Geek Review: Elysium Iron Mini Bluetooth Speaker

When thinking about compact Bluetooth speakers, a common question would be “what would I do with it?” For me, that turned out to be trying it out all over my house.

So when I unboxed the Elysium Iron Mini by lofree, the first thing I did with it was to take it into my backyard to play some music while I hung up my laundry. After that, I put it next to my sink to blast tunes while doing the dishes.

The next morning, I put it next to the Christmas tree and pumped out Christmas tunes while my kids danced around.

All of this on a single charge!

Design

The first thing you’ll notice about the Elysium Iron Mini is how much it looks like a vintage toaster, and I say this in the best possible way. It’s probably supposed to look like a vintage radio, but once you make the toaster connection it’s something that can’t be unseen.

The contours and grill are really pretty, and the bright red version I have just stands out so nicely in most places I’ve put it.

On top of the speaker are four large buttons: Power, Mode, Volume up and Volume down. This is definitely enough to make full use of this speaker, though I definitely wouldn’t mind if they also included two additional buttons to hop around your track list.

Next to the buttons is a little lamp that tells you what mode it’s on, based on the color. A blue light indicates that it’s in Bluetooth mode, naturally.

Next to this lamp is a fat knob that looks like a volume knob, but actually tunes the radio.

Along the front is a tiny strip to help you tune the radio function, and also has a tiny indicator that lights up when you’re charging the unit.

Behind the unit is a gigantic subwoofer and ports for you to plug in a micro-USB charging cable and the 3.5mm auxiliary input.

My unit also came with a leather strap that can be attached to either side of the speaker. It’s unlikely that I’ll use it though.

All in all, a very functional and attractive design that looks good anywhere in your home.

As portable and sturdy as it is, I just don’t see myself taking this out of my home much. Maybe to a picnic, but definitely not to annoying the crap out of other people with my taste in music at McDonald’s or on the bus.

Sound

I wasn’t expecting much from the sound, to be honest. I expected it to be louder than the speakers on my phone, but I wouldn’t have complained if the sound was a bit tinny like in movies when they slap on a high pass filter to signify that the characters are listening to a radio.

But wow was I blown away! I don’t know if it’s the giant subwoofer on the back or what, but the sound on this thing is rich and full-bodied, like my sleazy ex-boss.

Remember how I was doing laundry with this thing? Well, I was listening to Ludacris and my wife walks in and asks “Why does our yard sound like the ‘hood?”

The Iron Mini really does sound as good as it looks!

Battery life

The documentation says it can go for about 6 hours on a single charge. I haven’t put a stopwatch next to it or anything, but from the way we’ve been using it, 6 hours definitely sounds like a reasonable estimate.

Tl;dr

It’s fairly portable and it looks and sounds great! Do you need more music and atmosphere in your home? If so, get this. For the competitive price of S$89.90, it’s quite the deal!