Sandberg Pocket Bluetooth Speaker Pro

[testman78]

Introduction

The focus of today's review is the Sandbergs Pocket Bluetooth Speaker Pro.
Who are Sandberg?Their website describes themselves as:Sandberg A/S is a Danish company with a clear ideology: We want to make it easier to get hold of computer accessories. Everyone should be able to find the right accessories in the shop and get them to work once they've got them home without the need for specialist knowledge.The basic idea of Sandberg wanting to make things easier for both consumers and dealers has imbued the spirit of everything that Sandberg has done since 1985, when the company was founded by the two brothers Martin Hollerup and Erling Hoff Petersen.



The Pocket Bluetooth Speaker Pro is one of the first products in Sandberg's new range of mobile products.This range of products is designed to be fully functional with all brands of smartphone and laptop which are bluetooth enabled.




Unboxing

The Pocket Bluetooth Speaker Pro is supplied in a very attractive looking packet which consists of a clear plastic upper section that slots into a cardboard base. This packaging is both protective and visually effective so is very well suited to the product.



The rear of the packet contains a vast amount of detailed information about the features and specification of the speaker.



Along with the Speaker itself there is a quick-start guide.



Sandberg also bundle a USB power cable and 3.5mm header for audio input.




Pocket Bluetooth Speaker Pro

The Sandberg Pocket Bluetooth Speaker Pro itself is very compact, measuring 18 cm long, by 4.8 cm wide and 6.8 cm high. This makes it ideal for those who travel frequently and are looking for a high-quality speaker that is compatible with all of their mobile devices.



The main body of the speaker is rubberised, meaning it should stand the test of time pretty well.There are grilles on front side of the Pocket Bluetooth Speaker Pro.



The entire unit feels pretty solidly put together as a whole and i don't imagine it damaging easily even if abused. The 425g weight is about what i would expect considering it features an inbuilt battery.



We find the micro-USB connector for charging and a 3.5mm audio jack input at the back of the unit.



Additionally, one can also play music using the via its 3.5mm input jack and Sandberg has also conveniently supplied 3.5mm to 3.5mm cable.



The five main buttons are integrated into the rubber finish on the top of the speaker.



The two outer buttons control the volume of the speaker, while the big button is a function button to control the Bluetooth functionality of the device.The Sandberg Pocket Bluetooth Speaker Pro has an integrated microphone, meaning you can use it to take calls via your smartphone or to chat with people on Skype with your laptop.



Thanks to functions like next/previous track, play/pause, etc. the speaker also acts as a remote control for your device.



On the bottom side of the chassis we will find 2 rubber feet.Sandberg is revealing very little about the hardware within its Pocket Bluetooth Speaker Pro(only 3Wx2).I will definitely be putting this claim to the test, but first, let's go through its setup procedure.




Testing

From a physical point of view, the Sandberg Pocket Bluetooth Speaker Pro is an enticing proposition. But a well designed speaker is useless if it doesn't have decent sound quality to match.Setting the speaker up is very easy indeed.Simply hold the function button until the power button flashes quickly, and then search for the device using your Bluetooth enabled device. Alternatively, you can just play music via the 3.5 mm connector.I found that Bluetooth offered a better experience, though, because the volume was significantly more impressive.The built-in battery gives 6 hours of playback so you are all set for a day on the beach, for example.Charging time: About 3 hours.I am happy to say that the Sandberg Pocket Bluetooth Speaker Pro offers pretty decent sound quality and offers an impressively full sound for such a compact unit.I was impressed by the lower registers which have a decent amount of power considering the size of the unit, however it doesn't seem so good when it?s compared to slightly larger units. The overall sound is fairly evenly balanced and doesn't seem to have much of a bias towards any of the sound frequencies.One unusual aspect of the speaker is that it actually boosts a call function. Using the inbuilt microphone, you can use it as a hands-free speaker, answering your call using the function button on the top of the unit.There's no mention of noise-canceling technologies, but the Pocket Bluetooth Speaker Pro works well enough as a speaker.



Bass

This is probably the most serious cave-eat I have with this speaker. For the most part, the speaker give out a flat audio response, with pronounced mids and highs, and a straightforward bass.There's enough kick and punch.

Treble

The sound becomes bright towards the high-end, and though it is pronounced, it's also missing some clarity, though not enough to actually hurt the overall sound-quality.

Mids

The bass transitions nicely to the mid-range, where the sound is properly nuanced. The mids are warm, pleasant sounding, and pretty clear. It doesn't lose that much of its power going towards the high-range, which is also a good thing to see in a bluetooth speaker.

Call Quality

The speakerphone call quality is mediocre for the most part.The integrated microphone is non-noise cancelling, omni-directional, which means that there is a considerable difference between the handheld cell phone speaker and the Pocket Bluetooth Speaker Pro.




Conclusion

Given the need to combine portability with the robustness and simplicity necessary for something that will mainly be used out and about, it's a decent compromise.It's hardly going to win any design awards, and i'd much rather it had rounded edges to fit more easily into a pocket, but it's fine enough. The casing is a soft-touch rubber affair that grips well to shiny tables and things.Usability is extremely simple, with the pairing process taking a few seconds if you wish to use Bluetooth, and it supports a good distance between device and speaker. Certainly you can get far enough away that you'll worry someone will nick it if you're in a crowded place.Sound quality is good. It's often the case that manufacturers believe lots of bass is the key to a product that sounds more expensive than its price point, but Sandberg have resisted this temptation and given a more midrange tuned setup.It also can function as a speaker phone so you need not fear for missing a vital call because you're jamming out. Quality of the microphone is average and i wouldn't recommend you use the Sandberg Bluetooth Stereo Headset Pro primarily as a speaker phone, but of course that's hardly what it's designed for.It's not outstandingly loud either.Consider it more as something to share a song with a group of friends round a table, than as the entrepiece to a party.



If you want a simple way to boost the volume of your media and aren't desperate for either design flair or sheer volume, then the Sandberg Bluetooth Stereo Headset Pro is a good starting point.The sound is nicely balanced, it doesn't distort even at maximum volume and it's small enough to fit in a bag or coat pocket.The batteries will last nearly all day and thanks to the USB charging you can recharge it almost anywhere.The price of this speaker is its true strength. With a recommended retail of about 39 Euro's, it's about half the Jawbone Jambox (the one direct competitor), and the sound quality is pretty much on par if not better in some respects.