JBL has long been one of the best Bluetooth speakers available and the Charge 5 is no exception. Here is our full analysis.
If you’ve got around $ 150 to spend on a Bluetooth speaker, the JBL Charge 5 may be one of the best options out there. It is ready to perform well in any situation, both outdoors and indoors.
Design and build quality
JBL hasn’t drastically changed the Charge 5’s design from previous models, but there are a few notable tweaks. The logo on the front is now much larger and there is a large status light underneath.
It is still a medium sized cylinder covered in fabric and with thick rubber ends. Hard buttons for party mode, volume, and play / pause are located above the speaker, along with rubber buttons for power and Bluetooth.
JBL has struck a good balance between size and weight to ensure that there is room for enough audio power and that the Charge 5 is easy to take and carry anywhere. Always weighing less than 1 kg.
The round shape isn’t always ideal, but the rubbery diagonal lines at the bottom keep it stable on a flat surface and you can hold it upright at one end if you like.
It feels extremely rugged and isn’t the type of device to fear damage and is now rated IP67, giving you even more peace of mind. This means it is completely dust and water resistant making it ideal to have around the pool or to clean up spills.
I took a look at the Blue / Petrol Charge 5, but it comes in a range of different colors: black, red, gray, teal, white, pink, khaki / forest green, and squad / camo. Names and availability depend on the market.
Sound quality and features
The JBL Charge 5 has improved its sound over its predecessor with a slightly larger woofer that the company calls “an optimized long excursion pilot”. It has the same visible 65mm passive bass radiators at each end, but now has a 20mm tweeter.
Although the frequency range is still 65-20,000 Hz, the main speaker does not have to cover everything with the help of the tweeter. The Charge 5 also has more power overall, to 40W in total, which is a 30% increase.
It’s easy to connect via Bluetooth 5.1, and the Charge 5 can connect to two devices. If you want to turn it on and play music with a minimum of fuss, the JBL is a great choice. The speakerphone sounds great indoors and outdoors and has a lot of power because it rings loud with my phone at 25%.
The setting is bass-driven, with a warm, rich and often thunderous bass, but with enough midrange and high end to keep the balance most of the time. However, it is suitable for bass dance music, so it may be preferable elsewhere if you plan to listen to mostly delicate music.
In fact, the JBL Charge 5 is designed to be a party speaker and it does it very well. However, keep in mind that this is not a 360 degree speaker, so you need to point it in the right direction.
As with previous models, the idea of Charge is that you can, well, charge other devices like your phone. It’s basically a power bank, as well as a speaker, so a USB-A port on the back means you can plug it in when it’s low – at the expense of battery life. speaker battery life, of course.
But even if you recharge every now and then, the Charge 5’s battery life is epic. JBL says it lasts 20 hours and in my testing this is one of those speakers that never seems to die, and I only had to charge it once every week of use. regular.
When you charge it there is a USB-C port which is an improvement over the Charge 4.
You can connect the Charge 5 to the official JBL Portable app (formerly known as JBL Connect), but there’s not much you can do. That is, to pair the speaker with another in stereo mode or more (over 100) for party mode.
This is collectively known as PartyBoost and with just a sample for review, it is not something that I have been able to test.
There’s also the option to turn off feedback sounds if they’re annoying, change the device name, and check the battery level. Finally, you can “take a tour”, but these are only two screens that reflect the Party and Stereo modes.
What would be nice is some sort of EQ, albeit just basic dials for bass and treble, to adjust the sound to your personal taste.
With a basic app, maybe it’s no surprise that the Charge 5 isn’t a smart speaker like some of its rivals, so you can’t use Google Assistant or Amazon Alexa with it. Actually, it doesn’t have a built-in microphone, so it can’t take phone calls either.
Price
The JBL Charge 5 is priced at $ 159.99, so it’s not a cheap Bluetooth speaker but it’s not overly expensive compared to similar models.
This puts it in a league similar to rivals like the Sonos Roam, Marshall Emberton, and Bose SoundLink Revolve II. They are all great speakers in their own right, but each offers a slightly different USP.
Check them out, along with others, in our table of the best Bluetooth speakers.
Verdict
It might not have smart features, but if you want a durable and powerful Bluetooth speaker for a number of situations that will go with you everywhere, the JBL Charge 5 is a great option.
JBL didn’t change the formula much in this case, but instead introduced several improvements, such as better sound quality, USB-C charging, IP67 durability, and PartyBoost.
The Charge 5 is long lasting and is also a power bank, so you can charge other devices from a hidden USB port if your battery is low.
I would love to have some control over the sound with an in-app EQ, but that’s a minor gripe overall.
specifications
30 + 10W total power (RMS)
52x90mm woofer
20mm dome tweeter
2 passive 65mm bass radiators
65-20,000Hz
Bluetooth 5.1
UBC-C
USB-A for power bank
20 hours of autonomy
IP67
233x97x94mm
960g
To note: We may receive a small commission for each purchase made through the links on our page, but this has no additional cost to you. It also does not affect our editorial independence. More information.
.
Table of Contents