A few days ago Anker sent us Soundcore Icon Mini, one of the novelties of 2019 which, at the time of writing, is labeled as “Coming Soon” even on the official website. In fact, the company showed it for the first time at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas and plans to launch it on the market in the coming weeks.
With this model, Anker has completely changed approach starting from the packaging, no longer an inexpensive and recyclable cardboard box but a transparent semi-rigid plastic packaging rather uncomfortable to unpack which nevertheless offers a complete preview of the product especially when it will come. displayed between the shelves.
For the first time the company has gone even a little further, abandoning the canonical black and white colors for a moment, improvising a successful fluorescent orange that gives character and freshness to the product. But the real revolution lies in the audio quality: Anker Soundcore Icon Mini is a gem that literally takes the first listener by surprise thanks to its high power and clarity of sound in relation to its very compact size.
As did
Anker Soundcore Icon Mini is practically in one hand (specifically it measures 9.5 x 7.5 x 3.5 centimeters and weighs just over 200 grams) and thanks to its strongly rounded design it grips well and is also pleasant to touch. The entire external shell is made of sturdy polycarbonate covered with a thin anti-fingerprint rubber coating with the exception of the perforated cover that protects the drivers, in cold metal painted in a slightly darker orange on which the Soundcore logo is centrally printed in white.
It looks like a stone or a practical paperweight, an operation that comes naturally to it also thanks to the four rubber micro-feet on the bottom that reduce the contact surface while ensuring high stability when placed on a surface.
All the controls are located on the upper edge, where we find the On / Off, Bluetooth, +, – buttons and the Play / Pause button marked by the respective symbols in relief. On the right edge, however, well protected by a thick rubber cap, we find the microUSB ports for recharging the internal battery and the 3.5 mm audio jack socket. At the corner that joins the two areas there is a large hole to which we find the wrist strap already attached, also in orange light.
What emerges from this product is an even greater care: Anker has always distinguished itself from its competitors for its high attention to detail, not only in terms of materials but also for design. Anker Soundcore Icon Mini is both an evolution and a perfect combination of these two features, which result in a speaker that is not only functional but also and above all beautiful to look at, to use and to hold.
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How is it going
If it is true that what is beautiful is not beautiful but only what is liked, then Anker Soundcore Icon Mini is beautiful because they like to use it to listen to their music. The audio quality is superb in our judgment – we have never heard our favorite tunes so well on a speaker of this size. We had already appreciated the company's many years of experience in this sector with the review of Anker Soundcore Model Zero, a speaker that can easily also be a real stereo for the living room: here with Icon Mini the system proves to be equally mature and capable of surprising even a handful of drivers.
Probably an accomplice of the excellent performance is also given by the positioning of the speaker: it is not a speaker to be placed in front of the listener but must be placed on a table or on the floor and the drivers will be facing upwards only. This allows the sound to be spread in the air with greater three-dimensionality and the result is a music that envelops and reaches everyone's ears.
The overall quality is really excellent, with a high fidelity in the reproduction of the whole sound spectrum. The bass is there and appears balanced with any piece of music. It is a speaker that pumps when needed – even if there are no dedicated speakers or passive radiators to give the boost – and that makes the highs ring without ever distorting, even at maximum volume. Listening to classical music pieces such as Vivaldi's flute concerto is a pleasure for the little guy and does not make you regret even a more powerful stereo, especially when its use is on the move.
The wrist strap is specially made to be able to hang it on the strap of a backpack and use it to let the whole family listen to music during a walk in the mountains, but the highest quality is obtained only when it is placed on the ground or on a table: that's where it has to be because you just need to direct it or cover it even partially with one hand and the sound changes (and the magic is lost).
Conclusions
Anker Soundcore Icon Mini is an indispensable companion of adventures: according to our tests, with a single charge it can play loud, clear and clean for more than 7 consecutive hours which become even more than 8 if it is connected via jack cable to the audio source. The user manual tells us another useful information: it is IPX67 certified, so it is completely resistant to dust and short immersions in water, ideal for taking it without worries on a holiday by the sea, in the pool or in the snow.
According to what was declared by the company at CES 2019, it will arrive on the market in the spring and will cost around 30 dollars, presumably 30.99 euros for the Italian market. We will not fail to update the review with the purchase link as soon as it becomes available.
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