As Oasis almost sang, if you're looking for a nice portable speaker with Auracast support, you need to get the Miniroll. The new Ultimate Ears Miniroll is a portable Bluetooth 5.3 speaker you can take anywhere, from one of the most well-known audio brands, and unlike an Oasis ticket, it won't triple in price when you try to buy it.
The key selling point here is its small size and light weight – it weighs less than a pound (that's 279g, just under 9oz) and measures just 48 x 122 x 105mm in height, length and width, making it smaller than the vast majority of options in our guide to the best Bluetooth speakers. It has a pair of hooks on the back that can easily attach it to your hiking gear, your clothing, or anything else of a suitable size, including rods with diameters from 20mm to 35mm.
The speaker’s small dimensions mean there’s room for just one active speaker – a 45.6mm full-range dynamic driver – but it’s partnered with a passive radiator to boost the low end and achieve a bit more bottom end thump. But the most important feature may be this speaker’s sociability, as it’s designed with multi-speaker sound in mind.
Ultimate Ears Miniroll: Key Features, Availability, and Pricing
The most interesting technology here is what Ultimate Ears calls PartyUp with Auracast. It's a way to connect multiple speakers together via Bluetooth, and it lets you connect an unlimited number of Miniroll speakers together – which is really handy if you have multiple Minirolls, or if your friends do. And with a promised 12 hours of playback between charges, it lasts long enough for a day at the beach, a hike in the woods, or just a day under the duvet.
The Miniroll is drop-resistant up to 1.2 meters and uses more recycled materials than before: it is made with 100% post-consumer recycled plastic and at least 40% recycled plastic parts.
The Ultimate Ears Miniroll is available in four colours (depending on regional availability) – Gentle Black, Majestic Blue, Revive Grey and Calming Pink – starting today, 9th September. The price is $79.99 / £69.99 / AU$119.99, and that means it has some stiff competition in the seemingly growing “speakers you can hang from your bag” market from the excellent JBL Clip 5, which costs around the same. We can’t wait to put them head to head!
