Its stout bottom and entrance grille present some rugged sturdiness, however as I found on a current tenting journey, it’s not fairly as resilient to drops or bumps because the hardest choices. Whereas jamming tunes on a cabin deck, a pal by chance knocked the Capsule off a 4-foot railing, sending it bouncing off a few stairs. The efficiency wasn’t affected, however the grille gained some recent battle scars within the type of twin dents at its edges. Again dwelling I attempted an analogous stairwell drop take a look at with the JBL Flip 5 and Final Ears Increase 4, each of which walked away largely unscathed with none noticeable dents.
Considerably mockingly, a part of the explanation I positioned the Capsule in such a precarious place is its relative lack of setup positions in comparison with these extra versatile rivals. It is actually strong sufficient for out of doors adventures–simply decide your setup spot higher than I did.
Totally Loaded
Beats packed the brand new Capsule with a full suite of options, together with some I by no means even thought-about, like a USB-C digital enter that allows you to wire in high-resolution audio à la the Beats Studio Professional (7/10, WIRED Recommends). As earlier than, you’ll be able to pair the speaker with one other Capsule to “amplify” the sound or unfold them out as a stereo pair, which works effectively however unsurprisingly does not match equally priced desktop models. Class 1 Bluetooth supplies glorious wi-fi vary (I bought as much as 130 ft with line of sight earlier than cutouts), significantly useful for these instances while you get lost from the celebration together with your cellphone.
Different extras embody one-touch pairing and even Discover My performance for iOS or Android gadgets, a built-in speakerphone, entry to your cellphone’s voice assistant, and the power to flip the USB-C port to output energy for charging different gadgets. You don’t get a 3.5-mm enter for sourcing legacy audio gadgets, and there’s no method to EQ the sound, however neither of these are options I repeatedly attain for in a speaker designed largely for ambiance.
I’ve some minor factors of competition with the Capsule’s management system. It is easy for duties like play/pause, music skip, quantity, and calling, however going deeper generally calls for an excessive amount of “multi” from the multifunction keys. After I first tried powering down, I saved holding the facility key previous the required “.8 seconds,” placing the speaker in pairing mode. You’ve bought to make use of a fast faucet for a battery test, or faucet 3 times to permit the USB-C port to cost different gadgets. iPhone customers should undergo some center-key hullabaloo to get two Drugs to pair up, whereas Android customers can join them within the Beats app. None of it is a enormous deal, however you might have to look on-line since some controls aren’t outlined within the fast information.
The Capsule’s mondo battery life steps in to ease these minor management inconveniences. With as much as 24 hours of playback at half quantity, the speaker doubles its predecessor and cheaper choices just like the Flip, whereas simply outlasting the newest UE Increase (15 hours) and pricier JBL Cost (20 hours). I bought much more play time in testing, since I hardly ever raised the Capsule’s quantity above 30 p.c indoors.
Snazzy Sound
In true Beats style, the Capsule takes a calculated extremist strategy to its sound signature. The bass is massive and brawny, whereas the treble is snappy and vibrant for a efficiency that’s as slick, shiny, and polished because the speaker itself. At first, I assumed it was a too sculpted and snazzy for my style, however possibly due partly to Apple’s takeover, there’s a resigned tact that retains issues from getting overly boomy down low or brittle up excessive.
After I settled in, I started to actually benefit from the Capsule’s affected sound for its capacity to reveal devices and results with each readability and energy. The highest aspect preserves lush element and spectacular sonic depth throughout genres, whereas the full-bodied bass brings a brazen power that warms up your favourite tracks for a candy trip. My spouse and I couldn’t assist however discover the speaker buzzing warmly throughout surfaces just like the picnic desk at our campsite, including some bounce to our breakfast.
