Xiaomi makes awesome phones that delivers more value for money. They also makes some interesting accessories and the barely six year old company has a wide portfolio of products across various categories. They already made their mark in the audio world with their impressive yet affordable headphones both in-ear and over-the ear types and their Bluetooth speaker continues their mettle in sound technology and true to their legacy makes it very affordable too.
The pencil-box style speaker is ultra portable and weighs 270 grams, not a big fat. The package also includes a simple carry pouch in soft material which helps to keep the metal surface scratch free when not in use or packing it in your travel bag.
Product designers can get quirky with Bluetooth speakers designs and experiment on it, Xiaomi has opted for a clean design. The Speaker is a rectangular block wrapped in aluminum case. Very practical to carry around or snug it in bag. It’s an all pleasing design but for those little bolder, it also comes in trendy shades.
The one I have is a metallic golden color. The front speaker grille is bit fascinating, the uneven perforations at both the sides giving it a musical high. There is a subtle Mi logo at the front face.
The right side has the power / play button, volume buttons which also combines as track changers and bluetooth pairing button,stacked vertically. Pressing the last button which is the pairing button also gives out a voice prompt indicating the level of battery remaining. When playing music, the power button has a blue glow around it, it turns red when the battery is critically low.
On the left side is vertically stacked the Aux in port in case you want to connect a music player with a cable, a mic , microUSB port to charge the speaker and a small Mi logo.
The bottom has two tiny footings.
Pairing is a cinch, I faced no issue pairing it with various devices including different phone models and laptop. It uses Bluetooth 4.o technology which uses low-energy. The speaker charges via Micro-USB and it houses a 1500mAh battery, it takes around 2.5 hours to fully charge and while Mi has listed a 8 hours of play back time, it lasted a little more than that at 50% volume.The Mi Bluetooth Speaker does offer speakerphone capabilities so you can take calls through the speaker from your smartphone or tablet.
Performance
From the first listen, the Mi Bluetooth Speaker impressed with the full sound. The audio got better after some 30 hours of normal run-in. For a INR 1,999 ( US$ 30) Xiaomi’s bluetooth speaker offers more reasons to be happy. The audio can be cranked up really well without much distortion and can max out 90db, a good output for a room party. The vocals are very clear and I liked the way the classic ‘I just can’t stop loving you‘ crooned and the depth of the opening strings of Bryan Adam’s ‘On a day like today‘ or acoustics of MLTR’s ‘Breaking my heart‘. It balances well the tonal variations, though gets a little cloudy on high ranges. But overall delivers a well rounded, detailed audio especially considering it is from a 30$ device. It outperforms the expectations.
I don’t use speaker phones but Mi Bluetooth allows you to attend call in case you would want to. The quality is on par with the most other devices in the segment, I would say decent. Calls were clear on both ends when the speaker was about arm’s length away, though when I called my wife she said it sounded a little away. But the bottom line, for those who use speaker phone, it works. I read that Xiaomi offers microSD card support to the variant sold in China but the model available in India doesn’t have that feature, would have been nicer if it had it.
Mi claims it can play for 8 hours at 50 percent volume. When I tested, I found the Xiaomi guys where accurate on their words, I managed a little over 8 hours on a single charge. The speaker auto shuts when there is no music played for 20 minutes, thus helping conserving the battery.
https://youtu.be/boq83cnKD48
Verdict
Durability, Style, affordability and good sound – Mi Bluetooth speaker has it all. For under US$ 30, the Mi Bluetooth speaker is a steal. I am quiet happy with its performance and Mi delivers yet another sheer value for money product.
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