Bang & Olufsen
Javad
Honest review time! This speaker's got great sound and EQ, but connectivity issues and outdated Bluetooth are a bummer. 5-watt wireless charging is disappointing. If you're looking for a deal, it's worth a look, but be cautious with second-hand purchases. My 'like new' item was a mess - loose packaging and dirty. For this price, I'd expect more, like LDAC or high-res audio. The design is beautiful and elegant, but the specs don't match.
Conrad N
Purchased the Beoplay ex a few years ago and wanted to jump into something different from them. Purchased it on a Black Friday sale for a decent price and wow. This small speaker has some of the best sound quality out there for its size. It’s beautiful in every aspect from the nice sleek design to the deep rich bass you feel when listening to tunes. I even took it on a fashion shoot because it looked so nice! Will definitely look into other products in the future.
Eldar
Great build quality sound quality great bass. I’ve owned many Bluetooth speakers and this one is the best so far
RK
I loved the sound, crystal clear and bass was good enough for a room to fill. But at this price point some main features which are again I know not listed in specs but usb c audio in was missing and eq features were in form of ambient setting which I didn’t like. I love the quality of speaker but my requirement to have usb c audio was main thing. Unfortunately had to return the product. May be I need to shell more $ for high lineup products from B&O :-).
luis g.
El modelo justo para mi lugar de trabajo. Conexión instantánea sonido claro bajos contundentes. No es un equipo para musicalizar un lugar abierto pues su máximo volumen no alcanza. Elegante liviano para mover de un lugar a otro. Es un B&O al q le gusta la marca quedará satisfecho
Music & Espresso
So being that it’s prime day, I decided to treat myself to an early birthday present & finally get one of these. I wanted one for a while, but wanted to wait for a sale. This speaker is better than I remember!!! The bass quality in this thing alone is nuts, absolutely rock solid. You can tell that you are getting a quality unit for the buck. It’s a little expensive, but trust me when you play music on this, you will NOT be disappointed. The grille is very nice, love the leather handle & it charges my phone on the top surface. One thing that I find cool about this (Of the many) is that it looks like a lunchbox & since I am an elementary school teacher, it will fit perfectly in the classroom. I also have noted that even when I turn the volume all the way to the max, the system doesn’t distort or anything. Granted, if you are spending this amount of $$$$ on a speaker, it better be good. I might get another one for stereo pairing depending on what my room sounds like, though I think this should be sufficient as it is very powerful. Highly recommend if you want a good speaker.
Customer
Really Great sound but I was expecting less issues in Bluetooth connectivity. Also the batterie life is not so good.
Jeffrey M.
It would not pair with my other one. Spent a lot of time with tech support. Having to send in a speaker you've had for a few days is aggravating. But Bang & Olufson has excellent customer service so I believe they will make it right. Not sure yet of the outcome.
Nomin
I’ve just received my beolit20 it’s the best sounding experience. Easy to use. Worth it!
Darin Boyle
Update-I need to take a star off for battery life. Let’s be real, if you play this at 75% volume, which isn’t that loud, the battery life is below three hours. That’s pathetic for this price. I love the sound as stated, but seriously, the battery life needs to be improved. Not to mention, if you charge your phone at the same time, it’s even less
Bang and Olufsen has out done themselves again. The sound quality is absolutely insane, especially how deep the lows can get. I played it in a basketball gym the other day and not only was it room filling for its size but the bass reminded me of being at a concert. The frequency response is outstanding across the spectrum. Yes, the speaker is crazy expensive, but well worth it. It doesn’t distort at high volumes and holds a great battery life. It sounds like a full sound system at times.
Yashahime
I cannot stop raving about this speaker. The sound is so pure and is able to push all the high mids and lows from your music. I tried several genres of music and all of them sounded so crystal clear and pure. The speaker connects to an addition B&O app that has additional setting for the speakers that you can control. There an additional EQ setting that you can choose if you wanna make sound profiles for different types of music. The speaker does carry a bit of weight, about the same as a sonos or homepod. The nice addition is that it has an additional leather strap that acts as a carrying handle as well. The speaker is powerful and also acts as a wireless charger as well (you can turn off this setting in the app if you want that disabled). I'm currently using this speaker with an android phone, but I also tested it with my sisters iPhone (both of them were able to use to the speaker without any complications). If you're an audiophile this will blow you away. It's small enough to keep on a bookshelf and pushes out the sounds without feeling distorted at all. You can get stereo sound by pairing up two of these together (backwards compatible with the older Beolit generation as well).
Derek
This B&O Beolit 20 measures 5.31" x 9.05" x 7.44" and weighs 5.95 pounds. The Beolit 20 was designed by Cecilie Manz and is composed of premium materials such as anodized aluminum and a Tarnsjo Garveri vegetable-tanned leather strap that patinas well over time.
The speaker replicates sound from 37Hz to 20000Hz due to the multiplicity of sub-components that factored into its making. Inside the signature "lunchbox" design are a single 5.5" long-stroke woofer, two 4-inch passive bass drivers, and three 1.5"-full-range tweeters. The speaker is powered by 70-watt, 2-channel amplification with 35 watts dedicated to the 5.5" woofer and 35 watts split between the three 1.5" tweeters. B&O cites 93dB as the maximum loudness output and recommends this speaker for rooms that range between 100-500 square feet.
The improvements over the Beolit 17 are meager but they include a larger battery (3200mAh for the Beolit 20 vs 2200mAh for the Beolit 17) and some very minor stylistic changes to the grill. The holes on the Beolit 20 grill were shaped differently to improve acoustics and the Antracite (or Black) variant of the speaker has a blue fabric underneath that adds a unique aesthetic. There's also a 5-watt Qi wireless charging pad in the Beolit 20 where this feature is absent in the Beolit 17. Both speakers use Bluetooth 4.2 and support AAC and SBC Codes.
What I liked most about this B&O Beolit 20 Bluetooth Speaker was:
- Sound quality. For its size, this is the best sounding speaker I have ever heard. There are similar offerings from Sonos, Harman Kardon, and JBL to name a few and while they each offer something unique none have the clarity, range, or richness of the Beolit 20.
- Versatility. This speaker is portable enough to travel with ease, can be used via Bluetooth or line-in, and has the clarity to be used by sound and audio professionals.
- App support. The B&O app enhanced my experience with the Beolit 20. Inside the app are default EQ settings with optimal being my favorite. I was also able to create one I called "movie" which maximized bass and treble and separated the sound so I could get directional cues for sounds like footsteps and bullets.
- Battery life. Assuming you turn off automatic wireless charging (found in the app) and use this speaker at 20-25% volume it will last up to 37 hours. I am 20 hours in at this volume and still have a 50% charge level remaining.
- Build quality. While there is some plastic used in the construction of this speaker, the frame, the handle, and other accents are made of premium materials that help justify the 500 dollar price tag.
What I liked least about this B&O Beolit 20 Bluetooth Speaker was:
- Lack of innovation from the last generation. Releasing a $500 speaker in 2020 with Bluetooth 4.2 vs Bluetooth 5.0 was lazy, arrogant, and needlessly failed to future-proof consumers. Furthermore, the only real change made was to add a 5-watt wireless charging pad on top of this speaker. The subtle changes to the buttons and grill are nominal at best.
- No IP rating. On the B&O website, in the FAQ section, there is a mention for IP rating. The company responded with this statement: "No, Beolit 20 is not IP certified. Whilst Beolit 20 is able to withstand elements such as wind and light raindrops use caution in harsher weather conditions.
- No drop protection or ruggedization. Again, I went to the B&O website to get clarity on whether the Beolit 20 could withstand any bumps or drops. B&O responded as thus: "Beolit 20 has no formal certification to mitigate against being dropped, and we do not recommend intentionally dropping the product."
- Inefficient as a power bank. The most touted improvement of the Beolit 20 over the last generation is that it can serve as a power bank. The problem is the single USB C port on the device is charge-only. You cannot initiate charging for other devices via a USB C to USB C or USB C to lightning cable. Furthermore, the charging pad located on top is only 5 watts and combined with a 3200mAh battery it's clear B&O wanted users to top off earbuds vs phones with this feature. Finally, the cost for using this charger is high as I lost 10% of speaker power for every 5% charge it gave to my devices.
- Price/Competition. If sound and sound alone is your primary reason for purchasing a Bluetooth speaker B&O has to market cornered and the Beolit 20 is the clear choice for your dollar. However, if lifestyle conveniences like water/dust resistance, drop protection, functionality as a power bank, or innovative design and technology are important to you there are options on the market that can muddy this decision.
Overall, if you're in the market for the best sounding Bluetooth speaker one can buy for 500 dollars the Beolit 20 from B&O has few rivals. This speaker offers sound quality on a level I think even the most persnickety of listeners will appreciate. On top of that, the Beolit 20 offers versatility, app support, excellent battery life, and premium build quality. Sadly, there wasn't much innovation from B&O over the last 3 years so if you have the Beolit 17 there's really no need to upgrade to the Beolit 20. There's also no IP rating, no drop protection, an inefficient recharge mechanic, and stiff competition if you're willing to compromise on sound quality. That said, I found a place on my nightstand for this speaker and use it daily. The sound quality absolutely shames any other speaker I own and the battery life at 25% gets me through a full work week of overnight listening based on my 5-6 hour sleep cycle. 4.0 out of 5.0
