In 2016 UE launched its newer version of Roll with Roll 2. The sound here is better, but it’s not $30 better.The UE Roll has been many people favorite speaker of 2015. You can find the original Roll for around $70 these days. But it took me a bit to hear the difference, and I’ve reviewed dozens of audio products in the past year. Pitting the two head-to-head, I found the Roll 2 to play fuller and clearer. UE claims the Roll 2 gives “15% more sound” than its predecessor, and while that's really vague, it's not totally untrue.

This is a fun sound, which fits with the whole travel-friendly idea. And again, it’s much louder than it looks. It catches a decent amount of detail in the treble, too. In the mids, where most of these things work best, it comes off lively, clear, and about as spacious as you could expect for its size. Now, keeping all that in mind, the Roll 2 is one of the better sounding speakers in this price range. People who exclusively listen to hip-hop and EDM should save up for something bigger. Here, those lows distort and get noticeably honky if you really push them. Any audio thing based on Bluetooth will lack the fine detail of a wired version, and any speaker this tiny just doesn’t have the room to pump out full bass. If you’re buying a small Bluetooth speaker, especially a cheaper one, you’re almost always trading away some sound in exchange for portability. Still, it’s fun looking, easily portable, and sturdily put together. As with the first Roll, it doesn’t give you any way to pause or skip tracks, nor does it work as a speakerphone. It has to stay face up at all times, but it’s easier to slip into a bag, and it prevents the speaker from scooting around the counter when you crank the volume.Īctually using the device is a breeze - it automatically pairs with previously synced devices, and it’s not hard to find the volume buttons - though that’s partly because the hardware itself is limited. I also prefer this flat shape to the cylindrical one used by other ultra-portables like the JBL Flip 3 or UE Boom 2. It doesn’t get in the way, either, since it hooks onto a little cutout on the speaker’s back. It’s such a gadget thing to toss on a Bluetooth speaker, but it’s constantly useful. It often indicates a user profile.Īs one of those people who can’t shower without some sort of music going, I can’t praise that bungee cord enough. Account icon An icon in the shape of a person's head and shoulders.

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