When it come to portableBluetooth verbalizer for under $ 100 , compromise is part of the game . You want something small and light enough to toss in a dish , but not so wimpy that it vocalize like your phone in a Sn can . Ultimate Ears ’ Miniroll , the company ’s up-to-the-minute ultra - portable speaker unit , strikes that equilibrize really well , and does so in a unambiguously shaped package that is just plain fun .
I ’ve been using the Miniroll on and off for a few months , and I ’ve been really impressed with its versatility , but more importantly , its audio lineament . Do n’t have its size and impulsive look fool around you , this is a serious speaker that can get surprisingly loud and full sound .
Design
At just 9.77 ounces , the Miniroll is incredibly light . Throw it in a backpack and I promise you wo n’t even notice it . At 4.5 inch in diam and about 1.75 inches thick-skulled , I could even slide into the back air pocket of my jeans . From a portability standpoint , it may not be the modest verbalizer on the marketplace , but it does n’t have to be — it ’s plenty little enough . you’re able to buy it in one of four colors : bleak , pinkish , grey , or naughty ( fancy here ) .
Why the orotund shape ? Well , for a start , it ’s just unmixed sport , but the better grounds is that speaker drivers are round . When you pack a round driver into a round enclosure , you get a speaker that occupies the least amount of quad .
The woven fabric grille features Ultimate Ears ’ ( UE ) trademark oversized loudness buttons , while mightiness / BT pairing and frolic / pause / rails skipping buttons are found around the side . A USB - C port deal appoint , but unlike theJBL Flip 7 , it ca n’t be used for USB Audio .
As is increasingly the case with portable audio products in cosmopolitan , UE does n’t ship the Miniroll with its own USB - C cable to avoid e - waste ( and presumably reduce cost ) .
On the back is a obliterable silicone strap that unite the functionality of a wrist joint strap and a karabiner , let you attach the Miniroll to all sort of objects from bike handlebars to the overhead conducting wire of your patio lights . As a carry strap , it ’s not as comfortable as a true lanyard . You may be able-bodied to get a few finger through the middle time slot , but not your whole helping hand .
However , the strap does play an interesting role when you target the speaker on a categoric control surface . The strap ’s four midget raised feet provide both a amazingly grippy connection and fantabulous vibration isolation .
Durability
With anIP67 rating , the Miniroll is effectively dust and waterproof . But UE also claim it ’s bead - proof , up to 1.2 meters ( about 3.9 foundation ) , make it a very furrowed choice .
It ’s perfect for the patio or the pool , but it ’s good to think of it as a poolside speaker system , not an real pool speaker . It may survive ingress in water supply , but unlike its larger sibling , the WonderBoom 4 , the Miniroll does n’t drift . In fact , it will drop down like a Harlan F. Stone ( yep , I regain that out the tough way ) .
Expandability
UE ’s PartyUp feature ( powered byBluetooth Auracast ) lets you sync an unlimited number of other Minirolls for simultaneous playback . As long as another Miniroll is within Bluetooth image ( 32 feet or stuffy ) , it can join your primary Miniroll ’s PartyUp web .
unluckily , PartyUp ca n’t be used to stereo pair two Minirolls , and UE limits audio recording sharing to just other Minirolls . JBL ’s implementation of Auracast on its newest utterer is more flexible , allow any Auracast - enabled JBL speakers touch base .
Sound quality
I think the Miniroll sounds great — for its size .
You ’re not going to get clunk bass , but the speaker still manages to lease you hear most of that miserable end . However , the winder to the Miniroll ’s audio quality is its treatment of midrange and high frequencies . Both enjoy very good clarity and detail , and there ’s a warm tonal quality that I find is missing from most ultraportable loudspeaker system .
I happened to haveMarshall ’s Willenon bridge player while testing the Miniroll . The Willen , physically , is a substantial version of the Miniroll , complete with the same design of silicone shoulder strap on the back ( I believe the Willen was the first to boast this idea ) . Sound - wise , though , the two could n’t be more dissimilar . Where the Miniroll delivers the kind of symmetricalness , detail , and loudness that you might expect from a large speaker , the Willen struggles mightily , with half the perceive great power and far less bass response .
talk of bass response , I ’ve translate a few other Miniroll reviews thatnote a deficiency of crushed endand decimal point out that for the same $ 80 Leontyne Price , you’re able to get theSoundcore Motion 300 , a better - sound Bluetooth speaker system .
This is honest , but it ’s also beside the decimal point . The Motion 300 is more than twice the size of it and three times the system of weights of the Miniroll . Price aside , these speakers are n’t in the same class . I would n’t think doubly about grab the Miniroll on the way out the threshold . The Motion 300 might give me intermission .
The more reasonable critique of the Miniroll is that UE does n’t allow for a fellow traveller app , so there ’s no style to pull off the EQ . frankly , I ’m not sure what I ’d change if I could make adjustments . For my discernment , the factory preferences were hunky-dory .
Compared to competitors like the JBL Clip 4 orSoundcore Select 4 Go , the Miniroll systematically get along out ahead in clarity , depth , and sheer hearing enjoyment .
Battery life
UE claims up to 12 hour of electric battery living , and in my examination , mostly at restrained volume , that act holds up . For its size — and considering its telling bulk — that ’s very ripe stamina . Most of the other ultraportables have the same or less . However , if you want to get maximum assault and battery life in the smallest possible packet , it ’s hard to beat the Soundcore Select 4 Go ’s 20 hour .
Conclusion
If you ’re looking for a pouch - sized loudspeaker that does n’t voice like a toy , the Ultimate Ears Miniroll is one of the salutary choice out there . It combine smart design , rugged build timbre , and above - average sound into a talker that authentically punches above its free weight . Sure , it ’s not go to replete a backyard with bass , but for solo adventure , travel , or passing hang , it ’s more than enough — and more than most in this price range .
