X-Mini II XAM4-B Mono Capsule Speaker - Black

• Volume controller on the speaker.
• Stowaway 3.5mm cable to get connected to your music source.
• Buddy jack as many as you like for more fun.
• Long lasting - Up to 12 hours of continues playtime using its embedded rechargeable battery.
• Charging USB cable and carry pouch are included.

I'm sure this review, as with all other negative reviews, is going to get a "this was not helpful" rating. Look, I get it.. the X-Mini II is an AWESOME product and nobody should to talk bad about it, right? At least hear me out first.. because I've been using these for almost a year and have owned 3 of them. I think that earns me the right to an honest negative review. And remember, most people review products shortly after they buy them.. I've actually spent a lot of time using them.

I absolutely loved mine when I first got it. I showed it to lots of friends and all my coworkers, many of which have since bought their own. It's an excellent little speaker. The sound quality is amazing for such a small package.. the build quality feels very solid. Sadly, it's what's inside that counts.. and what's inside is junk. I've owned 3 of these speakers and all 3 are now dead. Here's the series of events that led to this bad review:

X-Mini #1 Bought my first one about 10 months ago on Amazon. Loved everything about it. One thing that really stood out (aside from excellent audio quality) was the build quality. Very solid construction. I liked it so much I bought another one for a family member, which we'll call X-Mini #2.

X-Mini #2 Worked fine, but I noticed the build quality wasn't as good as the first one I bought. The once soft rubber-like audio cable was now stiff, cheap, shiny plastic. The power switch was now flimsy and didn't operate as solidly as my first one. The sound wasn't quite as good, and it was a tiny bit lighter weight. After about 1 month, I started having audio hiccups from it and had to contact the store (possibly power surges?). They sent me a replacement and let me keep this one. The replacement they sent me is X-Mini #3.

X-Mini #3 Same lower-quality construction. By this point it was obvious that X-Mi had started to cheap out on the materials of the speaker. The once rock-solid speaker now feels like a cheap toy. About two weeks after owning this speaker, the battery stopped working. It no longer holds a charge and has to be plugged in via USB or a wall outlet in order to play sound. I'm not going to bother the company I bought this one from because they already sent me a free replacement.. now it's up to X-Mi.

Now I have 1 good speaker (my original), one defective one, and one with a dead battery, right? Wrong.

Back to X-Mini #1 My beloved original, now, after 10 months of light use (maybe 3 hours a week), is dead. The battery is having the same issue as X-Mini #3. It will no longer play sound without being attached to external power.

I'm done with these things. I want to love it.. I really do.. and several months ago I would have given this thing 6 out of 5 stars if it were possible. I can no longer do that. They simply don't last. I'm extremely disappointed with X-Mi for cheaping out on materials and have sent them an email explaining this.

If you've been able to snag one that lasts longer than a year, consider yourself lucky. I envy you.

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: 2:15 Mins

(Video) Could have been better quality, but too large and wouldn't upload.

First off, This speaker is incredible for it's size. There is almost no distortion in sound when playing on MAX volume. It comes with a USB splitter, to charge and a 3.5mm plug so that you can connect multiple X Mini II's together. It also comes with a handy bag to store your X Mini II in. I had an Altec Lansing iM207 before this, and the X Mini II blew the iM207 away!!!. The size difference was one thing, and the sound quality was another. The iM207 also ran on 3 AAA batteries. There will also be distortion in the iM207 on full volume. The playtime with the batteries was terrible. I had to switch batteries every week, with only around 20minutes of playtime each day. For the X Mini II, it can play up to 8 hours. There are also LED indicators of when you need to charge again, and when it is fully charged.

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My wife and I had been on a recent trip to the tropics and a few days it rained to the point that we really couldn't be outside much. Stuck in our room, we turned to my iPhone. I had loaded up some comedy CDs from iTunes prior to our trip. If we laid quitely on the bed we could listen to the iPhone, and it was OK, but about what you'd expect. Weak volume, tinny, etc. When we got home I thought I'd research to see if there were very light, easy to transport speakers. Being a fairly light packer I wanted my solution to be very small and light.

I stumbled on the X-Mini II on Amazon during my research, and ordered it. What a nice surprise. The speaker is not much bigger than a golf ball, but expands a bit when you twist it there's an accordian-like structure that allows it to elongate. You don't have to do that, but the sound seems a bit better if you do. The x-mini comes with a small USB to USB-mini cable for recharging. Mine came fully charged and I used it for an hour or so... it didn't need to be recharged even then. Since i carry an iPhone I always have some way of charging that device, and whatever method I use will also work with the x-mini.

The sound was quite surprisingly good. Deep and as loud as I can imagine needing it. I don't know if you could use it for a big party, but I'm sure in a room with several people it would be just fine. I think you'll be surprised by how good it sounds.

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: 7:06 Mins

I joyfully recommend the X-Mini II Capsule Speaker -it mostly lives up to my expectations and more. I was looking for a small-form speaker to test my techno mixes on (I'm a dance music producer, among other things) since many people have mobile devices and like listening to music "on the go" without the benefit of a really beefy, bassy system.

The unique design attracted me and after reading the many positive reviews, I ordered this. It was a fairly short decision and I hope this review will help others too -I'm a big believer in sharing your experiences so others can benefit and save time (especially when it comes to avoiding shoddy stuff).

As you can see from the video, the sound quality is awesome for its size and specs. It gets a bit muddy in the treble and isn't going to be as distinct as listening through a good pair of earbuds, but it can definitely fill a small room. My wife has already found happiness using the X-Mini II connected to her iPhone while playing Plants vs. Zombies in bed (it's what we do) -a big improvement over the built-in speakers! And for the iPod Touch's even weaker built-in speakers, I have a comparison at the end of the video so you can get an idea of the contrast.

My suggestion for the X-Mini III would be to have a longer USB charging cable, because I've ended up in situations where the audio cable was sufficiently long but the USB one wasn't... without an extension. Also, I don't know how feasible it'd be to have the X-Mini also function as an USB audio interface with a mini sound chip inside, but this could be useful in cases where your stereo miniplug output is fairly noisy.

Thanks very much to Arthur of Satechi for contacting me personally and asking if everything was cool, that kind of customer rapport rocks.

EDIT: I neglected to show in the video that you can twist the X-Mini II and extend it accordion-like so it produces even bigger bass! This is very impressive.

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I bought this and the iHome rechargeable mini-speaker at the same time. The iHome mini-speaker is much louder, but the sound quality of the X-Mini II is better for music, at least in my opinion. You get more of the high and low tones with the X-Mini II, and I am surprised that it does not have a tinny sound. The iHome speaker is good for movies or if you need a loud but small speaker for parties. The X-Mini II is slightly larger than the iHome speaker, but not much. I recommend the X-Mini II for listening to music, and it works really well with my netbook or with an mp3 player.