Acoustics, aesthetics and technology are the proven mantra for Danish home electronics company Bang & Olufsen, whose latest Beosound A5 portable speaker has left audiophiles hankering. What looks like an upscale picnic basket from the outside, packs a punch when it comes to features on the inside. B&O renowned for making high-end audio equipment that lurks on being functional art pieces too, does not disappoint with their most powerful compact speaker to date.
Available in two finishes – natural silver aluminum with a Nordic weave cover, and black anthracite aluminum with a dark oak cover – the speaker boasts a modular design while maintaining elegant and graceful looks. Beosound A5 adds a visually stunning aesthetic to your interiors, offering uniqueness with the ability to change looks via swappable grilles, handles and other modules. You can even upgrade the hardware components when things get obsolete, making it 100 percent future-proof.
Designer: Bang & Olufsen and GamFratesi Studio
Coming on to the design, the speaker meant for outdoor escapades combines oak wood, aluminum and paper weave, exhibiting a sleek and stylish body. Designed in collaboration with Danish-Italian design duo GamFratesi, Beosound A5 offers a Scandinavian-styled touch to the accessory. “Beosound A5 epitomizes the best of Scandinavian design and materials,” states Bang & Olufsen while GamFratesi calls the iconic Beolit series to be their inspiration behind the product design.
But to lure buyers, especially when you have a starting price tag of $1,099 design is not the sole bait. You must back the visual appeal with thumping acoustics, and that’s what the company does with Beosound A5 offering premium sound quality, courtesy of a four-way driver. These speaker drivers power four digital amplifiers blasting 280 watts for powerful 360-degree sound post-processed by the software for a wide soundstage. A5 also has the most refined 5.25-inch woofer compared to any other portable speaker on offer. It houses a couple of 2-inch midrange units, including a 0.7 inches tweeter, to beam all the audible frequencies with maximum clarity.
Moving on to the other specifications of the speaker, the B&O claims the Beosound A5 to have IP65 construction making it “dustproof, water resistant and durable.” It boasts an impressive battery that lasts twelve hours and the top panel also doubles as a wireless charging pad for phones. The luxury accessory comes with AirPlay 2, Chromecast, and Spotify Connect built-in, so you can always be hooked to your favorite tunes via preferred streaming services.
While some may argue that one variant of the speaker looks like a woman’s purse, if you do want to spend a grand on a portable speaker, you could not care less about its design. In that case, dudes should go for the oak finish one for a sophisticated persona!
