Bluetooth speakers: What to know and which to buy for your budget and space
Plus, learn a bit about Bluetooth's history and origins before you shop.
Bluetooth speakers have changed how we listen to music by allowing us to wirelessly connect to our phones or other listening devices for an endless library of must-hear music at our fingertips 24/7.
With endless options on the market at nearly every price, it can be difficult to choose which Bluetooth speaker best suits your needs. To help you narrow down the search, we did some digging to find out everything from where Bluetooth originated to which under-$30 speaker you can trust to pump out the tunes all day long.
How does Bluetooth work, and where does it come from?
While most folks know what Bluetooth is and have used it themselves, not everyone is familiar with its origins and inner workings.
To take it very far back, Bluetooth is named after the 10th century Danish king Harald “Bluetooth” Gormsson, who is credited with being the first ruler to unite Denmark amid a tumultuous time of warring tribes.
Further honoring his legacy is the distinctive symbol for Bluetooth, a combination of the two runes -- Hagall (hail) ᚼ and Bjarkan (birch) ᛒ -- used to represent the king's initials.
So why was he selected to be the historical inspiration for this technology? Much like Gormsson's ability to unite the people of Denmark, Bluetooth technology unites several devices in one network so they can share connectivity and information with each other.
According to the Institute of Physics, Bluetooth devices within that network use ultra-high frequency (UHF) radio waves to talk to communicate with each other. Those waves measure around 2.4 gigahertz or 2.4 billion waves per second!
When using Bluetooth, there is generally a "main unit" such as your phone -- where the signals originate -- and a "peripheral" such as the speakers you'll see below. Once connected, signals are sent from the main unit to the peripheral, and voila -- let the music play!
What are the benefits of Bluetooth?
Bluetooth allows information such as music to be transferred without using wires or the internet, so it makes for a cleaner setup in your home or on the go when you want to do something like listen to your favorite album or playlist by simply pairing your phone and speaker.
Many speakers have the ability to be paired throughout a home as well -- see the Sonos Four Room set suggested below -- making it simple to have premium sound in every room without the hassle of rewiring the whole house.
What's the best Bluetooth speaker overall?
The "best" speaker for you overall will depend on several factors: Where do you want to use the speaker? How loud do you need it to be? What's your budget? How important is the speaker's design to you?
Once you've considered these questions, you'll have a better idea of what your personal "best" speaker looks like. For something lightweight and compact that you're going to take with you camping or on picnics, stick with a speaker like the Marshall Willen or Sony XB 100 below.
If the speaker is mainly for use in your home office or bedroom, something a bit bigger but still easy to move around like the JBL Pulse 5 is great -- bonus points for the great light show.
And of course, you can always select a larger boombox or sound system to infuse your entire home with top-notch audio.
To check out these suggestions and more, keep scrolling.
By clicking on these shopping links, visitors will leave ABC.com. These e-commerce sites are operated under different terms and privacy policies than ABC.com. ABC will receive a commission for purchases made through these links. Prices may change from the date of publication.