Anker Soundcore Boom 2: Two-minute review
Anker Soundcore Boom 2 offers enough quality to get the party started, especially given its relatively low price. The chunky Bluetooth speaker’s main draw is its ability to plate up impactful deep bass tones, with its BassUp feature able to pump this up further.
In addition, the Soundcore Boom 2 keeps pace with a number of pricier options among the best Bluetooth speakers when it comes to battery life, offering a playtime of up to 24 hours.
As a lower-cost option, however, the Boom 2 sometimes compromises on quality, with the mid-range and high frequencies lacking crisp definition, especially at louder volumes. It’s not exactly the best-looking Bluetooth speaker either, though its built-in Light Show feature with customizable settings may add a splash of excitement for some.
One slightly disappointing aspect is the Soundcore Boom 2’s lack of a dustproof rating, despite Soundcore pitching it as a beachside companion. It is, however, waterproof and floatable, making it a worthy candidate for a pool party, and an option for those looking at the best waterproof speakers. Being boyant also means it's quite light in weight for a chunky speaker, which means it's portable – a big plus.
With Bluetooth 5.3 connectivity and simple button controls, the Boom 2 is super-easy to set up and operate. If you want to get more out of it, the free-to-download Soundcore app enables users to flick through Light Show options and calibrate EQ settings to their liking (which can help improve the sonic balance a lot).
Despite some shortcomings when it comes to how it sounds, the Boom 2 has a decent amount of power. If you’re not overly concerned with top-quality audio and want a powerful Bluetooth speaker that can cut through loud background noise while being more portable than most of its direct competitors, the Boom 2 makes for a solid pick. For those who like a more rounded sound, the JBL Charge 5 is about the same price, and will give you that – but it lacks the same level of bass thump and the useful carry handle.
Anker Soundcore Boom 2 review: Price and release date
- Released on March 6, 2024
- Price: $129.99 / £119.99 / AU$219.99
The Soundcore Boom 2 is well-priced for a larger portable wireless speaker, carrying an asking price of $129.99 / £119.99 / AU$219.99. That’s just $30 more than its predecessor, the Soundcore Motion Boom, despite the newer model offering double the output power (without BassUp enabled), new drivers, and more versatile multi-speaker pairing (via PartyCast 2.0).
By comparison, our highly recommended JBL Charge 5 can sometimes be found at around $10 more, so there are similarly affordable alternatives out there. For $70 / £42 (about AU$80) more, you could pick up the Tribit Stormbox Blast speaker, which is a bit bulkier, but offers awesome sound quality and still with buckets of bass.
Anker Soundcore Boom 2 review: Specs
Anker Soundcore Boom 2 review: Features
- BassUp bass-boosting feature
- 24 hours of playtime
- Adjustable Light Show settings
The Soundcore Boom 2 houses a 50W subwoofer alongside two 15W tweeters, meaning that its output can hit 80W. However, this 80W output is only achievable when the Boom 2’s BassUp feature is activated, which serves up a “punchy bass” according to Soundcore. I’d agree here, to a degree; the Soundcore Boom 2 is clearly designed around delivering a solid deep bass listening experience – more on this later.
Utilizing the BassUp function doesn’t come without a downside, however, as it causes the Soundcore Boom 2’s playtime to deplete faster. For reference, the model has a playtime of up to 24 hours per charge, which is a good amount of time for a speaker of its size. I found that it took over five hours of playing music at 30% volume for it to drop 20% of its battery (as rated by the app, using its crude system of five battery bars – I would much prefer an actual percentage). It certainly appears to live up to its battery claims.
As is the case with BassUp, users should be warned that the Soundcore Boom 2’s Light Show option also drains battery faster – a feature which may not be to everyone’s tastes, although there is an option to switch it off entirely.
Light Show has seven settings: Energy, Fireworks, Flame, Flash, Lightning, Rainbow, and Wave. Each setting syncs with bass audio, which is more apparent with options such as Flame than with others, like Fireworks. The Soundcore app enables you to alter the colors used in each Light Show configuration, adjust brightness levels, or turn the LED lights off entirely. You can also switch between Light Show settings by holding the speaker’s BassUp button, which is a slightly hidden design choice, but works well regardless.
Anker's Soundcore Boom 2 supports Bluetooth 5.3, which ensured that it was quick and easy to connect with both my Android phone and one of the best portable music players. Like many other similar Bluetooth speakers, the Soundcore Boom 2 also offers charging of a phone or other device through a USB-A port hidden beneath a rubber tab on its reverse side. Next to this is a USB-C port, which can be used to charge the speaker – note that you can’t charge another device from the USB-C port, which is a shame. The model comes with a USB-C to USB-C cable, which can fully recharge the Boom 2 in approximately 5.5 hours.
If you find yourself in a situation where you need to connect more than 100 Soundcore speakers at the same time, you’re in luck. The Soundcore Boom 2 has a PartyCast 2.0 feature, enabling it to sync its audio and light output with various other Soundcore speakers.
- Features score: 4/5
Anker Soundcore Boom 2 review: Sound quality
- Impressive, booming bass
- Various vocal and instrumental elements can lack definition
- ‘Balanced’ EQ setting provides decent all-round experience
The heavy kick of the Soundcore Boom 2’s deep bass means that it can hold its own at events with lots of background noise, such as outdoor parties or gatherings. When listening to Young Blood by The Naked and Famous, the Boom 2 delivered deep bass tones with substantial power, even without BassUp enabled.
Though it's still good value, the Boom 2’s low-end output isn’t perfect. When I listened to Black Eye by Allie X, the energetic bass bounce you’d anticipate from the opening is slightly lacking, especially when I compared it to the JBL Xtreme 4. The Boom 2 reaches deep, but it doesn’t connect the bass to the mid-range so well out of the box, leaving it feeling thin as it moves through the range of low-end frequencies.
Unfortunately, the Boom 2’s prominent bass can sometimes be overbearing, and at times the speaker’s deep bass output slightly drowned out vocal elements, for instance. This was apparent when listening to Moloko’s I Want You, when I was once again impressed by the bass output, but felt that it overshadowed the impact of several other instruments too heavily, preventing the complexity of the track from being fully realized. Unsurprisingly, this is exaggerated further with volume cranked up high, and even more with BassUp turned on, so I’d only recommend using this feature if you're really going for that pounding beat for a party, and aren't really worried about fidelity.
The Soundcore Boom 2’s clarity isn’t going to wow, with higher-pitched vocals and lower-toned guitars often lacking a touch of sharpness and definition. With a bit more sweetness to its sound, it could've been a really great speaker.
In fairness, some of these issues can be remedied somewhat via the Soundcore App, which enables users to switch from the default ‘Soundcore Signature’ EQ settings (where the midrange is given precious little limelight) to a ‘Balanced’ option, which delivers a decent all-round listening experience. The Soundcore app also has ‘Voice’ and ‘Treble Boost’ presets, as well as an option to adjust EQ levels manually.
But while this all improves their balance in the mix, it doesn’t solve the deeper lack of detail. Voices and strings are simply less sweet, less real, than pricier large speakers.
- Sound quality score: 3.5/5
Anker Soundcore Boom 2 review: Design
- Plastic exterior looks on the cheaper side
- Nice and lightweight
- Lacks a dustproof rating, although it’s waterproof and floatable
When it comes to style points, the Soundcore Boom 2 doesn’t score too highly, with its plastic casing looking a little on the basic side. The speaker is available in Adventure Green (the version I tested, and it's a nice color), Explorer Blue, and Phantom Black, all of which look clean enough, though may not appeal to those seeking a touch of pizzazz. The Boom 2’s drivers are protected by a rather budget-looking plastic covering decorated with the Soundcore logo.
For the price, however, the Soundcore Boom 2 still looks the part for any outdoor event or party, sporting a solid attached handle and minimalistic yet simple button controls, which enabled a quick and easy setup. It also has four rubber feet at the base to provide grip, protect the speaker’s base from scratching against rough surfaces, and stop the bass vibration from moving it around.
Something I really liked about the Boom 2 is that it’s relatively light for its size, weighing in at 3.66lbs / 1.67kg. That’s far less hefty than comparable models such as the Tribit Stormbox Blast, which comes in at a weighty 11.6lbs / 5.3kg.
There’s something about the Soundcore Boom 2 that I found almost perplexing, however. The speaker’s packaging specifically bigs up its use at a beach setting, with much of the model’s online marketing similarly highlighting this. However, the speaker is only IPX7 certified, meaning it does not have a dustproof rating, unlike an IP67-rated model such as the JBL Charge 5.
This means the Soundcore Boom 2 may not be a prime pick for the beach after all, although the IPX7 rating does promise that the speaker can withstand being under 1m of water for 30 minutes without suffering any damage. The Boom 2 is also floatable, making it easily accessible in a pool (or maybe even a large bath).
Naturally, I gave it a dunking – it floated well (on its side), and after being submerged underwater for around a minute it was still able to play audio to the same standard as before.
- Design score: 3.5/5
Anker Soundcore Boom 2 review: Value
- Low-priced for a larger Bluetooth speaker
- Despite imperfect sound, it will do the job for parties
- Large competitors often have higher list prices
The Soundcore Boom 2 may not be revolutionary, it may not deliver earth-shatteringly good audio, and it may not even woo the masses with elite design, but one thing’s for sure – it performs well in the value category.
It’s not the cheapest Bluetooth speaker available, but given its larger size and solid bass output, it’s easily worth its $129.99 / £119.99 / AU$219.99 price tag. The Boom 2 provides everything essential for the average listener, especially when accounting for the adjustments available via the Soundcore app.
Indeed, many speakers of a similar size go for much closer to the $200 / £150 / AU$300 mark. For instance, the JBL Charge 5 has an official price of $179.95 / £169.99 / AU$199.95 and the Sonos Roam comes in at $179 / £179 / AU$299. If you want a speaker with powerful, pumping outdoor sound at a lower cost, the Boom 2 is worth considering.
- Value score: 4/5
Should you buy the Anker Soundcore Boom 2?
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Anker Soundcore Boom 2 review: Also consider
Anker Soundcore Boom 2 review: How I tested
- I used the speaker over the course of a week
- Mostly used in our music testing room in the TechRadar office
- I listened to a wide variety of music genres during each listening session
I spent hours testing the Soundcore Boom 2 with music, checking how easy the speaker was to set up and operate, tinkering with its various Light Show settings, and of course tuning into the quality of its audio output.
While using the speaker, I listened to a range of tracks, including songs from TechRadar’s testing playlist. I had other speakers available to compare against, including the similarly sized JBL Xtreme 4. I connected both a Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 using Spotify and a Fiio M11S hi-res music player using Tidal, to put the Boom 2’s audio abilities to work.
