When Bose first launched its Bose SoundLink Mobile, it was hard not to be impressed by the nifty little thing, which happened to be Bose’s initial foray into wireless speakers. Priced quite reasonably and packing in really good acoustics, Bose seemed to have struck the right chord with the SoundLink Mobile. This year, they upped the ante and launched the Bose SoundLink Mini.

The SoundLink Mini is surprisingly portable. It weighs in at about 600 grams, a little more than say a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1. This obviously means you can not only carry it around from one room to another but also take it along with you in case you’re going to the beach or heading out for a weekend getaway. It helps that the audio quality of the Bose SoundLink Mini is impressive enough for you to want to carry it around with you.

The dock itself looks very minimalist with its sleek aluminium casing. The row of physical buttons on the dock includes volume adjustments, power buttons and connectivity modes for Bluetooth or through an auxiliary cable.

We paired it with a Google Nexus 5 and an HTC One via Bluetooth as well as the 3.5 mm on the dock. You can connect up to six devices at a time. Getting started with the SoundLink Mini is a no-brainer. It’s as simple as plug-and-play. In case you want to connect your device to the dock via Bluetooth there is a dedicated button which lets you pair your smartphone or tablet with the Mini.

Given the compact little size of the device we weren’t sure how well it could deliver when it comes to full-bodied acoustics. But we were in for a surprise. Taking turns to play everything from Adele to Pink Floyd to Electric Guest, we realised that the SoundLink Mini packs in enough power to fill in a decent-sized room with music.

What surprised us even more was the fact that the volume levels could get really high (and we never felt the need to pump it up to the max) and that even at higher volume levels the nifty lil’ Mini did not distort the sound. Also, the sound never appeared ‘unidirectional’ as it did with a similar wireless speaker we tested.

The vocals in Tracy Chapman’s ‘Fast Car’, the bass guitars in ‘Arabella’ by Arctic Monkeys and the all instruments in the electro-swing number ‘Hit That Jive’ by Gramatik were produced with impressive clarity. Bose claims that the Mini uses 2 passive radiators and 2 custom transducers to produce “better sound than any speaker of its size” and we cannot but agree.

The only niggles were the rare times when it felt like the speaker was overwhelmed by the bass in a couple of tracks. But, given its size and its otherwise-impressive delivery, you can’t help but overlook this lapse.

Another downside is that unlike a bunch of other wireless speakers in the market, you can’t charge the Bose SoundLink Mini via microUSB. You need to carry the AC adapter with you wherever you go and hopefully it will be some place with an AC outlet.

We streamed music on the speaker for about 3 hours on end and the company says you could go on for another 4 until its 2330mAh battery runs out. The unit we reviewed was accompanied by a charging cradle where we could place the SoundLink Mini to recharge as we streamed music from it. Fortunately, the charging cradle is bundled along with the dock so you don't have to pay extra for it. You can also get yourself a range of colourful soft covers to protect the dock with.

If you’re on the lookout for a speaker that’s compact and does not in anyway compromise on its acoustics owing to its size, the SoundLink Mini is an excellent option to go for. The claim that good things come in small packages stands true at least in this case!

Rs 16,200

Love – Compact design, excellent audio output

Hate – AC-charging only Corrigendum: In the print version of the story, it was incorrectly mentioned that the charging cradle comes at a cost. It comes bundled along with the SoundLink Mini for free.

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