Anker Soundcore 3 has everything you could want in a portable Bluetooth speaker, but it’s also a steal. The Soundcore 3 is lighter and more portable than the Soundcore 2, and also its impressive 24-hour battery life implies you can listen to music & podcasts for a beneficially long time between charges.
The water resistance has been increased to the IPX7 standard, making it an excellent companion at the pool or even in the bathroom. PartyCast also allows listeners to sync the playback of one Soundcore up to 100 others. Let us see what other features the Anker Soundcore 3 have.
What you will see here?
Price and availability
The Anker Soundcore 3 begins at $50.99(£39) for black finish and goes up to $56 (£63) for the blue, red, and silver finishes. All color alternatives are open directly from Anker’s website as well as from online retailers such as
Design
The Anker Soundcore 3 is approximately the same size as the Sonos Roam, trying to measure 6.75 x 2.25 x 2.25 inches & weighing 13 ounces, but a couple of ounces lighter. The compact speaker, like the Roam, is easier to throw into a bag to take with you. A carry strap is included that can be looped through a fixing hook at one finish of the cabinet. With the strap encased around your hand, this provides a useful level of extra security when transferring the speaker from place to place or around the garden.
The rectangular shape of the Soundcore 3 is more utilitarian than some Portable Bluetooth design speakers in the best Bluetooth speakers. It does, however, have nicely rounded edges as well as a rubberized finish that appears to fully protect the Soundcore 3 from any knocks or scratches while on the road. The finish is pleasant to the touch, and the only drawback you can think of is that the black edition here is marked easily and showed fingerprints within seconds of being accessible. However, a quick wipe is slightly damp, the lint-free cloth helps clean these up nicely.
The Soundcore 3 is waterproofed to IPX7 standards, which means it will be shielded from water ingress although if submerged in up to 3 feet (around 1 meter) of water for 30 minutes, making it ideal for poolside parties or restroom playback.
Specifications
- Power: 16 watts.
- Sound: Powerful Stereo Sound Ultra-Low Distortion: 100% pure titanium diaphragm High Frequencies Up to 40kHz BassUp Technology.
- Playtime: 24 hours.
- Water Resistance: IPX7.
- Wireless Stereo Pairing: None.
- App: Yes.
- Size: 6.9 x 2.4 x 2.2 in.
- Weight: 0.82 lbs.
- Port: USB-C (charging in).
Audio Performance
The built-in amplifier’s power output is rated at 2 x 16W by Anker, and the Soundcore 3 delivers plenty of sonic punch. The Signature Sound EQ setting provided the best sonic balance, and the small device easily drives the forward-firing speakers, delivering a much larger sound than its diminutive dimensions could perhaps suggest.
Two circular drivers for stereo left & right high frequencies are visible behind the grid speaker bumper on the front of the cabinet. These silver-colored drivers have titanium cones, which are a rigid material used in popular speaker designs because of the way it propels soundwaves forward. Soundcore claims to be able to deliver high frequencies up to 40kHz. A bold claim is given that this is more than twice the frequency range of human hearing.
The material used for the racetrack-shaped mid-driver located in the center of the speaker to handle mid and low frequencies is not specified by Anker. It works hand in hand with a passive radiator at the back of the cabinet, as well as the combination produces remarkably impressive low-frequency output.
Anker Soundcore 3: Low Frequency
You play Dave and Ansel Collins’ “Double Barrel” from Spotify seeing how well the Anker Soundcore 3 handled low frequencies. The vocal at the start of the track has much more gravitas than you expected. But even when the piano & double bass kick in, you found yourself going to enjoy the performance after this small speaker more than you had anticipated.
Anker’s BassUp technology amplifies the bass. With the reggae beat, the delivery sounds a little ragged, and you can almost hear some little speakers reaching their limit of excursion even though they push out all the big bass sounds, but it’s still impressive.
Even at low volume levels, the percussion and drums on Kate Bush’s “Watching You Without Me” stand out and have plenty of oomph. Kate’s voice is remarkably clear throughout, seeming to soar out of the small speaker with no sense of imbalances or distortion. Even the broken & slightly unnerving vocal effect near the end of a recording handle well by the Soundcore.
The bass output is less remarkable with classical music, and while you were initially impressed by the warmth & depth on-screen during the opening to Hans Zimmer’s “Time” from the film Inception, the Soundcore struggled to generate the soundtrack without sounding confused & muddled as the orchestra got louder.
Setup and controls
A raised buttons here on Soundcore 3’s surface are a joy to use and offer an additional great number of tactile feedback. Power on/off; increase volume; playback control; decrease volume; Bluetooth pairing the function identify from left to right.
The Soundcore control app is free to download from iOS App Store and Google Play for Android devices. So it includes playback controls, EQ settings, and a zoomable PDF of the specific instructions. Although an instruction booklet is provided, the print is probable to be too small for many people to read. A USB-C charging cable is also there, but no plug-in wall adapter is there.
After downloading the Soundcore app and pairing the speaker with the iPhone. The application began users to download a firmware upgrade for a bug fix needed. The upgrade takes about ten minutes to complete, and the Anker Soundcore 3 Bluetooth speaker restarts automatically; After downloading the Soundcore app and pairing the speaker with the iPhone. The application began users to download a firmware upgrade for a bug fix needed. The upgrade takes about ten minutes to complete, and the Soundcore 3 restarts automatically; the phone also maintains the Bluetooth link.
The app contains 4 preset EQ modes, including a labeled Signature Sound. As well as the ability to customise the sound to your liking. There’s also the option of setting an auto-power-off timer.
Connectivity
The Anker cannot attach to your house’s Wi-Fi network, however, at the price, this is hardly a complaint. Once you’ve established a Bluetooth connection. You can give your smart playback device voice commands in the usual way. You are able to choose tracks and stream playback via third-party music apps like Spotify that use Siri voice commands on my iPhone 12 Pro.
But unlike UE Megaboom 3, which could support multiple DJs at the same time. The Soundcore only supports one source at a time. However, you can connect multiple Soundcore devices at the same time. Anker claims that you can wirelessly connect more than 100 Soundcore speakers and sync music to each using PartyCast.
The Bluetooth 5.0 range hasn’t been specified by Soundcore. But connectivity holds steady even when streaming from those other rooms around the house.
Battery life
The battery life rate at 24 hours, so Anker Soundcore 3 Bluetooth speaker has a good amount of playtime, making it one of the best portable speakers you’ve used. In practice, it lasts a good couple of days in the background while you worked before needing to recharge. That’s a much better outcome than we saw with the Sonos Roam or even better than that of the UE Megaboom 3, both of which are there at top of the best Bluetooth speakers guide.
A full charge takes between 3.5 & 4 hours; a USB-C charging cord is there, but a 5V/2A wall charger need. When the battery is low, the light turns flashes red, and when charging, it stays red. When the batteries charge fully, the unit turns off.
Conclusion
Anker Soundcore 3 Bluetooth Speaker outperforms our expectations in every way. Given the speaker’s small size, the solid build, industry-leading battery life, and above-average sound delivery are quite impressive. SharePlay appears to be a useful feature for those who want to sync various Soundcore speakers for a bigger sound. Overall, this level of flexibility & performance provides the Soundcore 3 the edge over several Bluetooth options at the price.
