Bose SoundLink Micro: Small Portable Bluetooth Speaker (Waterproof), Midnight Blue

Full transparency - I'm a huge Bose fan. It wasn't until later in life that I was able to afford their products, but now given the choice I prefer to go with Bose. This little speaker is just the latest in my history of Bose products. I had an older Bose Sound Link Mini that worked well but was starting to show its age. It was also a bit clunky and very, very delicate. I was perusing Amazon and came across this little gem and bought one for my wife. She was so impressed with hers that I bought one for me. What I like - well, obviously, it's Bose. The sound is crisp and rich in replicating lows and highs and is characteristic Bose. Obviously bass is somewhat less than other speakers, but for this size speaker the sound is incredible and I'm not a huge fan of "thumpy" bass anyway. I also like the portability. I used the strap to attach the speaker to my belt while doing my evening walk at work and loved that I was able to listen to my MP3 player without having to worry about headphones and potentially getting hit by some of the maintenance vehicles in the factory. I like the Bose app that indicates remaining battery life and bluetooth connections. I'm sure I'm only scratching the surface with the available features, but for what I use it for I'm extremely pleased. As awesome as this little gem is, not all is perfect. There are some issues with the speaker wanting to connect to everything in sight. I love that you can connect to two gadgets simultaneously, but sometimes I don't want that feature and only want one. It takes a little doing but it can connect to just the one, but it's not intuitive. Not a deal breaker. Also there is no feature to plug in an analog MP3 player or device, but since I'm using the bluetooth capability as my excuse to the Mrs. for upgrading my portable capability that really is a non-issue. I've only had the speaker a very short time, but already love it. At some point I would like to test the stereo feature when you connect two speakers to one device, but at the moment my wife and I love having our own discrete speakers. Battery life is rated at 6 hours, but anecdotally it seems to last longer than that. I also don't blast my music at loud volume, so I'm not certain if there's a correlation there. I may have to update my review at a later date after I collect more data and get more enjoyment from the speaker. In summary, the buyer should know that this is what it is...a small, portable and extremely capable Bose speaker. If you're looking for incredibly high highs and rap lows, this may not fill your bill. But if you like your music on the go and with pleasant sound, this is your recommended default.

I've had this little portable speaker for years now and I love it. It's been perfectly reliable with great sound quality and long battery life. Charges up pretty fast too. There's a stretchy band on the back that is super handy for hanging. Very reasonable price for what has turned out to be an excellent speaker.

I've owned Bose "portable speakers" in the past. I've also owned lesser known brand portable speakers in the past. After a year of use, I have to say this is the first TRUE portable speaker I have used. We've had it to the beach, Miami, Cruise Ships, biking, kayaking, you name it! The bluetooth connection is amazing. It connects to my phone almost instantly. I'd say 1 second after turning it on. It also alerts you and tells you what device it is connected to. This is really helpful if you've connected it to multiple devices and they are by each other. It'll also connect to multiple devices. The range you can walk away from it with your phone is very impressive too. The battery last a long time. It has a little light indicator to let you know where the battery is. It'll also tell you when you first turn it on. I've used it for hours and hours without needing to charge it. I've also forgotten to charge it before heading out and it still works like a champ! The sound. Wow! It sounds great and it gets really loud without losing quality. On the beach I have zero problem hearing it over the sound and other people's music/talking. I could crank it up even more if I wanted half the beach to hear. Portability. This is where it really shines. It has a rubber strap on the back that allows it to wrap around poles or other objects to keep it attached. I've only had it fall off a few times. I've wrapped it to bike handles, kayak handles, beach umbrella poles, you name it! It's small enough I can just throw it in a bag and run! I really like this speaker and use it all the time! The price point is also perfect for what you get. Not too expensive but still has that Bose quality feel and sound! I'd highly recommend this if you want something you can throw into your bag and run around with!

Works great. Very happy with this product. Lots of quality sound for a small item. Bought it for my wife so she can listen to soothing music while taking a bath.

The Bose SoundLink Micro is far and away the best small speaker I've used yet. I've used countless no-name brand speakers and other brand name speakers (and countless ~20-30 dollar 'waterproof' speakers on Amazon) and this one absolutely blows those away. I already had expectations as to what this would sound like, however, I was still surprised by the amount of bass the speaker was able to put out. And I don't mean loud, droning bass, but bass that makes a song sound like it's coming from a bigger speaker - everything sounds authentic. Drum kicks and other instruments come out convincingly with a nice punch. The Micro is a very musical speaker with nice presence. The treble is very smooth - so you can listen to it for long periods of time without it tiring your ears out at high volume, but it's also never dull - everything has a nice sparkle to it when called for. Everything but the Girl's 'Missing' (2013 remaster) immediately shows off the Bose's advantage in bass compared to other speakers of its size (particularly against the JBL Clip 3, and JBL GO). The song starts off with a constant bass line and adds another on top that matches the rhythm of the music. The Bose reproduces the two distinct bass lines with confidence without sounding muddled. Tracey Thorn's vocals come through excellent and aren't drowned out by the bass - and neither are the other instruments in the midrange. Madonna's Music titletrack has a very deep bassline. The Revolve+ renders the song with a little too much upperbase - while it sounds fine at normal volume levels, at high levels the Revolve+ sounds boxy and smaller than it should. Due to the Micro's smaller size, and even though it is bass-boosted like the Revolve+, it actually ends up sounding more natural than the Revolve+. Volume pumping is minimal in this track. The Micro can occasionally volume pump at levels greater than 2/3 when the music stops as an artist continues singing or during the start of a song before the music starts. While not ideal, it doesn't volume pump as much as I expected it to. Rush's YYZ has great treble presence at the beginning with cymbals and other instrumentation. It comes through very crisp and cuts through the midrange and bass without issue. Geddy Lee's bass solo near the middle really comes through. Classical music, and really most music in general, from pop, rock, country, electronic/dance sound very decent as the Bose maintains a flat sound signature in the midrange with a small boost in bass. The treble is somewhat rolled off, but this prevents the speaker from sounding harsh - which I prefer. It's able to maintain most of its composure up until around 75%. You may notice compression at this level under certain circumstances. It'll sound decent up until around 85% - at this point basslines may disappear, depending on the song, however, it music still sounds full and it won't sound tinny. For the most part, it still sounds like a bigger speaker at this level. Above 85% up and up til 100% can be dicey. Most music actually sounds fine with the speaker pointed toward you head-on. Off-axis, it may sound strained, but not bad. It gets surprisingly loud. Older music, such as from the Beach Boys' actually sound very decent at these high levels (likely due to the fact that the songs have little bass), and the basslines they do have, typically remain while most newer music is compressed more at these higher volumes. You can fool the speaker into playing louder if you don't mind reducing bass with an equalizer app (e.g. reduce the left-hand side of the equalizer adjustments). Some reviews have complained about the treble or are trying to compare it to the Soundlink Mini (which I also have). It is different - the Micro is a 'flatter' and more accurate speaker than the Mini - which has a noticeable treble boost which some people say gives the old Mini 'clarity' over the Micro - even though the Micro is technically the more correct speaker. This isn't in the Mini's favor at high volumes as the compression can make the Mini sound sharp, while the Micro doesn't end up hurting your ears. And you don't lose anything with the Micro being a mono speaker compared to the Mini being stereo - while it's possible to tell the difference between the two from that perspective, it just isn't practical as you lose stereo separation if you are more than a few feet or otherwise are not facing the mini directly. The Micro sounds the same from most directions as audio fires up instead of from the front of the speaker. The Micro's battery lasts for quite a while. At volumes above a little above half, I get around 6-7 hours easily, and get 8-12 at even lower volumes. The speaker sounds great even at low volumes. Bass is dynamically boosted at lower levels - keeping the sound full, which is a problem for many of these small speakers. In general, I find most smaller speakers don't sound any better than your phone's built-in speakers at low volumes. The Bose definitely has a nice presence at low volume - it makes it easy to fall asleep to if you use it before you go to bed. I also have the SoundLink Revolve+, and until you reach the top volume of the Micro, the two speakers sound remarkably similar when paired in party or stereo mode. They only differ in certain tracks with very deep bass or when you push the Revolve+'s volume past the Micro's max volume - but listening to them in stereo is a surprisingly pleasant experience. It seems like the speakers volume match when they pair - so it sounds fairly balanced, you can however make one louder / quieter than the other by pushing the volume buttons separately on each speaker. The Bose app is not required to use the speaker. However, you can adjust the auto-off time in specific increments and remove previously paired devices through the app, otherwise, most things within the app, like turning voice prompts off or shutting the auto-off timer entirely, can be done with button presses on the speaker. You can easily find the manual by going to Bose.com -> Speakers -> SoundLink Micro and the manual is under their Support section. As for its closest competition, the B&O P2, the Bose is fully waterproof while the former doesn't have any weather proofing (I didn't think B&O advertised any water resistance but apparently some reviews state the speaker is splash proof). The battery on the Bose lasts much longer on maximum than the P2 (2-ish hours compared to a 5-ish for the Bose), even though the P2 isn't much louder than the Bose. And most importantly, the Bose is way cheaper and has a flatter frequency response than the P2. However, I actually like the flatter form factor of the P2 - you'll notice in B&O's advertising that they show the P2 can fit in some jean pockets - while the Micro fits more in larger cargo pants/shorts or coat pockets. The P2 and the Anker's I have above have a large treble boost which, superficially, may sound nice for a few minutes, but quickly becomes tiring when the speaker is within a few feet from you since things become bright and shrill easily. In my opinion, the Anker Soundcore Sport is the next closest competition. It is pretty much the same size as the Micro, they're both IPX7 waterproof, and they both feature ~1.5 inch drivers with a passive radiator. It's also only 40 dollars compared to the Bose. However, the Sport is covered in a hard rubber and the buttons on that speaker have practically zero feedback - so no 'click' or noticeable indent when pushed - which can make the speaker hard to use, especially when wet. Sound-wise, the Bose definitely wins - but the Anker puts up a good fight for being only $40. Primarily, it lacks the bass the Micro offers. As a plus, the Sport doesn't have the trouble boost it's smaller and non-waterproof brother, the Soundcore Mini and the B&O does - it sounds pretty flat across the midrange and treble - but just doesn't sound as full as the Micro. If you can afford it, the Bose is an easy choice over either Anker. The newest competition in this speaker size is probably the Minirig Mini. Reviewer Oluv (as noted in his own review of the speaker on this Amazon listing) has done an extensive review of the Minirig Mini on his YouTube channel. I have not heard it in person but it does appear to have an advantage in sound quality if you're willing to forego the smaller size of the Bose, along with waterproofing (the Minirig Mini is supposedly water resistant, like the Revolve+ - so it can handle splashes, but I wouldn't trust getting water on a paper-cone speaker that the Revolve+ and Minirig Mini have). Minirig's parent company specializes in underwater audio, however, so it seems odd to produce a speaker that isn't actually water proof. I used to scoff at speakers that introduced water resistance or 360 degree sound - but now that I have them, I don't think I'd give them up. Keeping all that in mind, the Minirig Mini's can automatically pair in stereo mode, without needing an app or complicated button pushes on every use, once you've set them up previously, which I'm jealous of. If something were to happen with my Micro, I would easily buy it again (even though it being the cheapest Bose speaker, it still isn't cheap and cost ~5x as much as the Anker speakers) because simply: it sounds better, the battery lasts much longer than many others in it's class (much longer than the Anker's max), and I don't doubt its durability. Edit: I added some more about the Anker Soundcore products I have since those are the closest in competition next to the B&O P2, in my opinion. Edit 2: 04/2018 - 6-ish months later. I've used this speaker every day since I got it back in October of 2017 (I listen to music a lot). It's probably my favorite bluetooth speaker that I have ever purchased (even including the original Soundlink Mini and newer and larger Revolve+, both of which I still have) not necessarily because it sounds better than the two - but it can definitely compete at lower volumes, but because of its small factor and waterproofing. This is the first expensive speaker that I have that actually feels durable - I don't worry about babying it like I do with the Mini and Revolve+. Along with the Revolve+, as I noted above - they both work surprisingly well when paired together in party/stereo mode - so if you need something louder than the Micro (and can afford it) I would definitely recommend getting the Revolve+ and pairing the two together so you can have something small for regularly every day use and something for a party on the weekends! Edit 3: 07/2018 - 9-ish months later: I've added more comparison speakers and updated how the speaker sounds with certain test tracks. Micro is still going strong (and still use it everyday). Edit 4: 10/2018 - A little after the 1 year mark. Still use it every day since I've gotten it - battery shows no sign of decline. I wanted to point out a few things I missed and noticed haven't been mentioned in other reviews: 1) Even at low volumes, you can really feel the bass when holding the speaker. The speaker won't vibrate due to its soft silicone covered body - but there's something fun about not just listening - but literally feeling the music. 2) A lot of people are complaining about a *very neat* feature that most other non-Bose bluetooth speakers do not have in that you can turn on the Micro (and other Bose Revolve speakers) remotely from your device e.g. selecting the Micro in your Bluetooth list automatically turns it on without needing to push the power button on the speaker. This is particularly helpful on their larger speakers, like when the Revolve+ is mounted on a tripod somewhere. This only works if your device has previously paired with the speaker (as evidenced in the Bose Connect App device history list) - so only you can turn the device on remotely. But some are complaining because they decided to connect it to a smart device i.e. an Echo, Fire stick, etc. - with the problem being that when those devices update overnight, for example, they'll reconnect upon completion which makes the speaker wake up in the middle of the night. You can simply disable the pairing in the Bose app for the problem smart device and this fixes the issue. I would be very disappointed if Bose removed this functionality due to a small few who can't use the speaker correctly. 3) I will note a flaw with connecting the speaker to a PC (or a Mac) which also effects the larger Revolve speakers. PCs don't support linked volume control like our phones do - i.e. when you change the volume on your phone, it immediately changes on the Bose, and vice-versa, but instead you have independent volume control (e.g. the PC has it's own volume level and the Bose has it's own volume level set by the volume buttons on the speaker itself). However, when connected to a PC, the Bose's volume buttons are locked (when you push -/+ the status light on the speaker blinks on/off to like that action is unavailable). This would be fine if the internal volume on the Bose was set to 100% - where then you can simply use the PC volume to control the speaker volume - this would mimic absolute volume control. However, the Bose's internal volume fixed at a low volume - meaning even if the PC volume is set to 100%, the volume may still be quite low on the speaker. Bose should allow the physical volume buttons to be used in this case to increase the volume on the speaker's end or simply max out the internal volume while we control the volume from the PC. None of this changes the 5 star rating. On a future gen Micro, though, I would like to see, at a minimum, a type-C USB port with USB audio like the larger Revolve line which has micro-USB with USB audio. It would be nice to see an increase in either battery life or fidelity at higher volumes (not necessarily louder but I definitely wouldn't complain).

This is a great speaker. For its size it’s amazing. I bought two of them. With a little practice, you can put them into stereo mode using the Bose app. It takes a little while to get the hang of it. But I can set them up anywhere in the house or on the road and get great audio. I had to give it four stars instead of five, because, well just two minor things, first of all they’ve got an old-fashioned charger jack. I don’t know why they don’t make a change in the design and modernize it to a USB-C jack. And one other thing, it seems odd to me is that it has a rounded bottom. Why not make a little bit of a flat spot on the bottom so it can stand up on its own? I mean, it’s not the worst thing, I just bought a couple of cell phone stands that hold them up wherever I put them in the house. Anyway, all in all a great product.

I have had two of these for several years now. Usually I only use one at a time but sometimes I will connect both and put them in stereo mode. They are my favorite bath toy (ahead of my waterproof Kindle). They are one of my favorite pool toys (I have accidentally submerged both of them in the deep end of my pool). I have strapped them to my body while doing yard work and had them violently ripped off by getting too close to something. No damage. I've used them biking (a little). Skiing (a lot) - I put one in my pocket and crank it up - works well. But I also will just use them on the kitchen table, or anywhere else. I am a lifelong musician and audiophile, and own many pieces high end gear ($2k speakers, tube amps and stuff). You need to LISTEN to audio devices to judge them (not read specs or reviews). So how do the Micros sound? I think they sound amazingly accurate. Near field, at low levels, they are a wonder. When you use them in a bigger setting, they are not going to go loud enough to fill a space, but for intimate settings, they work well. Small parties, not big parties. I listened a number of other Bluetooth speakers and many don't sound very good. These do. In fact, I found all the Bose portables to be best of breed. I also own a Bose Soundlink Mini that I bought before the Micros - it has a somewhat bigger, cleaner and brighter sound, but it isn't nearly as portable and requires placement near a wall or something to relect the bass. In most settings, speakers create most of the distortion in audio - the other components only contribute a little, speakers a lot. Bose speakers distort a lot too. But the way the Micro was engineered - with digital signal processing to optimize the device - it produces a full sound across a wide frequency spectrum. Bluetooth is a funky technology. It uses goofy compression to send a lot of quality sound over radio waves. The connectivity can be a little hinky, especially when you connect to a lot of different devices. But it all works well (most of the time), and gives acceptable results. This is the speaker you want to get for quality sound anywhere you go. They are a good value because they have better sound. After I got one, I wanted to buy them for everyone as gifts. So far I haven't done that, but I bought myself another. I gave them cool names - Little Boomer (for the first one) and The Missing Link (for the second, because they sound great in stereo).

Excellent product which I keep in my luggage because I travel quite often. It’s small and compact plus produces a great sound at reasonable levels.

I rarely leave reviews, but this speaker genuinely deserves one. Over the years I've owned plenty of Bluetooth speakers, and most have been disappointing — tinny sound, weak bass, and overall poor audio quality. This time I decided to spend a little more than I normally would, and it has absolutely paid off. The sound quality is outstanding for a speaker of this size. It delivers clear audio, impressive volume, and a surprisingly deep, punchy bass that far exceeds my expectations. If you're looking for a compact Bluetooth speaker that doesn't compromise on sound quality, I highly recommend this one. It's exactly what I was looking for and worth every penny.

Es un aparato de buena calidad con un bonito diseño, robusto, ergonómico y con un buen acabado. El sonido es excelente y tiene unos grabes que no es frecuente oír en dispositivos tan pequeños (poco más que la palma de una mano) pero no es un altavoz para grandes espacios y su uso es más bien individual. El máximo nivel de volumen parece bajo al principio pero hay que entender que es muy pequeño. Por eso es ideal para usarlo en cualquier actividad sin molestar a terceros. Se adapta con sencillez y seguridad a cualquier cinturón, correa, etc. Indica el nivel de batería al encenderlo y la duración supera con creces las 6 horas que garantiza la marca. También se puede sincronizar con otro altavoz del mismo modelo y oír el sonido en estéreo por lo tanto supongo que el volumen será mayor, pero eso no lo sé.

Ich habe etwas gesucht das ich auf Reisen immer dabei haben kann um zu meinen Regengeräuschen einzuschlafen, hilft ungemein bei meinem Tinnitus. Mein anderer Lautsprecher ist größer und der Akku hält länger, allerdings geht der auch nicht aus wenn kein Signal mehr kommt und ist so am nächsten Tag leer. Dieser hier schaltet sich ab und verbraucht so letztendlich um die 25% pro Nacht. Ich lasse ihn aber auch sehr sehr leise. Der Klang ansonsten ist super, erwartet man gar nicht von so einem kleinen Knödel. Haptik und Verarbeitung wie von Bose gewohnt perfekt, die Verbindung mit dem Handy geht fast augenblicklich. Der Akkuladestand wird einem optisch angezeigt und auch akutisch beim Einschalten des Geräts mitgeteilt. Passt in jedes Handgepäck, klingt gut, Akku hält lange, sieht gut aus und der Preis passt. Was will man mehr. UPDATE und Absenkung auf 1* Wenn ich mein iPhone verbinde und gerade keine Musik spielt, wird der Klang einer eigehenden eMail/SMS auf voller Lautstärke abgespielt, unabhängig von der eingestellten Musiklautstärke. Das ist dermaßen ätzend, besonders wenn man morgens oder abends die Boxen anmacht und eigehende Nachrichten nicht nur die Freundin, sondern auch gefühlt die halbe Nachbarschaft aus dem Schlaf reissen. Keine andere Box (ausser Bose) die ich kenne hat dieses Problem und ja, es tritt relativ selten auf, aber wenn dann will man sie am liebsten aus dem Fenster werfen. Habe auch die Revolve+, selbes Problem. Wenn mir jemand eine simple Lösung zu dem Problem mit der Lautstärkeeinstellung nennen kann, ändere ich die Bewertung sofort zu 5* und entschuldige mich aber das ist Bose-unwürdig.

Amazing sound quality and depth

It has amazing sound. It is compact an handy as well.