BRAWNY vs BRAINY BLUETOOTH SPEAKERS

Soundtrack your summer's beach parties, barbecues, picnics and garden gatherings with a sturdy, sweet-sounding nomadic speaker

- Rebecca Roberts

BIG BLUETOOTH SPEAKERS

1 SONY SRS-XG500

If any portable Bluetooth speaker can do justice to Technotronic's 'Pump Up the Jam', it's this mind-blowingly powerful modern-day boombox. Prepped for party times, the punch-packing SRS-XG500 isn't only fun to listen to (especially in 'Mega Bass' mode) but also use, with lighting effects that synchronise with the music and even a microphone input for transforming it into a karaoke machine.

£299, sony.co.uk

2 SONOS MOVE 2

You may know Sonos for its smarty-pants streaming, but its Move Wi-Fi and Bluetooth speaker is both clever and resilient. Its bulky, rugged design impressively pumps out garden party volume levels, and compared to the original Move extends battery life to 24 hours, delivers a more convincing stereo sound and can handily charge your phone.

£449, sonos.​com

3 AUDIO PRO ADDON T3+

Recommended here for its superb sonics, firstclass 30-hour battery life, cute, Koala bear-like and (if you choose) colourful design - and not for its tasteful name, we promise - the Addon T3+ is a classy companion to soundtrack any outdoor gathering. Bluetooth tunes from your phone or take advantage of the speaker's 3.5mm aux input, and enjoy sweet sound.

£150, uk.audiopro.​com

4 ULTIMATE EARS EPICBOOM

The clue is in the name - the cool Californian brand delivers 'epic boom' from its latest outdoor speaker, capable of perking up picnics with its loud, 360-degree sound, not to mention scale-pushing 'Outdoor' and energising 'Bass Boost' modes. It looks and feels the part too thanks to a water-resistant mesh shell (it floats!) and practical carry handle.

£330, ultimateears.​com

SMALL BLUETOOTH SPEAKERS

1 TRIBIT STORMBOX MICRO 2