Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 3rd Gen Portable Waterproof Bluetooth Speaker with 3 Microphones, Cradle to Cradle (C2C) Certified, Honey Tone

The TL;DR: If you love listening to music, buy it. The Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 (Gen 3) is mind-boggling. I come from an old-school hi-fi world. During college in Seattle, I sold high-end audio gear at Magnolia Hi-Fi before it went corporate, back when brands like Classe and Martin Logan defined what clean, accurate sound was supposed to be. I still own serious equipment: Primare amps, hand-built Sonus Faber speakers, and Musical Fidelity DACs, representing thousands of dollars in carefully chosen gear. And yet this little battery-powered speaker delivers a sound that’s so open, clean, involving, and wildly detailed that it’s often what I turn on first. It reminds me of the first time I heard A/D/S bookshelf speakers with a Velodyne sub run off a giant Adcom amp – it’s like 30 years of gear collapsed into something that fits in your hand. The dynamics and airy details are what really get you: the quiets are whisper-soft, then the guitar swells and it’s suddenly, right there in front of you — open and involved. It never gets harsh. It always sounds clean. It does quiet better than any other speaker, but once, while listening to Floyd’s Shine On You Crazy Diamond, I kept reaching, bit by bit, for the volume, just totally lost in the moment, until I realized it was maxed out. Zero distortion. It just blossoms. It’s actually VERY loud (like bother-the-neighbors loud), but sounds so good that, like an addict, you want just-a-little-more. Part of me feels almost sad realizing so much of this magic is driven by a computer and DSP. I’m a technologist, but I came of age loving the craftsmanship of truly great stereo gear: heavy amps, wood cabinets, real drivers moving air — physics doing the work. But the results are undeniable. The real joy of the A1though, and the true test of any speaker, is what it does to the people around it. My two-year-old sings along to Billy Joel, points out parts of Bob Marley tracks I’ve listened to thousands of times and never noticed, and can already distinguish instruments because they sound so real. My wife, who never listens to music, dances. Outdoors it sounds like a live show; indoors it fills a room effortlessly; and as a side benefit makes Zoom calls sound like people are sitting right next to you (with a great mic, too). There’s simply no price tag on that kind of experience. For a $400 Bluetooth speaker to push over a high-end system is wild, the A1 is really just playing a different game from others in its "class." A few listening notes and some wishes: if the A1 could deliver this same fidelity over AirPlay, it would be an absolute category killer (think Porsche Macan). My Sonos system (Move + 100s), which has often won out for convenience, would be on Facebook Marketplace in a heartbeat. I also always use this small $30 stand from Amazon that dramatically improves staging and openness while staying portable (it feels like an $800 upgrade). A premium case would be a great option to offer as well. I eventually found a round leather one on eBay, but this feels like a missed opportunity for B&O to lean into craftsmanship and design and partner with a great leather maker. Positioned as a true category killer, I think the A1 would expand B&O’s audience, not cannibalize it. The final conclusion: The A1 is what happens when decades of hi-fi philosophy meet modern engineering — a tiny speaker that delivers huge, emotional, genuinely high-fidelity sound, and I love it.

I collect speakers so I have a lot that I can compare this too. This is my first Bang & Olufsen speaker and its instantly become one of my favorites in my collection. However it is very expensive for its size and has a very specific use case, being a very portable speaker you can take anywhere. I'll start with the sound quality. The best way I can describe the sound is its extremely balanced. You can hear the highs, mids and bass all at the same time without anything overpowering. Instrument seperation is also the best I've heard. It is quieter than I expected and I have to listen to it at about 80% volume to sound loud enough but I can turn it up all the way without distortion or losing its balanced sound profile. Build quality and form factor is also excellent. The speaker grill is made out of sturdy metal and the base is made out of some sort of rubber or plastic, I can't really tell but it does feel very sturdy and premium. No complaints. It's larger than I expected, but still fits in the palm of my hand. I find it to be a very beautiful speaker with the perfect balance of minimulist and elegance. Finally the app and pairing went well, nothing much to say. It paired quickly, took me to the app I needed and connected without issue. You can mess with the equalizer in the app, but I found the default preset to be the best one. Comparing this to other speakers I have I found Bang & Olufsen to be a step up in quality from other brands like Bose and JBL, though its a step up in cost too. Comparing this to other ultra portable speakers like the Bose Soundlink Micro (2nd gen), JBL Clip 5 and the tribit stormbox micro 2 (the best three ultra portable speakers I have) the A1 sounds considerably better, with a much fuller soundstage and a lot more clarity. The others just sound tinny compared to this. However it is larger than those speakers as well though not by much. I feel like a more fair comparision is this against the Bose soundlink home or Tribit StormBox 2. Out of all the speakers in that size I still find the A1 to sound the best, but not by as much. Its still clearer and more balanced but its hard to tell unless you listen to the speakers side by side. Now for speakers in the A1's price range like the Bose Soundlink Max or JBL xtreme 4 it more depends on which volume you want to listen too. The Bose and the JBL will have considerably more bass and can get way louder filling a much larger room. The A1 still sounds more balanced but Bose and JBL are also very good with clarity and detail as well and again its hard to really tell unless your listening to them side by side. I'll end with my personall recommendations, and it really comes down to how big your bugdet is. If you can't easily afford it, there are plenty of cheaper alternatives that are great too, get a bose flex or jbl flip 6 if you need a durable portable speaker, or a Bose soundlink Home if you want something that looks more fancy. If you need a speaker for more than a few people or to fill a larger room, get a bose max or jbl extreme. However, if you can afford it and don't need a room filling speaker the A1 is really a pleasure to listen too. I've always avoided Bang & Olufsen before because I thought they were too expensive for what they were but this speaker has changed my mind. Bang & Olufsen clearly know how to build a great speaker.

I like this speaker because it's easy to travel with and it also sounds really good (for its size) even though it uses Bluetooth, but via AAC, and not the horrible sounding SBC codec like most of its competitors do. The A1 is really well made and looks and "feels" really nice. It is so much nicer than the other crappy plastic BT speakers on the market. Yes, it's expensive, but I feel it is pretty much worth it. It's perfect for hotel room use. Etc.

Surprisingly good sound for a small speaker. It also, unlike many other Bluetooth speakers, can play at very low volumes and still be clear.

The A1 series 3 arrived with the bass driver not functioning, only high frequencies could be heard. The Amazon return was seamless.

This is the best sounding speaker I’ve ever heard, by far. Clarity is astonishing. Worth the high price!

Very nice. Sounds great, long battery life.

Nice product as advertised.

Franchement déçu du produit le son et très médiocre surtout au niveau des basses pour le prix Je recommande pour un prix bien plus bas « la Luna » de chez Harman !!!

Range is ace ‼️

Es el mejor altavoz que existe actualmente. En cuanto a sonido es simplemente ESPECTACULAR. Ni Bosé, ni otras marcas están a la altura de esta marca danesa. Códec AAC, apTX. Merece la pena la inversión.

That Thing sounds as it should do. And looks great!