
But plenty of people will be most interested in sound quality and price, so for them, the Flip 5 is the better buy. After all, it comes out top in three categories (features, design, build and battery life) compared with the Flip 5's two (sound quality and price). **Winner** JBL Flip 5 JBL Flip 5 vs UE Boom 3: verdict It never goes uncomfortably sharp or bright, but it could do with greater richness and solidity to make it an easier sound to listen to. The Boom 3 does a solid job of getting to the core of a song and it’s a likeable listen overall.īut it always sounds a touch top-heavy. The timing is precise, and tracks charge along merrily with a good amount of drive and attitude. If you want a speaker that gives pop and rock plenty of detail and fun, this is a real contender. It's exuberant, loud – we're talking loud loud – with a bold, dynamic character. It's a shame, because the Boom 3 certainly has a lot to like. As such, the Boom 3 sounds a little dated. Nothing wrong there, you might think – after all, the Boom 2 was a five-star speaker – but the competition has since caught up. The Ultimat Ears Boom 3 doesn't improve on the Boom 2. Guitar solos are given ample space to shine through the treble and midrange, but never at the expense of that ever-zealous bass. But it's not just the bass that impresses, but every aspect of its sonic abilities: the Flip 5 doesn't only relay the material it’s given, but also layers and celebrates it. The Flip 5 puts in an impressive bass performance especially given its relatively small size. **Winner** UE Boom 3 JBL Flip 5 vs UE Boom 3: sound quality The more advanced app, and the fact that the device itself plays nicely with previous-generation speakers from the same brand gives this round to the Boom 3.
#JBL CHARGE 5 VS UE MEGABOOM 3 BLUETOOTH#
Or, if you want even bigger sound, you can daisychain more than 150 Boom and Megaboom speakers (current and previous generations) for one heck of a party.Īnd last but not least, the Bluetooth range for the Boom 3 has been increased to 45 metres, up from 30m before. The tidy new Boom app lets you link two Boom 3s for stereo sound. It beats multiple swiping to get the right playlist on your music app. It may sound like a bit of a gimmick, but it’s surprising how quickly this nifty feature becomes second nature to use. You can add and queue up your favourite playlists from those streaming services on the revamped Boom app, long-press the top button to play them and cycle through to the next list of tunes. That playlist feature is currently restricted to Apple Music on iOS devices and Deezer Premium on Androids, but Ultimate Ears is hoping to add more streaming services soon. Tapping the Magic Button on top lets you pause, play and skip tracks, while a long-press summons playlists imported from a music streaming service. The UE Boom 3 isn't short of tricks, either. The JBL app is relatively simple – you can't adjust the treble or bass, although you can rename your Flip 5 if you like.

Your options are currently limited to more Flip 5s or the Pulse 4. You can't connect the Flip 4 and Flip 5 in stereo or mono mode, for starters, and you can't connect older JBL models using the same PartyBoost feature.

Though be warned: this is not the same as the Connect+ button seen on the Flip 4, Charge 4 and older JBL Bluetooth speakers. Through the JBL Connect app, pressing the PartyBoost button on the Flip 5 helps you pair two PartyBoost-enabled speakers to create a stereo pair, or to link more than 100 PartyBoost-compatible speakers in mono.

**Winner** UE Boom 3 JBL Flip 5 vs UE Boom 3: featuresīoth of these speakers can do more than just play music wirelessly. It too is built to last, but the Boom 3's dustproof rating just edges it for Ultimate Ears. The Flip 5 also scored high for portability, though its unlit buttons can be a bit tricky to find in the dark. And it comes in six colours: Night (black), Sunset (red), Lagoon (blue) and Ultraviolet (purple), and two Apple-exclusive finishes of Denim (deep blue) and Cloud (light blue). You could take it to a building site for the day and it is unlikely to have any complaints.ĭespite this ruggedness, the UE Boom 3 is still small and light enough to toss in a bag to take on your travels with you. The Boom 3 is slightly bigger than the Flip 5, and the high-density fabric has been reworked to make it handle almost any environment. But the Boom 3 is also dustproof, which adds some peace of mind if you're heading to the beach. But there are some differences between them.īoth are waterproof to the same rating, so should withstand being submerged up to 1m in water for up to 30 minutes. Visually, the two devices are very similar, thanks to their tubular designs.
