The Anker Soundcore Motion X600 speaker is a portable Bluetooth speaker designed to bring your favorite tunes wherever you go. Its Spatial Audio feature is designed to create a more immersive sound with your audio content, regardless of the source, so you feel like music is all around you. The built-in handle makes it easy to transport, and it's even rated IPX7 for water resistance to help it withstand the elements. You can even choose between three different color variants based on your tastes.
Our Verdict
The Anker Soundcore Motion X600 speaker is decent for music. This speaker comes with a unique Spatial Audio feature that's designed to create a more immersive sound with your favorite tracks. Turn it on for a more crisp sound, especially regarding vocals. Lead instruments are clearly and accurately reproduced, too. If you prefer a different sound, there are many customization options on hand, including a 9-band graphic EQ and several sound presets. The BassUp feature is also great for adding more punch to the mix. As with most portable speakers, it lacks an extended low-bass to bring out all the rumble in genres like EDM and hip-hop.
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Gets loud.
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Lots of sound customization features.
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Some compression at max volume.
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Lacks an extended low-bass like most portable speakers.
The Anker Soundcore Motion X600 speaker is okay for videos and movies. It's a Bluetooth-compatible speaker, so you can wirelessly stream content from your phone or tablet to the speaker itself. Dialogue is clear in the mix, but of course, this speaker isn't designed for listening to more cinematic movies, and it doesn't have the bass needed to bring out the rumble in action-packed films.
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Gets loud.
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Lots of sound customization features.
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Some compression at max volume.
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Lacks an extended low-bass like most portable speakers.
The Anker Soundcore Motion X600 speaker is decent for podcasts. This speaker can reproduce dialogue clearly and accurately and has many enhancement tools to get the best possible sound. The Voice preset is designed to enhance dialogue, too, which is handy. It doesn't support multi-room to spread audio throughout multiple rooms of your home simultaneously, but since it's portable, you can always carry it manually.
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Gets loud.
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Lots of sound customization features.
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Some compression at max volume.
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No multi-device pairing.
The Anker Soundcore Motion X600 speaker is middling for voice assistant use. It has no built-in voice assistant capabilities, so you must pair your smartphone to the device to use voice controls. The speaker can hear your commands clearly, even from far away. However, it lacks a mute microphone feature or more traditional voice activation for hands-free use.
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Gets loud.
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No microphone mute button.
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No built-in voice assistant support.
The Anker Soundcore Motion X600 speaker is decent for outdoor use. This portable Bluetooth speaker has a built-in handle for easy transport and is lightweight, too. Since it's rated IPX7 for water resistance, you can use it around a pool or lake without issue, too. It gets loud enough to fill up your patio with sound, too, which is great, though audio reproduction isn't quite as clear at louder volumes.
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Gets loud.
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IPX7 rating for water resistance.
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Some compression at max volume.
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No rating for impact resistance.
- 7.1 Music
- 6.2 Videos/Movies
- 7.3 Podcasts
- 5.3 Voice Assistant
- 7.1 Outdoors
- Updated Sep 18, 2023: Added market comparison for the Klipsch Groove XXL in the Dynamics box.
- Updated Aug 23, 2023: Updated the Portability picture for greater clarity and consistency between reviews.
- Updated May 30, 2023: Review published.
- Updated May 25, 2023: Early access published.
- Updated May 23, 2023: Our testers have started testing this product.
- Updated May 16, 2023: The product has arrived in our lab, and our testers will start evaluating it soon.
- Updated May 12, 2023: We've purchased the product and are waiting for it to arrive in our lab.
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
This speaker is available in three color variants: Aurora Green, Lunar Blue, and Polar Gray. We tested the Polar Gray variant, though we expect the others to perform similarly. You can see the label for our model here.
If you encounter another version of this speaker, let us know in the forums, and we'll update this review.
Compared To Other Speakers
The Anker Soundcore Motion X600 speaker is a more premium model in the manufacturer's lineup, and it comes with some extra features compared to the Anker Soundcore Motion Boom and the Anker Soundcore Motion+. Notably, the Spatial Audio feature lets you create a more immersive sound with audio content from any source, which is a handy tool. It still gives you access to more traditional Anker customization options, like a graphic EQ and a range of presets, as well as the BassUp feature to add more rumble to the mix.
You can also check out our recommendations for the best Bluetooth speakers, the best Bluetooth speakers for bass, and the best waterproof Bluetooth speakers.
The Anker Soundcore Motion X600 is better than the JBL Charge 5. The Anker is a stereo speaker that gets louder than the JBL. Plus, it offers voice assistants through a paired smartphone, which the JBL lacks. More sound modes and presets are available with the Anker, so you can switch up its sound. That said, the JBL's battery life is a touch longer.
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.
Depending on your listening habits, you may prefer either the Anker Soundcore Motion X600 or the Anker Soundcore Motion Boom Plus. They're both portable Bluetooth speakers with similar performances. The X600 is smaller and better built. Its default sound is more neutral, which some listeners may prefer. However, the Boom Plus gets a bit louder and has a longer battery life.
The Anker Soundcore Motion X600 is better than the Anker Soundcore Motion Boom. They're both portable Bluetooth speakers with solid performances, but the X600 has a better sound quality out of the box. Notably, it has more emphasis in the treble, so its sound is less dull overall. Its Spatial Audio feature allows you to create a more immersive sound overall. It has a better build quality, too.
The Anker Soundcore Motion X600 is better than the Anker Soundcore Flare 2. The Motion X600 is a more premium speaker with better sound quality, and it offers some additional enhancement features, such as its Spatial Audio tool. It gets louder, too, so it's more suitable for listening in larger spaces. It doesn't have RGB lights like the Flare 2, though, and its soundstage isn't quite as expansive since it lacks a 360-degree design.
The Anker Soundcore Motion X600 is better than the Klipsch Groove XXL. The Anker has a more neutral sound out-of-the-box, which some users may prefer. It's more customizable, too, thanks to the graphic EQ and presets in its companion app. That said, the Klipsch does get a little louder.
Test Results
The Anker Soundcore Motion X600 speaker has a distinct retro-style design with a fixed handle attached to the top for transport. The controls are located on top as well.
It's quite portable. The built-in handle makes it easy to carry, and the speaker isn't very heavy.
This speaker has great build quality. Overall, it boasts a solid and sturdy build that feels quite durable. It's mostly plastic, and the metal grilles in front help to protect the drivers inside. The handle, meanwhile, is made of aluminum. It's also IPX7 for water resistance, and the rear waterproof cover has a good seal to help protect the ports.
This speaker's controls are on top, letting you control many different features. Overall, the buttons are clicky and easy to press. There's even a light on the power button to show the charging progress and a light on the Bluetooth button to show when a device is paired.
This speaker has decent frequency response accuracy. This speaker comes with many different sound enhancement features, and to best replicate your typical listening experience, we tested it on the Soundcore Signature preset with the BassUp feature turned on. Additionally, we turned on the Spatial Audio feature, which the manufacturer advertises to deliver a more immersive sound. These settings provide a clear and balanced sound, accurately representing voices and lead instruments in the mix. Spatial Audio makes audio sound crisper, too, especially in the vocals. Overall, it provides a wide soundstage and a fuller sound without sounding too fake or forced. You can compare to the graph with Spatial Audio turned off here.
It's a stereo speaker, so you hear a clear separation between instruments intended for the right and left stereo channels. That said, its directivity is mediocre, which is typical for speakers without a 360-degree. As a result, the soundstage is more narrow and directional-sounding.
The Anker Soundcore Motion X600 speaker gets loud enough to fill larger, more open rooms with sound. There's some compression when you push it to max volume, though, especially in the bass range, so if you want a clearer audio reproduction, you'll want to listen at more moderate volumes. You can also check out the Klipsch Groove XXL if you want a speaker that gets even louder.
The Anker Motion X600 is advertised to last twelve hours at 1/4 power with BassUp turned off. In our tests, though, we kept BassUp on since it offered better sound quality, and the speaker still lasted for ten hours. There's even a power-saving feature in the Soundcore app to automatically shut off the speaker at certain intervals when it isn't in use.
This speaker doesn't have built-in voice assistant support. You can use your paired smartphone's voice assistant instead, but it doesn't offer the same voice activation capabilities.
The Anker Soundcore app is a handy way to control the speaker from your mobile devices. It has a lot of different customization options, including a 9-band graphic EQ and preset sound modes like Soundcore Signature, Voice, Treble Boost, or Balanced. The BassUp feature is accessible in the app, too. You can manually pair two of the same units for stereo sound.
A 3.5mm AUX port is available to wire devices to the speaker for audio playback.
This Bluetooth-compatible speaker makes streaming audio from your mobile devices to the bar easy. It even supports LDAC, a codec that allows higher-resolution audio playback when paired with hi-fi apps like Tidal. It's only available on devices running Android 8.0 and above, but it's a handy way to get a higher-quality sound. With an impressive range, no matter the Bluetooth format you use, you can keep your device connected to the speaker even from far away.