Continuing our look
into kit to get you moving and active during January, we're thinking
about music. Having some “banging tunes” on the go while out
exercising can help to keep you going for farther and longer, but
often headphones can be a massive distraction, not to mention
uncomfortable. Until scientists discover a way to wirelessly beam
sounds directly into your skull, you might have to settle for a
Bluetooth speaker. Such as the eeny teeny itty bitty Polk Audio Boom
Bit.
This is the smallest Bluetooth speaker we've ever reviewed. Seriously, the size is pretty astounding, and the promo images you might see on Polk Audio's website really don't do it justice. This thing is smaller than your finger (if you're a normal adult), yet pumps out an impressive and surprisingly amount of oomph.
The Polk Audio Bit has
been designed to be worn. It features a built-in clip so it can
attach easily to your clothing, and then connect via Bluetooth to
your phone. Inside the water resistant rubberised body is a battery
capable of providing three hours of music playback, as well as a
microphone so it can act like a speaker-phone. Pop off the top and
you'll find a conventional full-sized USB connector to charge it up,
so you can either whack it into the side of your laptop, or plug it
into a phone AC charger.
The speaker itself is
merely 1.5 watts, which doesn't sound like much at all. And, well...
it isn't. Connect your phone, press play, and listen to it like you
would an ordinary speaker and you might be slightly disappointed.
Clearly Polk have designed this to be listened to while clipped onto
your clothing, ideally as high up as possible. When positioned near
to your ears (and mouth, to take advantage of the speaker-phone) it
sounds much better and is far more enjoyable to listen to.
For runners, this is
great: no headphones to block out the sounds of the world around you,
and nothing in or over your ears to feel uncomfortable. Also, as the
sound is quite focussed on a small area around the Bit, we're quite
sure it won't cause much of a disturbance to people you pass by –
something we were conscious of while testing. Nobody wants to be
'that person' with a speaker blaring dance music as they stagger by a
bunch of people at the bus stop. Fortunately it is underpowered
enough to make it a very personal device.
So sure, the sound
isn't amazing, but it is clear and crisp. The bass reproduction is
strong enough to reverberate slightly through your body, which helps
make it feel a little more powerful than it actually is. But right
now, there isn't really anything like this out there, as other
so-called wearable speakers are much bulkier and nowhere near as
light and convenient. For those of us looking for motivation as we
tackle the icy streets of January, this is great.
£29.99