Altec Lansing IMT228 OrbitM Ultra Portable Speakers With Carrying Case And Clip

I've owned an A L IM237 speaker for several years, and have been more than pleased with it. The only weakness is the flimsy connector cord, and of course, the jack is starting to separate from the wire. Since I really need to have a speaker available it was time to look for a replacement.Except for color the IMT228 is identical in appearance to the IM 237, but at $13.50 it's a lot cheaper than the IM237 which is now $59.00. But it says, "There is a newer model of this item:", and lists the IMT228. What a bargain! Right?Wrong. the sound of this speaker does not even compare to the IM237, it is incredibly tinny and the sound is far less "clear" than the older model. I tried the two on the same player with the same songs just to be sure. I also weighed them because I could feel a difference. The 237 is 6.7 ounces, the 228 6.0 ounces, and you can be sure the difference is all in the build of the speaker.I would recommend the IM237 except that it's so expensive now (I paid $40 for it from Amazon). I'll keep this for back-up, but if/when the cord on the old one goes I'll try one of the several other similar speakers available now that cost considerably less than the old one.

I bought this a while ago when it was almost three times the price it is now and when there were less options for affordable bluetooth speakers. Even at that price, this has been the best value when it came to sound quality. Now, I'll lay out the obvious limitations of the IMT228:- It uses 4 AAA batteries.- It doesn't have bluetooth, and only uses a short integrated cord.- Its volume doesn't get loud enough for a big party, as a $200 UE Boom does.Once you get over these facts, this speaker still deserves 5 stars for its sheer sound quality, especially when it has become only $13.+The balance of highs, mids and lows is great.+There is very appropriate amount of bass -- it won't satisfy those who love overpowering, table-moving bass, but as far as I'm concerned, too much bass is a con when it comes to speakers and headphones, as too much of anything usually is. This thing has accurate bass, not too much, not too little.+The sound is warm and clear overall, and has good soundstage.Once I performed a blind test with my family using almost a dozen portable speakers, which confirmed my initial impressions of those speakers. The contestants included UE Boom, Logitech X300, Photive Cyren, to name a few that are more or less popular on Amazon; the rest were several Nakamichi, Vivitar and iLive ranging from $10~$40. Note that most of the rest are bluetooth models, but I connected them via 3.5mm cable during the blind test.In the overall result, UE Boom clearly took first place and X300 took second place, rightly so considering their higher price tags. That was no surprise.The surprise was that IMT228 consistently took third place, beating more expensive and bigger speakers. And in tests where I lowered the volumes of UE Boom and X300 (which have way higher max volume than the rest) to similar levels of the rest of the speakers, my family confused those two with the IMT228 and put the three in the same ranks! Granted, they aren't audiophiles. But it was a reasonable confusion, for the overall sound of IMT228 is just that good.(Few side notes:-The biggest disappointment was Photive Cyren, which, despite thousands of positive reviews, had too little bass and a sort of crackling noise mixed with the highs. It had a sort of clear quality to it though, which made it attractive to play certain quiet songs and instrumentals.-X300, though warm and good in general, had a bit too much bass for my taste. Bass lovers should look into this, if they can overlook the somewhat short battery life.)An added bonus is the included high-quality, sturdy, stylish zippered carrying case with carabiner, which no other carrying case included with portable speakers can match. The case makes it easy to clip the speaker onto any bag's straps and take along; when in use, you can just leave the cover open and connect the cable to your device and let the speaker sit in the case while listening.To sum up, my 5 star is solely based on IMT 228's sound quality that is exceptional for its current price and form factor.This isn't a speaker for a huge party but is enough for a few people in a mid-sized room to put on some good music of any genre. For me, this even replaces the pricier UE Boom or X300 for personal listening in small spaces when I don't want to bother with bluetooth or an extra cord or bulkiness.The flaws of short integrated cord and AAA batteries would be enough to put off a few people. But if sound quality and price are your priorities and those flaws don't matter much to you, this is a great choice. (There's a review here that says the sound is worse than the previous model; I have not tested that version, so I cannot comment on that opinion. But if that's true, IMT227 must have a hell of a good sound.)

I had a previous Altec Orbit - the one that had a USB connection for use with a laptop. That Orbit model was great. it was metal construction which gave it a solid and substantial feel as well as a great sound. But now that I was doing more tablet-based presentations, I was looking for a similar model that used a standard 2.5mm headphone connection.The Orbit 228 is a cheaper version of the earlier Orbits. It feels as if it is mostly a plastic casing, which gives it a less substantial and tinny sound. I didn't mind that it took 3 AAA batteries, but access to the battery compartment is not easy. This was one of the few battery-powered devices I have ever seen that did not have any markings on the case to show how to open the battery compartment. When you do get it open, the battery clips do not feel secure, as if the batteries will shake loose even when closed. There is a depression in the lid to hold them in place, but that seems like really bad engineering.The cord for the Orbit 228 is permanently attached and is VERY short - maybe 6 inches or so. You'll probably have to get an audio extension for use in many applications. And if the attached cord ever shorts out - and most of these will do so eventually - it renders the Orbit 288 useless.The Orbit 228 is surpassed in design, construction, and sound by the relatively humble i.Sound speaker, which uses a built-in rechargeable battery and a detachable audio cord. Surprisingly, even though the i.Sound is much smaller than the Orbit, the sound - to me anyway - is superior. Perhaps that is due to the i.Sound's aluminum case.Sadly, after receiving the Orbit 228 and giving it a try, I decided to return it. Altec has been one of the leaders in speaker technology and design. But with the Orbit 228, not so much.

This speaker was very loud and had great fidelity, to the point where I felt I was wasting its potential using it with my PSP. I gifted it to someone else who enjoys it even more. The reliance on external batteries rather than internal, rechargeable one was the only turnoff to me. It daisy-chained with other portable speakers well and sounded great even with bass-heavy metal music. The case is nice, too. I may have to get another couple as gifts this year. Great price, great design, great sound. Power cable's kind of short and rather flimsy-feeling - needs extra care. Further, the batteries don't last nearly as long as in my other portable speakers, but for something using standard batteries and being so loud, it's to be expected. This is the kind you want for filling the kitchen with sound or a day at the beach, but if you just want a quiet sound source for playing stuff in your bedroom at home, most any decent portable speaker will do.