The best Bluetooth speakers offer you a quick and easy way to stream music from your phone, tablet or laptop. If you’re a music fan tight on space, or you’re regularly on the move, this is an essential purchase.
Low end can be a little fat
Pros
Pros
The market is a minefield, however. Bluetooth speakers come in all shapes, sizes and prices. Some of them have smart functionality, others have waterproofing. Do you need those? What size should you get?
That’s where Trusted Reviews comes in. We ask all the important questions when we test. We’ve trawled all the big stores, gone through all the big brands, testing all the Bluetooth speakers we could find. We’re here to clear up the confusion and help you avoid buying the wrong thing. What follows is a definitive list of the best bluetooth speakers currently available.
How we test the best Bluetooth speakers
We play a lot of music, and we play it loud. We play it everywhere – in the house, in the garden, and even in the bath if a speaker is waterproof.
We don’t just listen to the speakers – if there are special features we make sure we fiddle with them until we’re satisfied. Some Bluetooth speakers recently started getting smart functionality with the integration of Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, and as a result we’ve started speaking to our speakers as well.
Of course, it always comes back to the music, which is the most important thing. Speakers are tested by reviewers with a love of music, a knowledge of sound quality, as well as a context of the market. We’ll listen to Bluetooth speakers alongside similarly priced rivals, so when we recommend something, it’s among the best you can buy for the money.
Obviously we know not everyone has the same taste in music, so we won’t only test with the same perfectly mastered album, but with a variety of genres and file qualities, from MP3 to Hi-Res FLAC.
Ruark Audio MR1 Mk2 – the best Bluetooth speakers
Pros
- Amazing sound for their size
- Can give a boost to TV audio
- Portable option
- Sumptuous build and finish
- Lovely retro styling
Cons
- No built-in multiroom support
This was the winner of the 2017 Trusted Reviews award for Best Home Audio Product.
Ruark is perhaps best known for its class-leading DAB radios and all-in-one hi-fi systems, but this pair of Bluetooth stereo speakers perhaps offer’s the best sound-per-pound of any of the company’s impressive line-up.
In addition to offering truly excellent hi-fi sonics from gorgeous retro-chic cabinets, the MR1 Mk2 have a ton of versatility tucked behind their designer wool grilles. For a start there’s an optical input, which means they can be hooked up to a TV for boosting audio like a soundbar, and they have a subwoofer output for adding extra meat if you fancy.
Their other neat trick is the optional battery pack, which offers up to 12 hours of portable playback. You don’t have to carry both speakers around, either; the battery can be bolted to just one that becomes a more rucksack-friendly mono unit. Neat.
In other words, there’s basically nothing not to love about the Ruark MR1 Mk2.
UE Blast
Pros
- Great sound by smart speaker standards
- Rugged design
- Decent battery life
Cons
- Still some issues with Alexa smart features
If you want all the smart features of an Amazon Echo, but with actually listenable audio, then the UE Blast is the speaker for you. It’s the smaller, more affordable option in Ultimate Ears’ current lineup of smart speakers, sitting underneath the larger, more expensive Megablast.
Featuring a robust, waterproof design, insane for its size max volumes, plus built-in Alexa support, the UE Blast easily earns its place as one of this year’s best Bluetooth speakers. The only downsides are that with pricing starting at a whopping £200 it’s fairly pricey, and its bass can be a little warbly for more precise genres.
But even with these compromises it’s a great choice for people looking for an indestructible smart speaker that can be used everywhere from your lounge to the side of a pool. If you’re in the market for a rugged smart speaker then the Blast is one of the best options out there right now.
Buy Now: UE Blast for £129 / $115 from Amazon
Creative Muvo 2C
- Decent bass in a tiny package
- Jammed full of features
- Small, and not too expensive
Cons
- Limited fidelity mids
- Battery lasts only 6 hours
If you’re looking for a compact Bluetooth speaker just to get better sound out of your smartphone, the Creative Muvo 2c is a good choice. At around £40 it’s not going to break the bank yet packs in some useful features including a built-in MP3 player. A passive bass radiator means it still has some serious oomph for a speaker of its size, too.
The speaker is splashproof too, so you don’t have to worry too much about it getting wet. Thanks to Creative smarts, you can even plug the speaker into your laptop over USB and it’ll work as an external soundcard as well as speaker. It’ll sound much better than your laptop’s speakers.
Battery life at around 5-6 hours isn’t the greatest stamina, but it’s understandable considering the Muvo 2c’s small size. You have a choice of four different vibrant colour finishes so you can pick one to your tastes. If you buy two you can pair them in stereo mode, too.
B&O Play Beolit 17
- Huge, well-balanced sound
- Projects a wide 360-degree soundstage
- Looks and feels gorgeous
- Neat design touches
- Excellent battery life
Cons
- Not cheap
B&O products don’t skimp on the design front, but even by their standards the B&O Play Beolit 17 is a really nice thing. There’s a leather handle, plus metal grille and fixings – and a deeply dished rubber top provides a nice place for your phone to sit without slipping off. Everything has been beautifully put together.
It’s not just a pretty face; it’s practical too. The Beolit 17 has a 2200mAh battery, which lasts up to 24 hours from a 2.5-hour charge, and an app even tells you precisely how much juice is left. It charges by USB-C, so you can use the cable from the latest phones and laptops.
As for the sound? It’s huge – far bigger than you’d expect for a box you can carry. It’s also wide, with a 360-degree soundstage. There’s a healthy serving of bass for its size, and minimal distortion even at high volumes.
Basically, one of the best Bluetooth speakers you can buy.
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