Gadgetory

hi I'm David Connelly executive editor for cnet.com and give you a quick video tour of the Bose Soundlink mini the company's new ultra compact wireless bluetooth speaker that retails for one hundred and ninety-nine ninety-nine the first thing you'll notice about the speaker is that it's got a slick design and almost looks like it was built by apple with a unibody aluminum enclosure that surrounds two small drivers in front and rear passive radiators a 1.5 pounds of mini isn't as diminutive as some of the tiny Bluetooth speakers now on the market but it's metal housing gives it considerably more substance than most of its plastic competitors and if nothing else this thing feels like something that's worth two hundred dollars the mini is designed to be very simple to use with clearly labeled buttons on the top like all Bluetooth speakers it will stream audio wirelessly from virtually any smartphone or tablet plus any Bluetooth enabled PC or audio player the speaker remembers up to six devices so you only need to sync once I like that the unit comes with a desktop charging cradle you can also plug the included AC adapter directly into the unit so you don't have to take the cradle with you when you travel however it does not charge via USB so you do need the AC adapter as for battery life bose claims seven hours of playtime and a three hour recharge time while the cradle is a nice extra everything else will cost you bose is selling protective bumper sleeves for a whopping twenty five dollars each and a carrying case will set you back forty five dollars in terms of connectivity there's an auxilary input on the side for non-blue two devices as well as a micro USB port on the back for potential firmware upgrades I really like the whole look and feel of the speaker but like boses step-up sound like bluetooth mobile speaker - there's no integrated speakerphone which is too bad how does it sound well while it just can't deliver the performance of a larger speaker for what it is and its tiny size it sounds very good the one thing I noticed about it more than some other speakers is that placement makes a big difference putting it closer to a wall definitely improves bass response and the speaker sounds fuller it also plays pretty loud louder than the job jambox for instance but it's clear that boses engineers had to keep the sound a little restraint in order to avoid distortion at higher volumes overall the sound signatures somewhat laid-back and forgiving so it's got a bit creamier sound the bass goes pretty deep but it doesn't sound incredibly tight or punchy all in all however you come away with a sense that bose eked out about as much as it could from such a tiny speaker the mini is the better choice over such products as the beats pill which currently retails for around the same price but the $200 UE boom has a bit bigger sound better battery life a built-in speakerphone is water-resistant and better suited for outdoor use the Soundlink mini is really targeted someone who's looking for a very sleek wireless speaker that sounds very good for its tiny size and can be easily moved from room to room but will probably end up docked at the end of the day in a bedroom or Home Office perhaps parked next to an iMac or MacBook Air David Carr Noi and that's the bose sound like many thanks for watching