Luxa2 GroovyW Blueooth Speaker w/Wireless Charging

Product: Luxa² GroovyW Bluetooth Speaker w/Wireless Charging
Provided By: Luxa²
Price: ~$120 MSRP at time of publication

Introduction:

When it comes to music there are many genres with different beats and rhythm that we hear every day. I have reviewed a few audio products in the past and I hadn’t intended on taking on other review until I saw the GroovyW from Luxa². This is a Bluetooth speaker that I really wanted to try out. I'm a gadget junky, so I spoke up quick and snagged this unit.

Luxa² is a division of Thermaltake and we’ve met with both of these companies at CES for a few years. Luxa² is geared toward mobile products and other consumer electronics accessories. This Taiwanese based design and manufacturing company was started in 2009 and now has offices in the USA, China, Australia and Germany. Their goal is to create the best user experience with all of their products by keeping things simple, unique and by offering a "luxury lifestyle for everyone."

When I received the GroovyW, I thought this is a very unique twist on a Bluetooth speaker. While the color is nothing special – black and silver, what is more than a little special is the Qi wireless charging capability of it and the base that comes with the speaker itself. It also comes with an App called the "Groovy Audio Center". We won't get too much into the application, but if you want to tweak the sound coming out of the GroovyW, this is how you'll do it.

First Look:

As I opened the box I could immediately tell that I was dealing with a product from a company that cares. The box and packaging was well done and it got my hopes up right off the bat. Inside was the GroovyW Speaker along with the charging dock, a USB cable, a 1/8-inch cable for connecting a non-Bluetooth device, instructions and a nice leather-ish travel bag to put everything in when you're on the road. The bag is a little on the small side but works well enough to protect the GroovyW as it is very portable. It looks like it should be a great little speaker that won't take up a lot of room.

The GroovyW has a Micro USB port on the back of the speaker as well as the power button and a line in jack. On the charging dock we find a pair of USB ports - both for charging devices (the charging dock is also a portable battery). The speaker controls are touch-sensitive and include play/pause buttons as well as volume controls. Adorning the top are some indicators for Bluetooth, NFC as well as a phone call icon and lastly the tiny hole for the built-in microphone. There is quite a bit of functionality and this is currently the top-end speaker of the Luxa² line. This is their only speaker that supports wireless charging at that's one of the reasons it caught my eye. We've reviewed a few Bluetooth speakers over the years, but nothing quite like this has come our way.

On the next page we'll take a look at some of the features and specifications before we continue.

Features:

All Environment Multi-functional Speakerphone Capability
The GroovyW’s multi-functional ability holds no bounds as the in-built microphone turns your musical playing genius into a speakerphone for hands free use during that all important call, and to ultimately create an overall safer and hassle free experience for the user.

There are more features packed into this little unit, so make sure you check out the product page for all those details.

Specifications:

On the next page we'll continue with installation and testing.

Installation:

There are a lot of things that require lengthy installation. Thankfully the GroovyW is a snap to install. If you want to customize the sound, you can download and install the app, but after your device is paired, you're pretty much good to go. Thankfully, the GroovyW is ready to go a lot faster than it takes to set up a new remote for your TV. This App is only available for Android, so if you're an Apple user, you'll have to do without sound tweaking by this application.

Testing:

When it comes down to playing with things at BCCHardware, I sometimes forget it's called testing! As I've previously mentioned, the GroovyW connected to your device via Bluetooth and pairing is super simple. Once you turn on and pair both devices the Bluetooth indicator lights up so you know you are connected. The Near Field Communication feature enables playback from your phone when it is near the speaker and stops playback when it is taken away. That's pretty nifty, although I had some trouble getting it to work properly all the time. With NFC enabled, when you place your phone on the GroovyW, Google Play Music fired up and I didn't even have to unlock my phone. That is very cool stuff!

The GroovyW makes noise, lights up and even talks to you on startup. It also uses voice feedback to let you know if your Bluetooth is in pairing mode and connected. You can charge the speaker wirelessly through the Qi Wireless charging dock, but if the speaker is dead, you won't be able to charge with this method and play it at the same time. The charge dock is a battery that requires charging and this battery charges the battery inside the GroovyW and with the wireless charging factor not being as efficient, you'll have to make sure to keep things from going dead - or you'll be without music for a while.

I usually plugged in the charging dock by a USB wall plug. At any time, you can charge your Qi capable Nexus 5 (or other compatible device simply by laying it on the charging dock. If you want to charge any other USB chargeable device, you can plug in the cable to the base of the GroovyW and your phone, media player or tablet will charge from the battery.

Good sound is important, and the Luxa² GroovyW has pretty good speakers and sounds very good. I played a variety of music from the classical Zelda soundtrack to some harder rock from Skillet and Thousand Foot Krutch. The sound level is nice and loud and you can adjust the volume with your phone or the speaker. As far as range goes, I was able to carry my phone with me upstairs and into other rooms and the device stayed connected without a hitch. While you can plug in with a cable, I like using the Bluetooth connection much more as you're not tether to any cables and you don't have to get up to change the song. This is great if you're sick (or just sick of getting out of bed) and want to play some tunes without getting out of bed.

As I mentioned earlier, the GroovyW comes with an App called the Groovy Audio Center. The App is optional of course, but if you want to play around with different equalizer settings, you’ll need it. The app has some presents for different types of music. Keep in mind that it won't work on music played in other applications such as Google Play Music, and it will only work for music played from the App itself.

On the last page, we'll wrap up a few final thoughts in our conclusion.

Conclusion:

As we close out our mini rock concert that is the review of the GroovyW from Luxa² we have a few quick points to mention. We never did a rugged "drop test" on the GroovyW, and we're not going to. Now that is out of the way, I would like to mention that while the GroovyW probably won't survive a fall onto the sidewalk, it does feel like a quality product. It doesn't feel cheap at all and I’m pretty impressed with the overall build quality.

This speaker performed well, sounded great and was not "tinny" like some speakers I've used in the past. You generally get what you pay for and the GroovyW performed like it should. Both NFC and Bluetooth connectivity is cool and while I couldn't always get NFC to work like I hoped, Bluetooth was rock solid. I also love the fact that you can charge the speaker or your phone wirelessly! If you're phone is connected to the GroovyW and you get a call, the music will stop play and you can chat though the speaker; much like a Bluetooth headset.

When it comes to price, the GroovyW has an MSRP of $120 currently. This is a great deal for what you get. You get a portable battery with built-in Qi Wireless charging, a speaker that boasts NFC and Bluetooth as well as a few accessories to round out the package. The sound is great and the GroovyW delivers on what they claim. I don't think you can get much better than this for the money. If you want a good portable speaker, make sure you check out the GroovyW. I give it a solid 9/10.

• Wireless/wired charging
• Bluetooth
• Charges your phone by Qi
• Easy Touch Buttons
• App for EQ adjustments
• Nice and portable
• Good price

• NFC didn’t always work
• Can’t charge a dead battery and play wirelessly at the same time
• Beeps every few seconds when it’s almost done charging

I'd like to thank Luxa² for sending the GroovyW our way for a review. If you have any question, comments or feedback regarding this review, please be sure to post it in the forum at the link below.