As Oasis almost sang, if you’re looking for a cute portable speaker with Auracast compatibility, the Miniroll is it. The new Ultimate Ears Miniroll is a take-anywhere, portable Bluetooth 5.3 speaker from one of audio’s biggest brands, and unlike an Oasis ticket, it won’t cost you three times as much if you try to buy it.
The main selling point here is its small size and light weight: it weighs less than a pound (it’s 279g, just under 9oz) and measures just 48 x 122 x 105mm high, long and wide, making it smaller than the vast majority of options in our guide to the best Bluetooth speakers. It has a pair of hooks on the back that make it easy to attach to your hiking gear, your clothing, or anything else of a suitable size, including rods ranging from 20mm to 35mm in diameter.
The speaker’s small size means there’s room for just one active speaker, a 45.6mm full-range dynamic driver, but this is paired with a passive radiator to boost the low-end for a bit of extra bass. Perhaps the most important feature of this speaker, however, is how sociable it is, as it’s been built with multi-speaker sound in mind.
Ultimate Ears Miniroll: Key Features, Availability and Pricing
The most interesting bit of tech here is what Ultimate Ears is calling PartyUp with Auracast. It’s a way to connect multiple speakers together via Bluetooth, and it allows you to connect an unlimited number of Miniroll speakers together – handy if you have multiple Minirolls or your friends do. And with a promised 12 hours of playback time between charges, that’s long enough for a day at the beach, a walk in the woods, or just a day under the duvet.
The Miniroll is drop-resistant up to 1.2 meters and uses more recycled materials than before: it is made from 100% recycled plastic and at least 40% recycled plastic parts.
The Ultimate Ears Miniroll is available in four colours (subject to regional availability) – Gentle Black, Majestic Blue, Revive Grey and Calming Pink – from today, September 9th. It’s priced at $79.99 / £69.99 / AU$119.99, which means it’s got some stiff competition in the seemingly burgeoning ‘speakers you can hang on your bag’ market from the excellent JBL Clip 5, which costs around the same price. We’re looking forward to seeing them go head to head!