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UB+E2 Wireless Speakers Review
(A new product now on Kickstarter)
The first thing that struck me when I saw the new UB+E2 speakers was their shape. They have a very interesting spherical round shape that resembles a very large eye or the round head of a friendly robot. See photos. So I will first express kudos to the UB+E2 design team that developed the physical shape of these speakers. The big question is did the sound engineers use the necessary components inside the sphere to turn an interesting shape into a great speaker? The one function that we expect from a speaker system is for it to supersize, without loss of quality, the audio from whatever device we attach to it. I am happy to report that these speakers sound as good as they look. They designed their speakers to be used individually or for two of them to wirelessly provide surround sound when they are paired together. During testing I connected the UB+E2 speakers, in a wired and wireless configuration, to my smartphone, computer, and television. Let’s take a quick look at speaker setup and use.
These speakers have internal lithium-ion batteries that need to be charged before you can start using them. Each speaker comes with a USB-C charging cable but you need to supply your own charging block. The Bluetooth setup, to use the speakers with a Bluetooth enabled device, is standard and easy to perform. If you purchase two speakers you just need to turn the second speaker on and hold the volume up and volume down on both speakers at the same time to wirelessly pair them together. Once you perform the True Wireless Stereo (TWS) pairing, both speakers will work with your Bluetooth connected device and when you press the power off button on one of the speakers they will both shut down.
You can learn more about the product online at their Kickstarter campaign. Because its Kickstarter the MSRP depends on a number of variables best described by the company. To Go there just click here!
Reasons to Drool
These speakers have a pleasing shape, generally great sound, great Bluetooth range, and the ability to really blast your music or autio from different sources. The speakers do have an auxiliary in port so you can use them with your devices that don’t support Bluetooth. When I used this hookup to my TV using my own stereo Aux cable connected to just one of the speakers the paired TWS speaker provided true stereo sound even though it was not physically connected to the TV.
Not So Cool
It would have been fantastic if the company had an app which allowed you to adjust the enhanced implosive bass of the speakers when you are using them for the audio while watching a movie. The controls are located on the back of the speaker and they light up when the speakers are on. This out of sight location, where you don’t see the on light, could easily lead to forgetting to shut the speakers down when they are not in use. This product would have received a perfect score if they had included an auto shutdown feature and an app which let’s you set different listening modes.
Overall Rating:
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