The Anker Soundcore Motion+ is a small and lightweight speaker that's easily portable. It's well-suited for outdoor use thanks to its over 15-hour battery life and IPX7 rating for water resistance, although we don't currently test for this. Although it can get fairly loud, there are some compression artifacts present at max volume. Like many small speakers, it struggles to produce low-bass, although its mid-range is well balanced, so vocals and lead instruments sound clear and present. There's also a graphic EQ in its companion app that lets you customize its sound profile.
Our Verdict
The Anker Soundcore Motion Plus is reasonable for music. It has a well-balanced mid-range, so vocals and lead instruments are reproduced clearly. However, like many small speakers, it lacks some low-bass, so you may not feel the deep thump and rumble of bass-heavy genres like EDM. Also, its treble range is a bit underemphasized, so higher frequencies may sound a bit dark. Fortunately, its companion app comes with a graphic EQ that lets you customize the sound to your liking.
- Amazing battery life.
- Can get quite loud.
- Well-balanced mid-range.
- Very portable.
- Graphic EQ.
- Lacks low-bass.
- Fairly narrow soundstage.
- Some compression at max volume.
The Anker Soundcore Motion Plus is passable for watching videos/movies. Its latency with iOS and Android devices is quite low, although some apps compensate differently for this. It can also get quite loud, although there are some compression artifacts present at max volume. Its soundstage is quite narrow, so it may not feel very immersive when watching movies. Also, it lacks low-bass, so you may not feel the deep thump in action-packed scenes. Fortunately, it can clearly reproduce vocals thanks to its well-balanced mid-range.
- Can get quite loud.
- Low latency over Bluetooth.
- Some compression at max volume.
The Anker Soundcore Motion Plus is good for podcasts. It has a well-balanced mid-range, so it can clearly reproduce vocals. However, sibilants like S and T sounds may sound a bit veiled due to the speaker's underemphasized treble range. It can also get quite loud, and its small, lightweight design makes it easy to bring with you on-the-go.
- Can get quite loud.
- Well-balanced mid-range.
- Very portable.
- Some compression at max volume.
The Anker Soundcore Motion Plus is bad for voice assistant. It uses the voice assistant from your smartphone over Bluetooth since it doesn't have voice assistant capabilities built-in. As part of our methodology, we use prerecorded voice commands to test the speaker. This speaker didn't respond to these commands, even at a close distance and without much background noise. While it responds to commands in a normal speaking voice, this isn't part of our testing process.
- Can get quite loud.
- Voice assistant may have trouble understanding you.
- Voice assistant requires a smartphone.
The Anker Soundcore Motion Plus is good for outdoor use. It has an IPX7 rating for water resistance, although we don't test for this currently. It's remarkably portable and it has an amazing battery life, lasting over 15 hours on a single charge. It can also get quite loud, which makes it well-suited to playing music for lots of people. However, there are some compression artifacts present at max volume, and it lacks some low-bass.
- Amazing battery life.
- Can get quite loud.
- IPX7 rating for water resistance.
- Very portable.
- Fairly narrow soundstage.
Changelog
- Updated Dec 01, 2023: Added market comparison with the Anker Soundcore Motion 300 in the Portability box.
- Updated May 30, 2023: Added market comparison with the Anker Soundcore Motion X600 in the Frequency Response Accuracy box.
- Updated Feb 10, 2021: Review published.
- Updated Feb 08, 2021: Early access published.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The Anker Soundcore Motion Plus comes in 'Black', 'Red', and 'Blue' color variants. We tested the 'Black' variant; you can see the label for the model we tested here. We expect all three variants to perform comparably in our tests.
If you come across a version not listed, let us know in the discussions so we can update our review.
Popular Speaker Comparisons
The Anker Soundcore Motion Plus is a fairly small speaker that's well-suited for outdoor use. It has a very long battery life, and it's rated IPX7 for water resistance, although we don't currently test for this. It can also get quite loud, though there are some compression artifacts at max volume. Like many small speakers, it struggles to produce low-bass, but its companion app has a graphic EQ that lets you adjust its sound profile. See also our recommendations for the best Bluetooth speakers, the best cheap speakers, and the best home speakers.
The Anker Soundcore Motion+ and the Bose SoundLink Flex have different strengths. The Anker can play stereo content without downmixing it to mono and can get louder than the Bose. Its sound profile is more customizable thanks to the graphic EQ and presets featured in its companion app. It also has a longer-lasting battery life of over 15 hours, though this can vary depending on your usage. That said, the Bose is smaller, better built, and has a more neutral sound profile out of the box. It's also better for voice assistant support.
The Anker Soundcore Motion+ is better for music than the Anker Soundcore Motion 300. The Motion+ has a better low-frequency extension, meaning you get more thump and rumble in the bass. Its battery life is longer-lasting, too. That said, the Motion 300's detachable strap makes it more suitable for on-the-go listening, which you may prefer.
The Anker Soundcore Motion X600 is a premium alternative to the Anker Soundcore Motion+. The X600 has additional features, including a Spatial Audio tool designed to provide a more immersive feel to your audio. It also has a built-in handle, unlike the Motion+, so it's easier to transport. The sound quality is better out-of-the-box, too, since it reproduces a better low-frequency extension in the bass and emphasizes the treble more.
The Anker Soundcore Motion+ is a better speaker than the JBL Charge 5. The JBL is better built and has an IP67 rating for dust and water resistance, certifying it to be dust-tight and immersible in up to a meter of water for 30 minutes. It also has a better-balanced sound profile than the Anker out of the box. However, the Anker can play stereo content without downmixing it to mono. Additionally, it supports voice assistants through your smartphone, though it doesn't do a good job of hearing you from afar and in noisy settings.
Test Results
The Anker Soundcore Motion Plus is a fairly small speaker with a rectangular shape. It's meant to sit horizontally, and its edges are rounded. The control buttons are on top of the speaker, including a multifunction button and a BassUp button.
The Anker Soundcore Motion Plus is outstandingly portable. It's small and lightweight, so you can easily carry it in one hand. Also, it's battery-powered, so you can bring it out and about without finding an outlet. It doesn't have a detachable strap like the Anker Soundcore Motion 300.
The Anker Soundcore Motion Plus has decent build quality. It feels solid, and there's a metal grille covering the two drivers. Most of the speaker's exterior is made of silicone, and the buttons on top are texturized, making them easy to find by touch. It also has an IPX7 rating for water resistance, though we don't currently test for this. Though it lacks a rating for impact resistance, the manual suggests you should be careful not to drop it.
The Anker Soundcore Motion Plus has very good controls. On top, there's a multifunction button to play/pause your audio, which you can also press twice to skip ahead and three times to backtrack. You can also use it to accept and end a call. At the top left, there's a BassUp button advertised to increase the bass in your audio. On top, there are also three separate buttons for adjusting the volume and pairing a device over Bluetooth. The power button is located on the side. There's also a light that turns solid blue when the speaker is connected to Bluetooth, solid white when it's connected to True Wireless Stereo, and solid red when it's charging. The light flashes red when the battery is low and flashes blue when it's searching for a Bluetooth pairing or when there's an incoming call.
- Anker Soundcore Motion+ speaker
- USB-C to USB-A charging cable
- 3.5mm AUX cable
- User Manual
The Anker Soundcore Motion Plus has adequate frequency response accuracy. With the BassUp feature turned on, it still struggles to reproduce low-bass. Because of this, you may not feel the deep thump and rumble in bass-heavy genres like hip-hop or EDM. It has a fairly well-balanced midrange, so vocals and lead instruments are reproduced clearly. However, its treble is a bit underemphasized, so higher frequencies are perceived as dark, especially compared to speakers like the Anker Soundcore Motion X600. Fortunately, its companion app includes a graphic EQ that lets you customize the sound.
The Anker Soundcore Motion has a decent soundstage. Its directivity is okay, so its soundstage is perceived as somewhat narrow rather than open and spacious. Fortunately, it can play stereo content without downmixing it to mono.
The Anker Soundcore Motion has okay dynamics. It can get quite loud, which is useful for playing music at a party or outdoors. However, there are some compression artifacts when you play it at max volume. If you're looking for an Anker speaker with a better dynamics performance, check out the Anker Soundcore Motion Boom.
The Anker Soundcore Motion Plus has amazing battery life. The manufacturer advertises a battery life of 12 hours, but in our tests, the speaker lasted over 15 hours. Battery life can vary depending on usage, so user experience may vary. There's also a power-saving feature that you can adjust through the app. You can set it to automatically shut off after 5, 10, 30, or 60 minutes without audio.
The Anker Soundcore Motion Plus has terrible voice assistant capabilities. It uses the voice assistant from your smartphone when it's paired via Bluetooth. As part of our methodology, we use recorded voice messages to test the speaker's response. It wasn't able to register any of these commands, even while close by and without any background noise. It can register questions from a normal speaking voice, but this isn't part of our testing process.
The Soundcore companion app is okay. It's compatible with iOS and Android and it comes with some preset EQ settings like 'Bass Up', 'Bass Off', 'Voice', 'Heavy', 'Classic', and 'Original'. There's also a full graphic EQ that lets you customize the sound to your liking. While you can pair two speakers together to create a stereo pair, this can only be done using Bluetooth, not through the app. Also, the app doesn't include features like Party Mode or Multi-Room, which allow you to connect multiple speakers for a louder sound or between rooms.
The Anker Soundcore Motion Plus has an AUX port that you can use to connect your smartphone to the speaker to play audio.
The Anker Soundcore Motion Plus has excellent Bluetooth connectivity. It has an incredible range, staying connected to your smartphone even from a distance. Its latency with iOS and Android devices is also quite low, making it suitable for watching movies or videos. That said, some apps compensate for latency differently, so your experience may vary. You can also pair it with two devices at a time, which is really convenient when you're frequently switching your audio source between your phone and laptop.