The signal-to-noise and frequency response numbers are the same as the Flip
, but the sound is simply not as rich and full. What the Micro Wireless can do that the Flip can't is daisy chain – you can connect together (with cables) multiple Micro Wireless speakers to add to the sound. We didn't have the opportunity to see just how this works and if two Micro Wireless devices together sound more similar to a Flip, but it's an interesting question.
The Micro Wireless, it must be stated, does have one other problem. Inexplicably, it doesn't come with an AC adapter. It does come with a cord that plugs into a USB port—or a USB charger if you have a few hundred extra from your iDevices lying around—but it seems wrong for any device requiring a charge (even if Amazon does it with their Kindles) to not have an AC adapter included.
There are, as you may be aware, other ways of getting music throughout your house wirelessly (Sonos), but all the ones I've found are more costly than a sub-$100 Bluetooth speaker. Bluetooth speakers can't be daisy-chained via Bluetooth meaning I only get one wireless speaker pumping out tunes at a time, but the speakers we're talking about here are small and far superior to the one on an iPhone/iPad. Plus, maybe the next iteration of Bluetooth will allow my computer to run to multiple speakers at once (a guy can dream can't he). For now, I'm thrilled with the Flip and pleased with the Micro Wireless, and that's enough.
Article comments
1 - oluv
to tell the truth i was not that impressed by the flip. regarding sound/size ratio the on tour micro wireless impressed me more.
the flip can play really loud but loudness is not everything, i prefer a lower but richer output. even my much smaller FoxL sounded better than the flip.
i tried playing with various EQ settings and tried some SRS WOW effects, and with boosted bass the flip indeed could impress a little bit, it is a pity that JBL didn't push this little speaker a bit more!
2 - Phil
Dear Oluv, your comment was much more helpful than the blablabla original review. thank you !
3 - Autumn
This product does not work....will not pair up to my laptop....
4 - LA Productions
We tested the Flip, and yes it did impress us. However a bit hard to pair up with a laptop using Bluetooth.
5 - Igor
Bluetooth seems to have problems staying paired up.
These remote speakers seem to share a problem of having poor or non-existent equalization. As I've aged my ear treble response is falling off and I find that the resulting bass boost makes many sounds unintelligible, especially speech and classical music. The bass simply obscures everything else (ironic since so many amp designers worked so hard at boosting bass). Many speaker systems are simply unlistenable.
I play many things from the iPod, which has an EQ, but it consumes much power and is inaccurate.
IMO the speaker bar should have a decent EQ, especially with regard to bass attenuation.