Bose SoundLink Plus Speaker Review

The Bose SoundLink Plus takes visual cues from a few other Sony speakers. It shares the same oblong design as the Bose SoundLink Max, but its heavy-duty strap is attached to the side rather than the top, likening it to the Bose SoundLink Flex (2nd Gen). Size-wise, it occupies the middle ground between the two speakers; it's slimline without being a featherweight, like the Flex. There are silicone strips on the bottom to stabilize it while positioned horizontally. It comes in three color variants: 'Black,' 'Blue Dusk,' and 'Citrus Yellow,' all of which feature a silver Bose logo centered at the front, above the driver grille.

This speaker is highly portable. Its small, lightweight design makes it a breeze to bring on the go, though it's not quite as effortlessly portable as the Bose SoundLink Flex (2nd Gen). It features a durable carrying strap on one side, which you can grip to carry it around in one hand.

The Bose SoundLink Plus has an amazing build quality. It's constructed from materials that seem premium, like the soft-touch silicone used for the body and the metal grille that covers the drivers. There's a shallow silicone dais on the bottom that acts as a stand. The carrying strap is made from a tough, heavy-duty nylon that's unlikely to rip, though it can't be detached from the speaker body. It's rated IP67, meaning it can be submerged in water and is resilient to dust. Despite this, its USB-C port (located at the back) is unsealed. Overall, it feels well-constructed and durable, capable of withstanding being dropped from a low height despite lacking an impact rating.

The controls are located on the top surface of the speaker. There are six buttons in total: a power button, a Bluetooth button, volume up, volume down, play/pause, as well as a multi-function button that you can remap via the app to activate stereo/party mode or even launch Spotify playlists. These controls are well-labeled, tactile, and intuitive, though only the play/pause button is textured. There's a satisfying click when you press them, though, and there's audio feedback activated when you reach max/min volume, when the speaker is plugged in/unplugged from a power source, or when stereo/party mode is activated. There's also voice feedback on the battery level when you turn the speaker on.

• Bose SoundLink Plus
• USB-C to USB-C charging cable (0.5m/1.7 ft)
• Safety instructions

It's worth noting that the US version of this speaker ships with a charging brick, in addition to the charging cable.

The Bose SoundLink Plus has a satisfactory frequency response accuracy, which is fairly similar to its bigger sibling, the Bose SoundLink Max. We tested this speaker positioned horizontally, using the standard EQ, and found that it produced a balanced sound. While it struggles to produce low bass, there's some punchiness in the mid-bass that helps bring out lively kicks, and the boosted high bass accentuates resonant basslines. The mid-range is slightly under-emphasized compared to the rest of the frequency range, though, meaning vocals and lead instruments are pushed to the back of denser mixes. The treble range leans towards sounding bright, so sibilant sounds, like the ride cymbal's bell on Nirvana's About a Girl, really cut through the mix.

While we found the default EQ to be the most aligned with our target, the app offers a few EQ presets to choose from and the ability to create a custom preset using the 3-band EQ. This speaker also supports the AAC codec and Snapdragon Sound (for Android users), which enables AptX (Adaptive). Subjectively, we could hear little difference when switching between codecs, which is reflected in our measurements.

The soundstage performance is passable. This speaker downmixes stereo content to mono, so you'll lose out on some of the width and immersion in modern stereo mixes. Its directivity is decent, so you'll still get solid audio delivery even if you're not positioned directly in front of the speaker. That said, you'll start to lose treble range elements if you're positioned at a more acute angle.

The dynamics performance is disappointing. While this speaker can get quite loud for its size, there's some noticeable bass and treble range compression at max volume that results in pumping artifacts.

The battery performance is amazing. At normal listening volumes, we measured 19.1 hours of battery life, which is enough to soundtrack a few backyard BBQs without needing a recharge. It's also very much in line with the manufacturer's advertised figure of 20 hours. The overall battery life performance is hampered somewhat by a long (4.6-hour) charge time, which you can't mitigate by using a different charging device. There is a power-saving auto-off feature, though, which you can set to increments of five minutes to three hours (you can also set it to always on). You can also use the USB-C port to charge your other devices.

The Bose app is a good way to tweak parameters and access additional features. It's very simple to use, as you can see from our app video. The most useful features come in the form of a 3-band graphic EQ with presets, the ability to change the function of the shortcut button, and the option to pair compatible speakers in either stereo or party mode. Stereo mode is limited to just other SoundLink Plus speakers, but there are a few more compatible models for party mode.

While this speaker has a USB-C port, it's only for charging other devices, and you can't use it as a wired audio connection.

This speaker has great Bluetooth connectivity. You can connect with up to two devices simultaneously without unpairing and pairing again, though you'll need to pause playback on one to start it on another. Latency is decently low with iOS and Android devices, too, though you might encounter AV sync issues if you use this speaker to soundtrack movies. There's also support for additional codecs beyond SBC, including AAC and AptX (adaptive), the latter of which comes via Snapdragon Sound (making it Android-only).