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Anker 7 In 1 Base: https://geni.us/GC-Anker100WBase
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Soundcore Boom Go 3i: https://geni.us/GC-SoundcoreBoomGO3i
Bose Soundlink Micro 2: https://geni.us/GC-BoseMicro2
If you’re looking for a small portable bluetooth speaker, maybe something for hiking or something to attach to your bike handle bars… then the Bose Soundlink Micro 2 is going to be a super popular option… but for me it is very hard to justify the bose soundlink micro cause of its performance… plus we now have the Soundcore Boom Go 3i which gives you a very big bang for your buck and its much more versatile as well. So today we’re going to compared the Soundcore Boom Go 3i to the Bose soundlink micro 2 and lets see which one is right for you.
Regarding pricing, this is one of my biggest issues with the Bose Soundlink Micro 2, it has a retail price of $130 which is a lot. Now bose is already discounting this speaker to $100… but even still its hard to justify. Where as with the Soundcore Boom Go 3i… this speaker has a retail price of $80 which is feel is great, but it likes to go on sale for $60… so almost half of the Bose. Nonetheless if you want to pick either of these two speakers up they’ll be linked down below or you can always press on the YouTube shopping button… and if you want to further support the channel then you can always watch some of the related videos in the description below.
So first there’s the design of these speakers, honestly, I think Soundcore got the Bose micro and said, how can we make this better. Now both of these speakers are shaped like a puck and both of these speakers have straps on the back so that you can easily attach them to lets say your bike handles bars or backpack strap. Now the micro 2 now has an elastic fabric strap where as the Soundcore has a rubber strap which is what the original micro had. Nonetheless both of these speakers are super easy to attach to things and you can also hang them from something if you want to. Now the Bose Micro 2 is a little smaller and lighter than the Soundcore… and the bose does feel more premium cause this speakers has a silicon wrapped body, there as the Soundcore is all plastic. However this plastic feels super dense so it still feels durable and premium. Bot more importantly, both of these speakers are super rugged and water proof, so you don’t have to worry about either of these speakers if you take them on the go with you.
But something that’s very surprising about the the Soundcore Boom Go 3i is that this speaker also has a built in light feature. Where as the bose doesn’t. Now this light feature looks good and you can choose from a few different lighting modes… but I actually really like this light feature cause it makes this speaker more versatile cause you can use it at night while you’re jogging or ridding your bike, and other people can see you. So this is one of those rare cases where the light feature isn’t just for looks, its actually pretty useful for safety.
However, if you decide to use the light feature on this speaker, that is going to take its toll on the battery life. Now the soundcore Boom Go 3i has an advertised battery life of 24 hours… which I feel is great, but that with this speaker playing wit the light feature turned off, with the volume set to 50% and with the bass up feature turned on. Which I do feel is fair, cause 50% volume on this speaker is a decent volume… and bass up means you’re going to get a good amount of bass.
And soundcore claims that if you were to use this speaker with the light feature feature turned on, and at max volume and with bass up turned on, its going to be good for 6 hours of playback time, which again is very impressive. And with my real world use with this speaker playing at 75% volume, and with the light turned on, and with the bass up turned on, I’ve been getting 12 hours of playback time.
But also, this speaker has an eco mode… now eco mode is going to turn off your light feature and its going to lower your bass… but at 50% volume, its going to be good for up to 40 hours. So overall, battery life on this speaker really varies, but its still very impressive for its compact size, plus its super durable… and they even managed to squeeze in a decent light feature, its important to say decent light feature… cause there are some other speakers out there with pointless light features. JBL Grip, JBL Boombox 4.
Where as with the Bose soundlink Micro 2, this speaker has and advertised battery life of 12 hours… however, max volume performance on this speaker is not very impressive. So with the Bose, you’re going to have to use it at max volume on a regualr basis, and as a result the real world battery of this speaker for me has been good for around 6 hours of playback time. And max volume on the Bose is like 75% volume on the soundcore boom go 3i. But well talk about sound in a few minutes.
And to charge these speakers, they both charge via a USB C port as they should. However another thing that makes the Soudncore Boom Go 3i special here is being able to charge your own devices. Now this speaker isn’t going to be able to fully charge your iPhone… but if you need an emergency 50%, then the Soundcore Boom Go 3i can help with that. So again, this speakers is a great versatile option for someone looking for something to hike with. Cause not only do you have your light feature so people can see you at night, you have an emergency battery bank, and these are just two features that you won’t find on the Bose.
Now you can only use these speakers with a Bluetooth connection, but both of these speakers can be connected to any two bluetooth devices so you and a friend can both be DJ and latency is not an issue for any of these speakers so you can use them to watch videos with on your phone.
But now lets talk about sound, when it comes to speaker set up, these two speakers are the same, they both have a Frontward firing driver and passive radiators that shoot out the front and back of these speakers. And with both of these speakers, you can go into their apps and adjust their EQ to your liking and with both of these speakers they are meant to be laid down flat. They can’t stand up like lets say the JBL Go 4. But now we’re going to jump into the soundtest. Both of these speakers are playing with their stock EQs… but with the Bose we are going to use it at both 75% volume and at max volume so that it can keep up with the Soundcore Boom Go 3i.
So the first thing that we have to talk about here is going to be max volume performance. One of my biggest issues with the Bose Soundlink micro 2 is that its max volume performance isn’t all that good, this speaker doesn’t get as loud as you’d expect for its price. So for that reason you’re going to have to use it a max volume on a regular basis which means you’re going to drain your battery much faster. Where as with the Soundcore Boom Go 3i, at 75% volume, its as loud as the Bose at max volume. But more importantly, if lets say you’re riding your bike through the city, you’re going to be able to hear your music much easier with the Soundcore than you would with the Bose.
Now when it comes to actual sound quality, in this sound test these two speakers sound very similar, but in real life the Bose does have a little more kick in its bass and it does sound a little more open. Cause with the Soundcore, it does lean a little more towards a brighter sound signature. But regardless, I think the sound quality difference between these two speakers is so small, more people aren’t going to notice or care… and I feel that the slightly better sound quality on the bose doesn’t jusifty its price. So yes, the Bose does sound a little better than the Soundcore Boom Go 3i… but I don’t think most people will notice or care… but what they will notice is that the Soundcore Boom Go 3i gets much louder than the Bose Soundlink micro 2… its not even close.
But finally lets talk about pairing these speakers up with other speakers. Now with both of these speakers, if you have two of the exact same speakers then you can wirelessly pair them up and get them to play in left and right stereo mode, but they have to be two of the same speakers. Or with the Bose you can also pair it up to lets say a Bose Flex 2, a soundlink plus or a soundlink max and get them to play in sync, but you can only have a total of 2 speakers paired together.
Where as with the Soundcore Boom Go 3i, this speaker is using Auracast. Now I have been able to pair this speaker up to my Soundcore Rave 3S which is also using aura cast and get them to play in sync, but that’s it. Unfortunately I haven’t been able to pair my Soundcore Boom Go 3i up to any of my other other aura cast speakers from JBL. But more importantly, since this speaker is using aura cast… you can’t pair it up to any of Soundcore’s older speakers that are using Partycast like either the Soudncore Boom 3i, or the Boom 2, or Boom 2 Plus. So sadly I do feel that pairing with both of these speakers is pretty limited.
But with all of that being said, for me it is very hard to justify the bose Soundlink micro 2 cause this speaker has a very premium price, but it doesn’t get all that loud. And since this is a speaker that you’re most likely going to have to use at max volume on a regular basis, that means that your battery life is going to drain much faster. I honestly feel that if you’re looking at the Bose Soundlink micro 2 cause of its form factor and attach ability, then I think you’re going to be much better off with the Soundcore Boom Go 3i cause this speaker is about the same size as the Bose… and you can just as easily attach it to your bike handle bars or back pack. But the soundcore Boom Go 3i also gets much louder as well… plus it has some super versatile features. For starters it has a much longer lasting battery life, you can use it as an emergency battery bank, and it has a built in light feature which not only looks good, it can be useful for safety at night. The only issue that I have with the Soundcore Boom Go 3i is that you can’t pair it up to the Soundcore Boom 3i, but you can pair it up to the Rave 3s.