Computer Shopper – September 2019

38 SEPTEMBER 2019 |COMPUTERSHOPPER|ISSUE 379

UEWonderboom 2

★★★★★

£89•From http://www.amazon.co.uk

BLUETOOTH SPEAKER

DRIVERS2active,2passive•RMSPOWEROUTPUTNot

stated•DOCKCONNECTORNone•WIRELESSBluetooth

• DIMENSIONS104x95x95mm•WEIGHT425g•
  WARRANTYTwoyearsRTB•DETAILSwww.ultimateears.
  com•PARTCODE984-000852

SPECIFICATIONS

IT’SBEENTWOyears since the releaseof

UE’s fully waterproofspeaker,the

Wonderboom(Shopper354). It becamea

favouriteamong many,includingus, forits fun

sound signature,affordabilityand ability to

float in water.Followingon from its success,

the Americanmanufactureris back with a

refresh: the Wonderboom2.

The Wonderboom2isinmany ways similar

to its predecessor.It’s abaseball-sized

Bluetooth speakerthat is not only waterproof,

but also floats if you drop it in water –handy

forretrievalifitaccidentallydrops intoabath

or swimmingpool. It comes in aselectionof

similarlyvibrantcolours,too.

However,there are afew changes.The

Wonderboom2has anew mode that boosts

mid- to high frequenciesforoutdoor listening,

it now lasts 13 hours on asingle charge,up

from 10 hours last time out, and it can now

be paired with anotherWonderboom 2

speakerforstereo audio.

DROPLETTESTING

Despitethe similar look overall, there are a

fewsubtle differencesin the Wonderboom

2’s design as well. It’s 3mm taller and 5g

lighter at 425g and, on the rubberisedtop

plate, acircular,multifunctionalbutton

replacesthe UE logo.Atthe top, you’ll

also find aredesignedhangingloop that’s

more reinforced than the bare string of

the first Wonderboom.

UE has retainedthe woven fabric that

wraps the speaker,but this year’s model has

atwo-tone finish reminiscentof the UE Boom

3(Shopper371). It’s available in black, grey,

red or blue,with apeach-colouredversion

cominglater this year.

On the underside,there’s asmall

illuminated button used forenabling

the speaker’s outdoor mode,and a

rubber flap covering asingle

Micro USB chargingport.

It’s ashame UE hasn’t

moved to USB Type-C

chargingwith the

second-generation

Wonderboom,and it

means chargingtimes

are quiteslow; this

speakertakes nearly

three hours to fully

charge from empty.At

least battery lifeisgood;

you’ll get 13 hours of

playback with the speakerfully

charged,anotable

improvementover the 10

hours of its predecessor.

As with the original,the

Wonderboom2can be

submergedin up to ametre

of water forupto30

minutes, but trumpsits

predecessorby adding dust

ingressprotectioncertification,

and it’s now IP67-certified

instead of merely IPX7.

DOUBLE DOWN

As forconnectivity,the Wonderboom 2

works solely over Bluetooth. Once again,

there’s no 3.5mm auxiliaryjack, and it also

disappointsby not includingsupportfor

advanced Bluetooth codecs such as aptX,

aptX HD or AAC. You’re limited to the

lowest-qualitySBC codec.

It does have atrick up its sleeve,however.

When paired with anotherWonderboom2, it

can playaudio in stereo,splitting the leftand

right channels.The originalalso works in a

pair,but can only output in mono.

One of the Wonderboom2’s more

interestingfeatures is its outdoor mode,

activated using that illuminated button on the

bottom. While this sacrificesbass response,it

emphasisesthe mid to high frequencies,

makingthe Wonderboom2easier to hear

outdoors. In this mode,vocal tracks

sound noticeablylouder and can be

heard from furtherafield.

Turn the mode off,move

indoorsand you’ll find the

speakerdeliversafun,

well-roundedsound

that’s similar to its

predecessor.The

Wonderboom 2

deliversfull-bodied,

360° audio,thumping

bass and aclear,

detailedmid-rangethat

belie its small size.

However,there are a

fewsubtle differences.

Where the originalWonderboom

prioritisesthe mid-bass,the newer model

producesacleaner lower mid-range.Toour

ears, the older model is atouch more exciting.

Neithertruly matches the mid-rangeclarity of

the Boom 3, however.The latter is also

IP67-certifiedand can float in water,while also

providing more expansiveaudio reproduction.

The only drawbacksare that it’s more

expensive,at£99,and being atall, cylindrical

speaker,it’s trickier to carry around.

PLAYBALL

Ultimately,the differences between the new

Wonderboom2and the originalare small.

Instead, UltimateEars has set out to improve

things iterativelyand, in principle,ithas

achieved exactlythat. The new outdoor mode,

added dust protection, stereo functionality

and longer battery lifeall make what was

alreadyagreat speakereven better.

The concernis the price of £89.For just a

little more,you could buy two original

Wonderboomspeakers,or get the better-

soundingBoom 3instead. The Wonderboom 2

is still agood alternative,but it will be even

better if you wait forthe price to inevitably fall.

ChristopherMinasians

VERDICT

Evenifit’saonlyaminorupgrade,thewater-anddust-

proofWonderboom2isafinego-anywherespeaker

The Wonderboom2deliversfull-bodied,360°audio,

thumpingbassandaclear,detailedmid-range