T3 - UK (2020-04)

APRIL 2020 T3 83

Wireless smart speakers

ireless speakers

have been a fixture

at garden parties

and campouts for

years. But taking audio outside

no longer means tolerating tinny

treble and wrestling with

pig-headed pairing procedures.

Not only have companies

been upping the quality from

standard Bluetooth alone –

switching to the aptX codec and

offering Wi-Fi connectivity –

but many are making use of the

brains embedded in your home’s

smart speakers to offer you voice

control over your audio on the go,

via Alexa or Google Assistant.

We’ve brought together a

selection of the best, whether

you’re looking for a voice-ready

speaker that’s accident-proof or

one that has sumptuous sound

with smarts to match.

JBL LINK PORTABLE

£129, uk.jbl.com

BOSE PORTABLE HOME SPEAKER

£299, bose.co.uk

%\IDUWKHPRVWDIIRUGDEOHLQRXUVHOHFWLRQWKH-%//LQN3RUWDEOHLV
DVROLGRSWLRQIRUDQ\RQHORRNLQJIRUDVPDUWVSHDNHUWKH\FDQWDNH
RQWKHJR,WVEXLOGLVVWXUG\DQG,3;ZDWHUSURRI\HWLWèVOLJKWZHLJKW
HQRXJK\RXFRXOGHDVLO\WRVVLWLQDEDJDQGIRUJHWLWèVWKHUH:KHQ
LWFRPHVWRVRXQGWKH/LQN3RUWDEOHLVDELWćLPVLHULQWKHPLGUDQJH
compared to rivals in higher brackets and certain elements can get
ORVWZKHQWKHUHèVDORWJRLQJRQ:HDOVRKDGDIHZLVVXHVGXULQJ
VHWXSGHVSLWHEHLQJFRQQHFWHGRYHU$LU3OD\WKHVSHDNHUUHVROXWHO\
ZRXOGQèWPDNHDSHHSIRUVHYHUDOPLQXWHV2QHWRJRIRULISULFHDQG
Google Assistant matter more to you than really robust sound.

7KDQNVWRLWV,3;ZDWHUUHVLVWDQFHDQGUHODWLYHO\WULPNJIUDPH

LWèVFOHDU%RVHLVLQWHQGLQJWKLVWRVSHQGIDUPRUHWLPHRXWGRRUVWKDQ

WKH0RYH$QG\HWLWPDNHVYHU\IHZFRPSURPLVHVLQWHUPVRIVRXQG

LWèVZDUPDQGVPRRWKRIIHULQJUHVRQDQWEDVVWRQHVDQGSURGXFLQJ

YHU\RUJDQLFPLGVDQGWUHEOHV,WGRHVQèWTXLWHKDYHWKHJXWVRUWKH

EUDLQVRILWVULYDOWKHORZHQGLVVOLJKWO\OHVVZHOOURXQGHGZKLOHWKH

ODFNRIVSDFHVHQVLQJVPDUWVPHDQVLWèVRQO\DVJRRGDVLWVSODFHPHQW

It was also occasionally let down by its Alexa integration; the smart

DVVLVWDQWUHVSRQGVWRVRPHFRPPDQGVZLWK+$/OLNHREVWLQDF\%XW

IRUWKHEHVWFRPERRIćH[LELOLW\DQGĆGHOLW\WKLVLVWKHRQHWRJRIRU

AFFORDABLE AUDIO PRO TONES ON THE GO

W