Ask nearly any iPod enthusiast and you’ll find that the Bose sound dock is the best speaker system you can buy. The only limitation is that the speakers aren’t portable with a large power supply and cord. The new Bose soundock portable solves this problem with all of the power and punchy sound of the original model. This is simply the best sounding speaker system available for your IPod and it’s portable. These speakers come with a high price tag; at $399 retail you’re not only paying for great sound but the Bose name at the same time.
The soundock portable is available in both glossy white and black. It has a very compact design and measures just 12 inches by six inches by 5 inches. The speakers weigh just over five pounds and very closely resemble the original sound dock. There is one distinguishing feature in that the dock your iPod plugs into swivels and can rotate into the unit’s body when traveling.
The Bose sound dock portable shares a simplistic design with the original model and has no physical controls except for the volume controls. The included remote has eight buttons used to operate playback, volume controls, your play lists, and the unit’s power. The remote is small and simplistic; however, its rubberized buttons have a slight lip making them easy to operate by touch. This infrared remote allows you to control your iPod from nearly angle in the room.
The back of the sound dock portable has only two connectors. There is an analog input and a plug for the unit’s charger. It would be nice to have USB ports or video outputs on the speaker system. The sound dock portable is charged by a lithium-ion battery and holds a charge for about eight hours of normal use. If you crank the volume up you’ll get about three hours use which is pretty good considering the volume and amount of Bass the speakers produce.
The only downside of the sound dock’s design are the clumsy volume controls. You can easily overcome this limitation with the included remote control. The speakers charge your iPod whenever it’s plugged in; however, this will deplete the lithium battery faster if not plugged into the charger. The speaker’s bass port also serves as a carrying handle which is one of the features that makes it portable. Bose refers to the Bass Port as the speaker’s Wave Guide Exit.
There is an LED light behind the speaker grill that flashes with the remote control is used or the lithium-ion battery needs to be charged. If you forget to plug the sound dock into its charger and don’t use it for fourteen days the only way to turn it on is by charging the batteries. Bose did not include any dock inserts for the various iPod models so if you lost yours you can get replacements online or from the Apple store. The speaker’s power cord has a universal cable winder built in that makes it easy for travel. The plug is a tad large though. If you pay retail you’ll shell out $399 for the Bose soundock portable; however price shopping will get you a better deal with free shipping. Bose offers a carrying case; however, if you want one you’ll have to pay $59 more.