UE Miniroll review: Tiny but mighty

The weekend before I put fingers to keyboard and penned this UE Miniroll review, I went away with some friends. We wanted to rekindle teenage memories of sunny afternoons spent in the sun, of hanging out around fires, and a god-forsaken mixture of different music that only makes sense to 16-year-olds.

I had two jobs on the trip — being one of the designated drivers, and because of my extensive Bluetooth speaker collection, I had to provide the audio hardware for the tip. I decided to bring the recently released Ultimate Ears Miniroll. Apart from being named after a delicious confection on my side of the pond, the Miniroll takes the place of the defunct Roll and Roll 2 Bluetooth speakers. With solid sound for the size, surprising battery life, and a slick new design, the Miniroll makes a compelling case for $80.

UE Miniroll review: Cheat sheet

• What is it? A tiny Bluetooth speaker designed for the outside.
• What does it cost? $79
• Who is it for? If you want a rugged, portable Bluetooth speaker, then this is the speaker for you.
• What should you use it for? Taking out and about on the trail, strapping to bikes, and fitting in smaller spaces.
• What are its weaknesses? Don't turn it up to full volume — It vibrates like crazy, and the sound loses all definition.

UE Miniroll review: Price and availability

The Miniroll is very well priced, even when compared to the rest of the similarly value-rich UE range. The speaker costs $79 in the U.S., and £79 in the UK. Compared to other small speakers on our best Bluetooth speakers list, like the $59 Tribit Micro 2, it might seem a bit expensive, but you do get better sound quality and massively extended volume. The JBL Clip 5 is a similar form factor and price, although it has a slightly different method of attaching it to stuff.

UE Miniroll review: Design

I really like the way that the Miniroll looks. It’s chunkier than its predecessors but retains its round shape and mesh-covered front. The buttons on the front bring some color accents to the otherwise single-color speaker. The rear of the unit is a rubberized plastic, sharing the color of the front mesh. Draped across that matte plastic you’ll find the rubber strap, attached to the device by a meaty-looking screw at the bottom.

That strap pops out of a small, red hole at the top edge of the speaker so that you can attach it to trees, tent poles, or other slim, round objects. It stretches an alarming degree to make it work, and then the top pops back into its little hole so that it stays in place. It’s surprisingly secure as well, so you could easily attach it to bike handlebars or your backpack strap. Just bear in mind that everyone around you will be able to hear your embarrassing pop playlist, so expect some weird looks if you listen to music with it on hikes or at a busy campsite.

The build itself is solid as a rock. The rugged plastic on the back of the Miniroll could take a real beating. I should know, after it accidentally fell down some stone stairs. The speaker came out the other side of its tumbling ordeal without any kind of damage, attesting to its solid build. If the rest of the Ultimate Ears lineup is anything to go by, the fabric mesh will also stand up to scrutiny over the years. I have a UE Megaboom 2 that’s been sitting in my bathroom for the last four years, and its mesh has held up better than I could have ever expected.

The Miniroll is IP67 water and dust-resistant as well, so it’ll hold up to punishment at pool parties and beach adventures. The USB-C port on the bottom is something to watch out for, however. The other Ultimate Ears speakers feature sealed doors for their charging ports, while the Minroll’s is completely open to the elements. When you take it near water or sand, it's worth giving the port a quick clean with a fine brush before plugging it in to charge.

UE Miniroll review: Features

The Miniroll is an incredibly simple Bluetooth speaker, although there are some nice extras to sweeten the deal. The headline is the ‘partyup’ feature, which lets you connect multiple speakers together either to make your music louder or make a stereo pair. Note that you can’t do both at the same time, it’s either stereo or louder tunes. You activate the feature with a long press of the play button found on the side of the speaker. Once the initial device is ready, you do the same on the second device. The two then find each other and connect up. You can do this with as many Miniroll speakers as you like, although you can’t link with any other speakers in the Ultimate Ears range.

Usually with UE speakers the partyup and stereo features would be initiated through the excellent UE Boom app, but there’s no app support in the Miniroll. That means no customizable EQ or remote turning on and off, which is a shame. There is only one sound mode built into the speaker, and you can’t change the way that it sounds, so hopefully you like its standard signature.

Beyond partyup, the Miniroll is just a simple Bluetooth speaker. That’s not a bad thing, it’s refreshing to have something that just connects to your phone and plays music without the need for an app. But if you’re looking for a feature-rich speaker with loads of different connection options or app support, you’re looking at the wrong Bluetooth speaker.

UE Miniroll review: Connectivity

There is one way and one way only to connect to the UE Miniroll: Bluetooth. It’s Bluetooth 5.3 so latency is lower if you want to boost the sound of movies on your smartphone. It’s a good, solid connection as well, with no dropouts or stuttering during my testing.

UE Miniroll review: Sound quality

Let’s get one thing out of the way first. If you’re looking for room-filling, rich sound, you’re looking at the wrong Bluetooth speaker. This little guy is all about getting the most possible out of the smallest sonic frame, a job it manages admirably. Despite its small stature, there’s surprising bass response. Of course, the palmable wonder won’t pump the same kind of bass as its larger siblings, but it’s plenty for the size. The mid-range is relatively well represented, with plenty of warmth to guitars and vocals. The highs are what audiophiles would call ‘rolled off,' with some the likes of cymbals, hi-hats, and other piercing sounds blending into the rest of the music. That’s me being picky, however. Considering how small it is, it’s an impressive sonic performance.

Spinning up Hans Zimmer’s Dune soundtrack reveals the strengths and weaknesses of the speaker. It excels with the sweeping string lines, but struggles more with the subtle, cult-like whispers that pervade the rest of the tracks. The Miniroll does well when you feed it some pop, however, bouncing along to Dua Lipa’s Levitating with loads of energy.

One thing of note is the volume of the UE Miniroll. For something so small it gets extremely loud. Loud enough, in fact, that it manages to vibrate itself off of tables at full volume. The sound quality does start to fall apart at higher volumes, but I can’t imagine a time when you might actually need something so small to go so loud. If you want something that holds up at higher volumes, the more substantial sounding UE Wonderboom 4 might be more your tempo.

UE Miniroll review: Battery life

Battery life on the Miniroll is par for the course at 12 hours. That’s identical to the staying power of the similarly sized Tribit Micro. It charges over USB-C, although you have to bring your own charging cable. Like the AirPods 4, there isn’t one in the box.

UE Miniroll review: Verdict

While it might not be the cheapest small form-factor Bluetooth speaker around, the Miniroll is easily the best. It looks very cool, has some solid sound for the size, and the partyup function is a fun one for weekends away with your friends. Don’t expect earth-shattering sound quality and you’re in for a treat.

There are alternatives, of course. If you don’t want to spend too much money the Tribit Micro is a great, similarly sized speaker. You won’t get the enormous volume headroom of the Miniroll, however. If you want something with a bit more substance, then the slightly larger Wonderboom 4 might be a good option. It’s got 360-degree sound, and has multiple listening modes on board.

All in all, though, if you want a great little speaker that fits into any bag, the Miniroll is perfect.

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