Pure Sound Pro BT II review: a well-connected speaker but lacks bass
Portable speakers and boomboxes are constantly gaining massive popularity with the raise in demand for compact, travel-friendly audio output devices. Over the past couple of years, companies have been burning the candle at both ends to come up with better quality portable speakers for music lovers.
Apart from users on the go music lovers, portable speakers can also serve the rationale of a stand-alone speaker, inside a small room. Additionally, these compact speakers take up very less space, which is a major reason why I favour sound boxes/ bars for personal usage.
Recently, I got my hands on the Portronics Pure Sound Pro BT II, which is an upgraded version of the much smaller Pure Sound BT, released in 2014. Before moving on to the intricacies of this product, users should know that this speaker is amazing in terms of connectivity options, which is a good reason to buy this device. On the other hand, I also felt that the speaker had a number of flaws—ones that can be absolute mood-spoilers for music lovers.
After constantly playing music on this rectangular sound bar for around a week, here is what I felt about the Pure Sound Pro BT II.
Design and build: There is not really much to speak about this section, and the design seemed rather insipid to me. As I pointed out previously, the Pure Sound Pro BT II is just a larger, rectangular adaptation of the earlier smaller device. On the front, the sound bar incorporates a metal grill pattern, and the company’s logo in the middle. I feel that the speaker could have been designed significantly better, or at least minimums graphics could have been added.
On the top of the speaker, there are options for choosing mode, volume buttons, and playback controls. You generally won’t need to use these options from the speaker, as you also get a remote control along with the whole unit. At the rear side of the speaker, there are additional options such as a microSD card slot, USB, 3.5mm audio jack, and the power button.
Moving on to the build quality, the device feels firm and I believe that it will survive a couple drops with ease. However, users should be careful, as too many drops will surely blemish the sound quality and internal components. The sound bar is also very light at 850g. All in all, the device is firm in terms of build quality but could have been a lot better design-wise.
Sound quality, connectivity and battery: First of all, the 10W speaker is certainly not capable of churning out sound outputs like the JBL Boombox or Flip, but it does mange to do decently well for a device priced at just Rs 2,999. I tried a variety of tracks from different genres on this sound bar, but the experience turned out to be a tad disappointing.
One of the major issues with this device is the low bass output. Whenever I played bass-heavy tracks, the device failed to pump out decent levels, hence messing up the song entirely. For instance, I tried playing the famous bass-heavy track Californication from Red Hot Chilli Peppers, but the speaker couldn’t do justice to the song at all. However, there is no scope to grumble, as this speaker isn’t made to make people groove.
If you listen to a lot of rock, hard rock, or metal music, I would recommend you to shy away from this speaker. However, if you are more into classical, soft rock, and jazz, this speaker does manage to perform a lot better.
In terms of sound levels, the speaker is quite loud for its size, however, I wouldn’t recommend anyone to listen to songs, or watch any movie on full volume. If you are planning to use this speaker in your room, or for taking it along during trips, you will be content with the sound quality.
The 2000mAh Li-ion battery on this speaker is quite good and manages to stay alive for more than six hours. The device can be charged quickly via a USB cable.
The best part of the Pro BT 2 is the amazing connectivity options that come along with it. Not many portable speakers in the same price range offer so many options, and this is undoubtedly the USP of the product.
Users can play songs from their smartphones or laptops via Bluetooth or USB. The speaker has even got a microSD slot for playing music, which is uncanny on any speaker in the same price range.
Verdict: After inspecting the device for more than a week, I feel that the Pro Bt 2 could have been a lot better, both in terms of design and output.
However, users have to keep in mind that this is a lower-segmented, affordably priced portable speaker for personal usage only. If you are looking for speakers to set the tone for a party, I would suggest you to refrain from buying this sound bar. However, Users seeking an affordable speaker with myriad connectivity options can surely try out the new Pro BT 2.
