Ultimate Ears Boom Wireless Bluetooth Speaker - Black

So first off this really would be a 4.5 star review but figured I'd give UE a 5 star on Amazon because they are really, really close with this. Like many I did some research on portable Bluetooth speakers and didn't stumble upon the UE Boom until late and I'm glad I did.I had originally bought a Soundfreaq and had it for an hour before returning it. While I'm not expecting much bass out of a small Bluetooth speaker, you need a little kick. I listen to mostly electronic, bass-heavy music so the Sounfreaq was out straight away. Yes it's half the price, but buy cheap, buy twice.If you're reading this and are considering a BT speaker in the $200 range, by now you've probably figured out it's really down to the Boom and the Soundlink Mini. If you haven't yet, you will soon.While I haven't listened to the Mini, I have an old Bose Sound Dock and listening to the Soundlink in the store, I'm sure the Mini delivers good sound, probably better than the Boom, at least bass-wise which is what I'm after.Now, I have the old Bose dock which sounds good, but it's 2013 and Bluetooth tech has made strides and let's face it I can't be having my phone docked in a Bose when I'm at a party, those things were made for iPods. Many of you are probably like me and in a similar boat. And like me you were used to the nice solid bass the dock produced.But whenever making a decision like this you have to figure out what your needs are and what you're willing to sacrifice.For me, the reason I was in the market was I'm going on a vacation and wanted something portable with a small footprint that could still deliver sound. I knew I'd have to sacrifice some low-end bass and that was that.I was planning on purchasing a Mini to compare, but honestly, the Boom is so good I don't even have to bother. Here's my list of pros:Form FactorVery small footprint. I almost thought the package was wrong when it arrived as I had listened to it at Best Buy (sorry you didn't have any in stock, guys; your loss is Bezos's gain!) and in my mind it was larger (I was probably just remembering the sound!). While I've only had this for the night, I'm sure I'll have no problem tucking it in a backpack or sticking in a water bottle holder and being on my way.One negative it's marketed as being able to stand vertical or horizontal, but laying flat it kind of rolls, not optimal.Big, Big SoundWhat the Boom lacks in true booming bass, it more than makes up for in sheer volume. I mean, this is LOUD. When I was listening at Best Buy, I had to have it only at 50% and even that felt way too loud. And as far as bass, certain songs sound better than others. If I'm listening to some super low end trap like RL Grime or crazy bass heavy stuff like James Blake or Jamie XX, yeah there is no way this thing can hit those frequencies. But listening some 4/4 techno or dance with standard dance music bass kick drum, it has enough that you know it's there.But man, it just fills out the room. You honestly have to hear this to believe the sound is coming out of this little tiny thing. It does sound a little harsh when it gets up past 70%, I can't imagine listening at that level unless there is a lot of background noise, but it will get a party started. I think I saw someone else here refer to it as a sound bomb or sound grenade, and that's an apt description. This thing is the thermal detonator of Bluetooth speakers.Simplicity but with Attention to DesignDead simple. Easy sync. Only two big volume buttons. Micro USB. A little hook if you need to hang it. Line in for non-BT devices. A battery meter shows up in your iPhone info bar at the top of the phone when you connect. It's the little things. No bloat here, but also nothing I find missing.PersonalityLooking at the color schemes and marketing photos, it's obvious the market UE is going after here, they want the mobile party crowd and they hit their mark. Just little details like pressing the buttons gives you a cool volume announcement. You get your choice of colors. The app lets you name the device, which while stupid is fun. And it makes neat little drum sounds when pairing. The USB is an easy-to-spot yellow and flat cord, again with portability and practicality in mind. Little things.RuggedWhile I haven't taken it on the road yet, I can already tell by the build that this will be a rugged piece of tech. You can get it wet, and it just has a solid feel that you won't worry about it knocking about in a bag or getting kicked over at a party or getting sand on it at the beach. That was a deciding factor against the Mini: it just looks too nice. I'd want it just sitting on my deck or in my office, I wouldn't want it on a boat or a on the beach or who knows where else.Battery LifeHaven't put this to the test yet but I'm going to charge fully in morning and go to work and leave my iPad at half volume (which is plenty loud!) and we'll see where it is at the end of the day. Everything I hear though is you can get near the 15 hours if you aren't cranked.Now as far as the cons:Limited Low EndThis has been addressed. But also, I find it does get harsh and shrilly at higher volumes but you'll probably only need to go that high at a party with competing noise. If you really need serious bass, you're just going to have to give up size and portability and go with a bigger player.Missed Opportunity with CaseThe case it comes in comes sooo close to doubling as a carrying case, but ultimately the cap doesn't fit right and it's too cheap looking. I'd gladly have paid an extra $10 if they made a slightly upgraded version that had a better case. As it is there is nothing on the market to carry it in, I'll probably have to get a bottle holder.Honestly, those are the only negatives I can think of. End of the day, this is the device for you if you're looking for a speaker that:-Is Portable and easy to fit somewhere-You might get it wet or bump it-You'll be taking it on the road or to parties-Delivers loud sound without booming base-Will allow you to listen to music all day when you're away from a chargeI'd look elsewhere if you:-Won't be taking a speaker on the road and just want something for the deck or office. Mini is probably for you.-Need bigger bass sound. You probably want a bigger speaker.Honestly, I had only thought I needed a speaker for the occasional trip or pool side party, but I have a feeling the Boom will be so easy to carry around I'll take it everywhere I might possibly use it. I used to debate if I was going somewhere if I was going to lug my Bose dock with me, but not anymore. Without a second thought I'll grab the Boom and that'll be that. I haven't been this happy with a tech purchase in a long, long time, and I buy a lot of stupid crap. :)

First off, I have looked around stores and Amazon for over a week searching for a Bluetooth speaker. When I found this one, I read up on EVERYTHING. I browsed several of the reviews and saw that even the though the majority were 5 stars, the 1-2 star ones were quite abundant--which was a red flag to me. Many of those reviews said things relating to the battery life and the speaker stopped working after a few weeks of use. These reviews really hindered my decision-making process. The look and design of this speaker was everything I wanted, but I did not wan to spend $200 on a speaker that wouldn't last or hold a charge long.But I gave in! I purchased a UE Boom having read several of the negative reviews and found that I was one of the fortunate ones! This speaker is absolutely amazing. It is very loud, and the design is spectacular. It is the perfect speaker for being outdoors and moving about! Being the careful person I am, I also purchased the Molded Hardshell Case from Amazon (Surf To Summit vendor). Although I did not like the price of it, it is definitely well-built and fits the UE Boom very well and you can listen to music even with the case on without any degradation in quality. I have no regrets buying the UE Boom or the case for it! I definitely recommend both.When I first turned on the speaker, it had 50% battery life. I started playing music at about 50% volume on my iPod and had the speaker volume around 75%. I was shocked at the battery life. I played it from 9:00am until 8:00pm, and it went from 50% to 20%. After that, I charged the speaker back up to 100%, which took about 3 hours. Then I went ahead and tested it for real! I turned the volume on the speaker to full, and listened to different volume levels on my iPod. After hours of testing I've found that keeping the speaker volume at full, and your mp3 device around 50% volume, this speaker will lose 10% charge after about 70-80 minutes give or take. This is about 13 hours or so for the battery life, which I feel is great considering how loud 50% is on your device with the speaker on full blast.I took it outside to the tennis court to test the battery life with the volume turned up louder as well as testing the Bluetooth distance and quality. I had the speaker all the way up, and my iPod around 75-80% volume. This is where the battery life drained faster, as after testing it for 5 hours, the battery charge went from 90% to 30%. So if you plan on keeping the volume high and cranking the tunes, plan on losing about 12-15% of battery charge per hour. --As for the Bluetooth, the company claims 50 feet. Well, with my phone (Moto X) and my UE Boom, I stood 100+ feet from the speaker in clear sight (end of double tennis court to the other) and it was getting perfect reception. Now, that's in clear sight with nothing blocking the path. I have played games of tennis with my phone in my pocket playing music and have not had any issues with it cutting out, with the distance during play ranging from 10 feet to 60 feet away. I also tested it in my house and saw that the range was around 30ft before it started cutting out. But that was going through walls and such.So in conclusion, I am exceptionally happy with my purchase. This thing gets 2 thumbs up, 5/5 stars! I'm upset that 2 weeks after I purchased it, the price dropped $20! But what can you do... I downloaded the UE Boom app for my Android phone, and it works very well. You can name the speaker, tweak the EQ settings or choose from a couple presets, and also check the battery level.One last thing, the battery is NOT REPLACEABLE. There are instructions that come with it that shows the user how to remove the li-ion battery that is inside to dispose of it, but Logitech (Ultimate Ears) has not produced any replacement batteries for this speaker. I believe they say this battery should last about 500 charges or so they say. I sure hope it can last that long! I only charge this thing like twice a week tops, so that's years of use for me if it will last the 500 charges. Maybe down the road Logitech will get enough complaints about not having replacement batteries for this speaker and start selling them. Until then, I just hope that this battery will last me a very long time!