Ultimate Ears' Wonderboom 2 is here to make your beach party even better in the summer

It's been more than two years since Ultimate Ears announced the company's $ 99 entry-level Wonderboom speaker. Now he comes back with a sequel, the Wonderboom 2, which offers better sound, longer battery life and true stereo coupling.

At first glance, the two speakers may seem similar, but the Wonderboom 2 adds some interesting improvements. The life of the battery has been increased, with 13 hours of music promised (instead of 10 hours). Ultimate Ears has also enhanced the Double Up feature which allows you to pair two Wonderboom 2 speakers. Now, instead of just doubling the output, the paired Wonderboom 2 will have the ability to play in real stereo separation. Finally, a new Outdoor Boost mode button, located at the bottom of the device, activates a predefined equalization mode specifically designed for outdoor use, where the areas on which the bass may bounce are fewer.

The new speaker is about the same size as the old Wonderboom. The most important changes are two-color fabrics (similar to last year's Boom 3 style), a larger center button for playback / pause and pairing (also similar to Boom 3), and a new one. looser elastic rope loop (guessed, is similar to boom 3). The more / less oversize brand buttons for volume are also slightly larger now.

As usual for an Ultimate Ears speaker, the Wonderboom 2 is rated IP67 against dust and water. (And like the original Wonderboom, it still floats in the water.)

The fact that the Wonderboom 2 is a more subtle upgrade is a good thing. The original Wonderboom was a very good Bluetooth speaker for size and price, so it's good to see that Ultimate Ears does not play with the formula. The $ 99.99 price tag and stereo pairing offer an interesting proposition: you can get a Megaboom 3 at $ 199.99 or two less powerful Wonderboom 2s with true stereo separation for the same price, depending your priorities in music reading.

The Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 2 will be available in US stores starting June 25 priced at $ 99.99 (the same price as the old Wonderboom) in blue, red, pink, gray and black.

Photography by Chaim Gartenberg / The Verge