Want to fill your hotel room with your favourite tunes? Mark Prigg gives a hearing to the new generation of portable speaker systems.

Music is a huge part of people’s lives and it’s rare to find a frequent flyer who doesn’t pack an iPod along with their laptop. But once at your hotel, listening to music can be a chore, unless you’ve invested in some decent travel speakers. The latest batch are a huge step forward and sound superb – not quite good enough to worry a decent living-room hifi but perfect to use in the bedroom or bathroom when you’re not off on a trip.

Key to choosing between speakers is the kind of player you use. For iPod addicts, a lot of these units have built-in docks, but tend to look a little ugly when used with any other player. Regular iPod users should also make sure the speaker has a USB port, as this will allow you to sync your MP3 without having to find any more cables, although the latest speakers can actually do without wires, instead streaming audio via Bluetooth from your phone or mobile.

Be prepared for some panic battery-buying – if you’re going to be using the speakers in a hotel room, most of the time it’s worth keeping them plugged in if you can. (Remember prices quoted here are the RRP but it pays to shop around…)

ILuv I552

£69
iworld.co.uk

With its boombox retro-styling, the iLuv certainly has a unique look. It’s a real love/hate design – you’ll either like it or loathe it. However, if you can bear to look past the tacky plastic exterior, this is actually a decent piece of kit.

There’s an LCD screen and, crucially, a built-in AM/FM radio, giving it a pretty strong advantage over most of its rivals (although the antenna does add to the childlike look of the design). The remote control is also a nice touch. Sound quality is fairly average, although the volume level is quite impressive, but it does struggle with classical music a little and subtle vocals don’t work that well either.

Overall, the iLuv isn’t really a speaker you’d want to take away on business trips, but for family holidays it may be the perfect thing to drown out the screaming kids around the pool.

Pros Useful features.
Cons Styling isn’t exactly subtle.

Bose Sound Dock Portable digital music system

£299
bose.com

Bose have always gone for the high end of the market and these £299 travel speakers are no exception. Although it’s quite tall and wide (175 x 307mm), from the front the Sound Dock is only 103mm deep, so is great for use in the kitchen or bedroom.

Its front is very slick, there’s a pop-out dock for iPod owners, and a carry handle at the back. However, it is a bit bulky, so you’d probably be better off describing it as luggable rather than portable.

Sound quality is, as you’d hope at this price, excellent. It’s very warm, fills the room well and bass reproduction is also impressive. Every type of music plays well, although there is a tendency for things to sound a little “fluffy” at times – something that affects all of the speakers here, but at £299 Bose has set the bar high.

For posing value, it’s tough to beat, but is really a home speaker rather than a travel one. However, if you have unlimited luggage space (and cash) it’s well worth listening to.

Pros Good quality sound, slick design.
Cons Not that portable and overpriced.

Altec IM500

£79
currys.co.uk

Altec has built a name for itself with a range of decent music accessories, and the IM500s are its most stylish speakers yet. Measuring 215 x 17 x 128mm when folded, the speakers are thin enough to fit easily into any suitcase. Power is supplied by a mains adaptor or 6AA batteries, which should provide around eight hours of play-time.

The speakers are easy to use – pressing a button on the front flips out the base and a dock for your Nano. (If you don’t have a Nano there’s an input on the back for other types of player, although this set-up looks a little ugly.)

Despite the tiny size, sound quality is good. The speakers are a little lacking in bass, but overall more than good enough for smaller rooms. While dance music fans might be a tad disappointed, we found classical music and vocals sounded very impressive.

The slender dimensions also make the IM500 very portable, and there’s even a USB port, so you can sync your iPod and charge it without having to mess around with more cables.

Pros Extremely portable, slick looks.
Cons Works best with iPod Nanos.

Soundtraveller K300ST

£65
amazon.co.uk

The box-shaped K300ST isn’t the most stylish speaker unit here, but it is possibly the most useful as you really can take it anywhere.

With a surprising six watts of power, the unit (measuring 123.6 x 48.6 x 48mm) also scores well in the sound-quality department, although there is a noticeable lack of bass, and because of its size there is no stereo separation either. However, we found that, as long as you don’t expect to be listening to your drum and bass collection on the road, these do a pretty decent job of filling smaller hotel rooms.

The controls are all on the back of the unit, which is a little awkward, but as they are so small it doesn’t really matter. On the back, there’s a slider power switch and rubber volume buttons. The top has an iPod connector dock, with a standard 3.5mm headphone socket on the back for other players.

Power comes from either 2AA batteries, a mains adaptor or a USB port, so you can simply plug it into your laptop. There is a certain minimalist charm to the speaker and we were actually surprised by how good it sounds, although the volume (2 x 18 watts) is very low. But if space is an issue when you pack, it’s a very good buy for iPod owners.

Pros Excellent sound quality and extremely portable.
Cons Sound doesn’t fill a large room.

Creative Playdock I500

£100
creative.com

Creative has really become a leading force in the speaker market, reflected in the fact it has two models reviewed here. The i500, aimed squarely at iPod owners, is its more traditional speaker. It’s a chunky 36 x 17 x 16cm and can be powered either by a mains adaptor or batteries. The iPod slips into a cradle on the front of the device, and it has to be said that this is one of the better-looking designs on the market. There’s also a supplied remote. Sound quality is very good, and for a travel speaker, the bass is unusually pleasing. However, the audio quality does come at a price – it is definitely not the smallest unit out there, and does take up a fair bit of room in your bag. For use at home, in the garden or the occasional trip abroad, it is well worth a look (although, once again, it is only really for iPod owners).

Pros The speaker provides a rich, full sound.
Cons The design is a little on the chunky side

GEAR4 StreetParty Size Zero

£49
gear4store.com

Looking not unlike the IM500 speakers (ie very thin), the StreetParty is a very portable solution that’s stylish to boot. Its base and iPod dock flip out, and there’s even a remote control supplied for the really lazy, which is actually pretty useful as it lets you change tracks on the iPod as well as control the volume.

At just 16mm thick, it’s easy to see why this is called the “size zero” of speakers, and with a weight of only 300g it’s unlikely you’ll even notice it in your suitcase. However, it still packs a six-watt punch from its twin tweeters and three watts courtesy of the twin low-resonance drivers. Sound quality is very good considering the size, and it makes a pretty reasonable job of all types of music although, as with all travel speakers, the smaller the room the better – don’t expect to stick this in your living room and be wowed.

It’s also got a USB port to charge and sync your iPod, as well as a handy carrycase. To sum up, for the style-conscious this is a very good all-rounder, although be warned, it doesn’t work with the Apple iPhone.

Pros Thin and easy to pack.
Cons Lacking bass.

Creative Pure-Fi mobile

£100
logitech.com

The Pure-Fi is Creative’s latest attempt at high-end travel speakers and also doubles as a Bluetooth speakerphone.

The latest batch of music-enabled mobile phones can now send out music over Bluetooth, meaning that once you’ve paired this slick-looking speaker up with your mobile, you can use the handset to control the music. It’s actually a surprisingly useful feature, although we did find that music quality suffers slightly, with the odd pop and hiss coming in, but that’s easy enough to rectify by simply plugging your player in via the normal headphone socket. When a call comes in, the music fades and you can use the speaker as a hands-free kit thanks to the built-in mic.

Sound quality is excellent, with strong bass and clear vocals. The wide, short shape also makes it very portable. The unit charges via USB, and when you’ve got the lead plugged into your laptop you can play audio through the speakers without the need for more cables – an excellent touch.

The Pure-Fi Mobile is hugely impressive. It is definitely a contender for anyone who uses their mobile for music and a good option for laptop users.

Pros Every feature you could possibly want.
Cons Thin size makes it easy to knock over

GEAR4 Duo

£149
gear4store.com

The Gear4 Duo is, at first glance, an excellent idea. It is effectively two speakers in one – there is a larger speaker with a sub-woofer that, when plugged into the mains, is a very good performer with hearty bass. However, the party trick up its sleeve is that the front grill unclips to become a set of small travel speakers.

The sound quality from the (rather chunky) travel speakers is good, but far from excellent – it’s almost unfortunate that the sub-woofer packs such a punch, as from a distance music sounds a little tinny. There’s also an incredibly annoying buzz at low levels, although once you turn up the volume it does get drowned out.

There’s an iPod dock on the front and a jack for other types of players on the back. The rechargeable batteries are a good touch, although we found the travel speakers’ stand a little fiddly. Overall, the Duo works well as a set of bedroom speakers you can unclip to use for the odd trip.

Pros Combination of travel and home speakers.
Cons Not the smallest unit here in travel mode.

JBL On stage II

£99
jbl.com

JBL’s doughnut-shaped On Stage is unique in this test as it’s the only set of speakers that doesn’t run off batteries, so you’ll always need to be near a power socket. However, this doesn’t actually create many problems, and the unit’s small size means it, along with its small power adaptor, will easily fit in your suitcase. In fact, the only problem we found is that you can’t really use it as a bathroom speaker, at least not without unwisely trailing power cables across the floor.

The reason the On Stage is included here is also down to its incredible sound quality. The problem with many travel speakers is the tinny, bassless sound a lot of them produce. The On Stage, however, has none of these pitfalls, sounding rich and full. The only problem comes when it’s played at high volume, where things tend to become a bit distorted, so if you’re planning a lot of parties in your hotel room, this might not be for you.

It can cope with a wide range of music, although we found that vocals and classical music sounded best. Overall, while it may take up a little more space than some of the other speakers here, the JBL On Stage II is a good bet if sound quality is your key concern.

Pros Great performance.
Cons Needs a power supply.

Mark Prigg is the Science and Technology Correspondent of the London Evening Standard.