In my post about the original Bose SoundDock, I waxed enthusiastic about its stellar sound quality, ease of use, and attractive appearance. Those factors made it my absolute favorite among the many speaker docks available for Apple’s iPod. Still, it wasn’t perfect: first, it only worked when tethered to a source of AC power; and second, it lacked an auxiliary input. The first issue meant that I couldn’t enjoy music while relaxing in the hot tub. (Sure, I could run an extension cord to the patio, yada yada yada. Shut up.) And the second meant that my extensive collection of cassettes would continue to gather dust, along with the ancient–but still working–Walkman that played them.
Bose addressed both of those issues with the recently-introduced SoundDock Portable. Those features, along with a couple of other useful upgrades, add a C-note to the price of the original, but my take is that your $399 will be well spent. The first upgrade is the replacement of the free-standing power supply brick with one that’s integrated into the plug itself. Further, the plug/power assembly is designed so that any excess cord can be wrapped around it. The slightly larger remote now includes next/previous playlist controls, and an LED hidden behind the SoundDock Portable’s grille acknowledges receipt of its commands. The same LED serves as a battery status indicator A pair of touch-sensitive volume controls on the side of the SoundDock Portable replace the original’s dock-mounted pressure-activated controls.
The original model’s fixed iPod dock has been replaced by one that can swivel into the main chassis. This keeps it from being knocked about when you’re moving from room to room, and allows the unit to fit into the optional travel case. A recessed handle makes moving the unit simple and convenient.
The SoundDock Portable charges its iPod while plugged in and when operating on its internal battery. Details about the technology that allows said battery to power the unit for as many as 15 hours at a stretch are beyond the scope of this article. It’s worth noting, though, that Bose is up-front about the impact volume and bass have on battery life. Example: an increase in volume of just 3dB–enough to be noticeable, but not dramatically so–can cut battery life in half. At a level that wasn’t too loud to allow conversation, but was well about that of background music, I got 15 hours of life out of a fully-charged battery.
Listening to the original and the new unit side-by-side, I found that the new model sounded slightly better than the original. The sound was a bit more detailed: cymbals had more sizzle, double basses more resonance. There’s no reason why this should be so, but there you are. In all, Bose has hit one out of the park with SoundDock Portable.