This is the review of the comparison between two speakers from two popular Brands such as the JBL and the Sony. The comparison here is between the JBL Flip 5 and the Sony SRS-XB23. There is definitely a price difference between them which brings the difference in their features and performances. To know which one is good for you to buy, go to the detailed review.

JBL Flip 5	Sony SRS-XB23
BUY NOW	BUY NOW
PROS	PROS
Simple design, Excellent sound,11 color options, Able to pair multiple JBL speakers. Good sound quality, waterproof, long battery life excellent sound quality, and very loud.	Powerful bass depth and crisp highs in a compact design. Stereo pairing and Party Mode. Very portable and well-built design. Waterproof and dustproof.
CONS	CONS
Need compatible models to use PartyBoost, Checking battery life requires you to press the top buttons, No speakerphone or voice assistant functionality.	Weaker without Extra Bass option on. Doesn’t get very loud. Unclear battery level alerts.

SPECIFICATIONS:

Detail Review:

INTRODUCTION:

JBL Flip 5

The JBL Flip 5 has a nice and portable design and pretty amazing audio in such a compact package. This speaker is retailing for around a hundred and twenty dollars currently on Amazon. This is the latest updated speaker from the Flip line-up speakers from JBL.

Sony SRS-XB23

The Sony SRS-XB23 looks almost like the SRS-XB22, there are only a few changes that been made in the XB22 which makes the XB23. The XB23 does sound good and looks good. on the other hand, it looks slightly like the JBL Flip 5 and also, has a strap like the Flip 5.

DESIGN: 

JBL Flip 5

The speaker is made of this really nice fabric material and rubber on the top bottom and on sides. Even though the USB Type-C port for charging is not covered by any flaps, the Flip 5 is waterproof because of the IPX7 certification. The red color of the speaker looks really nice in my opinion but if you don’t like it you can choose from 11 distinct color options. You can find the bass drivers on each side that not only look nice but also contribute to providing great and balanced sound.

The build quality is excellent too and the speaker feels like a solid piece of kit. I didn’t drop it on purpose but it definitely looks and feels it can take a beating. There are also all of the controls you need. Power and Bluetooth keys have a nice LED backlight, and the party boost button utilizes true Wireless Stereo technology that allows you to pair two-party boost compatible speakers for true stereo sound.

Sony SRS-XB23

As far as the design, Sony went with a complete cylinder shape and they have that fabric mesh wrapping completely around the body except for the ends there. It’s not a soft touch rubber as we’ve seen in the XB33, it’s more of hard plastic but that’s only on the outside. On the inside there, we have that soft-touch rubber and they added dual passive radiators to the outsides in this speaker.

Another welcome addition is that they had the function buttons running right down the center there and then they actually moved the battery, party, and stereo pair button out from underneath the flap to a more accessible place, where the other buttons are located. Once again another smart design choice by Sony and they put the USB Type-C under the flap but there is no USB Type-A and no 3.5-millimeter auxiliary jack. So, that’s one change that they made from XB22.

FEATURES:

JBL Flip 5

The Flip 5 ships in a nice protective case meaning that you can take the speaker with you wherever you go without any worries. The retail packaging also includes the charging cable and some paperwork. First I like how compact the speaker is considering the fact it can provide a total volume output of 20 watts. The device is also relatively light despite the fact that has a massive 4,800 milliamp hours battery. On average, I could get over 11 hours of music playback, which is very close to the official claims of 12 hours. Once I saw the spec sheet I was a little bit disappointed by the fact that the device uses Bluetooth 4.2 which is not the latest protocol. In practice, you can’t really notice any difference in terms of sound quality and I had zero connectivity issues.

Overall, the sound quality is definitely one of the best when it comes to compact Bluetooth speakers. I also love rugged and waterproof design, great battery life, and you simply have that JBL look and feel of a solid piece of equipment. This might be a little bit more expensive than cheap knock-offs out there but the Flip 5 is better pretty much in each department. So, if you’re looking for a great-sounding and loud yet compact Bluetooth speaker the JBL Flip 5 is an easy buying recommendation.

Sony SRS-XB23

It comes in five new colors of black, a taupe, light blue, olive green, and coral red. Sony’s marketing this as the ultimate new small portable party speaker. As far as the battery life on this, Sony claims it has a 12-hour battery life but they also say that’s in stamina mode at half volume. If you want to have the extra bass on, they claim about ten hours but from my test, I got about eight hours on this speaker with extra bass on and about 75% volume.

The XB23 is 8.6 inches high with a diameter of 3 inches and it weighs approximately 1.3 pounds. So, holding it in your hand it actually feels very lightweight. Just like the XB22, the XB23 is IP67 rated, so the 6 means it’s dustproof and the 7 means it’s submersible up to 3 feet for up to 30 minutes, and they also say saltwater resistant shockproof and has a washable surface. So, if you’re out there all day listening to music get it dirty, just take a washcloth wipe it right off.

The loss of the auxiliary jack might turn a few of you disappointed but they did give us Bluetooth 5.0 which’s an upgrade from Bluetooth 4.2 to 5.0 in the XB23. Also, another deletion from last year’s XB22 is no more LED light is shown in this. It’s not really a big deal having that LED light shown, it’s not as flashy but it’s actually a cleaner look. This new XB23 does feature Sony’s new X balanced speaker unit. with that, they basically took the circular diaphragms from the XB22 and they kind of stretched them out a little bit. Actually, it has a tri-oval shape and they claim that has better sound pressure and reduces distortion.

SOUND QUALITY:

JBL Flip 5

The sound quality is definitely the most important aspect of each Bluetooth speaker and I can assure you that JBL Flip 5 delivers that. The sound is deep, crisp, and there is a ton of bass. Also, can hear a good separation between mids, highs, and lows, and the volume output is pretty insane considering such a small package. It does sound good but when you increase the volume to about more than 70%, it starts to get distorted.

Sony SRS-XB23

While testing out the sound quality on this, I was just messing with the levels of the bass, mids, and trebles, and it has a lot of effect on this little speaker. At fifty to seventy-five percent volume, just like most Bluetooth speakers, it sounds crystal-clear, and then once you get to that hundred percent, everything starts getting a little muffled, a little muddy, and I think the XB23 is no different.

WHICH TO BUY?

In my opinion, the Sony SRS-XB23 is good for you to buy because it has better features than the Flip 5 and also, the overall sound quality is better in the XB23 than the Flip 5. The bass sounds a little bit cleaner in the JBL Flip 5 but I think the Sony XB23 had the volume advantage, I think this just pushes out a little bit more volume. If you’re talking about pure bass, I think the Flip 5 has its beat but as far as the overall sound quality, the XB23 is better.

Expert Reviews of JBL Flip 5:

By Tech Radar
The JBL Flip 5 is a simple soul – perhaps too simple for some in this world – but that minimalist approach has allowed JBL to focus on performance and create one of the best-sounding budget portable speakers around. Thanks to its neat design and IPX7…

By What Hi-Fi?
JBL’s latest offering sounds great for the price. If you don’t mind the lack of in-app EQ settings, aux-in port, battery life, inbuilt microphones, or partnering with older JBL speakers, it’s an excellent proposition for the money. It may be low on added…

By Pocket-lint
If you’re looking for a small, portable, and waterproof Bluetooth speaker then your options are many. The JBL Flip 5 delivers ample audio output and ticks all those boxes too, making it a tempting little portable. It also updates the design over the…

By TheStreamingBlog
JBL is a company known for producing affordable yet durable audio devices that deliver excellent sounds, and the JBL Flip 5 is not an exception. It may not be the perfect speaker, but for its price, it offers a lot more than what we expected. The JBL…

By techgearlab.com
Finding a reasonable balance between sound quality/volume and portability/ruggedness, the JBL Flip 5 is the quintessential jack of all trades, master of none. It’s melodious enough that you’re almost certainly going to enjoy listening to any type of…

Expert Reviews of Sony SRS-XB23:

By PCMag
Sony’s $100 SRS-XB23 speaker delivers solid audio for its size and price in an outdoor-friendly, waterproof design.

By Tech Radar
The entry-level Sony SRS-XB23 boasts a new design that moves the passive radiators to the top and bottom of the speaker…

By rtings.com
The Sony XB23 is decent for outdoor use. It has a great build quality with an IP67 rating for dust and water resistance, although…

By techguide.com.au
The Sony Extra Bass XB23 ticks all the boxes for durability, design, value, and audio quality and should be the first thing in your bag…