REVIEWED: Divoom Voombox rugged portable wireless stereo speaker
Weighty and weatherproof, this bulky Bluetooth boombox makes a sizzling stab at sonic stardom
Another day, another Bluetooth speaker, though by now we at TravGear have divided all such attempts into two camps; those with lightweight, shiny designs and terrible sound, and those – like the Divoom Voombox – that are bigger, heavier, more travel-proof, and actually worth listening to music through.
Big and bold
The design is brash and no-nonsense; the Divoom Voombox weighs-in a seriously worrying (for light-packers) 726g thanks to its proper metal speaker grilles. It’s also worth pointing out that the Divoom Voombox has two speakers, something that helps immensely in delivering decent audio; stereo is a rarity at this size.
Water-resistant
Covered in silicon rubber and superbly built, the Divoom Voombox is water-resistant. We happily left it out in the rain while paired to our iPhone, which we managed to do in a jiffy; turn Divoom Voombox on, search for it in the phone settings (it comes up as ‘Voombox-outdoor’), pair. Done. If you walk about 10m away, the connection severs, with an audible beep celebrating the cessation. Walk back into range and it’s then necessary to press play on your phone, but the re-connection has by then already been made. It also remembers your phone for the next time you use it.
Sound quality
Bassy, with plenty of treble detail and not a clipped ‘S’ in earshot, this is about as good as it gets on a portable Bluetooth speaker, and it’s seriously impressive. We did notice a touch of hiss between tracks, and it’s not possible to listen at super-low volumes, but then that’s not really the point; the Divoom Voombox goes proper loud without distorting, which is crucial when outdoors.
12 hours battery
A 12-hour battery? Impressive. It recharges via a microUSB cable (included), which has a slot situated behind a rubber flap.Also behind there is a 3.5mm jack – and accompanying cable – that makes it a cinch to hook-up non-Bluetooth devices. There’s also a built-in microphone that means you can take calls while still being connected to the Divoom Voombox. It’s a nice extra.
Travel-grade
While we’re not convinced that any such gadget is seriously gunning for a place in your foreign travel kit, it’s great for using in the garden or on the beach while on a stay-cation or day out. As a travel-grade slab of gadge, the Divoom Voombox is bang on the money.