Best Portable Speakers for Sound Quality (2024)

It's rated to deliver up to 20 hours of continuous playtime on a single charge, depending on your usage habits, which is longer than many premium models.

Unfortunately, it takes around four hours to fully charge and lacks a fast charging function, unlike some competitors in this range.

The speakers support Bluetooth 5.1 protocols, which is impressive considering the sub-$200 price, and they provide a more stable and efficient wireless connection than previous models.

It also offers Bluetooth multi-point pairing functionality, allowing you to connect with multiple audio sources simultaneously and seamlessly switch between them.

The speaker is wrapped in a durable mesh fabric, providing an impressive IP67 water resistance rating, so you can safely use it poolside or at the beach.

It also has rubberized feet on each end for added stability and impact resistance. However, the ends are somewhat angled, causing it to lean when placed upright.

It features a compact cylindrical design, weighing only around two pounds, and can easily fit into a bag or backpack for enhanced portability.

The JBL Charge 5 is easy to use and offers an intuitive setup process.

The battery life is really good, lasting 24 hours, while many competitors are in the 10-hour range.

You can charge your phone or other devices with the built-in power bank.

With the base mode and the LED lights at full brightness, you'd probably get around 15 to 18 hours.

You have multipoint, so you're able to connect it to two devices at once.

PartyCast 2.0 allows you to pair the Boom 2 with other Soundcore PartyCast speakers.

There's also a built-in speakerphone, so if you're connected to the speaker and happen to receive a phone call, you can answer it directly through the speaker.

It's also IPX7 waterproof and floatable, so the music keeps playing when it's in the water.

It's made of plastic polycarbonate, and the grill is also made of plastic.

I've dropped this a few times, and it's still like new.

It weighs just under 4 lbs, so it's very lightweight.

You have a built-in handle for easy portability.

It's super small, so it's pretty easy to take around when traveling to the beach, the pool, or anywhere.

Sonos says you will get a full 24 hours from a complete charge, which is more than double the previous 11 hours.

We turned off both power-saving modes to try and achieve minimum battery life and found that the Move lasted 22 hours at 50% volume over Wi-Fi.

We also tested the speaker's recharge time and found that it took just over 2 hours to go from dead to 100% battery on the charging base.

The original Move already ticked a lot of boxes, but we have upgraded to Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0 in this new generation.

You can't use this as a Bluetooth speakerphone, but I think that's actually a good thing.

One thing you don't get is Google Assistant, which is not available on the Move 2 for whatever reason.

The Move 2 has definitely passed our drop test.

This speaker also has an IP56 rating, which means it is not fully waterproof.

The built-in handle on the back is quite good, and I haven't dropped it yet.

The built-in handle on the back is quite good, and I haven't dropped it yet.

If you really want something portable, go for the Sonos Roam. It weighs less than a pound.

The Move 2 is designed to be portable, featuring a built-in handle that makes it easy to transport.

The Boombox 3 has a 72.6 watt-hour battery, just like the Boombox 2.

In real-world use, with the Boombox 3 playing at 80%, I have found that it is good for about 8 hours of playback time.

Now, when it comes to Bluetooth connectivity, the Boombox 3 is using Bluetooth 5.3.

The JBL Boombox 3 uses JBL’s PartyBoost.

Construction-wise, I've had it for a year, and there is not a scratch on it.

It's made to be durable, man; it's got good build materials.

In terms of portability, it's portable enough for you to carry around town for a while. However, it's not something you can take on a hike.

If you don't have a car, you can rent one for holidays, but you can't get it for a one-day short trip.

Luckily, the Motion 300 offers quite a bit. While Anchor quotes a playback time of 13 hours with the BassUp feature off, we were able to squeeze a whopping 16 hours and 15 minutes of playback time.

Soundcore has also stated that this device will offer up to 13 hours of playback from a single charge, just beating the Bosonic Flex's 12 hours in this department.

The Motion 300 connects quite quickly via Bluetooth 5.3. It also supports low latency audio streams with LDAC and AAC codecs for high-quality audio.

We have Bluetooth 5.3 connectivity with multi-device pairing, which is great.

The Motion 300 is wrapped in a durable rubberized finish. It has a metal speaker grill and an IPX7 protection rating.

This thing literally took it all in stride. There is a slight scuff here and a tiny dent there, but apart from that, this thing really, really took it all, and none of that affected the sound quality whatsoever.

The Motion 300 is designed to perform in three different positions: standing, laying, and hanging from, you know, like a tree branch or something.

It's 0.2 kilos heavier than something like the Bose Sounding Flex, for example, which is a little surprising considering their nearly identical form factors.

The battery life of this device is 12 hours.

It now has an internal 3.6-volt, 4700 milliamp-hour lithium-ion battery.

You can also charge your phone in a pinch.

This device uses Bluetooth version 5.3.

It features true wireless stereo, allowing you to pair multiple devices.

Bluetooth 5.0 versus 5.3: I honestly don't really care.

It is IP67 dust and water-resistant.

This part feels similar to a really tightly woven thread.

The speaker has an IP67 rating.

This speaker is perfect for your bike, and it also has a little strap right here.

The new StormBox Micro2 is slightly larger than the original model.

It fits, you know, roughly in the palm of your hand.

The battery life is rated at 12 hours at moderate volume levels, which is pretty good.

It takes just four hours to charge via USB-C.

It appears to have lasted 14 hours and 20 minutes, which is slightly longer than the stated battery life from Bose.

I didn't have any problems with connectivity; it was generally rock-solid.

This is strictly a Bluetooth speaker.

Interestingly, this speaker uses Bluetooth 4.2, which is not the latest Bluetooth technology available.

The speaker is IP67 dustproof and waterproof; it also floats.

It is designed to be quite durable and can withstand small drops.

The noise on impact made me genuinely think, especially when it landed face down, that the whole grill was going to come off. But to be honest with you, it looks in really good shape after those couple of drops.

It is designed to be propped up horizontally, laid down flat, or hung vertically by its integrated loop.

It weighs just over a pound, or 0.45 kilograms.

The form factor might be a drawback for someone who prefers a more cylindrical shape.

Sonos still advertises 10 hours of playback with the Roam 2, which is slightly less than some of its competitors.

You can charge it either with the supplied USB-C to USB-C cable or by using wireless Qi charging.

The puck costs an eye-watering £49, and it's not even cheaper when bought as a set.

The Roam 2 now features a dedicated Bluetooth button on the back of the unit and no longer requires you to download the Sonos app just to establish the initial Bluetooth connection.

Unfortunately, it was the same case with the Roam 2 once I was finally able to connect via Wi-Fi.

The Roam 2 connects via the slightly outdated Bluetooth 5.2 and supports only SBC and AAC codecs.

The Roam 2 retains its IP67 rating, making it both dustproof and waterproof.

Sonos claims that this unit is drop-proof, but it doesn't have the extended rubber bumpers like those on the Sony.

It's drop-resistant, which, let's be honest, is disconcertingly vague.

It's compact enough to carry anywhere, and I mean anywhere, since it has an IP67 rating for water and dust resistance.

There are no ropes or strap attachments dangling from anywhere, so it's still very packable while looking nice and sleek.

It's slightly bigger than the original Roam, but the difference is not noticeable, and it weighs around 430g.

Anker claims that you can get up to 24 hours of use on a single charge.

In my realistic test at 75% volume, I achieved about 20 hours of playback before needing to charge it again.

You have a USB-C charging port, but I don't see any sort of headphone jack.

Bluetooth 5 definitely provides it with the most modern-day standards in terms of general communication.

This device has an IPX7 rating, meaning it can easily withstand a splash in the shower.

Its design is rugged, and it can definitely survive falls from arm's length.

With that said, it weighs less than one pound despite the choice of materials.

It is very light to carry around.