JBL GO 3 Speaker Review

The JBL GO 3 is a small speaker that fits easily in your hand. There's a built-in hook on the side, so you can hang it from your bag or backpack. There's a large JBL logo on the front, and you can choose from lots of different color variants based on your preferences.

The JBL GO 3 is outstandingly portable. It's small, lightweight, and you can carry it with one hand. Also, you don't need to plug it into an outlet to get it to work, which makes it easy to bring with you outdoors.

The build quality is impressive. The materials feel solid, and there's a tight netting that wraps around most of the speaker and its carrying strap. The sides and the rear have a rubber finish. It also has an IP67 rating for dust and water resistance, though we don't test for this.

Update 01/18/2020: After reviewing our subjective testing scores, we determined that the Ease of Use for this speaker's controls should be changed to Great. We often re-evaluate our subjective scoring to provide greater consistency and accuracy across our reviews.

The controls are sub-par. You can turn the speaker on/off, pair it with a Bluetooth device, play/pause your music, and adjust the volume. If you press the Play button twice, it skips ahead to the next track, but you can't skip back to the previous track. The buttons are easy to press, and there's audible feedback when you reach max volume and when you enter pairing mode. Also, a small light flashes when the battery is low.

• JBL GO3 speaker
• USB-C charging cable
• Quick Start Guide

The JBL GO 3 has middling frequency response accuracy. When sitting horizontally on its rubber base, the speaker struggles to reproduce low-bass, which can be disappointing for fans of bass-heavy genres like EDM. However, its balanced mid and treble ranges help reproduce voices in podcasts and audiobooks clearly and accurately.

The soundstage is mediocre. Its directivity is decent, but the soundstage isn't perceived to be as large as some of the other speakers we've tested, like the Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM 2. Also, it has to downmix stereo content into mono, which doesn't sound as immersive.

This speaker has passable dynamics. It doesn't get very loud, so it may not be ideal to use at parties. There isn't a lot of compression at max volume, resulting in a clean and clear sound.

The JBL GO 3 has an acceptable battery performance. It only lasts five hours off a single charge, which may not last through long days outside. However, battery life can vary according to usage, so your experience may vary. Also, the speaker shuts off automatically after about 20 minutes without audio, which helps conserve battery life.

This speaker doesn't have voice assistant support.

This speaker doesn't have a companion app.

The JBL GO 3 can't be used wired. It just has a USB-C port for charging.

This speaker has very good Bluetooth connectivity. It has an incredible range, so you don't need to keep your phone or tablet very close to the speaker to play your audio. Also, it has low audio latency on iOS and Android, so it's suitable for watching videos, though some apps compensate for latency so your experience may vary. Unlike the Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM 2, you can't pair it with more than one device at a time, which can be disappointing for some listeners.

This speaker isn't Wi-Fi compatible.