Loads of the best Bluetooth speakers will sell themselves on their durability: IP67 ratings, survivable drop distances and rubber grilles are often touted as key selling points, pitching you on the promise of a speaker that can survive picnics, barbecues, hikes, cycle rides, and so on.
As a result, most people buying portable party players will be doing so for their ability to keep going in rugged conditions (or, at least, to keep going after some kind of water-related accident). Compact sizes and a hefty power output help these speakers work in a range of outdoor and social environments.
So when I recently received the Tribit Stormbox Micro 3 to test, I knew I didn’t want to just stick it in a corner of my office and listen for a few hours. I wanted to take it somewhere that’d really push it through its paces.
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Thankfully, my testing time coincided with a trip I was due to take. Specifically, I was travelling to a remote cottage in deepest darkest Wales, to shoot a short film. Over the course of a week, we’d be working and relaxing in one of the rainiest places I’ve ever had the pleasure to work, and I needed something that’d keep the vibe going during the shoot and once we’d wrapped each day.
I love using trips like this as an opportunity to test new tech. So I made sure the Stormbox Micro 3 got pride of place in my stuffed rucksack, alongside the Samsung Galaxy A57 (and some headphones I’ve yet to finish reviewing), to put it through this week-long test. (Naturally, I forgot to take pictures on the trip, so you’re seeing the Tribit during a sunny picnic after the fact).
A (Tri)bit about the Stormbox Micro 3
Oh, did I forget to formally introduce you to this new speaker? It’s the follow-up to the five-star Tribit Stormbox Micro 2, as a portable pocket speaker like many brand offer.
It’s a small and totable thing, weighing 330g, with a useful strap that you can carry the thing by, or use to strap it to a backpack or bike handlebars. The battery lasts for up to 24 hours in one go.
Audio-wise, it outputs at 13W, which is a little bit more oomph than many of these super-small speakers offer. It offers a nice amount of bass for the size, especially with a bass booster button that amps it up a little more, but I would have liked more treble in certain songs.
Something I really appreciate is the smooth design. My partner has the LG XBoom Go and while it’s fine for music and is wonderfully hardy, its copious straps and dials and cables mean it catches on other things in my bag like picnic blankets or trailing wires.
The Micro 3 is way easier to remove (even if it immediately sunk to the bottom of my 85-liter hiking backpack on my trip to the mountains).
The wet test
One of my filming days was entirely exteriors, but even when we were shooting interiors, we’d need to pop outside to set up lights or cameras through windows. And when we weren’t shooting, people would naturally be popping indoors and out to stretch their legs, go on a walk or enjoy the weather.
Unfortunately, anyone who’s spent time in any elevated area, can tell you how changeable the weather can be. It’d be sunny one moment and torrential a few minutes after, and it got so bad that I had to cut some scenes to stop my cast and crew getting ill.
I didn’t have to show the same worry for the Tribit, though. I’d sometimes leave it outside, only for sun to be switched out for rain clouds at the blink of an eye. On more than one occasion, I’d pop inside, only to return to a speaker weathering an unexpected deluge.
Sometimes, that can spell the end of tech. I’m sure many of us have lost gadgets to unexpected rain-bursts, and it’s probably why the myth of the rice-drying solution is so prolific.
However the Stormbox seemed unmoved by its unexpected drenchings. The name really started to make sense after I kept accidentally getting it wet, and it kept successfully playing music.
At one point an unexpectedly strong gust of wind knocked it from the branch I’d perched it on, and even its brief dalliance with gravity (and the muddy hills of Eryri) left no marks (except some mud).
I really appreciate something as protected as the Tribit, because it removes one thing to worry about on trips or holidays. It’ll keep ticking, even if I forget to look after it.
A feast (for the ears)
I’m not a cruel tech owner, I promise, and I let the speaker indoors from time to time.
The most use the Stormbox Micro 3 got was after shooting finished each day. I wasn’t just the director but the producer, making sure all the cast and crew ate well, and this meant cooking and serving a hearty meal for everyone — all while ensuring everyone was relaxed and had a drink to unwind with. I was a busy host.
When I cooked, I’d strap the Tribit to a cupboard handle, so it could keep the vibe going while I worked over the stove. I’ve tested some other gadgets with carry handles — most memorably the Lenovo Yoga Tab 13, which was limber enough to dangle from handles — and I love how versatile they are. The Tribit’s hook meant I could hang it on all kinds of objects, to put it wherever I wanted.
Specifically, it meant I could keep the Micro 3 out of the way. Even though it’s a small speaker, counter space can be limited in a busy kitchen, and I needed every inch of it for pots, pans and chopping boards.
Here’s where I used the bass boost button most. If people are knackered from working all day, some good vibrations go a long way, and people aren’t as interested in the audio nuance of trebles and mids. In fact, one guest took charge of toggling the bass button themselves, because that’s what everyone wanted.
The kitchen-dining room combo wasn’t huge, but two conjoined rooms are probably the exact size you’d be able to fill with the Stormbox. A speaker of its size isn’t going to fill a cavernous dining room or a large garden, but it was perfect for self-catered cottage rooms like these where people will be near each other.
That principle could extend to this whole trip. The Tribit may not be the biggest or most powerful speaker out there, but it was perfect sized for a group trip like this, so we could bring a music player with us that we didn’t need to worry about. I didn’t even charge it all week, because apparently 24 hours is all I needed.
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tom.bedford@hotmail.co.uk (Tom Bedford)
