JBL Charge 5
The JBL Charge 5 is an excellent portable Bluetooth speaker with impressive, full sound, and 20 hours of battery life. It's also waterproof, meaning it's perfect for the summer, and we like it a lot at $40 off.
A good portable Bluetooth speaker can really set the tone for a cookout, party, or any other form of get-together. A good speaker usually equals good music (depending on who is in charge of it), and good music equals good times. However, if the speaker doesn't get loud enough, sounds bad, or the battery runs out too quickly, it can ruin the entire vibe. That's why you want to be very careful when picking out your summer speaker and go with something like the JBL Charge 5. It sounds great, it's waterproof, and right now it's on sale for $140.
Why you should buy the JBL Charge 5 Portable Speaker
The JBL Charge 5 has all the features and performance you'd want in a Bluetooth speaker. JBL's Pro Sound setup utilizes a long driver, separate tweeter, and dual bass radiators, to produce excellent sound. In our review of the Charge 5, we noted that its audio output is genuinely astounding, given its smaller footprint. Rarely did we have to surpass 50% volume in our testing, but you can push it up to 80% before the audio starts to crack. Obviously, one of the most important aspects of a speaker like this is the sound quality, and that's at least one area you won't be disappointed.
As for other notable features, the Charge 5 is rated IP67, which means it's protected against dust and other particles, and it can survive full immersion in water of up to 3 feet for a short amount of time. This means you can take it with you pretty much anywhere — poolside, lakeside, campfire-side, hiking, or even to float the river. The battery is good for up to 20 hours of playback, and it has a built-in power bank, so you can recharge your own devices on the go. Imagine leaving your house this summer, grabbing this speaker on your way out, and knowing no matter where you end up, your tunes and battery charging are completely covered for the day.
The biggest caveat here is that there's no 3.5mm input, for wired audio connections, so if you were hoping to plug an old iPod into the speaker, you'll have to look elsewhere. Otherwise, we can't think of a single reason not to buy the JBL Charge 5 — especially at this price.