and it looks like this one (Bose SoundLink Mini Bluetooth Speaker II). Not cheap; good sound.
posted by The corpse in the library at 2:25 PM on April 24, 2017


I bought an Anker Soundcore Mini after reading this thread and it is certainly very loud and the sound quality is excellent. Not audiophile excellent but for a cheap and tiny speaker it's certainly worth it.
posted by fullerine at 12:57 AM on May 2, 2017


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