There are three major qualities consumers tend to look for when purchasing wireless speakers: Ease-of-connection, Range, and Sound Quality. Unfortunately, we tend to only find products that have adopted 2 of these features while the third has been left out in the cold.

Sure, you can find wireless speakers that are easy to set up and have pretty decent sound quality, but as soon as you and your streaming device step more than 6 feet away the signal drops, the party is over, and you (the user) are extremely annoyed.

However, if the designer has done their research and if the company truly values its customer, it IS possible to build speakers that possess all 3 of these qualities -- so today we are going to talk about the top 3 considerations when buying wireless speakers.

Ease-of-connection

Over the years, I’ve used a variety of wireless speakers and different methods of streaming from device to speaker; whether it’s a Bluetooth connection, a proprietary WiFi connection, or an external adapter, I’ve seen it all.

At times, I’ve had to go through so many steps just to get my device connected that I thought I was going to be asked for a blood sample and retina scan just to get the Bluetooth network to show up. Personally, I don’t have time to take a 20 question multiple-choice exam just to listen to Coldplay, but I’ve suffered through this extreme frustration with tons of products.

Then, I came across Audioengine (specifically the HD6). I plugged the speakers in, turned them on, and the Bluetooth network immediately showed up on my phone without me having to do anything else. No password generation, no “I’m not a Robot” checkbox, no DNA analysis; I was literally streaming music to my wireless speakers within 30 seconds of unboxing them.

Range

Okay so let’s say you got lucky with a pair of wireless speakers and their setup time was just as quick and painless as a set of Audioengines. The struggle doesn’t end when you get an LED to go from blinking to solid...the real struggle is keeping it solid.

Just about everything in our home or workspace has the potential to interfere with a Bluetooth signal, and these things aren’t limited to physical materials such as metal studs, filing cabinets, and plaster walls; even the presence of WiFi and RF signals can bully our Bluetooth connections.

It appears just about everything in our environment is out to get us, which is why so many of us have felt the immense hopelessness that comes from wireless speakers dropping signal before we get out of their advertised range.

But like I said before, if time and energy is poured into the research and testing, that easy connection can extend up to 100+ feet and last through the whole party as you bounce from room to room mingling the night away.

Sound Quality

Alright, so we’ve unboxed our speakers, plugged them in, and gotten lucky with the easy wireless connection; now we’re 3 rooms down the hall talking to our friends and the speakers haven’t dropped out, but OMG do they sound bad!

Our favorite tunes are distorting, losing all the low-end frequencies, and every now and then they make that weird glitchy noise that sounds like a Speak & Spell with a dying battery. What’s the point in even having a simple wireless connection with a broad range if the overall sound isn’t musical? Nobody wants to slow dance to “All My Life” by K-Ci & JoJo if they sound like 2 angry robots yelling nonsense back and forth.

People appreciate sound quality more than they even realize, and clear playback is paramount when it comes to personal enjoyment, even if the music is only being played at a “background noise” volume level.

When a consumer purchases ANY product, they expect it to function as advertised. This means that ALL advertised features should have been given equal attention in the design and manufacturing processes. No company will ever advertise, “these speakers are wireless -- you might be disappointed in their sound quality, but we promise they’re super easy to set up!”

It’s time we start investing in wireless speakers we can actually trust, and when Audioengine says they can offer ease-of-connection, increased range, and superior sound quality, they mean it.