Hasta La Gadget!

In this day and age, it goes without saying that we have a slew of gizmos that we tend to carry with us wherever we go. There is a downside to all of it though – and that would be the battery life, or rather, the lack of its longevity. Most of us will need to juice up our respective smartphones, tablets, portable media players, GPS navigation devices, and for some, even electric cars, right before we go to bed, or run the risk of having them sputter at the moment when you need it the most at some point during the next day. Boy Scouts would know how to get ready for such situations, which is why the Braven BRV-Bank might be worth checking out, being a rugged portable battery by itself.

The Braven BRV-Bank is proud to be the world’s first IP68 water-resistant and MIL-STD 810G shockproof rated power bank that will offer yet another advantage – it comes with an integrated Bluetooth technology. The BRV-Bank will be able to hook up to a custom Braven BRV Bank App, where that will allow it to wirelessly monitor battery levels, start and stop charging devices as well as locate the BRV-Bank from a smartphone or tablet.

Specially constructed from ground up to cater to the great outdoors as well as emergency preparedness, it has the ability to last a whole lot longer compared to other portable power banks that we have already seen in the market. After all, how many of such devices are able to let users locate their backup battery, turn it on and off remotely, as well as monitor the battery level? Those who are interested will be able to pick up the BRV-Bank in 6,000 mAh and 8,000 mAh options, where they will sport a couple of outputs that support up to 2.4A and will be accompanied by a ruggedized USB charging cable and USB flashlight.

Press Release
[ Braven introduces BRV-Bank portable backup battery copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]

A portable Bluetooth speaker would always come in handy whenever you want to share your favorite music with a group of people simultaneously, and it would also be useful if you are holding some sort of dance or drama practice out in the open – as music can be pumped out in the middle of nowhere without the need for any nasty cables or wires which could trip someone up. Braven has answered this clarion call with their Braven 440, touted to be the “most talented and portable Bluetooth speaker yet”. We cannot really put this claim to the test, but we do know that the Braven 440 is water resistant for sure, as it pumps out room-filling stereo sound, in addition to juicing up your mobile devices while being highly portable thanks to an ultra-compact and lightweight design.

For the eagle eyed, the Braven 440 would come with similar features like those found on its predecessors, where among them would include a built-in noise-cancelling microphone for speakerphone functionality, the ability to deliver crystal clear sound and Bluetooth 2.1 connectivity for a wireless experience. Not only that, it would also be able to feature the signature Braven “look”, as it highlights the clean lines with sleek curved borders as well as arriving in five fiery colors, which will include Lunar Black, Fiji Green, Rio Purple, Monaco Blue and Sahara Red.

Underneath the hood, the Braven 440 will be able to deliver up to a dozen hours of non-stop playback, ensuring that users will be able to enjoy music from just about anywhere without having to juice it up. Not only that, it will also be IPX5 water resistant rated, which makes it the ideal tool for both indoor as well as outdoor use, without the need to worry about accidental spills and splashes. The asking price for the Braven 440 stands at $89.99 a pop if you are interested.

Press Release
[ Braven 440 portable Bluetooth speaker copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]

Watch out, Jawbone; looks like Braven’s continuing its assault against the Big Jambox by releasing another comparable Bluetooth speaker… but this time, it can get wet and take some bruises. Similar to its predecessor, the 850, model 855s is a 20W speaker encased in aluminum and can charge smartphones, tablets and cameras. It even has the same dimensions (10 x 4 inches) and can play tunes for up to 20 hours, or so the company claims. The new speaker costs $300, just like the 850, so choosing between the two depends on whether you want a rugged version or not. As a nice touch, you can pair the 855s with its predecessor for true stereo sound; just be sure to remember which one doesn’t like water if you go that route.

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Source: Braven

With so many Bluetooth speakers flooding the market, it’s getting harder and harder to decide which one to buy. Well, I’ve been test-driving one for the past few days that I definitely think should be in the running. The Braven BRV-1 is a compact, rugged-looking Bluetooth speaker that I definitely would consider keeping in my backpack from now on.

While it measures just 5″(w) x 3.25″ (d) x 2.5″ (h), and weighs just over 12 ounces, this compact speaker really does offers big sound in a small package. As I write this, I currently have it streaming tunes from my iPhone about 12 feet away, and it’s filling my 400 square-foot living room/office with sound.

The speaker is nicely designed, with a rubberized case which provides easy access to the volume controls (which also control tracks if you hold them down longer), power switch and a play/pause button which doubles as a pairing button for Bluetooth and for accepting and hanging up on calls. Its only metal bit is its speaker grille, which comes in either black or blue.

Braven packed the BRV-1 with two full-range speakers, and a passive subwoofer, powered by a total of 6 watts of class-D amplification. This gives it plenty of oomph, despite its size. In my playback experience, I found minimal distortion at even the highest volume levels, and a clean, ear pleasing sound with plenty of low-end for a box this small. Sure, its bass won’t substitute for a powered subwoofer, but it’s as good as many bookshelf systems I’ve used over the years.

In addition to its music playback chops, the BRV-1 functions as a speakerphone for your Bluetooth smartphone. I didn’t find audio quality to be particularly thrilling during calls, but that’s more likely a limitation of the phone networks than the speaker itself. I was also able to use it to control Siri with my phone sitting on the other side of the room.

On the back of the BRV-1, you’ll find a twist-off protective cover which conceals access to its microUSB charging connector, a 3.5mm audio jack, and a full-size USB connector which can be used to syphon off some power to your other gadgets in a pinch. It won’t charge an iPad, but it’s more than fine for helping out your dying smartphone. Speaking of battery life, I was able to get slightly more than the quoted 12 hours of power from a single 3 hour charge. There’s also an on-demand battery indicator hidden beneath that cap so you can see about how much power you have left (in 20% increments).

If you’re wondering about that twist-off cover, that’s because the BRV-1 is IPX5 rated water-resistant, and sealed well enough to take to the beach, poolside, or even in a rainstorm. That said, it’s not designed to be submerged, and despite its rugged looks and shock absorbent design, I wouldn’t intentionally toss it around more than you have to.

Overall, the BRV-1 is a very impressive little speaker, and it will be taking up residence in my travel bag. If I have any complaints at all, it’s that I’d prefer that it supported AirPlay in addition to Bluetooth, and that there was some sort of tether attaching the back cap so you don’t risk losing it. But those are minor issues, and the excellent sound quality, portability and rugged good looks are more than enough to win me over.

The Braven BRV-1 retails for $179.99(USD), and is available now.

Disclosure: Braven provided speaker for review in this article. However, all reviews are the unbiased views of our editorial staff, and we will only recommend products or services we have used personally, and believe will be good for our readers.

It’s no secret that we generally enjoy Braven’s pushes into the portable Bluetooth speaker arena. The company is again aiming to take your dollars away from the likes of the Jawbone Jamboxes, offering up two new units for CES. The 850 is it’s largest speaker yet, being roughly the same size as Big Jambox — and priced much the same at $300. As you’d expect, the 850 is clad in aluminum, and has a USB port for charging external devices. That’s not all, however, as Braven claims this is the worlds first battery-powered speaker that’ll charge 2.1A gimzos (like the iPad) on its own accord (no word on expected battery life). Even more impressive — and expensive — we’re told that two units can be run in true stereo with either serving as the left and right channels. No pictures for now, but we’ll update this post as soon as we get them.

Aside from the 850, the $170 BRV-1 (dummy units pictured) ditches the company’s smooth rectangular speaker angles, in favor of ruggedness and IPX5 water-resistance. The not-so pocketable speaker is clad in rubber, featuring two large buttons on both edges for playback controls. The speaker grill on the front get’s Braven’s usual treatment with aluminium, while the back houses twist-cap protected microUSB port, USB port, battery indicator and a 3.5mm input jack. Both speakers are set to site along its Six Series units sometime this month, and you’ll find more pictures of two BRV-1 mockups in the gallery below.

Filed under: Peripherals, Portable Audio/Video

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