The JBL Grip Is My New Favorite Bluetooth Speaker
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Photo: Jordan McMahon
After nearly four years of testing Bluetooth speakers for the Strategist, it takes a lot for one to impress me enough to stay in my rotation. Most Bluetooth speakers these days sound good enough for everyday listening, so it takes an element of surprise to bring some welcome variety to this often same-y category. And that's why the light-show-equipped JBL Grip has become my go-to speaker for personal listening.
On first glance, the Grip looks like a lot of other speakers in its price range: Its cylindrical shape and mesh covering are pretty standard. It's roughly as tall as an iPhone 17 Pro and slightly thinner than a soda can, making it easy to grab and drop in a bag without adding any noticeable heft. Sound quality is quite good, too, especially for its size. The mids are clear and vivid, while the bass is nice and punchy without overpowering the highs, and you can fine-tune the EQ in JBL's accompanying app. And it gets noticeably louder than our current travel-friendly recommendation, the company's slightly smaller Clip 5.
JBL Grip
Photo: Jordan McMahon
Even more useful is the Grip's support for AuraCast, which lets you link compatible speakers together, Sonos like. I use it to create a stereo setup using two JBL speakers when I'm listening in my room, but it's handy for playing music across multiple rooms or filling a larger space as well. I like to pair it with a couple of larger JBL speakers when we have family get-togethers.
The key to the Grip's appeal, though, is a translucent strip on the back that emits a bright yet gentle glow when music is playing. While not as expressive or customizable as the lights on the company's now-discontinued Pulse 5 , there are enough pleasant options (five in total) to make the feature worth keeping on while you're listening. Each creates some form of moving light — like a pared-down version of the visualizer in old versions of iTunes — that adds a delightful charm to listening sessions. My favorite of the bunch is called Bounce, which shows one of the app's four selectable color gradients filling up the strip then "bouncing" back down to the bottom before repeating. It's so eye-catching, in fact, that my 4-year-old niece would rather reach for the Grip than my phone these days.
The Grip is still a bit big to carry with you, so if portability is chief among your needs, I still recommend the JBL Clip 5 . Its slimmer form factor and built-in carabiner make it easier to clip onto a bag or over your showerhead — neither of which the Grip can do. Even so, I'm turning to the Grip more often these days. It's not that much bigger, it sounds notably better, and it's hard to beat a light show while you're bumping your favorite tunes.
Other Bluetooth speakers we like
Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 4
JBL Clip 5
Sony ULT Field 5 Wireless Portable Speaker
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