This is the review of the comparison between two portable speakers from two different brands. The comparison here is between the Bose SoundLink Micro and the JBL Flip 4. There is around twenty dollars difference in their price range. To know which one is worth buying for the price, go to the detailed review.

Bose SoundLink Micro	JBL Flip 4
BUY NOW	BUY NOW
PROS	PROS
Fully waterproof. Ruggedised and portable design. Multiconnect. Massive sound from a palm-sized design. Speakerphone capabilities.	Solid audio performance with rich bass and well-defined highs. Reasonable price tag. Battery life.
CONS	CONS
Average battery life. Doesn’t float. Latency issues. Micro-USB for charging. The Micro-USB port should be USB-C for faster charging times.	No track navigation buttons. Underwhelming mid-range sound. Its bass is improved but it still lacks some real bass punch.

SPECIFICATIONS:

Detail Review:

INTRODUCTION:

Bose SounLink Micro

The Bose SoundLink Micro is not cheap at all, in fact, it seems to be really pricey, it is retailing for around a hundred dollars currently on Amazon. When I got the product my initial thoughts were more in line that it is yet another compact speaker, it is yet another speaker from a brand that claims to be really good but it’s just an average speaker with a hefty price tag.

JBL Flip 4

This speaker is from a popular series from JBL that is the Flip series speakers from the JBL and these are the ones that build upon the design that their previous models had. This speaker is retailing for around eighty dollars currently on Amazon, which is among the budget-friendly speakers available in the market.

DESIGN:

Bose SounLink Micro

You can notice how light and compact the speaker is and that itself makes you feel like that the speaker is not of high quality because in general, a heavier speaker has a bigger better magnet and sounds better. The speaker in itself is coated with this rubberized finish, which is matte and it does not attract fingerprints and it is IPX7 rated which is fantastic.

The back of the speaker has a really nice tear-resistant strap that will allow you to attach the speaker to basically anything. So, if you have a handlebar on your bike or a cycle or a strap of your backpack, you basically get the idea. So, you can attach this to anything vertically or horizontally, and it makes for a fantastic product. The speaker itself has a few buttons, so you have the multifunction button right there in the front which is flanked on either side with the volume up and down button, and on the top, you will see the power button and the Bluetooth button. Between the power and the Bluetooth button is a series of LEDs that tell you the percentage of battery and whether the Bluetooth is in pairing mode or connected.

JBL Flip 4

There are no major redesigns or changes on offer here. Flip 4 is roughly the same size as Flip 3. Although it is slightly bigger and weighs slightly more but not necessarily a difference that you will notice. To all purposes, this is pretty much the same size and same-looking speaker as before. The outer casing is almost identical to last year’s model with a Flip 4 covered in the same rubber body and making you the same mesh style casing. On the top of the speaker is where you will find most of the controls such as the play and pause button, volume up and down button, and your Bluetooth button. At the back of the speaker is where you will find connection ports, including a 3.5-millimeter jack port and a micro USB charge port.

FEATURES:

Bose SounLink Micro

As far as the unboxing experience, like any other Bose box in the past is pretty standard, and it’s a compact box. The first thing you will see inside the box is the speaker itself. If you go further in the box, you do get a few booklets and documentation and then you also get the micro USB charging cable. For its price range, I was really expecting some sort of a carry case maybe a soft cloth case but none of that was found inside the box. Because this is a rugged speaker, it is also drop rated and it is water-resistant, so you can literally throw it in water and it should be okay for about 30 minutes at about one meter of depth.

Once you do connect to your smartphone or laptop or whatever, you do have the Bose Connect app that allows you to control a few things on the speaker and also install firmware updates if and when they are available for the speaker directly from the app. Bose is also claiming a six-hour battery life, and if you are not pumping the music to the full volume you should get somewhere around that. This speaker is really loud enough and I found it really good enough to have a small party in a single large room. 

JBL Flip 4

In terms of the features, the JBL Flip 4 comes loaded with two 40-millimeter drivers and looks to offer an output of 8 watts per channel. The frequency response is pretty average with the lowering coming in at 70 Hertz and the higher end the 20 kiloHertz. This is a Bluetooth speaker with the JBL Flip 4 making use of Bluetooth 4.2 to establish a maintain connections. With this being a JBL speaker, this one can be connected to the JBL Connect app. In fact, unlike the previous Flip models, Flip 4 makes you JBL Connect Plus which means it can connect to more than a hundred other JBL speakers. The downside though is you can only connect to other JBL Connect Plus speakers. It is not backward compatible with the standard JBL Connect. This speaker does comic quotes for Google Assistant compatibility, so once it is connected to your smartphone, you can use Flip 4 to initiate Google Assistant.

While the capacity of the battery inside the JBL Flip 4 is identical to the Flip three, JBL is claiming you’ll get 12 hours this time compared to the 10 hours that were on offer with the JBL Flip 3. However, we found the battery life not quite as long-lasting as JBL claims. As a roll, if you are running this speaker at an 80% are higher volume level then you should expect the battery to last no longer than five hours. The big selling point with the JBL Flip 4 over the Flip 3 is this one comes with a fully waterproof body with the included IPX7 certification which doesn’t mean that unlike the JBL Flip 3 which you could only splash with water Flip or can be submerged in water completely up to a depth of 1 meter and for as long as 30 minutes.

SOUND QUALITY:

Bose SounLink Micro

The minute I turned the volume up on this speaker I was rather surprised. The amount of sound and the amount of volume that you get from the speaker is really indescribable. It is in comparison the size of a Google Home Mini or an Amazon Echo Dot, it sounds at least four times better than the Echo Dot and at least twice as loud as the Google Home Mini. 

JBL Flip 4

A Bluetooth speaker is only as good as it sounds and on that note, the JBL Flip thought is a great sounding speaker. This is never going to be a speaker that offers any real bass and so you should not be expecting a bass-heavy output from the Flip 4, if anything this is where sounds compromised the most. Although, this is an issue with a Flip line in general, as its size and its design will always impact bass response. That difference is somewhat negotiable as the mids and the tops are certainly the overwhelming aspects on both Flip versions. 

WHICH ONE IS WORTH BUYING?

If you already own the Flip 3 then the Flip 4 is not worth buying at its price range because not of that upgrade. But if you do not own Flip 3 then the Flip 4 is really worth buying for eighty dollars in comparison to Bose SoundLink Micro which is retailing for around a hundred dollars because the Flip 4 has better sound, better battery, and better features than the Bose SoundLink Micro for a lower price.

Expert Reviews of Bose SoundLink Micro:

By Expert Reviews
If you told me this speaker was £40, I’d excuse its poor sound for its multifunctional voice-assistant button and…

By cnet
The well-built and travel-friendly Bose SoundLink Micro is arguably the best-sounding speaker in its tiny size class.

By Sound Guys
If you’re knee-deep in the Bose ecosystem and want a travel-friendly speaker that can withstand nearly anything, the SoundLink Micro is a great addition…

By Pocket-lint
As small-scale Bluetooth speakers go, the Bose SoundLink Micro brings mega sound and volume…

By Craving Tech
Bose SoundLink Micro is a compact and lightweight portable speaker with the power to deliver sound, perfect for outdoor adventures…

Expert Reviews of JBL Flip 4:

By TheStreamingBlog
After we’ve tested the Flip 4 Bluetooth Speaker from JBL, we can definitely say that it gives off impressive quality sounds with big and full bass, plus crystal-clear vocals. Not only that, but the other great thing about the speaker is that it’s now…

By Gadget360
The Flip 4 is a mighty performer given its tiny size and is another solid option in the sub-Rs. 10,000 segment. Its sound isn’t perfect, as the mid-range isn’t distinct enough, and vocals can be overpowering. However, it does deliver good bass,…

By Digit
The JBL Flip 4 is a more mature product, offering better-balanced sound than its predecessor, the Flip 3. However, its bass delivery is still a bit weak, and it is here that the UE Wonderboom plays better. Nevertheless, the JBL Flip 4 offers great…

By IndianExpress
JBL has long been the go-to audio device for a lot of people. The company has been offering very dependable and affordable personal audio products and this means it has been able to create a dedicated user base over time. Its latest is the JBL Flip…

By Pocket-lint
If you’re looking for a decent and relatively affordable speaker that you can throw in your bag, take to the beach, or wherever, then the JBL Flip 4 is a convenient solution. At the right volume, it delivers a decent sound that can fill small/medium size…