The MP280 from Edifier, is one of their newer portable speakers, boasting Bluetooth 4.0 technology, 360 degree sound and it doubles up as a power bank. We have previously tried a number of their speakers, albeit from their larger bookshelf range, but they really impressed, so it will be interesting to see if we get that same quality, in a smaller form factor.
The speaker arrives in a clear acrylic housing, fully protected and within the hidden base of the packaging, is a micro USB cable & an aux cable, plus instructions. The speaker itself comes in three different colours, vibrant red or blue, plus a more subtle black. It’s constructed from metal & plastic, with a silicon finish top & bottom, and an all metal, diamond patterned, perforated metal grille. At the top of the speaker is the on/off and an audio source button, which allows you to switch between the different sources. On the bottom is a silicon flap, which underneath includes DC IN (via micro USB), microSD slot for playback, USB out for powerbank feature and aux line in. Near the top of the speaker, on one of the sides, is the power indicator light, volume up/next song, volume down/last song & pause buttons. The speaker itself has a good weight, it’s not too heavy but doesn’t feel ‘cheap’. It fit’s well in my hand and its very easy to reach the buttons while in the hand. It stands up vertically, it’s sturdy but could also be laid down if desired. The overall design is nice, I think it’s a good size and it’s very much is portable. The clip on the top of the speaker helps with that portability, allowing you to clip it onto your backpack say.
As for spec and features are a few:
Total power: 2 x 4w
SNR: ⩾80dBA
Input Sensitivity：800±50mV
Frequency response：75Hz-18kHz
Input Type：micro SD Card/Bluetooth/LINE IN
Weight：0.51Kg
There are three ways to connect your audio to the speaker, the first being the Bluetooth 4.0 technology, which allows you to connect your smart device to the speaker, within a 10m range. The second is via the line in port on the bottom of the speaker, a cable is included in the box, and the last is via the microSD card slot, also on the bottom of the speaker (SD card not included). Setting up the later two options is simple, just plug & play, but to get the Bluetooth function working, you need to pair your smart device to the speaker. Once your audio device is connected, you can either control your music via your device, or with the on board controls. The control buttons are push to activate and allow you to increase/decrease volume, as well as change tracks forwards & backwards. Using the controls is very easy and responsive, no real lag as such between speaker & device when changing tracks.
It’s worth touching on the powerbank function, which works as expected and will charge your smart device via the USB port. It’s not stated the rating of the battery but it charged my iPhone 7 up to 100% quite easily. As for battery life while it’s being used as a speaker, Edifier state 10 hours of play back and I feel that’s a little exaggerated, it was more 6/7 hours for me.
Audio quality is good, but not great. I wasn’t expecting miracles, with a price tag of around £40, plus all the features included, that would be quite something! That being said, the audio quality is good, there is a good spread of sound from the 360degree drivers and it can get fairly loud, loud enough for a small room or on the beach etc. The sound is clear, though it lack’s in the low end.
Overall, the Edifier MP280 is a decent little speaker for the money, packed full of features and functionality, and for about £40, it’s a steal. If you are dead cert on sound quality, double your money and you’d notice the difference with some of the mid range speakers. For more info, visit the official Edifier website.
