I recently was given a Phoenix Bluetooth speaker by Beacon Audio. Initially I didn’t have high expectations for it – it’s only got a few simple controls and it doesn’t weigh much, both criteria this tech nerd looks toward for signs of awesomeness in new gadgets. I live a very mobile lifestyle – on any given day, my “office” can be in a variety of locations. I charged up the Phoenix via USB cable and put it through it’s paces.
One the hassles of a mobile lifestyle is that of music: I want to have music that plays loud, with good audio quality, but I don’t want to haul around a stereo or other bulky device. I linked my phone up to the Phoenix via Bluetooth ( a very simple process), turned on Spotify, and was blown away at how loud the Phoenix can play.
The combo of my phone and the Beacon Audio Phoenix are often seen at my desk, in the living room, and even in the bathroom while I’m showering – it’s plenty loud for all of these situations. One of the things that helps the Phoenix play loudly, and with good audio quality, is a small subwoofer mounted in the bottom of the unit.
It’s hard to see in this photo, but it’s up inside the recess of the base of the unit. When it’s running, you can sometimes see the little bass driver bumping really hard to keep pace with the mid / high range speakers on the sides of the unit.
As mentioned before, the controls are very simple, and they control the music source (in this case, my Samsung Galaxy S4). When you press the +/track forward button once, the track advances. By pressing the button and holding it, the volume goes up. Same functionality for the – / reverse button. Pause / play do just that.
My laptop’s built in speakers sound awfull. When I sit down do watch a movie on my computer or listen to music while I am working, I will fire up the Phoenix with my laptop – and voila – I have really great sound! It’s a godsend.
The other thing that blew me away about the Beacon Audio Phoenix is the battery life. Somehow, this thing just keeps playing and playing and playing and playing. From what I can tell I’m getting around 12 hours of fairly loud volume playback. Considering how much energy is required to generate that much sound for that long, it’s quite a marvel that this little unit’s battery can keep that much of a charge. Further more, even as the battery discharges, the performance remains constant – none of this half quality distorted music as the battery starts to approach it’s end. The ring around the controls turns red as the battery nears it’s end, giving you plenty of time to make plans to charge it back up (which happens very quickly, too).
As I mentioned, when I was given the Phoenix, I really didn’t think I’d use it much. After trying it one time, I was hooked. It’s a permanent fixture in my laptop bag and I use it every day. I really love my Phoenix.
Order yours here: https://www.beaconaudio.com
