Micro Portable Speaker Tribute Stormbox.
Sometimes it might seem like portable Bluetooth speakers are a dime a dozen, making it difficult to determine which ones are worth your investment or not. Tribit recently released the StormBox Micro, a small, portable Bluetooth speaker that not only makes impressive sound, but is weather-resistant.
Tribit sent us a StormBox Micro to review the portable Bluetooth speaker, so we tried to find out how well it performs in various real-world applications.
Appearance: Compact but Convenient
The speaker lives up to its name. At 3.9 inches wide, 3.9 inches high and just under 1.4 inches thick, the speaker doesn’t take up much space, and its weight doesn’t get in the way of transporting it. The black appearance is nondescript, although it makes it difficult to immediately highlight the top buttons.
The Tribit StormBox Micro has three buttons on top: a volume down and up button, and a multi-function button. The front of the portable Bluetooth speaker contains an on / off button, a Bluetooth button and a series of LED indicators that indicate volume and connectivity.
One aspect of the StormBox Micro‘s appearance that is worth noting is the integrated strap. It snaps into place at the bottom of the speaker but has a secure fit, making it ideal for strapping it to your belt while you’re on the go.
If you’re looking for blinking, pulsing LEDs that dance to the beat of the music, you’re out of luck. The StormBox Micro doesn’t require any bells and whistles to get a clean and simple look, but it makes up for the lack of style with performance.
Sound Quality
The first thing you’ll notice about the StormBox Micro is the sound quality. Despite its small size, this small speaker increases the volume. It is noticeably loud even at lower volume levels and can fill a room at maximum volume.
Beyond volume, the StormBox Micro produces an amazing amount of bass. Speakers of this size usually fall short due to the lack of space for subwoofers, but the StormBox Micro excels even in electronic music with heavy bass. Sure, it doesn’t compare to a dedicated speaker with a larger woofer, but a StormBox Micro of this size is hard to beat.
Even demanding songs like “Turn Your Lights Down Low” by Bob Marley sound great on the speaker. The position of the instrument during playback is easy to determine, and the StormBox Micro maintains good sonic balance with minimal distortion.
The main problems encountered during playback were that the low, heavy bass sounded a little washed out when the higher sounds dominated the song. Of course, similar problems are to be expected when dealing with compact speakers.
Features and Functionality
The StormBox Micro has several notable features. It is designed for use with a telephone, as the multifunction button or MFB has functions that are reserved for telephones. StormBox Micro has two main playback modes: music mode and talk mode.
In music mode, the MFB serves as a play and pause button when pressed briefly. Pressing twice in a row skips to the next track, and pressing three times in a row jumps back one track. If pressed and held for one second, the MFB activates Siri on your phone.
The conversation mode is slightly different. A short press on the MFB will answer or end a call, and press and hold for one second to reject the call. A short press during a call puts it on hold to answer an incoming call, and subsequent presses allow you to switch between two calls at the same time.
Pair one StormBox Micro with another and you have access to even more features, including Party Mode and Stereo Mode. When you put two speakers into party mode, you can play the same song in sync with both, spreading the sound over a wider area.
However, in stereo mode, the power of the speaker really shines. The sound quality is already impressive for a device of this size and has a good spatial representation in itself. However, in stereo mode, the speaker tells you which is left and which is right.
Stereo mode provides sound quality that rivals more expensive speakers. That’s impressive for such a small device, although if you have access to a set of high-quality earbuds, they’ll probably outperform the StormBox Micro.
On the other hand, if you are looking for a way to achieve impressive sound quality even in the shower, the StormBox Micro may be your best bet. With an IP67 weather rating, the StormBox Micro can handle a lot of abuse – it’s waterproof up to a meter deep for half an hour.
Bluetooth and Battery Life
The Bluetooth functionality of the StormBox Micro is worth noting. It can be paired with eight different devices simultaneously and with two. This means that there is no need to run an additional cord, so to speak. If you and your friend are sharing music, all you have to do is pause the playback and your friend can start playing their music.
When fully charged, the StormBox Micro portable Bluetooth speaker provides up to eight hours of battery life. While testing didn’t show the exact amount, the speaker played music for hours nonstop and still had a lot of charge left. Charging the speaker is easy too – all you need is the included USB-C cable and 5V plug.
StormBox Micro: Worth the Cost?
The Tribit StormBox Micro packs many features in a small package, but comes at the same low price. Honestly, it’s hard to imagine the best Bluetooth speaker in this price range for just $ 50. There are options that can be louder and more functional, but they are also more expensive.
The StormBox Micro is loud, surprisingly bass efficient, and has enough features to compete with the larger brands. If you are looking for a way to relax in the shower, this is your best bet.
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Micro Portable Speaker Tribute Stormbox
Micro Portable Speaker Tribute Stormbox