There are a lot of wireless speakers that offer some kind of support for digital assistants like Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant. However, most of them typically require some kind of a connection to your phone in order for these digital assistants to work. This is because they don’t really support them. It’s your phone doing all of the work and the speaker is acting just as that–an external speaker for your phone. In Bose’s case, however, the Bose Portable Home Smart Speaker is a speaker that properly supports them. This is because both digital assistants are built right in.
You start off by downloading the Bose Music app on your phone. It will walk you through setting up the speaker on your Wi-Fi network. From there you can control various settings, like choosing which digital assistant you want it to use. It really is like having a Google Assistant and an Echo speaker smashed into one device. Only, you can only use one or the other, but not both at the same time.
This is in addition to using your phone to wirelessly stream whatever you want to it via Bluetooth, Spotify Connect, or AirPlay 2.
To make things even better, the speaker is portable and provides up to 12 hours of listening time on a single charge. Perfect for taking out into the backyard or tossing it into the RV for your next trip. As long as you don’t get it too wet (which we’ll cover in a moment).
Design
The size of this speaker isn’t much greater than something like the Logitech Boom speaker from a number of years ago, or half the JBL or Sony speakers of similar shape. Making it quite portable and easy to carry around.
The top of the speaker looks a lot like a Gen 2 or 3 Echo Dot while the rest of the speaker kind of looks like an Echo/Google hybrid of sorts. There is a nice rugged handle to help carry it around with, that is attached coming out the sides of the upper section, and all of your controls are running across the top.
All of the controls are touch-sentitive and offers a number of options to choose from. Of these, you’ll find power, volumes, play/pause (which also acts as track control), microphone mute option, Bluetooth pairing, and a digital assistant button for manually triggering it (if the mic is muted).
Performance
This little speaker can actually put out a decent amout of sound. From high volume levels to an interesting range. Although it isn’t perfect. The low-end (bass) can sometimes be a little too much for the speaker to handle at times, which may limit what you choose to listen to.
Getting a little too crazy with the rap or club genres may result in a little noise coming from the speaker and in some cases, some muddy playback at times. This isn’t always the case as each track can play a little difference depending on what frequencies are getting hit the hardest. We found it to be great with vocals, mid to high percussion instruments, wood instruments, string instruments, and brass. So classical, country, rock, blues, jazz, and other similar genres can sometimes shine pretty good with this speaker. Dubstep, not so much.
The highs and mids are great for the size of this speaker. They perform quite nicely, which leads to the enjoyment of the above-mentioned genres.
Microphone performance is also pretty good, making it a strong solution for using it with your favorite digital assistant (well, assuming your favorite is either Google or Alexa. It performed just as well as any other digital assistant speaker.
It does come with some water resistance, but this is where we mentioned not getting it wet. It is IPX4 rated, but that doesn’t say too much compared to many of the “waterproof” options out there. We prefer to see IP67 through IP8 when it comes to water resistance and portable speakers. However, this could have a lot to do with the mic array running across the top. It is something to consider though if you spend a lot of time in or around water.
It charges via USB-C, and it does come with the cable. There is also an optional cradle you can buy ($29) that would allow you to charge it wirelessly. The cradle is perfect if you find yourself using it a lot at home. This way, it can charge (or remain charged) while you listen to it there, allowing it to be ready for when you need to grab it and run out the door.
Finally, it is available in both Triple Black and Lux Silver (a white/silver theme).
Our Conclusion
We do like this speaker a lot. It sounds great for its size and has a lot of volume that it can put out. The mids are nice and punchy and the highs are crisp and clear. The lows are plentiful, although can distort a little depending on what you are listening to (sometimes, the bass sounds absolutely fantastic for its size). Overall, it does seem like something you’d find from Bose.
The price is the only thing that throws us off. An MSRP of $349 is a bit much for this speaker. Even having Wi-Fi and digital asssistant support. It is just too expensive for the option you have to pick from in the market already. This throws us off quite a bit and has the most affect on the score in the end.
| Available from the following retailers: | | | | | | |
| Our Rating | Average Price* $349.00 |
*Average price is based on the time this article was published
Specifications:
- Speaker: 7.54″ H x 4.69″ W x 4.09″ D (2.34 lb)
- Materials: Seamless aluminum grille, Top pad with buttons, Convenient and durable woven carry handle
- Rechargeable lithium-ion battery
- Up to 12 hours
- Up to 24 hours in standby mode
- Charging time: Approximately 4 hours
- USB-C cable (or optional cradle)
- Bluetooth: v4.2 (up to 30ft)
- Microphone array for voice pick-up built-in around the top control pad
- Button controls: Power on, Bluetooth, volume, play/pause, microphone off, voice action button
- App: Bose Music app
- Water resistance rating: IPX4
What’s in the Box:
- Bose Portable Smart Speaker
- Power cord
- AC power adapter
- Quick start guide
- Owner’s guide
Co-Authors: Ryan S.
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