INTRODUCTION

   Almost a week ago we spoke about the summer period and how it was just around the corner but we were actually a bit off and so while taking a stroll at the beach this morning to clear my head not only did i see many people there as well but most of them weren't there to take a stroll like me (some obviously did) but actually swim and play volley and rackets while listening to music. To my surprise however most people used just the speakers from their smartphones to do that while only a couple did actually use wired portable speakers and not wireless ones. Things got even worse when i realized that i knew one of the people there so when i asked why he was using his iPhone to play to music without an extra speaker he wasn't actually aware about the existence of Bluetooth portable speakers. Now i don't know if this has to do with the job description people have (he happens to be a doctor) but portable Bluetooth speakers have been around for many years so that's not an answer i would expect from anyone. Anyways that's also a reason as to why we will be releasing our portable Bluetooth speaker related reviews a bit faster than we had initially planned and so today we present the latest arion portable bluetooth speaker by Eagle Tech.

   Eagle Tech is a manufacturer of innovative and high quality audio products. We take pride in providing audio products that help people enjoy a better experience in the digital world by applying our expertise, technology, efficiency and outstanding craftsmanship. Eagle Tech started in 1993 with computer power supplies and accessories. We have over 17 years of experience in supplying high quality computer components to major OEM clients. Since those days we have expanded our product portfolio to include PC peripherals such as our award-winning portable external hard drives with luxurious design and build quality. In recent years, Eagle Tech has expanded beyond hardcore computer DIY market to bring innovative and high quality audio products to the general consumer.

   Although I’ve known of Eagle Tech for the past 4 years i never had the chance to test their products since they are an USA based manufacturer with virtually no presence inside the EU (to date that is). Luckily things have now changed for the better and so the very first product we chose to test from their entire product line is the arion portable Bluetooth speaker (ET-AR101BP) featuring Bluetooth 3.0 compatibility, two 35mm drivers (3W each/2WRMS total) and a passive subwoofer for rich and crisp audio along with an built-in noise-cancelling microphone for hands-free calls and a rechargeable lithium ION battery that gives it up to 6 hours of autonomy. My only concern was with the audio clarity of the speaker since till that moment i wasn't really familiar with products manufactured by Eagle Tech and so naturally i wasn't sure of what to expect but during the one week of testing it became evident that i really had no reason to worry.

 SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

The box inside which Eagle Tech packs the arion portable Bluetooth speaker is very small and has just a product picture at the front along with the iPad/iPhone/Bluetooth logos.

On both sides Eagle Tech lists the main features of the speaker.

At the rear of the box we see a few words about the product along with the specifications list and the Eagle Tech logo.

The arion portable Bluetooth speaker is placed inside a formed piece of cardboard while the rest of the bundle is placed right beneath it.

Aside the arion portable Bluetooth speaker you are also getting an micro-USB charging cable, 3.5mm mini jack cable and a manual.

THE ARION PORTABLE BLUETOOTH SPEAKER

The arion is made by hard plastic/metal and is one of the most compact Bluetooth portable speakers we've tested to date measuring just 141mm in length, 37mm in width and 64mm in height while weighing a total of 235g.

The metal grille placed on all four sides is not straight/even but has a triangular design that looks really nice.

At the top of the speaker we see the product line name (arion), activity LEDs (orange/blue), next/previous track buttons, volume increase/decrease buttons and the play/pause/answer/hang up call button.

The 3.5mm audio port, micro-USB port and the On/Off/Pairing switch are placed at the rear right.

The base of the speaker has 4 small round rubber feet and a sticker with its electrical specifications and power output.

To pair the speaker you just need to push the on/off switch downwards all the way and as you can see the device appears as AR101BP.

CONCLUSION

   The very first thing you will notice once you power up the arion Bluetooth portable speaker and start using it is the rather high volume levels (thanks to the 6W total output of the two drivers) which is something we haven't seen even from portable speakers twice its size. What really impressed all of us here however is the audio clarity (highs/mids) even when using the speaker with the volume maxed out. Of course if you max the volume on both the speaker and your smartphone or tablet (or anything that can be used with it) you will most certainly notice the lack of bass which is actually not as bad as it sounds since only the Jabra SOLEMATE really makes a difference in bass (slight but it does). The battery also lasts quite a bit and after 3 full charges we managed to get slightly over 6 hours of playback at almost maximum volume which is even better than the 6 hours Eagle Tech claims (especially since companies usually test their portable speakers at mid volume levels). Using the built-in noise-cancelling microphone to make/answer calls worked but not as good as we had hoped it would but that's not something new when it comes to portable speakers. We did notice two rather strange things however the entire week we were testing the arion. First of all when you turn the device off a female voice says Power Off, however when you turn it on you only get a short intro sound (we would like a Power On instead). Also when scrolling to choose the song we wanted to listen to the speaker made sounds something which we've never encountered in the past. True both things are not really significant enough to interfere with the use of the speaker nor do they matter much but they did strike us as a bit odd so we wanted to point them out to you.

   Most Bluetooth portable speakers with similar volume levels as the arion portable Bluetooth speaker (ET-AR101BP) have price tags which are usually set quite high so i was pleased to see that currently you can purchase it at USD66.38 inside the USA (Amazon). Unfortunately i was unable to track it down inside the EU at least not with an acceptable price tag so it's safe to say that currently EU consumers have no choice but to purchase it directly from USA based online stores. So if you are out to buy a Bluetooth portable speaker and you want lots of volume without compromising audio clarity and obviously without spending much in the process then the arion portable Bluetooth speaker by Eagle Tech is certainly worth a shot and that's why we give it our Golden Award.

PROS

- Build Quality
- Design
- Audio Quality
- Volume Level
- 3.5mm Output
- Speakerphone
- Battery Life
- Price 

CONS

- Lack Of Bass At High Volume Levels
- Sounds While Connected But Not Playing
- EU Availability