JBL Xtreme 2

Bluetooth speaker pumps up the volume

A waterproof Bluetooth speaker is a versatile gadget: you can listen to the radio in the garden, or music from your phone in the bath, or take it to the beach or on holiday. We often test options like the UE Boom 3 (£121 from Amazon, www.snipca.com/30982, see our review, Issue 550, page 28), but the Xtreme 2 is a chunkier piece of kit, incorporating two metal rings and a strap that lets you carry it like luggage.

It’s still compact, though, at about the size and weight of a catering tub of margarine. That’s probably not the image

SPECIFICATIONS

2x 70mm woofers • 2x 20mm tweeters • Speakerphone mic • Total power 2x 20W RMS • Rechargeable battery • Bluetooth 4.2 • IPX7 rated • 136x288x132mm (HXWXD) • 2.4kg • One-year warranty www.snipca.com/33066 its designers had in mind when they styled its durable mesh fabric finish, which comes in a choice of four plain colours or camouflage pattern. Six buttons on top control wireless connection, playback and volume, and under a rubber flap are a power socket for the supplied mains adapter, a headphone jack and a USB port, from which you can charge other devices. The battery should last around 15 hours.

We were impressed by the audio quality, which has the big bass you’d expect from JBL but also clear mid-range and an excellent sense of 360° sound, even with just one speaker. You can chain up to 100 via the Connect+ feature, if you’re inclined.

The Xtreme 2 has strong competition from UE’S medium-sized Megablast, now discounted from £269 to £148 (see www. snipca.com/33067). This sounds great and adds Wi-fi and Alexa, but has no multi-speaker or headphone jack.

VERDICT A good choice if you need big sound in a portable wireless unit, but expensive considering the limited features ★★★★ ★

ALTERNATIVE

VUE Megablast £147 Smaller, with volume and d battery life accordingly reduced, but a more flexible wireless speaker r