Bose announces a Jambox competitor, the SoundLink Mini

By Mike Flacy June 5, 2013

Check out our review of the Bose SoundLink Mini bluetooth speaker.

Unveiled at an event in New York City yesterday, speaker manufacturer Bose announced a new mobile speaker product that provides the same functionality as the Jawbone JAMBOX or the Ultimate Ears BOOM. Retailing at a $200 price point, the Bose SoundLink Mini is seven inches wide, two inches high and a bit over two inches deep. Covered with a metal housing which brings the total weight to 1.5 pounds, the SoundLink Mini can stream audio from a Bluetooth-enabled laptop, smartphone, tablet or standard audio device like an iPod Touch. If you live in a home with multiple devices or family members, the SoundLink Mini will remember up to six devices without having to re-sync over Bluetooth.

Rather than plugging the speaker into a computer or electrical adapter with a mini-USB cable, the SoundLink Mini comes with a charging cradle and proprietary AC adapter. After charging completely, the speaker has a battery life of approximately seven hours before requiring a recharge that takes a full three hours.

It’s important to note that competitors advertise significantly longer battery life. For instance, the Jawbone JAMBOX lasts up to ten hours on a single charge and the Ultimate Ears BOOM lasts up to 15 hours before recharging. In addition, the user is forced to travel with the SoundLink Mini AC adapter if they want to take the speaker with them on vacation.

If a Bose customer doesn’t like the classic silver look to the housing, the company will be selling soft covers in blue, green and orange to protect the SoundLink Mini. The device is currently available for preorder on the Bose site and the company is expected to start shipping the speaker at the start of July 2013. Besides the Jawbone JAMBOX and Ultimate Ears BOOM, other competing products to consider in the mobile speaker space include the Logitech UE Boombox, Beats by Dr. Dre Pill and the JBL Charge.

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