After reviewing many Fugoo speakers; the original Fugoo, Sport XL and Go, I can say that Fugoo makes some of the best wireless Bluetooth speakers available. Since the original and XL speakers came in small and really big, Fugoo stole an idea from Goldilocks and created a speaker that’s not too small or too big, but just right. Introducing the Fugoo Style-S—their newest IP67 rated water-proof, dust-proof, mud-proof and shock-proof Bluetooth wireless speaker. Sized between the original Style and Style XL, the Style-S comes with a few new tricks not available on the other speakers.
The new Style-S uses the newest Bluetooth 4.2 and can be paired with another for true left/right stereo from the same source. Or simply play one in the kitchen and a second in another room or backyard in double mode.
It weighs just 1 pound 7 ounces, so it’s easy to hold and take on the road. Music can be streamed from any Bluetooth (or headphone jack-equipped) smartphone, tablet, MP3 player or PC. 20 watts of power (way more than the original Style’s 6.5 watts) make it perfect for a house party, BBQ or outdoor use. Two full range drivers and two passive radiators deliver 93 dB loudness so you can hear music over the outdoor action.
The FUGOO Style-S can also be used as a speakerphone, featuring an omni-directional microphone with echo cancellation and background noise reduction. It supports Apple Siri and Android Google Now voice control services, making it easy to call someone or check the latest sports scores.
The Style-S is made from specially reinforced case material with seals and shock absorbers to protect internal parts from life’s bumps and drops. The seals protect the speaker from elements such as water up to 3 feet. In addition, the FUGOO Sport Style-S floats, so if it falls in the water, it’s easily retrievable. There’s also many accessories available for the Style-S, such as a bike mount, strap mount, Bluetooth remote and more.
The Fugoo Style-S speaker is available now from Fugoo for $149.99 US.
Visit Fugoo for more information and check for the Sport Style-S to show up on their Amazon listings.
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It’s that time of year again; the days are longer, nights are warmer, and the nature is calling. Like many of you, I enjoy spending time outside as Summer approaches. For me, a beautiful day outdoors isn’t complete without something playing in the background.
I was given the opportunity to review another speaker from Hercules, the WAE Outdoor 04Plus FM Bluetooth speaker. Let’s see how it stacks up to its kin.
Speaker dimensions: 2.4 (H) x 5.94 (W) x 2.4 (D) inches
Weight: 300 g / .661 lbs
IP67 certified
Design
The 04Plus FM retains the same triangular design as the Rush.
It’s also roughly the same size and weight; 2.4 (H) x 5.94 (W) x 2.4 (D) inches / 300 grams compared to the Rush’s 2.56 (H) x 6.5 (W) x 2.24 (D) inches / 320 grams.
Unlike the Rush, the 04PLus FM doesn’t have any buttons along its spine.
Whereas the Rush had dedicated play, pause, skip track, and volume buttons, the 04Plus FM only has a plus and minus button on either side of the body.
One end of the 04Plus FM contains the power button, the FM mode selector, and a protective cover. Lifting the protective cover reveals the Micro USB charging port and the auxiliary line-in port.
The 04Plus FM also has two notification LEDs.
The LED on the left is the charging indicator. It flashes while charging and remains lit when fully charged.
The right LED is blue when in Bluetooth mode and is green when in FM mode.
Finally, the bottom of the 04Plus FM has a threaded accessory port and an area to attach the wrist strap.
While the 04Plus FM is appealing to the eye, I have a couple of issues with the design.
First, the ends are made of rubber; while this is helpful in protecting the device from damage, the ends are absolute dust magnets. You can see in every picture the ends are coated with dust.
Second, I cannot stand the fact the plus and minus buttons are used to perform every control function. One of the great things about the Rush was each function had a dedicated button.
Performance
When you initially turn on the 04Plus FM, it enters into Bluetooth pairing mode. To pair your device with the speaker, select “WAE Outdoor 04Plus FM” from your device’s Bluetooth menu.
Like the Rush, the 04Plus FM can be paired to 8 different devices. This is an awesome feature that allows you to share the speaker between friends and family or even between devices.
Pairing additional devices is as simple as holding the FM button down for 3 seconds. The speaker re-enters pairing mode and you can add devices.
Once you have a device paired, you can begin streaming music.
As previously stated, the Rush has a dedicated button for the most common functions, while the 04Plus FM does not. I found this extremely frustrating.
Volume is adjusted by quick pressing the plus or minus buttons repeatedly, and you can skip tracks by long pressing the buttons; I wasn’t really bothered by either of those functions.
What really frustrated me was having to press the plus and minus buttons simultaneously to play/pause music. Admittedly it isn’t a huge inconvenience; however, there were multiple times when it took more than one attempt to pause audio.
I could have understood volume and track skipping sharing the same buttons, but I think play and pause should always have their own button.
Other than my frustrations with the controls, the 04Plus FM played audio just as well as the Rush. Both Podcasts and Audio were crystal clear, even at high volumes. I didn’t detect even a hint of distortion or static.
The 04Plus FM is also very powerful. Despite being in such a small package, the speaker provides ample volume. It could easily provide the soundtrack to a backyard barbecue.
FM Radio
As the name, 04Plus FM would imply, the speaker doubles as an FM radio. This is a pretty nice feature that allows you to preserve your phone’s battery while still having music playing in the background.
Using the FM radio is simple.
First, you press the FM button on the speaker; the first time you do this the speaker will scan for available stations. Once the scan is complete, the 04Plus FM will play the first available station.
You can change stations by long pressing the plus or minus buttons and mute sound by pressing both buttons simultaneously.
Sound quality is surprisingly good; it’s on par with a standard FM radio. The only negative is there is no display, so you’re guessing what station you’re currently playing.
Ingress Protection
Ingress Protection or an IP rating is a device’s ability to withstand dust and water. The 04Plus FM has an IP rating of 67, meaning it’s dustproof and waterproof for 30 minutes in a meter of water.
As always, I decided to test this by submerging the speaker in my bathtub.
As you can see in the photos, the 04Plus FM floats when placed in water. This is great because you don’t have to worry about damage from it sinking to the bottom of a pool or losing it on a boating trip.
I then held the speaker underwater while adjusting volume and changing stations.
Although the sound is a bit muffled from the water, the speaker itself performs flawlessly.
After removing the speaker from the tub, it continued to work perfectly despite being soaked. Additionally, the charging and auxiliary port remained bone dry.
I think it’s pretty safe to say the 04Plus FM is capable of performing in just about any environment you can imagine.
WAE App
The 04Plus FM is compatible with Hercules’s WAE App. It appears to be the same app that is used with the Rush.
It’s a pretty easy to use the app, with all the features being self-explanatory. The best feature being the ability to select the FM station you want to listen to, rather than blindly guessing.
It’s a nice addition, but something I doubt I would use too often.
Conclusion
The 04Plus FM is a pretty solid speaker. While I found the controls maddening at times, its overall function was great.
The speaker is available for $71.99 from Amazon and would be a great purchase for anyone in need of a Bluetooth speaker.
Source: The sample for this review was provided by Hercules. Please visit their site for more information.
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Outdoor party season is fast approaching, folks! At my house, that means it’s time to fire up the grill, dust off the patio furniture, put the drinks on ice, and fire up the tunes. To help in the music department I’m testing the Tronsmart Element T2, an outdoor water-resistant Bluetooth speaker, to see how its holds up under outdoor party conditions. Does it rock? Let’s find out!
Unboxing and Overview
First impressions are always important, and Tronsmart does a nice job with packaging on the Element T2. The unit comes in an attractive, durable box that opens book-style with a magnetic clip that will be great for storage. In addition to the speaker, you’ll also find all the accessories you’ll need for operation: a USB power cable, an audio connector cable, and two options for carrying (a lanyard and a carabiner). It’s got everything you need to get started.
The Element T2 is very portable. At 5.6″ by 2.75″ by 1.8″ and 14 ounces, the Element T2 is roughly the size & weight of a can of soda (or your favorite beverage). The lanyard or carabiner attaches to an integrated loop on the speaker, enabling you to either clip it to an attachment loop on your bag. This is especially handy if you are hauling your stuff to the beach or the campsite.
Rounding out the details, the Element T2 is encased in a rubberized housing that looks pretty durable. The control buttons are molded into the housing for water resistance. You’ll find the auxiliary jack, micro-USB charging port, and a micro-SD card slot hidden behind a sealed panel on the side of the speaker. There’s a pair of LED indicators on the top of the device, and rubber feet on the base to keep it from skidding off of slick surfaces. Generally speaking, the construction is tight and seamless.
Setup and Use
One of the first things I noticed on setting up the Element T2 Bluetooth speaker are the friendly controls. Each isthe 5 buttons are big with good tactile feedback, and have simple icons to indicate their purpose. The system also uses distinctive sound effect cues to indicate functions such as powering up, discovery mode, etc. This all makes for easy setup; I didn’t feel that I needed to go digging through the user guide to figure out how it all works.
Pairing and switching between devices is easy. When you power up the unit, a blinking Bluetooth LED indicated that the device is in discoverable mode. Once you connect it to your device, a tone indicates successful pairing. The device automatically connects to the last device it was paired with, but you can also press and hold the Bluetooth button for two seconds to put it in discoverable mode if you wish to switch devices. If using the auxiliary cable is your thing, you can push the Bluetooth button once to toggle between the aux cable and Bluetooth connection. Over the course of a few weeks, I have played the speakers all over my house and yard using multiple devices, and have yet to encounter an issue.
Once you’re connected, it’s all go-mode from there. Play your music through your favorite app, and you’re off and running. There’s a built-in “pause/play” button on the device that works just fine with every app I have tried in Bluetooth mode, but all the other controls come from your device. You can adjust the volume from either the speaker or your device, which comes in handy if you find yourself on a sudden phone call and the speaker is on the other side of the room.
The Element T2 uses Bluetooth 4.2 and sports a strong connection with a 50-foot range. I’ve tested the speaker & paired devices on different floors of the house as well as 50-60 foot distances with no loss of quality.
Power usage is excellent. Tronsmart claims a 12-hour life on the battery without a recharge, and I have found this to be pretty accurate in testing. You do need to keep the included power cable handy and have a USB-enabled port for charging, but this does give you options for charging from your computer or stealing your USB-enabled outlet or converter.
The Element T2 also supports Bluetooth calls. If your phone rings while paired to the unit, you can press the Bluetooth button to answer, and again to disconnect. It’s a nice bonus feature, which allows you to keep your phone stashed safely away from the elements (or in the house).
Does it bring the rock?
After extensive indoor and outdoor testing, I was pleasantly surprised at how much punch the Element T2 possesses for a compact, inexpensive speaker. The sound is crystal clear with a broad range thanks to enhanced bass and a 20 band equalizer adjustment capability. The bass is ridiculously good, especially if you’re listening to pop music (or old school funk and hip-hop, in my case). In the picture below, we were loading up the island themed tunes.
It’s important to note that this speaker is not designed to produce 360 degree sound. I found this out by trial and error, because it was not clear in any of the documentation. The reason for this is that the main speakers are designed to project from one side of the device, while the bass projects from the back. This means that you will want to position the speaker at the edge of the desired space, directing it towards the listening area. I found that this wasn’t a problem in use; I’d position the speaker open the far end of my kitchen or the deck to get the full sound. Tronsmart has designed this speaker so that you can pair two of the units together to provide full stereo sound; I did not test that feature here, but I would imagine that the quality would be excellent.
To take full advantage of the sound quality, You’ll really want to use the Tronsmart Element T2 Bluetooth speaker in more open spaces. I tested the unit in my home office (12’ by 14’), my kitchen (14’ by 25’), and outside in numerous locations. The bigger spaces really allow you to take full advantage of the speaker’s power and deep bass enhancements. It will do fine in a smaller office area, as volume is very manageable… but you really want to rock, right?
A quick note on the equalizer capability: not all music apps and devices support equalizer modes. My apple devices do, and it works great when switching from one style of music to another. There is no equalizer control on the speaker, however, so check your device and software if this feature is important to you.
One last note: we did do a test using the aux plug on our turntable, and sound quality was just as good playing vinyl with the old-school plug. We tracked through AC/DC’s “For Those About To Rock”… and we did rock. Well.
It gets the hose…
One of the benefits of being a device tester is that you really get to stress test stuff to see if it meets the claims of the manufacturer. For the Element T2, this meant the dirt & hose treatment.
The Tronsmart Element T2 has an IPX rating of 56, which effectively means that it is resistant to small particles (dirt, sand) and direct exposure to water. To validate this claim, we dragged the speaker around the yard all day while mowing the yard, planting the garden, etc. When finished, we gave it a bath with the garden hose while playing music. I think it was Bob Marley’s “Trenchtown Rock” that was on the playlist at the time this photo was taken.
The speaker endured the hose at full blast for about a minute and continued to play without missing a beat… even when the speaker bay was pooling with water from the continuous hose blast. There was some minor fuzz in the sound as it dried out from residual water on the speakers, which disappeared in about 5 minutes of drying in the sun. Considering that the speaker is not rated to withstand being submerged in water, that’s really impressive. I’m confident that it will survive sudden downpours, drink spills, or the stray water balloon with no issues whatsoever.
Conclusion and Pricing
The Tronsmart Element T2 is a portable, durable, compact, water-resistant Bluetooth speaker that brings excellent sound quality to the party with a couple extra bonus features like super-long battery life and Bluetooth-compatible phone pickup. What else is there left to talk about?
The price. As in under $25 on Amazon Prime right now. I was ready to give the Tronsmart Element T2 a full-fledged endorsement, but at this price, I think it’s a steal. You can even get two of them to take advantage of the paired stereo capability… just drop me a line and let me know how it works out for you!
Rock on!
Source: The sample for this review was provided by Tronsmart. For more info visit their site and order one from Amazon.
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It’s tax time! If you’re due for a fat refund and are a fan of design who also appreciates fine audio, grab that refund check and check out the new Master & Dynamic MA770 wireless concrete speaker. Yes, you read that right … concrete. You’re not going to be carting this 35 lb. monster around like a boombox. Nope, the MA770 speaker is designed for the home—inside the home. Designed by Sir David Adjaye—the architect behind Washington D.C.’s new National Museum of African American History and Culture—the MA770’s modern, minimalist good looks have a structural quality unlike other speakers. The MA770 speaker comes ready to play with two 4-inch kevlar woofers and a 1.5-inch titanium tweeter, with diamond-cut anodized aluminum controls—all powered by a 100 watt Class D amp. The MA770’s concrete composite dampening properties are so high that the speaker can play at full volume without causing a record to skip or a table and floor to vibrate. Bluetooth, Chromecast and an AUX input are used for connectivity. The MA770 can be used as a single unit, stereo pair or multi-room setup via built-in Chromecast.The design of the MA770 speaker is so paramount, that it will be available soon in the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) store in New York City (and other stores also) as well as directly from Master & Dynamic. If it matches the quality of Master & Dynamic’s headphones, then buyers will be in for a treat. Once available, the MA770 will sell for $1,800 US (less than the average refund amount). Visit Master & Dynamic for more information.
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When you think furniture quality bamboo you probably don’t think Bluetooth speakers, but with the A320 Bluetooth speaker from Archeer that’s exactly what you get. The body of this speaker is actually made of bamboo, giving it a very unique and rich look. Add to that a skin – friendly rewind fabric material and you get one of the most beautiful looking Bluetooth speakers on the market. The Gadgeteer was fortunate to receive one for review. Is this a case of beauty only being skin deep or is there more to the A320 then just good looks? Time to find out if this Beauty really is a Beast.
In the Box:
1- ARCHEER A320 Home Speaker
1- Micro USB Charging Cable
1- 3.5mm Audio Cable
1- User Manual
This speaker really is a stunner. Its classic design with dual exposed 5W tweeters and 15W subwoofer all set into warm colored bamboo make it a perfect complement to any room. I really like the solid build of this speaker. It has some heft to it but still maintains its portability. The universally understood symbol control buttons for play, pause and volume up/volume down located on top of the speaker are raised and have a rubber like coating.
I also like the rewind fabric that wraps around the body of the speaker. Its gray color is in nice contrast with the warm color of the bamboo. Just another touch that adds to the unique design of the A320. My only concern about the fabric wrapping is that there could be some wear on the bottom of the speaker due to the fact that it comes in direct contact with any surface it’s placed on. I remedied that by adding four rubber bumpers that I purchased for a couple of bucks at the store. One downside to the unit being made of bamboo and having exposed speakers is that it’s not weather or water proof. So if it is used outside keep it out of the weather and away from pools or lakes. This may be a deal breaker for some. But it would make a nice addition to any deck or covered patio this summer.
On the back you’ll find the AUX Port, DC in via micro USB to standard USB, charge light and reset button. In addition, near the bottom of the back of the unit is the bass port.
The A320 uses 4.0 Bluetooth to connect to your device of choice, or you can connect your non – Bluetooth device with the provided 3.5mm audio cable. Pairing the speaker is easy, it’s done by holding down the power button until the power light (located between the volume up and play/pause buttons) flashes green. This means the A320 is in pairing mode, then simply select it from your device’s Bluetooth menu. When connected you will hear a tone and the power button will flash blue.
The unit is powered by a rechargeable 5200mAh lithium-Ion battery. Listening time on a full charge is about 11 hours at 50% volume. It does take about 6 hours to fully charge the A320, however, you can use the unit while it’s charging. Charging is done using the micro USB charging cable. Archeer doesn’t provide an adaptor but you can use any 5V DC adaptor (I used one that I had from one of the many Apple devices I own) or a PC. If you don’t have an adaptor you can purchase one on the Archeer website. While charging the charge indicator light on the back will glow red. Once fully charged the indicator light shuts off.
Archeer also provides a thick nylon carrying bag for the A320. It’s nothing special but will definitely provide some protection for the speaker while traveling.
Remember when I asked whether this Beauty really is a Beast? Well time to find out. I decided to use different genres of music to test the range of the A320’s sound quality. For my tests, I listened to rock, rap, classical and pop. The A320 handled every genre I threw at it very well. The bass was very prominent thanks to the 15W subwoofer, but not overwhelming. The highs and mid-range tones were very clean and clear. Lyrics were also very crisp and discernible. As you might guess rap benefited greatly from the added bass. The Beastie Boys ‘Licensed to Ill’ never sounded better. Even listening to orchestra music was a joy on this speaker. In fact, I was listening to the soundtrack from The Lord of the Rings as I was writing this review and it sounded fantastic. I also like to listen to podcasts from time to time so I tested out an episode of ‘The Nerdist’ podcast. The sound quality of the voice only content was great. And the A320 even replaced a ratty old boom box I was using to listen to sports talk radio with my morning coffee. So no matter what you like to listen to this Beauty truly is a Beast.
The other thing I like to use the A320 with is my Amazon Echo Dot. If you own or have seen the Dot you know that the built-in speaker doesn’t get very loud, but pairing it to the A320 (which is very easy by the way) gave me a whole new Alexa experience.
In Conclusion:
I flat out LOVE this speaker. The Archeer A320 Bluetooth speaker is everything one could want in a wireless speaker. Classic good looks with sound to match. There are more expensive speakers out there, but you would be hard pressed to find one that matches the sound quality and design of this speaker, especially at a more than reasonable price of $79.99. So if you want a Bluetooth speaker with excellent room filling sound that also doubles as a great conversation piece the Archeer A320 is a no brainer.
Warranty:
Archeer offers a 40-day money back guarantee along with a 18-month hassle-free warranty. From the date of purchase.
Source: The sample for this review was provided by Archeer. Please visit their website or Amazon to purchase.
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