Tag Archives: wireless speaker

Belkin’s 2-in-1 wireless charger comes with a built-in Bluetooth speaker to fuel your Netflix binge sessions

Posted on by

Raise the battery level and drop some tunes!

Belkin’s BOOST↑CHARGE™ Wireless Charging Stand + Speaker turns that smartphone into a makeshift multimedia device that you can comfortably watch Netflix on… without having to reach for the charging cable or your AirPods. The wireless charger lets you easily dock your phone in place, while its upward-firing Bluetooth speaker and built-in microphone take care of the audio end of things, making it perfect for anything from video calls to binge sessions, and from watching that recipe tutorial on YouTube to following dance or workout videos online. Modeled on Belkin’s BOOST↑UP wireless charging stand, the BOOST↑CHARGE lets you dock your phone in both landscape as well as portrait. Providing 10W of power, the stand fits phones of all makes and sizes and the fact that there’s now a built-in speaker on the back just makes things so much better! (The BOOST↑UP notably didn’t have any speaker)

The BOOST↑CHARGE comes in two colors (white and black) and is available for $49.99 on Belkin’s site. Keep it on your desk, nightstand, kitchen counter, or mantelpiece. The BOOST↑CHARGE gives you a wireless charger and a multimedia device set-up all wrapped into one gadget!

Designer: Belkin

The dual-purpose stand holds your phone in vertical as well as horizontal orientations. Its universal design supports any phone and the charger works with any wireless-charging-enabled smartphone. There’s no MagSafe on this, although keep it on the stand and it automatically aligns with the charging coils.

A speaker module right behind the phone is what sets the BOOST↑CHARGE apart from the ocean of wireless charges on the market. A 40mm audio driver on the inside gives the speaker punchy audio (which is more than what I can say for most wireless chargers), and a built-in microphone offers crystal clear audio input, allowing you to even use the BOOST↑CHARGE for video calls too.

The Belkin BOOST↑CHARGE wireless charger + speaker comes in 2 colors, and with a 2-year limited warranty on the device.

This Japanese wireless speaker uses a LED show to elevate listening to music into an experience!

Posted on by




We’re all the DJs of our own dance parties in quarantine. Whether we’re at that local jazz bar with Tuesday open mic nights or those rave-filled after-parties following a late Friday night, we’re all pretending we’re on the dancefloor. Until we can get back on the real one, take it from me, a solid speaker setup is crucial for solo Saturday night interpretative dance routines. Thankfully, Japanese design and manufacturing company, Balmuda has the portable speaker with surround sound we’ve been searching for to keep our quarantine dance parties going.

The Balmuda Speaker does a lot more than just play music too. Starting from the top, Balmuda’s 77mm full-range speaker was designed to reproduce realistic vocals and instrumentals the way they were made to be heard in the studio. The speaker’s drive unit was built to deliver a deep, robust cloud of sound with bass heard from below, providing a thick blanket of sound for the vocals to sit on and remain centered, while the treble hangs overhead, making each sound experience fill up every room. The speaker’s sound clarity was achieved through fully-enclosed, vacuum tubing made of organic glass, that traps air to act as a spring, delivering a bouncy and crisp sound with each play.

Then, while your music plays, an LED light show emanates from each speaker’s center to mimic the lights from live musical performances. The speed of lights synchronizes with each song played and can be manually adjusted to fit the mood of any hangout or dance party. The sound of a song is converted to pops of light at a speed of 0.004 seconds, so no matter which song is on queue, Balmuda Speaker automatically adjusts its light show. The Balmuda Speaker can either be connected via BlueTooth or AUX input, and its Live Light mode has three different settings: ‘Beat’ for uptempo songs, ‘Ambient’ for a relaxed mood, and ‘Candle’ for slower songs.

Designer: Balmuda

Click Here to Buy Now!

Balmuda Speaker features an LED light show that syncs up to your music no matter the song.

For slower tunes, Balmuda Speaker can be adjusted to act like a candle, just like live music in candlelit jazz bars.

A vacuum tube constructed from organic glass helps to deliver crisp audio.

Balmuda can be taken anywhere, even outdoor hangouts at the park.

The sophisticated design and subtle elegance of Balmuda helps in making it fit into any room.

The speaker’s 7mm full-range speaker offers 360-degree sound to fill up the entire room.

Balmuda comes with the option for Bluetooth connectivity, offering wireless capabilities.

Also equipped with an AUX input terminal, Balmuda can play, music from any source.

The rear panel of Balmuda comes with three options for different Livelight shows: Beat, Ambient, and Candle.

Sony’s absurd electric-shaver-shaped wireless speaker can fill your entire room with rich sound

Posted on by




When you think of smart speakers, Sony is a brand that’s name really doesn’t come to mind. The company never really invested its efforts in the smart-speaker game, or even in developing its own Voice AI the way Samsung and other Asian tech companies did. As fashionably late as Sony may be to the party, at least it knows how to make a grand entrance. The company just unveiled its series of premium wireless speakers, the SRS-RA3000 and the SRS-RA5000… and while those names aren’t really catchy, you could just call the SRS-RA5000 the shaver speaker, because well, just look at it.

The speaker’s design is a function of its audio driver layout. It features a 70mm subwoofer in its base, and six full-range 46mm drivers laid out around the sides and the top (quite similar to Amazon’s Echo Studio and the now obsolete Apple HomePod). Together, these drivers push out sound upward and outward, creating what Sony describes as “ambient room-filling sound”. Sony’s even outfitted the speaker with two microphones, but they aren’t for your voice. Rather, the microphones help the speaker automatically calibrate its sound based on where you place it in the room, allowing for it to adjust how the speaker throws sound when placed in a corner of the space versus the center. Although, if you do want your smart speaker to respond to voice commands, the SRS-RA5000 is compatible with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa.

Sony’s speaker works over Bluetooth and WiFi, and is even compatible with Spotify Connect and Chromecast Audio. The speakers are optimized for Sony’s 360 Reality Audio format, which can ‘upscale’ regular tracks to make them sound more rich and immersive, although this feature currently works only with selected platforms like Tidal, Deezer, and Amazon Music HD. For other streaming services and offline music sources, Sony’s thrown in its DSEE technology which greatly improves the sound of compressed audio or lossy MP3s. Oh yes, I did say offline music, because the speaker even sports its own 3.5mm jack that lets you hook it up to analog audio sources like your iPod, a turntable, or even your TV! The Sony SRS-RA5000 is available for pre-order and is expected to ship as early as the first week of April… although it’s difficult to see past that electric-shaver-inspired design, and its $700 price tag!

Designer: Sony

Bang & Olufsen’s $2,000 ‘portable’ speaker is designed to last decades

Posted on by
Bang & Olufsen’s audio gear ranges from the opulent to the functional. The company has a line of speakers that encompasses everything from soundbars and pocket-sized Bluetooth units to modular wall sculptures and expensive showpieces. Today, the...

Two years in, Sony wants to bring 360 Reality Audio to the masses

Posted on by
At CES 2019, Sony had a glass room in its massive trade show booth. In the middle of the space was a small table with a single speaker resting on top. At first glance, I could tell the device had multiple drivers, as three were clearly visible from t...

The Elvis is the cutest retro-inspired Bluetooth speaker I’ve seen

Posted on by

With a retro name and a personality to match, the Xiaomi Elvis Atomic is adorably small, and is styled to look like a miniature memento or trophy, rather than a Bluetooth speaker. Its design pulls inspiration from the turntable, and looks like it belongs somewhere in Fallout 76, according to Mike Chua.

The tiny yet powerful speaker comes in a military olive green and has a speaker grille where vinyl would be. Armed with a simple on/off switch, a knob for volume control, and 7 hours of playback, this CES Innovation Award winner is cute, capable, and memorable all wrapped into one package!

Designer: Xiaomi