My teenage nephew wants a WiFi & BT portable speaker for Xmas and his Mum has asked me to help her find one.

Must work on WiFi and BT, have a battery for taking places etc..

Any recommendations?

I would say AudioPro but they cost double the budget

Sonos roam?

Stretch the budget a bit and get a minirig. Yet to find anything that sounds better, battery lasts ages, and made in Bristol. What’s not to like?

Outdoor cafe near me has an Ultimate Ears little speaker thingy sitting in a flower pot. Weatherproof and sounds far better than its size, not heard it indoors though. It might be Bluetooth only though.

Thanks so far

budget is £100 max

Out of interest, what’s it going to do on WiFi that it can’t do from the phone that’s probably glued to his hand 99% of the time?

For that money, you can’t go far wrong with the best JBL that your budget will stretch to – unfortunately that doesn’t quite get you an Xtreme 2. I’ve got one, my daughter’s got one, they are great speakers. I use mine as mini soundbar under the TV in the caravan and it’s brilliant. Kool wiv da kidz too innit

My Anker soundcare boost at only 7 &1/2 x 2& 1/2 x 2&1/2 sounds great for its size, probably not fill a room but outdoors at work it’s spot on

I know you said £100 max but this seems a good price at £107

https://www.fenwick.co.uk/home-and-tech/audio-and-tech/audio/speakers/roam-sl-portable-speaker/2530021945717.html

Thanks

Audio pro have bf deals on but not sure if they ship to uk any more.

Under budget and I’ve no idea if it has wi-fi connectivity (or what he’d want that for?), but I’ve had a couple of JBL Flips and they’ve been superb.

I don’t get the WiFi thing either

he’s 14, who knows what he’s thinking 🤔

Sonos Roam SL seems to be £120 almost everywhere. Over budget I know, but it’s one of those things you won’t regret imo.

Cheers I’ve passed on the recommendations to my sister in law

It’s outside your budget, but I have to rec it anyway. Spend the extra, you won’t regret it:

https://minirigs.co.uk/speakers/bluetooth-minirig-3

It’s got a tenner off for black Friday

We’ve got a Marshall Emberton, lovely little thing which sounds great and has a fairly epic battery life.

It’s a long story but he didn’t get a speaker but is now looking for one 🤦‍♂️

I saw a House of Marley get together mini for £80 earlier

https://www.thehouseofmarley.co.uk/get-together-mini-rechargeable-portable-bluetooth-speaker/

Are these any good?

I have a pair of these, Anker Soundcore Boost, super things, sound quality much better than the price suggests. Proper stereo, USB C charging, can use it as a powerbank with regular USB cable outlet.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01N4V4X5M/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=A2PGPJL0BBLHLX&psc=1

I’ll add

I’ve two Soundcore Motion Booms linked together for full stereo – blooming great for movies in the garden ! So good, my son kept borrowing one of mine, so we got him the bigger Soundcore Motion Boom Plus – about 50% bigger but incredible !

Just ticking this as I am considering something like this – wifi is not a primary requirement but might be nice. I was looking at Bose SoundLink Colour II as Andrew the chef in the chalet we recently stayed in used one of those and it was great, but they’re £130. JBL Flip6 and UE Boom3 both £100. Flip5 is £70. Anker soundcore range from £24 (original) to £30 (v2) to £40 (v3). Too much choice!

For a 14 year old I would be looking at something that is waterproof.

The Soundcore Motion+ looks like a good option but lacks WiFi support although I am dubious that is needed for most use cases.

https://uk.soundcore.com/products/a3116031?ref=collectionbuy_img

I would also be a bit wary about getting something without asking him – some brands may not be “cool”

Thanks, they’ve got loads of Amazon vouchers from Xmas so I reckon they’ll go for the Anker

I did see the Audio Pro P5 at Urban Outfitters for under £70 but I’m sure that’s very uncool for him.

I have a JBL flip 6 and I’m pretty pleased with it, although battery life could be better. I think I can get around 7 or 8 hours from it. £100 at John Lewis right now.

Ultimate ears wonderboom 3 sounds decent and is a touch cheaper at £90 quid or so.

*EDIT – sorry don’t think they have WiFi. Apologies.

I had a JBL flip 3 and when it worked it sounded great but the battery died and they are throwaway devices too hard to change a battery . I’ve a Sony , looks good , feels good but sounds miles off as good as the Anker
Chinese company might put some folk off although my Huawei phone worked perfect for 18 months but now worthless

Minirig 3rd’d

Not much bigger than an Anker Soundcore but easy to tell what the extra money pays for in both sound quality & battery life.

In the end, I ordered three Bluetooth speakers and tried them back to back, connecting all to my phone and flipping the output source

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07P39MLKH

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01N4V4X5M

https://www.amazon.co.uk/JBL-Waterproof-Portable-Bluetooth-Rechargable/dp/B084T84JQJ/

They were all cheaper when I ordered – £40 for the Soundcore Boost (£35 from the Outlet), £70 for the Soundcore Motion+ (£69 from the Outlet), £66 for the Flip 5 (from Richer Sounds on Amazon)

the JBL was BY FAR the best sounding, even after I had a play with an EQ app for the Soundcore speakers, so they went back and I’ve stuck with the Flip 5

My nephew got a Soundcore from Amazon. He really likes it.

I treated myself to the Audio Pro P5 on the deal above, plus £5 off with a code. It’s very good, not got crazy bass levels but an excellent all round sound from it, just like the other Audio Pro products

Worth bearing in mind that the older you are, the more bombastic/ annoying the bass will sound.

Likewise, what sounds refined to our middle-aged ears will just sound tinny to the yoof.