A very well- known name in the personal audio space, Bose recently refreshed its SoundTouch series of speakers bringing the third generation to the market and finally bringing a crucial feature to the lineup — Bluetooth connectivity. Bose also announced a new member into the SoundTouch family: the compact SoundTouch 10, which now sits below the SoundTouch 20 and SoundTouch 30. The SoundTouch 10 basically replaces the SoundTouch Portable.
It’s interesting to see Bose trying to play catchup by adding Bluetooth to a product line in 2015. Sounds pretty late, but at least it's better than never. Today a majority of people prefer Bluetooth over Wi-Fi streaming on their speakers.
The SoundTouch 10 has a simple yet attractive looking design. Available in black and white it's a foot tall and doesn’t take a lot of space. Mind you, this isn’t a portable speaker, so you need to place it close to a power supply. There are four LEDs to indicate the connectivity options. The power button, auxiliary input and a micro USB port are at the back. The speaker can be controlled by using the buttons on the top or you can use the bundled remote control.
Connecting to the speaker is very simple as you only need to install the Bose SoundTouch Controller app on your phone or tablet which then lets you connect the speaker to your Wi-Fi. Bluetooth is just as simple and pairing a device is a no brainer. The companion app also lets you configure Internet radio services like Spotify, and then you can switch between stations using the six preset buttons on the app, the speaker or the remote. But since it doesn’t work in India, it’s a feature that is somewhat redundant. The app also lets you connect, control and sync other Bose products on the same network.
The sound is great for its size. Actually massive, if you listen to it in a small room. The speaker is great for your living room or even a work desk. It sounds pleasant and the music feels very balanced. The bass feels compressed most of the times, but this helps in reducing the overpowering of the instruments and even the vocals come out crisp. The speaker however, fails to provide a surround sound effect as most of the sound comes from the front. As you move to the sides, you lose a bit of the volume. So if you are planning to hook it with your entertainment system, it won’t do justice to it. Even when you are using it in a large room, putting it in one of the corners provides the best output.
The SoundTouch 10 is definitely way better than most of the speakers out there, but the pricing is a bit of a turn off. At Rs 19,013 it is one of Bose’s most affordable offerings however, it doesn’t feel very versatile. A wise choice only if you want an elegant looking speaker for listening to music around your bedroom or at your desk without any budget constraints. At a similar pricing, one can get a decent 5.1 audio system from Sony or if you fancy portability then the Harman Kardon Go Plus.
_20240701192043_original_image_15.webp)
