Even with the advent of portable Bluetooth speakers, there is still a lot of value to be had by going with the tried and true boombox for all your party needs.
Boomboxes, despite their antiquated design, often have a surprising array of modern features that make them great options for anyone looking to get something that can reliably play music both loudly and clearly for large groups; they can also be useful for those who just want to listen to music on their own.
Given that you likely haven’t been paying attention to the latest news in boomboxes, we are here to help. In this article, we will be reviewing 3 of the best boomboxes for you to check out. If you want to know the best one to get, we say to check out the Philips Portable Boombox.
A Spotlight On Some of The Best Boomboxes :
Philips Portable Boombox
For the first review on our best boomboxes list we wanted to do a review of the Philips Portable Boombox. We are sure that many of you have heard of Philips Electronics before and are aware that they make many high-quality electronics products, including audio products. This particular boombox from them ends up being a slightly pricey, but also extremely well-made boombox with a ton of great features.
First and foremost, the Bluetooth connectivity on this boombox is amazing. Typically, one expects their boombox to be a bit spotty when it comes to connecting to smartphones, but that just isn’t the case here. This boombox always finds your phone very quickly and the connection stays solid, even when the phone moves far away. This makes streaming from Spotify or any other music app simple and hassle free.
Secondly, the audio quality that this boombox produces is pretty great overall. A brand like Philips or Sony can usually be relied on to produce some great sounding appliances and this boombox lines up with that expectation perfectly.
One thing that we will caution you about regarding the Philips is its price. This boombox costs around $120, and it is definitely quite pricey when compared to your average boombox option. While the price isn’t egregious by any means, it is very noticeable when compared to many of the other boomboxes on this list, but we still wanted to mention this.
- Great sound quality.
- Good balance between playing physical media and streaming.
- Very strong Bluetooth capabilities.
- A fairy pricey boombox overall.
Victrola 1980s Retro Bluetooth Boombox
For the next product review on our best boombox list, we wanted to take a look at the Victrola 1980s Retro Bluetooth Boombox. This is a fairly straightforward boombox that manages to combine new school features with a very classic old school look. This is easily one of the absolute best boomboxes that you are going to find on the market today.
It is really important that you don’t let the classic design of this boombox fool you as it is extremely modern in just about every respect.
The sound quality of this boombox is absolutely amazing. It can easily outmatch just about any modern Bluetooth speaker just because of the size and quality of its speakers. What’s more is the fact that the Victrola retains the ability to play all types of physical media, including cassette tapes, AM/FM radio, and much more. It is just a very good speaker overall.
One thing that we will mention regarding this boombox is that it is definitely a bit bulkier than some other boombox options, so be aware that you need to have some decent room to actually make this option work well. It isn’t as easy to fit into some setups as the other boomboxes that we have reviewed.
- Classic 80’s look.
- Good Bluetooth streaming option.
- Can also play physical media.
- Fairly bulky for a boombox.
GPX Inc. Portable Top-Loading CD Boombox
For the final review on our best boomboxes list, we are going to be doing a review of the GPX Inc. Portable Top-Loading CD Boombox. While this boombox does lack some important features such as Bluetooth syncing, it does something that no other boombox on this article does, which is provide a cheap boombox option.
While we haven’t reviewed overly expensive boomboxes or anything like that, it is definitely true that the options haven’t exactly been the most budget friendly. That is where this product will really help to balance out the list. As you can hopefully see for yourself, the GPX is an extremely budget friendly option that costs under $30.
While this boombox obviously can’t quite boast the same features as boomboxes that cost upwards of ten times as much, it is fairly good for what you actually end up getting.
The sound quality isn’t all that bad and one can actually appreciate the music that they play. Secondly, it still manages to retain some core features that absolutely have to be in a boombox, such as the ability to play physical media and the ability to act as a radio.
Again, given that the GPX Inc. Portable Top-Loading CD Boombox costs under $30, there isn’t much to complain about.
- Cheapest boombox that we have reviewed.
- Able to act as an AM/FM radio.
- Can play CDs.
- No ability to connect via Bluetooth.
- Not much in the way of options.
A Short Boombox Buying Guide
In this short section of the article we will be explaining what you need to be considering if you are in the market for a boombox. We will avoid obvious criteria like “sound quality,” which we are sure is something that everyone here will already be considering if they are in the market for a boombox.
Bluetooth Compatibility
Without a doubt the number one feature to look for is Bluetooth compatibility. As we explained in our above reviews, you need to check and make sure that any boombox that you are buying has an ability to play music via Bluetooth.
Why? Well, for the simple reason that without it you won’t be able to listen to most music without this capability. Most modern music isn’t played with physical media like CDs, but with things like Spotify and Google Music. You need Bluetooth compatibility for this.
Overall Design
In terms of overall design, you have essentially 2 options when it comes to the boombox that you end up using. The first is to go for a more classic, 80s style boombox look. The second is to go for a more modern looking boombox.
This isn’t just a stylistic change either, it can have real impacts on the overall performance of the boombox.
For example, more retro style boomboxes tend to be quite a bit larger, which can make finding space for them trickier; at the same time, they tend to have better quality speakers and the ability to play more conventional media. So, it is a trade-off that you seriously need to consider.
Lots of Sound Options
For the final piece of our buying guide, we would really recommend that you invest in a boombox with a lot of options when it comes to how you can customize the sound that your boombox puts out.
Obviously, every single boombox is going to have your standard volume option, but that isn’t what we are talking about. What we mean is that you want to look for options that let you controlled more advanced audio settings on your boombox, like the bass, the treble, etc.
Conclusion
If you want to give your own boombox recommendations, use our comment section down below.