We used the Bose SoundLink Plus speaker and here’s what stood out

Bose recently added a new portable speaker, slotting it right in the middle of the range. It’s called SoundLink Plus and it sits between the compact SoundLink Flex and the chunkier SoundLink Max, acting as a middle ground between both.

Having used it for a fair bit of time, here’s our Bose SoundLink Plus review.

Bose SoundLink Plus design: A well-rounded package

Manufacturers love to throw around battery life numbers, but Bose is claiming up to 20 hours here at moderate volume levels. That’s impressive for a speaker which weighs about 1.35kg, promising weeks of battery. And when it does run out, the five-hour charge time via USB-C means you’re not waiting forever to top it back up either.

The SoundLink Plus also carries an IP67 rating, which means it can handle dust, water, and the kind of accidental drops that happen when you’re tossing a speaker into a backpack or leaving it by the pool.

Bose has also made the body from a mix of polycarbonate, nylon, silicone, and steel, so this isn’t some delicate little thing that’ll crack the first time it slips out of your hands. It’s designed to be shock-resistant too.

We did drop it once on a carpeted surface from a short height and it fared surprisingly well. That said, we wouldn’t recommend dropping it on any other surface because that 1kg+ weight can compound the impact force. It’s physics!

Bose SoundLink Plus sound: Doesn't get any better than this

The sound is excellent for a mono speaker of this size. The bass is described as “booming” by Bose, and in our testing, we could tell exactly what they meant by that. There’s this real low-end presence that doesn’t distort when you crank the volume.

On the other end of the spectrum, the speaker also holds up well at higher volumes. It gets rather loud too and can easily turn a 150-200 sq ft room into a dance floor.

The SoundLink Plus is also more than just a speaker. It doubles up as a power bank when you’d need it. Using USB-C charge-out, it can juice up your phone or other devices. So, suppose when you’re out somewhere and your phone is dying, you can simply plug it into your speaker and keep the party going.

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Then there’s the Bose companion app. It’s got a polished interface and lets you tweak the equaliser settings to match your preferences. You can also customise a shortcut button on top of the speaker, which can either link to a second Bose speaker for stereo pairing or create a quick link to Spotify for instant playback. It’s not revolutionary, but it’s the kind of thoughtful touch that makes day-to-day use more pleasant.

Unboxed Take: Who should buy the Bose SoundLink Plus?

The Bose SoundLink Plus is perfect for people who want a premium but no-frills package that offers portability without compromising on sound.

As for downsides, the SoundLink Plus doesn’t have a built-in microphone for speakerphone calls, and there’s no auxiliary input if you’re the sort of person who still uses wired connections. These omissions can sting for some considering the Rs 31,900 price tag.

Still, for most people who just want a portable speaker that sounds good, survives the outdoors, and lasts all day on a single charge, this hits a really comfortable sweet spot.

At this price point, it competes mostly with the likes of the Sony ULT Field 5.

For all the above reasons, we rate the Bose SoundLink Plus 4/5. Stay tuned to Unboxed by Croma for more such reviews, and everything tech.