The SoundCore 2 is curvy around the edges, reminding us of a swish pencil case, and is available in blue and red as well as the black of our review sample. There’s a built-in mic for talking to Siri, Google Assistant or for making hands-free calls, plus a 20m Bluetooth range. Once run-in (yes, that’s worth doing even at this end of the audio scale), this little curvy cuboid is initially quite fun – there’s plenty going on through the midrange and it’s well-balanced. Lethal Bizzle’s Fester Skank doesn’t come across as thin or insubstantial through the midrange as we tap our feet along quite happily.
However, despite the apparently bass-enhancing BassUp technology, the two-way design (each driver is powered by 6W of amplification) doesn’t offer much in the way of bass depth. Dynamics are also an issue; Lethal’s bolshy tone is present, but the detail required to fully deliver his emotional skittishness isn’t quite there. There’s a diminished space between notes – an absence of the kind of layers that would allow our ears to celebrate nuances between vocals and instruments.
Anker Soundcore 2 Review
Unlike the previous model, it supports True Wireless Stereo (TWS), so you can pair two Upgraded Soundcore 2 speakers together to create a stereo pair.
Anker SoundCore 2 review: A good, cheap wireless speaker
Cosmetically speaking, the 11.2-ounce (318g) SoundCore 2 has a straightforward, low-frills design that’s highlighted by a soft-to-the-touch rubberized finish and nice, big buttons on top for power, volume control, pause/playback and Bluetooth connectivity. A rubber gasket covers the USB charging port and auxiliary input, which allows you to connect non-Bluetooth devices.
It plays bigger than its size would indicate but you’re still aware it’s a small speaker when listening to it — the sound just doesn’t comes across as all that rich or expansive.
To be clear, this is par for the course for these little speakers, which tend to be strongest in midrange and have a harder time resolving complicated tracks that involve more instruments.
Anker SoundCore 2 review
The Anker SoundCore 2 offers a ton of features for the price like water resistance, great battery life and a rugged body. The Anker SoundCore 2 offers a ton of features for the price like water resistance, great battery life and a rugged body.
Take, for example, the Anker SoundCore 2, an affordable, durable Bluetooth speaker that proves you don’t have to spend a lot of money to get robust-sounding audio. For around $50 (£46, about AU$63), the SoundCore 2 gives you a staggering 24 hours of battery life, a ruggedized and water resistant body, and much better sound than your phone’s speaker.
Anker won’t win any accolades for the SoundCore 2’s design; it’s a generic-looking black bar with power, playback, pairing and volume controls on the top. The body of the Anker SoundCore 2 is coated in a grippy matte black rubber, which is nice to the touch but quickly shows fingerprints.
In terms of size, the Anker SoundCore 2 measures in at 165mm x 54mm x 45mm, which makes it small enough to toss into a bag without fear of it breaking and not too large that it takes up a ton of space. The speaker sounds plenty loud listening in a quiet room but once it has to compete with ambient noises, you’ll quickly find the SoundCore 2’s volume limit.
Anker Soundcore 2 Bluetooth luidspreker (Zwart)
Het is echter in een enkel geval mogelijk dat door omstandigheden de bezorging vertraagd is.
Anker Soundcore 2 Review
In our modern lives, we’ve got so many options for listening to music on the go—from super-tiny true wireless earbuds to perfectly passable stereo speakers in our smartphones. For a fraction of the price of more popular options from brands like JBL and Ultimate Ears, the Soundcore 2 at Amazon gives a reasonably loud, totally portable, and surprisingly sleek little Bluetooth speaker.
The cylindrical, Pringles-can design of JBL’s top-selling portable speaker has become the go-to standard for these kinds of devices, but the Soundcore 2 goes for a rectangular chassis with very minimal accents and nice, softly rounded corners.
In fact, the only visual aspect that could even be considered a “design choice” is the light gray Anker logo emblazoned on the front grille of the speakers.
The two LED indicator lights (for Bluetooth pairing and on/off) are very small and not particularly bright, and even the control buttons are just rubber punch outs on the top. That’s not a huge deal during normal, indoor use, but when you’re outside, passing the speaker around a patio table or tossing it on a sandy towel, you’re definitely going to pick up some blemishes. And that’s what you get here—a reasonably thin, totally portable little speaker that will slip inside a backpack, laptop bag, or into the center console of a car without taking up too much real estate. But, because the entire shell of the device is comprised of a thick, plastic ridge that’s soft and rubberized on the outside, it acts as both a protective case and a shock-absorbing mechanism.
One gripe on the construction is that the small rubber feet that stabilize the speaker when it’s sitting on a table actually don’t seem to be fastened into the chassis—one of mine fell out leaving a deep hole in the build.
This isn’t the biggest deal because the outer rubber shell is grippy enough for a table on its own, but this does leave a crevice for dirt and debris.
What’s more is, even though this speaker sports IPX7 waterproofing on paper—enough to handle any amount of precipitation, and enough to submerge the device in water—that hole underneath that became exposed when one of the feet came off seems pretty vulnerable to moisture. Anker pins the frequency response at 70Hz to 20kHz, which notably leaves out about 50Hz on the low end—to be expected with drivers measuring only a few inches.
There’s plenty of mid-to-high detail so podcasts, singer-songwriter music, and basic pop/top 40 will be nicely supported, even though I’d have liked to hear more volume (each speaker maxes out at 6W of handling) and higher-definition Bluetooth codecs included. While Anker’s Soundcore umbrella offers headphones and speakers for a great price, the brand might be best known for its chargers and portable batteries.
A full day’s continuous listening time on a single charge, excellent sound quality, and an impressive build makes this a great speaker even for double the price.
The Anker Soundcore 2 has a host of reviews and has been around long enough that its reliability isn’t suspect, but the Treblab HD7 (view at Amazon) is a nice option for those who want something a little louder.
Be First to Comment