Bang & Olufsen Beosound Level - Wireless Portable Wifi and Bluetooth Speaker (Up to 16 Hours Playtime), Cradle to Cradle Certified Sustainable Speaker - Natural Alu/Dark Grey

Product Information

A Beosound Level performs with a clarity, sweetness, roundness of sound, and you-are-there realism unmatched by rival portables such as the Sonos Move, Bose Portable Smart Speaker, Polk Omni SR2, UE Megablast, and Como Audio Amico.

Bang and Olufsen Beosound Level review: a premium

The Bang and Olufsen Beosound Level is a phenomenal audio device, offering plenty of connectivity options, a broad soundstage and huge customization to appease even the most cynical audiophile. The Digital Signal Processing (DSP) has been specially tuned to challenge the limits of physics no matter how or where you place the product to listen to your music. As well as Google Chromecast and Apple Airplay, the Beosound Level has a Bluetooth receiver built-in for streaming audio without the need to log onto the wireless network. This might help explain why the Level is not as satisfying in general on rock recordings, a realm where engineers are intentionally compressing, phase shifting, and otherwise distorting the hell out of the “stems” to lend more, um, personality and might to the production, for more car-stereo appeal.

Experience the Beosound Level's dynamic bass when laid flat, unmatched clarity when it's upright, or an enveloping soundstage when wall mounted. The wood-texture look of the Level (at least for the Gold Tone version we tested) will certainly help it fit in with 'hygge' Ikea-inspired home decors, but if you have any other kind of home, the Beosound Level will stick out like a sore malm. Adjusting the volume by running a finger over the control strip feels so right and adds to the pleasure of using this beautiful object. The precision of the drivers, coupled with the solidity and weight of the aluminum chassis, provide a solid performance that’s both light and substantial at the same time There’s a richness that permeates from behind the speaker grille and fills the room with music that’s omnidirectional and fulsome but without ever distorting.

Beosound Level review: A top-tier portable music streamer Beosound Level review: A top-tier portable music streamer

And with 16 hours of play time between battery charges (performed with a quick-connect, Mag-Safe-styled rear charging puck), this thing is ready to party on for a long spell. Though he specialized in phones and tablets, he also took on other tech like electric scooters, smartwatches, fitness, mobile gaming and more. A brief spiraling sound wave goes out and bounces off the room’s surfaces back to the speaker’s onboard microphone and processor, which instantly calculate and adjust the EQ for the room’s shape, size, and resonance. There’s a vast soundstage here, with different instruments easily identified and separated, even the ones that’d be first to go on a lesser speaker like background synths or keys. And like those rare goods, the Beosound Level has a sensitive nature that in some ways demands a bit of coddling (more on that in a bit).That has made it easy (as has the well-balanced scoop handle) to keep this charmer by my side as I move around the premises.

Beosound Level Wireless - Forbes Exclusive Review: The Beosound Level Wireless - Forbes

Through our day-to-day use we didn’t find ourselves booting this up much but audiophiles might find the offered options very handy. You can also dial in a personalized EQ on an interesting virtual wheel of options that shifts the tonal balance between bright, bassed-out, and several points in between. While it’s good that there are options for users, a slightly bigger stand would ensure that the Beosound Level could actually be used standing up. The designers of this speaker have made sure there is room inside the Beosound Level to expand and cope with completely new technology in the years ahead. But you won't find anywhere near this level of service from them, and I'll be sure to keep Holburn in mind for the future.In fact, when listening to podcasts the tone of a speaker’s voice was more palpable than it otherwise would be. It’s hard to hate the Bang and Olufsen Beosound Level when it offers as fantastic and versatile an audio experience as it does; it’s hard to hate the speaker but that’s despite the many very valid reasons to.