Bose SoundLink Mini Bluetooth Speaker

** Updated Again ** This is silly. It's just a speaker. But I feel like many reviews obsess and argue over sound. It sounds fine... really good. What's GREAT is the fact you can grab it, take off to another part of the house, and listen to music. I've neglected my music collection for years because I'm all over the place and crappy speakers take a lot of joy out of music for me. Headphones just aren't my thing. Now I get to re-discover my collection. I think you'll be content with any well-reviewed battery-powered bluetooth speaker if it's the portability and accessibility you value. This is probably my favorite purchase since my MacBook Pro 5 years ago. Then again, I have 2 kids so I don't exactly buy much for myself these days. But it continues to exceed expectations. - - - - ** Update Feb 2014 ** Okay... living with this thing - I think I might become a Bose fanboy. The delicacy of it is unreal. I spend more time playing acoustic instruments than listening to music, so I'm somewhat sensitive to what "real" sounds like. I just can't get over how well and balanced this sounds. Right now I have it sitting on my desk and it's buzzing the entire table with the bass... kinda' crazy for the size. And no, the Bluetooth compression doesn't cause any loss of sleep for me. One problem - my standard for speakers has been elevated significantly. Now I'm listening to old speakers and thinking, "Ugh... muddy. No clarity. These won't do." Again, I think the type of music is the essential piece. So many alt-folk or alternative recordings are purposely recorded to sound like crap. I guess they think it lends something to the music whereas for me it's a huge detractor. But even this old Rush tune I'm listening to now is reproduced well. So yeah... just grab this. There's no way you can regret it. I'm not a 5 star guy. I save it for something that's near perfection and, for a small portable speaker, this thing is a joy. - - - - So little to add that hasn't been said, so I'll keep it quick. This little speaker handles "delicate" music incredibly. When I'm listening to Punch Brothers, big band, classical, acoustic, vocal it astounds. I thought I was satisfied with Logitec-grade speakers until I got this. It's my first bluetooth portable speaker and, within minutes, it makes so much sense you wonder what's the point of a static, fixed system. I grab it for the kid's bath time after being plugged into the TV all day. Then I grab it as we get in our jammies. Then it's in the kitchen for an informal dance party. It becomes apparent that 1 portable speaker serves as multiple fixed, non-portable speakers. In fact, you could argue that the cost of more expensive portable speakers out there is offset by the fact you don't need as many sets of speakers. If you throw dance or bass-heavy music the trick is to stick it in the corner of a room. If you can tuck it in the corner of the kitchen under the cupboards you'll be surprised at the bass. If you expected it to fill a wide narrow room it struggles - it's a somewhat directional speaker. I didn't kill myself with research on this. Every time I hear a Bose product I pause and marvel at the sound (even before I know it's a Bose). If you don't get this one, just get a Bluetooth speaker to see how you use it in your life. You'll be pleased.