JBL Boombox 3 review: Should you buy it?

JBL Boombox 3 review: Should you buy it?

Sam Smart / SoundGuys

While the speaker is technically portable, it’s a bit of a pain to carry and place in a reasonable spot.

The JBL Boombox 3 is definitely a great Bluetooth speaker, since it’s loud, sounds good, and has some customization available for the sound profile. The biggest hangup I have is the price—it just feels high for what you get—but this is a solid a choice if you don’t mind shelling out for it. 

If you want a much more affordable Bluetooth speaker with an IP67 rating, the JBL Charge 5 is one of the best out there. It’s small and portable, it sounds great, and it also has the PartyBoost feature for pairing multiple JBL speakers together for stereo sound. It’s available for $179 at Amazon.

The JBL Xtreme 3 is a “portable” Bluetooth speaker in that it includes a carrying strap, but it’s heavy and bulky.

If you want something a bit closer in form factor to the Boombox 3, consider the JBL Xtreme 3. It’s similarly IP67 rated, and has the same features as the Boombox 3 and aforementioned Charge 5. It’s still large but much more portable, weighing only 2.68kg, and it also has a carrying strap, making it a bit easier to carry around than the Boombox 3. You can pick it up for $279 at Amazon.

The Anker Soundcore Motion+ is a good alternative if you don’t plan on taking the speaker outdoors but still want a loud speaker for indoor use. It’s IPX7 rated, so it can handle water perfectly fine, just not dust. Along with wired connectivity and the SBC Bluetooth codec, it supports the aptX Bluetooth codec, great news for aptX enthusiasts. You can find the speaker for $99 at Amazon.

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