Sony SRS-X5 wireless speaker: The Bose Bluetooth competitor
Sony SRS-X5 wireless speaker: The Bose Bluetooth competitor
2:47

Sony SRS-X5 wireless speaker: The Bose Bluetooth competitor

Speakers
[MUSIC] This is the Sony SRS-X5, a $200 portable Bluetooth speaker that sits somewhere in the middle of Sony's line up of wireless speakers. Well it doesn't have the built in WiFi streaming of the larger, more expensive SRS-X7. It's one of the best sounding speakers in its price class and a better value. Hi, I'm David Carnoy, here to give you a quick video tour of this speaker, which took me a little bit by surprise. After reviewing the good, but not great, X7, I wasn't expecting that much from its little brother. But as soon as I turned it on, I was impressed by the amount of bass it delivers for its small size, and its clean, relatively natural sound. From a design standpoint, this sports the same simple, minimalist design of its larger sibling. With the same glossy finish in a choice of red, black, and white for the speaker grill cover. On top of the unit, you'll find a few different buttons, some of which, including the volume and preset sound modes are touch sensitive. And yes, that glossy finish will attract some fingerprints so be prepared to wipe the speaker down from time to time. As far as extras go there's that aforementioned speaker phone functionality along with NFC tap to pair technology for smartphones that support it. There's also app deck support. An audio input for non-Bluetooth devices. And more importantly, a USB charging port on the back that will charge your smartphone. It can charge tablets too, but it's only 1.5 amps, so it would charge them very slowly. In many ways, this competes directly with Bose's $200 SoundLink Mini, and perhaps even Bose's SoundLink Bluetooth Speaker III. It's a portable speaker, but due to its design it's more of an indoor speaker that at 2.5 pounds can easily be moved from room to room. Battery life is rated at eight hours which is slightly better than the Bose Mini seven hours. It's right there with the sound like Mini in the terms of sound quality, and has a similar sound profile with a lot of bass for its small size. As with all these compact Bluetooth speakers, it does have its limitations. But like the Bose products, it manages to eek out a lot of sound from its small frame without distorting. I also found that it didn't move around at higher volumes like its larger sibling, the X7 does. In the end there's a case to be made that this is a better buy than the BOSE SoundLink Mini. It may not have quite as sturdy a design, but it sounds as good and has speaker phone functionality. As I said, it's one of the best sounding compact wireless speakers in its sub $200 price class. And is definitely recommendable if you're looking for a portable, wireless speaker that you plan on using mainly indoors. I'm David Carnoy, thanks for watching. [MUSIC]

Up Next

Dolby's New Atmos System Lets You Place Speakers Anywhere in the Room
ces-dolby-00-01-10-12-still001

Up Next

Dolby's New Atmos System Lets You Place Speakers Anywhere in the Room

Razer Leviathan v2 Game Soundbar Delivers Big Sound, Front and Center
razer

Razer Leviathan v2 Game Soundbar Delivers Big Sound, Front and Center

LG's latest soundbars promise more realistic voices
soundbar-thumb

LG's latest soundbars promise more realistic voices

Soundbars: What to know before you buy
yt-best-soundbar-v2

Soundbars: What to know before you buy

Vizio Elevate soundbar lifts the roof with Dolby Atmos
vizio-elevate

Vizio Elevate soundbar lifts the roof with Dolby Atmos

This luxury speaker brings Alexa smarts to art gallery design
yt-luxury-tech-1

This luxury speaker brings Alexa smarts to art gallery design

This is the best smart speaker
thebest-ep7

This is the best smart speaker

UE Hyperboom is built to party
fl-ue-hyperboom

UE Hyperboom is built to party

Samsung's Atmos soundbar offers big sound, fewer boxes
web-ty-samsungq70rsoundbar

Samsung's Atmos soundbar offers big sound, fewer boxes

Amazon introduces high-end smarter speaker, Echo Studio
amazonechostudio

Amazon introduces high-end smarter speaker, Echo Studio

Tech Shows

The Apple Core
apple-core-w

The Apple Core

Alphabet City
alphabet-city-w

Alphabet City

CNET Top 5
cnet-top-5-w

CNET Top 5

The Daily Charge
dc-site-1color-logo.png

The Daily Charge

What the Future
what-the-future-w

What the Future

Tech Today
tech-today-w

Tech Today

Latest News All latest news

PlayStation 5 Pro Leaked: Everything We Know
playstation5pro-leak-clean

PlayStation 5 Pro Leaked: Everything We Know

Everything Just Revealed at Nvidia's GTC AI Conference
nvidiastill

Everything Just Revealed at Nvidia's GTC AI Conference

Nvidia Reveals Omniverse Cloud Streams to the Vision Pro
nvidia-vision-pro-image

Nvidia Reveals Omniverse Cloud Streams to the Vision Pro

Nvidia Shows Project GROOT and Disney Bots at GTC Conference
robot-2

Nvidia Shows Project GROOT and Disney Bots at GTC Conference

Expert vs. AI: Is Now the Time to Buy an EV?
gettyimages-1178244881

Expert vs. AI: Is Now the Time to Buy an EV?

The PlayStation Portal Built-In Volume Is too Loud: Here's How to Keep It Low
playstation-portal-audio-options-thumb2

The PlayStation Portal Built-In Volume Is too Loud: Here's How to Keep It Low

Most Popular All most popular

First Look at TSA's Self-Screening Tech (in VR!)
innovation

First Look at TSA's Self-Screening Tech (in VR!)

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra Review: More AI at a Higher Cost
240123-site-samsung-galaxy-s24-ultra-review-4

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra Review: More AI at a Higher Cost

'Circle to Search' Lets Users Google From Any Screen
circlesearchpic

'Circle to Search' Lets Users Google From Any Screen

Asus Put Two 14-inch OLEDs in a Laptop, Unleashes First OLED ROG Gaming Laptop
asus-preces-00-00-25-11-still003

Asus Put Two 14-inch OLEDs in a Laptop, Unleashes First OLED ROG Gaming Laptop

Samsung Galaxy Ring: First Impressions
samsung-galaxy-ring-clean

Samsung Galaxy Ring: First Impressions

Best of Show: The Coolest Gadgets of CES 2024
240111-site-best-of-ces-2024-1

Best of Show: The Coolest Gadgets of CES 2024

Latest Products All latest products

First Look: The $349 Nothing Phone 2A Aims to Brighten Your Day
240304-site-nothing-phone-2-first-look-v3

First Look: The $349 Nothing Phone 2A Aims to Brighten Your Day

Best of MWC 2024: Bendable Screens, AI Wearables and More
240229-site-best-of-show-at-mwc

Best of MWC 2024: Bendable Screens, AI Wearables and More

This Concept Laptop from Lenovo Has a Transparent Display
240225-site-lenovo-translucent-laptop-concept-v3

This Concept Laptop from Lenovo Has a Transparent Display

Motorola's Rollable Concept Phone Wraps on Your Wrist
240225-site-motorola-rollable-concept

Motorola's Rollable Concept Phone Wraps on Your Wrist

See Adobe Lightroom on the Apple Vision Pro
adobe-lightroom-00-02-58-03-still006-1

See Adobe Lightroom on the Apple Vision Pro

This $400 Cane Has a Built-In Phone
p1022441-mp4-15-35-32-23-still001

This $400 Cane Has a Built-In Phone

Latest How To All how to videos

Windows 11 Tips and Hidden Features
240311-site-windows-11-hidden-tips-and-tricks-v2

Windows 11 Tips and Hidden Features

Vision Pro App Walkthrough -- VisionOS 1.0.3
VisionOS 1.0.3

Vision Pro App Walkthrough -- VisionOS 1.0.3

Tips and Tricks for the Galaxy S24 Ultra
240216-site-galaxy-s24-ultra-tips-and-hidden-features-2

Tips and Tricks for the Galaxy S24 Ultra

TikTok Is Now on the Apple Vision Pro
tiktok-on-vision-pro-clean

TikTok Is Now on the Apple Vision Pro

Get Your TV Ready for the Big Game: Super Bowl Setup Tips
superbowl-tv-settings-thumb1

Get Your TV Ready for the Big Game: Super Bowl Setup Tips

How to Use a Quest 3 Like the Vision Pro
240202-site-spatial-computing-on-meta-quest-3

How to Use a Quest 3 Like the Vision Pro