Review: Amkette Trubeats Sonix T30 is bettering its rivals, by some margin

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Portable Bluetooth speakers with compact form factor, multiple playback options and in-built battery are very popular with youngsters. They are easy to carry around, clutter-free to use and work with all Bluetooth-based smartphones, tablets and laptops. Delhi-based company Amkette has a new compact speaker called Trubeats Sonix T30, priced at Rs.2,299, which not just ticks the specs boxes, but looks good too.

Design and features

Buying a budget speaker is no longer a compromise on looks and form factor. Sonic T30’s compact oval shaped design is a testimony to that. The exterior is made of good quality plastic, which gives it a solid feel. The key takeaway is its dual colour combination—the top where the control panel lies is of another colour, while the base and the side panel is in another colour. It comes in four colour variants—black-green, blue-grey, white-green and black-grey. The mesh-like pattern on either side of the side panel blends with the three speaker grilles very well.

The speaker is a bit wide at the base and this keeps it well-balanced. The microSD slot, the AUX connector and the micro USB port for charging it have been placed along the side panel, while the control panel at the top includes big square-shaped buttons for power on/off, play/pause, volume up/down and changing tracks. Amkette has also put a hand-strap on one hand so one can carry it easily.

Trubeats Sonic is a wireless speaker and is the way most users would be using it. However, if your phone is running out of battery, you can take out the microSD card from your phone and pop it into the speaker. It also has a built-in microphone so you can use it to take or make calls. The presence of AUX connector means you can connect it with an old MP3 player or assembled desktop PC.

Performance

Designed for small rooms, the speaker’s audio quality has its highs and lows. For instance, change in sound levels feels sudden at times. Also, at maximum volume, there is a bit of distortion in the sound with some music that has a lot of elements working together at the same time. This speaker is best played at lower or mid levels. It handled bass heavy tracks such as All Day by Kanye West or Titanium by David Guetta very well, without sounding muddled. Vocals sounded well, which means this speaker is very comfortable handling multiple genres of music.

Bluetooth connectivity works within a radius of 10 metres but that also depends on the furniture and the walls in the way. We noticed a slight lag every time we changed a track or started playing a new track. The speaker lasts about 6 to 7 hours of music playback which is impressive for music enthusiasts.

Verdict

It belongs to a price segment in which finding a really good quality speaker can be challenging. While its audio performance impressed us for the most part, it is ideal and adequate for causal personal listening. The low-price tag, good looks and impressive battery makes it a better proposition than most entry-level speakers.