I’ve been reviewing gadgets for a lot of years, and I used to be surprised by an unfamiliar brand name.
But more and more these days when I get a pitch to review a new product, the brands are new to me.
I’ve been reviewing a pair of sound products from a company called VAVA — the VAVA Voom 20 Bluetooth speaker and the VAVA Moov 28 Bluetooth headphones.
VAVA started in 2015 as an audio company, but it has now expanded to include lines of automobile (dash cams, car mounts), computer accessories (mice, keyboards) and home living products (kitchen appliances, lamps).
I’ve become a fan of Bluetooth speakers.
As I get older, I’ve noticed that I listen to music more and more throughout my day. I’m not the kind of guy who wears earbuds all day. I have too many interactions with other people to make that practical.
When I’m at my desk alone, I like to break out a Bluetooth speaker to listen to music.
The VAVA Voom 20 ($69.99, amazon.com) is a beautiful Bluetooth speaker about the size of a bottle of water.
The speaker feels substantial. It is made of metal and rubberized plastic. The exterior feels tough. The Voom 20 is rated IPX5 splash-proof, which means you can set it next to your pool, but don’t take it for a swim.
The all-black design is handsome, but the control buttons on top are embossed into the rubber and they are also black, so I did find myself getting up close to see exactly which button I was pushing.
The Voom 20 paired easily with my iPhone and my MacBook Pro at the same time, but switching back and forth between them was not as easy as VAVA says in its instructions. My Mac didn’t want to give up the connection when I stopped playing music. I had to turn off Bluetooth on my Mac to allow the iPhone to take over music playback.
That’s an annoyance but not a dealbreaker.
VAVA tells us in the product description that the Voom 20 emphasizes bass. It has dual passive subwoofers to “squeeze every last thump out of your music.” There are two 8-watt drivers as well.
I found the sound streamed from my iPhone to be flat and certainly more bass-driven.
When I streamed from iTunes on my Mac, which has its own equalizer, I was able to bring up the treble and brighten things up considerably.
The Voom 20 isn’t light. It weighs 1.53 pounds and measures 7.6 by 2.8 by 2.4 inches. Around back there’s a rubber flap that pops open to reveal an aux-in port, a microUSB port for charging the internal 5,200 mAh battery and a full-size USB port that you can use to charge any USB-powered device.
The Voom 20 can charge an average smartphone twice.
The battery is good for up to eight hours of music playback, and it can also be used to make hands-free calls from a connected smartphone.
It comes with a sturdy carrying bag and a microUSB cable as well as a 3.5mm aux-in cable.
Overall, the Voom 20 is a pretty good speaker if you have some control over the treble and bass coming from your music source. It looks as though it can stand up to some harsh conditions and play all day.
Pros: Inexpensive, solidly built, splash-proof, long battery life, can charge your devices.
Cons: Sound can be flat if you don’t have a playback source with tone controls.
Bottom line: A good speaker for the money. Built to last.
