Skip to main content

See your sound with X-mini’s new Bluetooth speaker, the Clear 2.1

There aren’t a lot of Bluetooth speakers that catch our attention any more — there are just too darned many of them to even keep track of. But the latest offering from Singapore-based X-mini, the Clear 2.1, has a little something special. Taking us back to the 80’s with its see-through chassis, the clean and refined speaker is as neat on the inside as it is on the outside, allowing for all users to see the magic happen first hand.

 

The speaker’s unique design, which features flashing lights that bounce along with the music, isn’t the only reason X-mini called its latest speaker the Clear. It also provides a crystal clear sound signature, which does a nice job of illuminating the finer moments in your favorite tracks.

The Clear’s sound is delivered by way of dual ceramic drivers encased in separate enclosures to reduce resonance, flanking a custom 70mm “woofer.” The drivers are powered by separate amplification for each driver. Other features include a touch-capacitive control panel along the top, an on-board speakerphone, and a rechargeable battery with a claimed 6 hours of playback time, which if fairly modest considering much of the Clear’s competition boasts 10-12 hours of charge-free fun.

X-mini claims a frequency response of 40Hz – 20kHz for the speaker, but it appears to trail off long before that in the low end, making us wish for a little more punch in the bass. And while the sound is brilliantly clean on higher quality tracks, it occasionally brings a bit too much bite in the upper mids on lighter productions, or thin-sounding mp3 tracks.

Still, its distinctive design and ample collection of amenities allow the Clear to rise above the fray. Those looking for something a little different this holiday season may want to put this speaker on their shopping list. The X-mini Clear is slated for release sometime in November, with pricing yet to be disclosed.

Ryan Waniata
Former Home Theater & Entertainment Editor
Ryan Waniata is a multi-year veteran of the digital media industry, a lover of all things tech, audio, and TV, and a…
Klipsch brings retro hi-fi vibes to its new desktop speakers
Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 speaker system seen next to a desktop computer.

Klipsch is drawing on its long history of building speakers for the look of its new 2.1 desktop speaker system, the ProMedia Heritage 2.1. Combining two stereo satellites with a wired subwoofer, the system is available in two finishes: Black ash and Walnut, each of which comes clad in fabric speaker grilles that match the company's other Heritage products, which are meant to evoke the look of Klipsch's Heresy speakers from the 1970s. The system is available for $349 via Klipsch.com, though Costco members get an especially attractive discount that brings the price down to $240.

The ProMedia Heritage 2.1 is designed to work with almost any analog or digital input, but its size and shape lends itself especially well to desktop computer use. It has a pair of analog stereo RCA inputs and a USB-A jack for digital audio. There's also a Bluetooth connection for streaming music and audio wirelessly from any device that supports Bluetooth.

Read more
HDMI 2.1 means a lot less than you probably think
HDMI port close up.

The HDMI Licensing Administrator, the group that defines and licenses HDMI standards, has some confusing requirements around the HDMI 2.1 standard. The group did away with HDMI 2.0 in 2017, and display makers should stick with HDMI 2.1 going forward -- even without the essential features of the newer standard.

All of this comes from a statement the HDMI Licensing Administrator sent to TFT Central. In short, the HDMI 2.0 standard "doesn't exist" anymore, and display designers should mark any HDMI 2.x display as supporting HDMI 2.1 as long as they support one new feature. The features of HDMI 2.1, according to the statement, are optional, and display manufacturers are supposed to list the features each display supports.

Read more
Our favorite budget ANC headphones just got even more affordable
Side view of the 1More SonoFlow.

Whether you're wanting to start studying a language, determine if now is the right time to start that business, or just want to finish the chapter in whatever book your eReader is holding, silence is power. ANC, or Active Noise Cancelation, can help you get it. Even without music pumping into your ears the headphones pick up the surrounding sounds in your area and feed you the opposite waves, canceling out the noise.

But the best noise-canceling headphones are typically quite expensive, with premium pairs easily costing $250 or more. If you need some bonus focus but don't have that kind of money lying around for headphones, you'll need to browse through budget headphones instead. Unfortunately, the Venn diagram that cross budget and quality ANC is incredibly narrow, leaving you few choices. One of choices, and our favorite among budget picks, is even more of a clear pick today — it's on sale. Tap the button below to see the 1More SonoFlow at a price of just $60, which is $15 down from their usual $75, or keep reading to see why we think they're the budget ANC headphones for you.

Read more