Upgraded Anker Soundcore Boost Bluetooth Speaker, Balanced Sound, BassUp, 12H Play, USB-C, IPX7 Waterproof, Custom EQ via APP, Wireless Stereo Pairing

Really nice packaging, build quality, materials and weight, the latter boding well for decent speaker drivers and battery stamina. I was a bit worried that the cloth finish might be delicate, but it doesn't seem to be, instead rather cosmetically stuck on to a hard and robust undersurface. The all-black finish is smart enough but a bit stark; some grey detailing or cloth would improve the looks still further, and perhaps help make the buttons a little clearer in poor light. The user guide is minimal in the extreme, and lacking in one or two important points, but it's still enough to get started, and the speaker arrived with enough battery charge to get going immediately. A few weeks ago I tried the Akai Dynamx A58048SG, a Bluetooth speaker with a comparable full retail price (though frequently discounted), and it went back as unfit for purpose. In reviewing Anker's SoundCore Boost, comparisons with that are somewhat inevitable.Bluetooth pairing via tapping with NFC was painless (subsequent attempts have been variable in success, but probably the phone playing up), and the sound quality was immediately gratifying, with and without the bass-boost function. Unlike the Akai, which mixed its Bluetooth input down to mono for some reason, the sound was demonstrably stereo and (unlike the Akai in aux-in mode) left and right were the correct way round. Hard to prove if the output is really 20W, but it's certainly loud, and it's perfectly full-sounding at lower levels too. When connected via the aux-in (you'll need your own cable!) overall levels seemed a bit lower, and as I intend to use this as an ad-hoc instrument amp as well as a Bluetooth speaker I'm glad I went for one of the more powerful of the economically available options. There are slightly excessive power-up/down sound effects but they are nowhere near as obtrusively loud as on the Akai. Volume control is by push button with no visible feedback (the battery gauge could be re-purposed while adjusting), and could be slightly more responsive. I would prefer a rotary/slide control, but those are unusual on Bluetooth speakers for some reason. Having fully electronic volume control it would be possible to memorise the level per input, but the speaker does not do so. Although there's a skip track function (press "Play" twice quickly) there's no backwards counterpart unlike on the Akai and other speakers, but in fairness most will control that from their phone anyway.Doubling up as a power bank, charging the speaker is unusually informative, with a clear four-LED battery gauge (the Akai had a single and barely visible LED), though it gets a bit uncertain towards the 100% end. This gauge also lights up briefly at other times in operation, and additionally when the speaker is being used as a power bank. The BatON Android app usefully reports battery level on the phone. The power bank functionality seems a bit of an afterthought feature, and is not well documented in the user guide, perhaps surprisingly for a company that's most famous for its power solutions. Simply plugging in a phone or other USB device is not enough to set it charging; you have to press the power button on the speaker too, which immediately sets it into Bluetooth pairing mode (together with start-up sound effect and flashing power light) for a few minutes until it realises there's nothing there - well so long as Bluetooth is turned off on the device you're trying to charge, anyway! That must waste a bit of battery that would be better saved for charging. Note that if you want to charge another device, you have to press the power button again after swapping over - no big deal but worth remembering if charging a device with no immediate visual or audible feedback. Power-bank charging is only at a maximum of 1A, so may not be quite as fast as mains on some devices.Splash resistance is presumably a good thing, but it does mean the sockets for charging and aux-in are behind a fiddly rubber seal. When it's open, it's not easy to get plugs into the sockets because the seal still gets in the way, and additionally the sockets are very close together making it rather difficult to e.g. charge and use the aux-in at the same time. The seal should open more freely (or be able to be removed altogether with ease), and a couple more millimetres between each socket really wouldn't have made much difference to anything else.So overall, not perfect, but really any deficiencies are mitigated by the reasonable cost for a unit of this general quality. I expect Anker will produce an updated version of this soon as they have with other models in their range, and I have identified a few things that could certainly be improved. Nothing is a deal breaker for me though, so nice one so far Anker.Pros:- beautiful build quality and materials- ready to go, out of the box- good full stereo sound at all volumes, with no hiss or crackle- up to date date Bluetooth implementation unlike many speakers- power bank functionality is welcome, with a nice big battery to help- battery life is as good as advertised, still going strong after 12+ hours at modest volume- useful (if sometimes slightly inaccurate) battery gaugeCons:- volume control could be physical and/or more informative- some colour detailing could help with button legibility- volumes should be memorised per input- no track skip backwards function- power bank should be able to be used without fully turning on- socket array needs a bit more spaceGood news: I see they are now, finally, shipping an updated version. Bad news: they resolved the socket array issue by dumping the aux input altogether. Good thing I bought when I did since that would have been a deal-breaker.

Anker - The name should have been anchor.This product proves the quality of Anker yet again at a affordable Price. I do have a passion to seek perfectness in audio quality (Even there is no ideal state and can only be comparable with other).Design: The product has a professional look to it. You can't expect any fancy stuffs as in Bose or other speakers with aluminium finish. But it is IPX5 rated which means you can make it shower with accidental spills on it. But there is a difference between Water resistance and Waterproof. This is Water resistant. i.e. you can spill water on it but you cannot drop it inside a pool. My personal view, this is the best look on a water resistant speaker so far I have seen with a professional finish to it. The star of the show is the dedicated button for bass boost. You can turn the bass down if you are in mood for some mild music on night. It packs a bit of weight, but remember heavy speakers are always best sounding speakers. Battery indicator was provided with 4 light dots which is quite handy to keep an eye of charge levels while playing music.Note: It can charge external device with its 5200 mAH battery which means its a speaker as well as a powerbank. But if you spend the battery on charging then reduced play time as any common sense would say.Sound: High quality sound I would say in a single term. For persons claiming Anker Soundcore is way too good, they should try this boost. The main reason I loved it is it adds lot of powerful bass to it but without compromising the quality/clarity of the music. Usually there will be a trade off between Bass & Clarity (Sound core is too clear but lacks bass), but this maintains the balance pretty good and it is quite capable of annoying your neighbours in terms of volume when turned high. Again have to appreciate the bass button here, for some songs if you feel the rumble is too much, then you can turn it down which plays the balanced sound without any distortion. But I LOVE ITS THUMPING BASS! especially for its size. As per my title, it anchored sound quality on this one.Connectivity: Never had an issue so far for a week while connecting to my iphone, ipad or Echo dot. Haven't tried NFC yet though.Battery: Anker claims 12 hours of music. Have listened to it for 3 days straight out of box at 50 -60% of volume (Enough for my room size) at average use of 2 hrs per day and still going strong with 1 point out of 4 in the battery indicator. Out of box it had just 75% battery with 3 points, so you can imagine it pretty much matches its spec but might vary if played on high volumes. I am yet to charge it, so will let you know if any major deviations on the charging time from specs.Verdict: I am more than happy to give this gem a 5 star rating for the build and sound quality at an affordable price range. You should pay 3 times of this money to get similar sound quality products from brands like Bose, Sonos, etc. My personal view is Bose Sound link mini cannot even compete with this interms of bass. I like the sound of Bose soundtouch 10 and it almost matches it (may not be on volume due to size restrictions). Anker keep surprising with some more quality products. I am Happy to review them if I get a chance.Finally I never had a need to reach to Anker customer care so far but heard its one of the best.

First, a note of caution; this is the third time I have purchased this model, the previous ones each having started going wrong after about 3.5 years, suggesting a limited shelf life.However, the product still rates 5 stars - I use it every day so for the price it remains great value even if it only lasts 3.5 years.Great richness of tone even without using the "Up" bass boost button, decent battery life, good solid feel. Apparently waterproof too, albeit I haven't tried to test that out!I never thought I'd be content with a single speaker, but it is so convenient and portable, with reliable bluetooth connection. Now that my entire record collection is on my phone, my old stereo system is now largely redundant as the sound from this speaker is perfectly good enough for everyday use. It is a thousand times better than the similarly priced and more recently launched Anker Soundcore 3