Flavor 2: This Surprisingly Powerful Bluetooth Speaker Hooks Onto Your Keychain
And it packs a real punch.
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What: The JBL Go 3 Speaker (Waterproof!)
Anything I should know?: Also available in limited quantities at Target. Comes in 5 colors. It’s about as cute as it looks. It really does get loud enough to power a beach day, BBQ hang in the backyard, or a bike ride with no headphones.
Before this tiny JBL speaker keychain walked into my life, conversations at the beach went something like this:
“Did you bring the bluetooth speaker?”
“I thought you brought it.”
“No, I said, ‘bring the bluetooth speaker’ right before we left.”
“And I said I don’t have room in my bag for it, can you bring it?”
END SCENE. (Yes, I am available for all screenwriting opportunities; call me!)
Or sometimes, one of us would bring the bluetooth speaker, only to find out it hadn’t been charged. Worthless!
The JBL Go 3 Speaker is a saving grace for music lovers and people who want to stay married to their spouses alike. It literally clips onto your keyring and if you’re smart, you’ll keep it there and charge it whenever you charge your Apple Watch or your AirPods.
If you get into that routine early and often, you will be very happy you purchased this tiny speaker.
The JBL Go 3 comes in a few different colors: Teal, Red, Blue, Black and Gray. It measures 3.4 x 1.6 x 2.7 inches, and is the smallest speaker JBL offers. The next biggest is the JBL Clip 3 at about twice the size. If you go with the Clip 3, you will probably find it a little too arduous for your keyring, but it’s perfect for clipping onto an inside backpack or beach bag zipper. Just don’t forget to charge it.
The Go 3 doesn’t come with a carrying case, just the Type C USB charger, but you can buy one separately. I would not. JBL makes really sturdy speakers for rugged use — you don’t need a $7 case. The speaker already has a hook to go onto your keychain or carabiner so the case doesn’t offer something that the speaker doesn’t already have, as the AirPod case does. Anyway, who am I kidding, I totally get wanting to buy a $7 case! But if you’re on the fence, I would encourage you to wait until you’ve used the speaker a bunch on its own to determine if you actually need one. I assumed I would want one but still can’t justify having the extra baggage (literally).
The speaker can get 5 hours out of a single charge, so if you’re not using it for continuous play it’ll make it for a few treks to the beach. I really recommend charging it whenever you’re home so that you never get stuck with a low battery beep. This will help you love it more.
The goods: Good colors, great price, incredible sound. Very portable, waterproof, doesn’t get hot even after continuous use. JBL says it’s “dust proof” and I don’t totally know what that means. It makes a great gift for any age group. Even the technologically inept can get the hang of a bluetooth speaker after a few uses.
The caveat emptor: Some of the colors aren’t available on Prime and some reviewers say it’s a little heavier than they’d like a keychain to be. But it is a speaker, and not a feather, you know?
If you missed last week’s Flavor, read all about the comfy Pillow Slides here.
That’s it! See you next week for another issue of Flavor of the Week! If you love it, send it to a friend. And remember to tune into Gee Thanks! every Friday and Tuesday. Miss an episode? Shop all of our recommendations here.