I’ve been on the hunt for mini portable speakers for my travels for quite a while now. Music is important to me, and although I love listening to local music/artists in whichever country that I’m visiting, there is nothing like kicking back on a beach or cruise ship balcony and listening to your favourite tunes from home on your mp3 player.
iHome Speaker — What I didn’t like
I researched a few brands/models, purchased them, ended up not liking them for various reasons and then returned them. The portable speakers I checked into were Go-rock mini, Aluratek Bump, X-mini II.
Here’s what I didn’t like about the other brands:
- sound was tinny and didn’t sound full (no bass response)
- cords and cables were cheap and flimsy or were retractible (which you know over time is just not going to last)
- size was too large and not suitable for mobile travellers
- the ones that sounded good were too expensive – again this is for portable travel and I don’t want to worry about theft etc.
Then I stumbled onto the iHome Speaker.
iHome Crystal Tunes Mini Portable Speaker – They totally fit the bill
Here’s why I like this brand:
- closed it measures 1.75 inches tall x 2.5 inches wide
- opened and expanded (for deeper sound) it measures 2.5 inches tall
- small size fits in the palm of your hand
- rechargeable lithium ion battery
- can be pluged into a power source — can be charged and played at the same time
- battery life is approx. 6 hours when fully charged
- took about 1.5 hours to charge via usb
- durable well built cables (usb/mini usb/3.5mm audio jack)
- can be used as a single unit or you can daisy chain connect them all together for more sound
- simulated stereo sound with a quality relative to the size of the unit…
the volume is surprisingly loud and easily fills an average size room with clear sound - very affordable
- PLUS it’s so darn cute!
You can see the top of the speaker compared to a Canadian quarter so you can visualise the actual size.
One thing to note, be careful when opening and closing the portable iHome speaker. The little clip mechanism that holds the speaker shut is made of plastic and isn’t the best, but I figure it can’t be perfect.
Looking for a Bluetooth cordless speaker option? Check out our iClever IC-BTS02 Bluetooth Wireless Speaker Review
Watch out when you travel with it — the package does say “explosive sound” so I hope they make it past security without any issues! LOL
Do you travel with portable mini speakers? I’d love to hear which ones you like.
Looking for earphones? Check out
– Sudio Vasa Bla Bluetooth Earphone Review
– The Travel Sounds of ZealSound HDE-100 Headphones
