I just tested this $68 Bluetooth speaker — and for its tiny size, it’s actually impressive

Have you ever put your smartphone in a glass or mug to amplify its speaker’s volume and sound? I have, and I just tested a speaker that utilizes that very idea. Three Norwegian friends ran with it and came up with the Sodapop Bluetooth speaker. It’s unlike any other speaker I’ve seen, featuring a screw-on design and a plastic bottle which makes the speaker much louder and delivers better bass.

While I found the bass to be hit-or-miss in my testing as it varied from song to song, I did find the vocals to be clear and detailed. The Sodapop’s also got a long battery life and it’s extremely portable, but it’s let down by its IPX5 rating which makes it less waterproof than most of its rivals.

If you’re wondering if this is the best Bluetooth speaker for you, read my full Sodapop review to find out.

Sodapop Bluetooth speaker review: Cheat sheet

• What is it? A tiny Bluetooth speaker enclosed within a bottle, providing different styles of sound
• Who is it for? For anyone who wants a funky-looking speaker with good sound quality
• How much does it cost? $68 / £59
• What do we like? The unique and portable design, clear vocals with plenty of detail, very high maximum volume, and long battery life
• What don’t we like? Heavy tracks sound tinny and rivals have better waterproofing and dustproofing

Sodapop Bluetooth speaker review: Specs

Sodapop Bluetooth speaker review: Price & availability

Sodapop is a brand new company, based in the beautiful country of Norway, and the Sodapop Bluetooth speaker is their first-ever product. The Sodapop costs $68 / £59 directly from the brand’s e-store. It comes in a few colorways: Black, Sunburn (orange), Skinny Dip (blue), and Green.

Given its price, the Sodapop faces fierce competition from the likes of the Tribit StormBox 2 ($67), the Tribit XSound Plus 2 ($69) and the Tribit Stormbox Micro 2 ($59). It’s slightly pricier than the (also) Scandinavian Happy Plugs Joy ($49), but I believe it offers better value for money as it sounds way better.

Sodapop Bluetooth speaker review: Design & controls

• Tiny and compact
• Can screw onto any regular-sized bottle
• Straightforward controls

I’m not exaggerating when I say the Sodapop Bluetooth speaker is unlike any other speaker I’ve seen before. It’s made of two units: a hard plastic bottle and the speaker itself. The speaker, measuring 3.81 x 2.36 x 2.36 inches, is enclosed within the bottle, measuring 6.1 x 2.87 x 2.87 inches, so it’s very portable.

I was able to slip it into my cargo pants’ pocket and carry it around with ease. Neither did it feel like it was weighing me down, as it weighs just 10.58oz. It’s half the weight of the EarFun UBoom L (22.92oz, $79) and the Tribit StormBox 2 (20oz), and it’s even lighter than the Tribit Stormbox Micro 2 (16oz).

Now, onto the setup. To access the speaker, you need to twist off the base at the bottom of the bottle. The base includes a passive radiator to enhance the Sodapop’s bass response (and it’s also fun to watch when listening to a bass-heavy track). Then, you need to unscrew the cap at the top of the bottle — as you would while opening a bottle of soda — and remove the rubber flap on the speaker. Then, you need to screw the speaker onto the bottle. I know it sounds complicated when I put it into words, but in use, it really isn’t.

This is the way the manufacturer intended for the Sodapop to be used, as it delivers punchier bass (or “double the bass and an overall superior sound” according to Sodapop) by increasing it by 10 decibels. You can use the speaker without the bottle too. With the rubber flap covering the screw-on chamber, bass response is weaker but it still works, as I’ll discuss in more detail later in the review.

Also, thanks to the screw-on chamber, Sodapop says that you can attach the speaker to any regular-sized bottle, so that’s what I did. I bought a bottle of Coca Cola and screwed the speaker on, as you can see in the photo above, and it worked like a charm. It didn’t create a seal as strong as the OG bottle, but it still sounded good.

Controls are fairly straightforward and minimal too, which you’ll find located around the back. The power button doubles as the Bluetooth pairing button when kept pressed, and it’s accompanied by volume up and down buttons. That’s it. Easy peasy lemon squeezy.

Sodapop Bluetooth speaker review: Features

• Stereo mode with two speakers
• IPX5-rated only

The Sodapop Bluetooth speaker features stereo mode, so you can synchronize two Sodapops together if you’re at a social gathering or party. I, unfortunately, was sent only one sample unit so I couldn’t test this feature.

One of the Sodapop’s cons is that it’s IPX5-rated only. This means that the speaker is protected against powerful jetting water from any direction. This is a rather disappointing rating as it means you’ll need to be careful if you’re using it poolside, at the beach or in the shower — which I’d advise against. Also, on a personal note, I really wanted to fill the bottle with water.

Both the Tribit StormBox 2 and the Tribit XSound Plus 2 have higher durability ratings of IPX7, which means they can be submerged in a meter of water for 30 minutes. If you want a dustproof speaker, it’s worth spending extra on the EarFun UBoom L or the JBL Clip 5 ($79), both of which are IP67-rated, making them dustproof and waterproof down to 3 feet.

Sodapop Bluetooth speaker review: Connectivity

• Bluetooth 5.0
• 3.5mm jack for wired playback

The Sodapop Bluetooth speaker utilizes Bluetooth 5.0 to seamlessly connect to your smartphone, laptop or any other Bluetooth-enabled device — but not simultaneously as there’s no multipoint connectivity.

It’s surprising that the Sodapop uses an older Bluetooth version, considering Tribit’s speakers utilize Bluetooth 5.3 which ensures a more reliable connection — but still, I didn’t experience any connectivity issues with the Sodapop. Hey, at least it doesn’t use the outdated Bluetooth 4.2 like the (much pricier) Bose SoundLink Flex ($149)!

There’s also a 3.5mm aux port located near the controls, as well as a USB-C port for charging, both of which are protected by a rubber flap that keeps dust out.

At the time of writing, though, the Sodapop’s companion app is currently in development, so I will update this review when I have access to it.

Sodapop Bluetooth speaker review: Sound quality

• Vocals sound clear and detailed
• Great for acoustic music
• Rock, electronic and metal tracks sound tinny

For its tiny size, the Sodapop Bluetooth speaker is loud and impressive, with vocals sounding clear and detailed, making it great for acoustic music — but audiophiles may be left feeling shortchanged as it isn’t ideal for bass-heavy or electronic tracks. To test the speaker, I listened to an array of genres — indie, pop, rock, metal, etc. — on Qobuz which is one the best music streaming services for hi-res audio.

Let’s talk about the positives first. When the Sodapop is screwed onto the accompanying bottle, it makes music sound much louder and clearer, and I love how acoustic/vocal-heavy tracks sound. Listening to ‘Labour’ by Paris Paloma and ‘Henry, Come On’ by Lana Del Rey was a treat.

In both songs, vocals sounded clear, and I especially loved how I could hear the vibrato in Paris Paloma’s voice in the first track. As multiple voices kicked in on the bridge, I could distinctly hear each individual vocalist. Similarly, in ‘Henry, Come On,’ Lana’s high notes in the chorus never sounded piercing or too high-pitched. Her voice also had a lovely warmth to it throughout the song.

The Sodapop is also good at making a percussion/string instrument like the piano sound detailed. ‘Piano Man’ by Billy Joel sounded fantastic through the speaker, with every piano note clearly discernible throughout the track, and well-balanced with the other instruments. No one instrument overpowered the others, and neither did the vocals.

The issue arises when playing heavy rock, metal or electronic tracks through the Sodapop. Iron Maiden’s ‘Hallowed Be Thy Name’ didn’t stand a chance here. All the instruments and voices seemed to blend together, resulting in an overall muddy sound. I also noticed this in many other tracks, including ‘Mean Girls’ and ‘Von Dutch’ by Charli XCX, which sounded unpleasant. The electronic instruments sounded like they were piercing my ears.

As I mentioned up top, the brand says that the Sodapop’s screw-on bottle design helps double the bass, which is true, as without the bottle, bass sounds — no offence — downright terrible. The bottle is its saving grace. Basslines aren’t always the cleanest, as the bass in Alt-J’s ‘Every Other Freckle’ sounded too distorted (more than the band intended). In 070 Shake’s ‘Elephant’ though, the bass sounded powerful and, in a way, how it did when I saw her at an indoor gig.

Bass through the Sodapop is hit or miss, really. If you want punchier lows and mids regardless of the genre playing, I’d recommend the EarFun UBoom L or the JBL Clip 5, both of which deliver jaw-shaking bass.

One thing to also note is that the speaker can go very loud, volume-wise, which is the opposite of the Tribit Stormbox Micro 2, whose highest volume was too low.

Sodapop Bluetooth speaker review: Battery life

• Rated for a whopping 30 hours
• Battery life better than most rivals

For a speaker that costs less than $70, the Sodapop Bluetooth speaker boasts phenomenal battery life, rated at 30 hours on a single charge. For context, this is better than the Tribit StormBox 2 (24 hours), the Tribit XSound Plus 2 (24 hours), the EarFun UBoom L (16 hours), and the Tribit Stormbox Micro 2 (12 hours).

I was skeptical about the Sodapop’s battery life when I read how long it lasts according to the manufacturer, so I put it to the test by leaving it playing music at 50% volume for 18 hours, combined with seven hours of actively listening to music, so 25 hours in total, and the speaker died after that — so not too bad!

Sodapop Bluetooth speaker review: Verdict

For the brand’s first speaker, the Sodapop isn’t a bad starting point at all. If anything, it’s a triumph. The speaker’s unique design sets it apart from other speakers in the market which, let’s be honest, look alike (more often than not).

I think the screw-on design is clever as it makes the speaker much louder and you can use it with any regular-sized bottle. Vocals sound clear and detailed through the Sodapop, and its long battery life means you can keep listening for hours.

However, the Sodapop lacks punchy and consistent bass response, and metal, electronic and rock tracks tend to sound tinny, which may be disappointing for many listeners. And when it comes to durability, the Sodapop is outdone by its rivals, like the EarFun UBoom L or the JBL Clip 5, which are more waterproof and dustproof.

If you don’t mind these shortcomings, or you’re primarily a country, pop or acoustic listener, then you’ll be happy with the Sodapop. If nothing else, you’ll sure as hell have people coming up to you, asking why your water bottle sounds so good.