When you think of portable speakers, the first few names that come to mind are probably the likes of the UE Boom (and its larger cousins), or more recently, the Sonos Roam. The former is made to be used in, let’s say wilder situations, while the latter is more for indoor sophistry. Recently, Sony has announced three entries into the former category, as part of the company’s X-Series of portable speakers.
The first of these is the Sony SRS-XG300. It has probably the most conventional look of the three, being cylindrical and slightly flared out on either end. You also get customisable light rings on both ends. It also comes with a retractable carrying handle to make it easily portable despite its size. In terms of battery life, Sony claims that it can last up to 25 hours on a single charge, with 10 minutes of charging giving it up to 70 minutes of playback time.
Moving down the line we have the Sony SRS-XE300. Smaller in size than the previous model, this also sports a different shape, being pentagonal rather than cylindrical. This also means no more light rings on either end. But beyond these differences, it offers mostly the same features as the larger XG300 model. For its battery life, it has the same 10-minute charging for 70 minutes of playback, but the maximum playback time is down to 24 hours. Which isn’t too bad considering the size difference.
Finally, there’s the Sony SRS-XE200, which is essentially a smaller version of the SRS-XE300. It’s is functionally the same too, with only two notable differences. One is that this smaller model comes with an attached carrying strap. Another is that the battery life is rated at 16 hours.
All three models do share a couple of features in common, namely the Party Connect and Stereo Pair features. These allow multiples of the same speakers to be connected to each other, the latter giving you a more conventional stereo experience. Then there’s Echo Cancelling for when you need to use these speakers to take calls. Probably best of all is the fact that all three of these Sony portable speakers have a pretty impressing IP67 rating.
According to Engadget, all three models will be available starting 15 July. As for their prices, the Sony SRS-XG300 will be priced at US$350 (~RM1552), with the SRS-XE300 and SRS-XE200 models with price tags of US$200 (~RM887) and US$130 (~RM577), respectively. All three are already listed on Sony Malaysia’s website, but are only listed as “Available soon”, with no exact price or availability date at the time of writing.
(Source: Sony Malaysia [1], [2], [3], Engadget)
