The Lowdown
The iLive Indoor/Outdoor Dual Bluetooth Speakers are just $69.99, and they bring rich sound in a small package. For their price and convenience, they can’t be beaten!
Overall
Pros
- Solid build quality
- Compact design
- Water resistance, the included ground stakes, and solar panels make them perfect for outdoor use
- Sound quality is excellent
- Paired speakers help fill a room with big sound
Cons
- It would be nice if they included a storage bag to keep the stakes and speakers together for transport and storage
- Micro-USB is a dated connector
I don’t have a huge living space, so I’ve never bothered with surround sound or big speakers. Still, sometimes you just want to enjoy music in a 360-degree experience, so I was very excited to check out the iLive Indoor/Outdoor Dual Bluetooth Speakers. How did they handle my space? Read on to find out!
Physically, the iLive Indoor/Outdoor Dual Bluetooth Speakers are fairly small. Measuring just 6.57″ tall by 3.03″, they’re just about the size of 1 1/2 cans of seltzer, small enough that you could easily transport them from place to place. In fact, they’re designed to be used on the go, and they even come with small ground stakes so you can set up music outdoors anywhere. When on their stakes, the speakers measure almost 16″ tall.
iLive Indoor/Outdoor Dual Bluetooth Speakers even have solar panels installed on top for slow charging when outdoors, so in theory, you won’t lose the music at your picnic dance party because you forgot to top off the battery. iLive also says they should last for 20 hours of battery at 1/2 volume, so you’ll have a fair amount of playing time before you have to worry about charging.
The speakers are also water-resistant; if it rains on your outdoor adventure, you’ll have a window of time to pack up before you need to worry about water damage. iLive also made sure to tuck the microSD card slot, micro-USB port, and auxiliary port behind a thick rubber plug so there’s little chance of water or dust getting in during regular use.
Pairing the iLive Indoor/Outdoor Dual Bluetooth Speakers was super easy. I paired them to each other first, then to my phone; once the pairing was done, I had no issues with the settings carrying over after they were turned off and back on again. iLive says they have a range of 33 feet, which seems right based on my loose testing.
Depending on where I placed them in my townhouse, relative to the stairs and the layout, I could get them to work between floors, but it was touchy. Still, 33 feet is a fair amount, and both speakers provide robust sound that fills the area quite well.
I was very impressed with the volume and quality of the music the iLive Indoor/Outdoor Dual Bluetooth Speakers pumped out. It was so good that I wouldn’t use both in conjunction in my backyard unless I had the ok from my neighbors on either side of me (again, I live in a townhouse) because even at a reasonable volume, the music really fills the space.
The iLive Indoor/Outdoor Dual Bluetooth Speakers are great indoors, too. I am already mentally figuring out the best placement for them, so I can enjoy music in front of the fireplace in the winter … assuming I can figure out how to maintain a fire, but that’s a story for another time.
There’s very little to complain about with the iLive speakers. I do, however, wish that they used USB-C for charging instead of micro-USB, and I think a small storage bag for the stakes and speakers would be nice for easy grab and go.
But the iLive Indoor/Outdoor Dual Bluetooth Speakers are just $69.99, and they bring rich sound in a small package. For their price and convenience, they can’t be beaten!
I don’t recommend using these on the beach or any place where it’s crowded, because as I said, the sound is pretty robust; it’s just rude to make everyone enjoy your Justin Bieber playlist!
A pair of iLive Indoor/Outdoor Dual Bluetooth Speakers retail for $69.99; they are available directly from the manufacturer.
Source: Manufacturer supplied review sample
What I Like: Solid build quality; Compact design; Water resistance, the included ground stakes, and solar panels make them perfect for outdoor use; Sound quality is excellent; Paired speakers help fill a room with big sound
What Needs Improvement: It would be nice if they included a storage bag to keep the stakes and speakers together for transport and storage; Micro-USB is a dated connector