Stiftung Warentest under the magnifying glass: Bluetooth speakers
28.9.2020
Translation: machine translated
Stiftung Warentest gives the Bose Soundlink Revolve top marks. If you look at how the Bluetooth speakers perform with other testers and expand the evaluation criteria, JBL comes out on top.
Foundation Warentest is rightly an authority when it comes to product tests. We add further aspects to their results. The design, the manufacturer's reputation and the opinions of other testers are included in our overall result. A product test plus, so to speak.
And who comes out on top in this product test plus? This time there is a split podium. The Bose Soundlink Revolve has retained its top spot, but the JBL Flip 5 has caught up with it.
If you need more details for your decision, read on here.
The five best Bluetooth speakers in our range
We take a look at what Stiftung Warentest (issue 08/2020, fee required) considers to be the five best Bluetooth speakers that we have in our range.
The Stiftung Warentest awards the following (school) grades:
- Bose Soundlink Revolve: 2.1
- JBL Flip 5: 2.2
- Sony SRS-XB32: 2.4
- Anker Soundcore Flare: 2.5
- Ultimate Ears Boom 3: 2.5
Bluetooth speakers
UE Boom 3 + Power Up Bundle
15 h, Rechargeable battery operated, Electrical connection
Reviews from other magazines
We found the five Bluetooth speakers in the best lists of four magazines. They landed in these places when Chip, Computerbild, testberichte.de and vergleich.org had only tested these five. The average ranking achieved by the individual Bluetooth speakers is interesting.
Clear case: The Bose Soundlink Revolve takes first place in every magazine. Behind it, the field thickens. The JBL Flip 5, the UE Boom 3 and the Soundcore Flare from Anker landed in joint second place. However, there are currently only a few tests of the Soundcore Flare and the Sony SRS-XB32.
YouTube score
In addition to the classic test portals, we also looked at the opinions on the various Bluetooth speakers on YouTube. The rating includes the opinions of TechRadar, 10BestOnes, JimsReviewRoom, Top 10 Zone and RIZKNOWS.
So that you don't have to watch all the videos yourself, we have created a ranking based on the YouTubers' ratings. In summary, the result looks like this:
- Ultimate Ears Boom 3
- JBL Flip 5
- Bose Soundlink Revolve
- Sony SRS-XB32
- Anchor Soundcore Flare
The UE Boom 3 performs significantly better among YouTubers, coming in first place after sharing last place with the Soundcore Flare in the Stiftung Warentest. The Anker speaker also came in last here. The JBL Flip 5 is able to maintain its second place, while the Bose Soundlink Revolve slips down a little.
Brand popularity
Hand on heart. Can you say with a clear conscience that the brand doesn't matter to you? Of course, new or less well-known manufacturers can also produce excellent products. But in the end, there is a bonus and a leap of faith in favour of the big and well-known brands.
Our reference point for the popularity and awareness of a brand is Google Trends. There, however, we do not look at the general search queries, but at those in the shopping area.
Sony and JBL are the best known, with the large Japanese company still slightly ahead of the pure audio manufacturer. Bose has also achieved a good standing. Anker and Ultimate Ears or UE are not yet widely known.
Design
Foundation Warentest looked at the sound, battery and use - factors that are subject to a certain degree of subjectivity, but can be measured and evaluated quite well. We have added the very subjective factor of "design". Which Bluetooth speaker meets the taste of the masses just by looking at it? To find out, we conducted a - non-representative - survey in our Community.
It was a close call, but in the end the Sony SRS-XB32 with its colourful accents came out just ahead of the JBL Flip 5. The Soundlink Revolve from Bose and the UE Boom 3 followed a little further behind, but tied for second place, with the Soundcore Flare from Anker in last place.
Conclusion: JBL closes in on Bose
Finally, we summarise all aspects: Stiftung Warentest's rating with the ratings of the other testers and the additional criteria of brand popularity and design. But not equally. The three test areas Stiftung Warentest, magazines and YouTube each account for 25 per cent of the overall rating, while brand and design each account for 12.5 per cent.
In the end, the Bose Soundlink Revolve remains in the top spot, where it was placed by Stiftung Warentest, but has company. Taking the other factors into account, the JBL Flip 5 catches up with it.
If you can't decide spontaneously between the two test winners, the detailed test of the Flip 5 may help you.
When I was but a young student, I'd sit in my friend's living room with all my classmates and play on his SuperNES. Since then I've had the opportunity to test out all the newest technology for you. I've done reviews at Curved, Computer Bild and Netzwelt, and have now arrived at Galaxus.de.
