The Bose SoundLink Color II has an on-the-nose address for this need with “Party Mode,” but is it good enough to make your gathering the talk of the town? Editor’s note: this Bose SoundLink Color II review was updated on November 17, 2020, to add deals. Users can alternate between source devices, access virtual assistants, and control playback functions from the six-button panel. If you don’t feel like doing the Bluetooth pairing song and dance, you can always connect via the 3.5mm headphone jack located at the speaker’s base. You can pair two devices to the speaker at a time, which is great if you want to keep an ear on incoming calls while streaming music. Bose tries to sneak around this shortcoming with the SoundLink Color II’s passive radiators, which is clever, but results in unclear audio when the volume exceeds 60% or so. Despite how the inaccurate bass response affects the midrange notes, Halsey’s vocal fry is audible during her parts. The SoundLink Color II does a great job of reproducing audio across the spectrum, save for sub-bass notes.
Although this isn’t extremely accurate, it tricks our brain into thinking we’re perceiving all auditory detail: most harmonic resonances fall within the treble range. The ability to sync-up two speakers is great for small to medium gatherings and it gives hosts flexibility when it comes to sound placement. This little speaker has great functionality; plus, being able to update the firmware via the app, gives me hope that connection issues will be resolved. That’s right, this makes it easy to hear music during a pool party, or retrieve the speaker if it was accidentally dropped.
Another great option is the Bose SoundLink Micro: this speaker is about as compact as the Wonderboom series, but takes on a squared off design. Rather than a loop at the top of the speaker, the SoundLink Micro has a strong elastic strap that fits over bike handlebars or a shower bar.
Bose SoundLink Colour review
The mere fact that you can own a Bose product for less than £100 should be enough to ensure the SoundLink Colour makes many a portable-speaker shortlist. Bose undoubtedly has experience in this field and has long traded on the ‘big sound from a little box’ approach. The shallow, rounded shape is also a great fit for rucksacks and suitcases, though some would welcome a bundled carry case – the bodywork does feel a little brittle and we reckon it would quickly pick up the odd scratch. The rechargeable battery, Bose claims, will give music breath for up to eight hours, and the package include a wall charger – one, which folds nice and flat, so should avoid snagging your best nylons next time it inhabits your luggage. This is the type of sonic character that causes visitors, initially, to stop and declare appreciation for your shrewd choice in portable speaker. Take a longer, more considered listen to the Bose and you realise that the bass on offer, while large in size, lacks focus. So Daft Punk’s Random Access Memories opener sounds big, certainly for the size of the Bose speaker, but it also lacks drive. Switch to Bat For Lashes’ In God’s House and the Bose delivers Natasha Khan’s vocals with good levels of detail.
But the moment the band puts the foot back down, that unwelcome, unvarying bass reappears, resulting in a less interesting, less emotional musical ride. It doesn’t quite make good on this deal, however, and audio performance lacks the lower-frequency agility and upper end shine to maintain interest levels.
Bose SoundLink Color II review: A great speaker gets even better
The SoundLink Color II can remember up to eight devices paired to it, while its eight hours of battery life — at medium volume levels — is the same as the original’s. I had no trouble pairing and re-pairing the speaker with an iPhone 6S and Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge — there are voice prompts to guide you through the process. There’s also a companion app for iOS and Android — Bose Connect — that doesn’t do all that much but does allow you to rename the speaker to your liking, disable those aforementioned voice prompts, and check in on your remaining battery life. It had good tonal balance with U2’s “Running to Stand Still” and Eric Dolphy’s jazz track “Sketch of Melba.”
However, tracks where a lot of instruments are playing at once are more challenging for this little guy, and you’ll notice at times that the speaker ratchets back certain frequencies as well as the volume to keep from distorting.
Bose SoundLink Color review: A playful Bluetooth speaker that delivers serious sound for its size
Take the SoundLink Color, the company’s lightest — and least expensive — portable Bluetooth speaker ($130, £120 in the UK, and AU$179 in Australia). Bose says it’s designed “to fit easily into a handbag, knapsack or the palm of your hand,” and it seems like it would be right at home in a kid’s room or the kitchen.
Like the more expensive SoundLink Mini , the speaker plays a lot louder than you think it would for its small size, with a reasonable amount of bass.
Bose has done a good job eking out about the best sound you can expect from a speaker this size and placing it near a wall will help its bass performance.
And finally, although there are two drivers and a bass radiator, there’s virtually no stereo separation, which is par for the course for this type of speaker. The JBL serves up a good helping of bass, but it lacks clarity compared to the SoundLink Color, which is stronger in the midrange and treble.
The vocals-only opening of David Byrne and St. Vincent’s “Ice Age” track sounded great, but then fell down a bit as soon as the instruments kicked in.
Bose Soundlink Color 2 Review
Voordelen Het waterbestendige ontwerp maakt de speaker geschikt voor buitenshuis gebruik. In deze Bose Soundlink Color 2 review leest u alles over de bouwkwaliteit, geluidskwaliteit, kenmerken, specificaties, voor-en nadelen en nog veel meer. Hiernaast bieden wij zoals u gewend bent de scherpste prijzen via onze externe partners. Verbinding: Bluetooth | Levensduur batterij: 8 uur | Aansluitingen: 3,5 mm aux-ingang | Afmetingen (BHD): 13,3 x 12,7 x 5,7 cm | Gewicht: 540 gram Het spatwaterbestendige ontwerp maakt de speaker geschikt voor buitenshuis gebruik. Lees meer over het ontwerp in de volgende alinea van deze Bose Soundlink Color 2 review.
Hierdoor voelt de speaker sterk genoeg aan om stoten en krassen te weerstaan. Bovenaan vind je alle knoppen van de speaker, inclusief afspeelbediening, volumeregeling, power, bluetooth-koppeling en aux-ingang.
Voor oudere apparaten kan Bose naast de microUSB-oplaadpoort ook een hoofdtelefoonaansluiting van 3,5 mm gebruiken. Dit betekent dat je van je telefoon naar een tablet kunt overschakelen zonder het menu te wijzigen, wat een functie is waarvan we hopen dat meer draadloze luidsprekers ze kunnen gebruiken. Lees meer over onze conclusie in de volgende alinea van deze Bose Soundlink Color 2 review.
Bose SoundLink Color II review
The Bose SoundLink Color II offers good sound quality and tons of features in a compact, splash-proof body. Thankfully, however, the Bose SoundLink Color II compromises very little for good sound and, while it’s not perfect, it’s still a great choice for those looking for a wireless speaker to use at the beach or on a hike.
The SoundLink Color II continues is improvements upon the original by adding IPX4 water resistance, which makes it splash proof but not waterproof. You’ll find all of the speaker’s buttons on top, which includes playback controls, volume adjustment, power, Bluetooth pairing and Aux-In.
The SoundLink Color II offers a good dynamic range for a speaker of its size, giving us nice bass extension and impact. But, on the debit side, its 8 hours of battery life is average compared to the competition and we’d like to see Bose make the SoundLink Color III last even longer.
Competitors like the $99 (about £79, AU$129) Fugoo Go offer better water resistance, a unique mounting strap and better battery life (10 hours), but lack features like an aux jack, speakerphone support and NFC. It’s not perfect but if portability, sound quality and features like NFC, multipoint bluetooth and speakerphone support are important to you, we think you’ll love the Bose SoundLink Color II too.
Bose SoundLink Color II Review
Dutchman Jaap Hartsen did just that while he was working for Ericsson in Copenhagen. He named it after a Scandinavian king, King Harald Bluetooth, who united the Scandinavian countries of Norway and Denmark in the 10th century. Not always 100% reliable, it has grown in importance in today’s world of mass communication. This use has extended to us being able to walk about with a small speaker under our arm. A speaker connected up to the world from which we can play our music whenever and wherever we want. This Bose SoundLink Color II Review will look at one such Bluetooth compatible speaker. But before we do, let’s take a look at this company named after its founder Amar Bose. Bose is a US company whose major shareholder is the Massachusetts Institute of Technology or MIT.
Their products are not all USA made, despite claims to the contrary, which seems important to some people.
Bose is expensive because of the massive PR and advertising campaigns they enter into.
So, let’s make up our own mind as we take a look through our Bose SoundLink Color II review… This speaker is an upgrade from the most appreciated and well-liked SoundLink Color I.
It also has a different silicone exterior, which gives it a nice stable feeling to the touch. From the house to the park or to the pool, it will give you quite a big sound packed into a small unit. And it has some good features, a virtual assistant, and a more than decent sound. The original SoundLink Color was a smooth, hard plastic affair with just a little rubber edging.
The obvious one means it can withstand a bit of splashing or a downpour. IPX 7 or 8 are waterproof, which means they can be submerged in water for a brief time.
Bit of water splashed from the pool or a light shower, and it will be fine. The cable is included, but unfortunately, there is no USB AC power plug.
It might not be that much of a problem because any standard phone or other device chargers will probably suffice. It ticks the boxes with regard to its build quality.
This speaker has got that ‘party or round the pool’ feel about it. But if you hope that it will handle a large outdoor bar-b-q, you might be disappointed.
Jazz and simple classical pieces, live music, and soft rock are all fine. Clear and concise, they are delivered with minimum distortion when it is pushed.
That is the price you pay for a compact unit with relatively small speakers.
You will also notice that if there are many instruments playing at the same time, possibly an orchestral piece, the speakers pull back a bit. That isn’t really possible from a speaker this size, but we would not feel let down by its general sound. A little bit of thought is all it takes to make control labels self-explanatory.
They are located on the top of the speaker and are quite visible, but that is not the problem. Pairing is quite efficient and quick and even quicker with NFC devices. Pairing with other Bluetooth phones or devices is then easy for using your playlists or streaming music. There is a memory facility which will remember the last eight numbers you recently connected to.
There is also a drag and drop facility that makes connections easy. Bose SoundLink Color II Pros & Cons
It certainly isn’t a Bluetooth speaker system that is packed with features. The sound is good but is not particularly loud, and the silicone finish is tougher than the original plastic.
Though the rubberized silicone does a good job of attracting dust and other airborne materials. As we said at the beginning, Bose products tend to come up a little more expensive than their equivalents.
It is what it is, a simple Bluetooth speaker and not meant to be anymore.
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