Generally speaking, Bluetooth speakers are known for their wireless Bluetooth-pairing capabilities, and usually, that’s about all. Some Bluetooth speakers are designed for indoor play and can’t weather the elements outdoors. Others are built for all environments and conditions.
A new speaker aims to bring not only the Bluetooth-pairing for mobile device audio and element-resistance but also a little something extra for your home. The Eecoo Flame Atmosphere Speaker gives you great audio, element-resistance, durability, and a flickering flame for an affordable price.
Build Quality
The Eecoo Flame Atmosphere Speaker is made of strong and sturdy plastic, as I found it to be reliable when letting my little cousins, niece, and nephew play with it. The speaker can “take a lickin’ and keep on tickin’” with its sturdy frame. In the case of accidental drops (courtesy of my niece and nephew), I found the flame speaker to be incredibly strong such that I haven’t seen a dent in the Eecoo device. The chrome accents appear to be stainless steel, though I’ll let you be the judge of that.
Apart from the immediate build quality, Eecoo has made the Flame Atmosphere Speaker IP65 water and dust resistant, which means that it’ll stand up to dust and jets of water but you may not want to dunk the speaker in major water environments (think river, lake, or ocean). Though it is called a Flame Atmosphere Speaker, it is also a Bluetooth speaker with a built-in battery. Batteries and water don’t mix.
The bottom of the Eecoo Flame Atmosphere Bluetooth Speaker features a hole where you can mount the device by adding a tripod. Up top, you have all your controls for the device: a flame button in the top center that lets you turn the flame inside the speaker candle on and off, a power button above that, with volume up and volume down buttons to the left and right and a “skip track” control to the opposite side of the flame button.
The portion of the Flame Atmosphere Speaker that houses the candle (from which the 96 LED lights create the flame effect) comes with a criss-cross design. The device looks like a canteen shape, though some may identify it as having an easter egg design. On the side of the device is the micro-USB charging port. The Flame Atmosphere Speaker comes with a micro-USB cable, so no USB Type-C charging compatibility here.
Performance
I’ve found the Eecoo Flame Atmosphere Speaker to be a great device to use when it comes to a number of things. First, the portability is good, and it doesn’t seem to be too heavy in hand (though I think it’s slightly heavier than what I’d want to carry on a daily basis – taller, too).
The controls at the top of the speaker are red when you plug the device into a computer or wall outlet and simply turn off when the device is fully charged. There is no “green light” to let you know the device is charged.
Next, the flame is a huge win for this Bluetooth speaker. The Eecoo Flame Atmosphere Speaker brings a flame that you can use as a lampstand light at night to read a book, watch a movie, or set a relaxed mood. Having used the speaker during an arctic blast weather wave here in my state, it gave me some extra warmth that I needed.
Flame
There’s something you need to know about the flame: it isn’t an actual flame, but is instead an array of 96 circular LED lights that spark when active. I’ve discovered that the flame is an attractive feature not only for adults but also for children: my 4-year-old niece and especially my 2-year-old nephew enjoyed watching the flame light up. Seeing my nephew’s surprise that the flame didn’t burn him was my favorite moment with the Eecoo Flame Atmosphere Speaker.
While my nephew enjoyed playing with it and pressing the flame button on and off, my grandmother thought it was a real flame. I couldn’t convince her otherwise; it’s just that real to the naked eye from a distance. You can see the LED lights up close when the flame is active, but you can’t tell at a distance.
Bluetooth Speaker
The Bluetooth speaker isn’t designed to work alone, so it needs a pairing device. I paired the Eecoo Flame Atmosphere Bluetooth Speaker to my Samsung Chromebook Plus, and the devices were paired in less than 10 seconds. The setup was easy. If you’re wondering, yes – you can play music via the Bluetooth speaker and activate the flame simultaneously.
Sound quality on the Bluetooth speaker is excellent; so excellent that, even with the TV turned up loudly (I have hearing-impaired relatives, so I’d know), I could still hear the audio clearly on its Bluetooth 4.2 driver. You’ll need to long press the volume up and down buttons to adjust the sound. If you tap the volume buttons like you tap the flame button, the sound won’t rise or fall. It works counter-intuitive to the flame button, so you can’t say you haven’t been warned.
Battery is a Beast
The Eecoo Flame Atmosphere Speaker features a 2,000mA lithium battery, and the battery is one of the finest features of the device. Using the speaker on a daily basis, I found that it could go a full two days with constant flame before I had to place it back on the charger. Rest assured that the Eecoo Flame Atmosphere Speaker has enough battery to “go the distance.” Once the battery dies, though, you’ll need about 4.5 hours to go from empty to full, so keep that in mind. You may not like the charging time, but the longevity of the battery is a plus.
Value
The Eecoo Flame Atmosphere Speaker is priced at $59.99 at Amazon, and the price and features make it a sufficient value. Most Bluetooth speakers come with nothing more than a battery and Bluetooth capabilities, but the Eecoo speaker comes with a flame that gives the device a “homely” feel when used indoors and a campfire atmosphere when used outdoors. The device is IP65 water and dust resistant so that you can use it outdoors in the rain (though the speaker does have its water-resistant limits), which makes it weather-proof to some extent.
When discussing the benefits of the Flame Atmosphere Speaker, one cannot forget the durability, as it can withstand falls, bumps, and drops because of its durable plastic and stainless steel construction. What this means is that the Eecoo Flame Atmosphere Speaker can handle the elements without worry.
When you add all this up, alongside of the Flame Atmosphere Speaker’s strong battery life, you have a device that’s worth the money.
Suggestions for the Future
While the Eecoo Flame Atmosphere Speaker has much to commend it, I believe that every product can get better. So with that said, I have a few suggestions for Eecoo I’d like to see with the next-generation Flame Atmosphere Speaker:
- The addition of a battery charging indicator for charging times and battery remaining (flame dies suddenly with no indication of 5% battery left, for example).
- Add USB Type-C charging compatibility (current speaker only charges via micro-USB).
- A smartphone/tablet app for the Flame Atmosphere Speaker that lets you adjust LED light colors, add a customizable flame theme (for holidays, special occasions, etc.), or adjust the treble and bass audio features.
- Different hardware colors (current unit color is black, needs other colors to match home decor) and shapes (easter egg, square, oblong, triangular, cylindrical, box).
Conclusion
First, let me say to conclude that the Eecoo Flame Atmosphere Speaker is what I call “the jack of all trades.” I’ve not ever tested a Bluetooth speaker with a flame before, but I find that I enjoy the flame on this one and hope to see others come out with their own Bluetooth speakers with the flame effect. I can only say it best through the words of my favorite old-school game NBA JAM: this speaker is on fiyah!
I think Eecoo could take its Flame Atmosphere Speaker and create a lineup akin to what Google has done with the Google Home Mini and Google Home Max, providing Bluetooth speakers with fashion that will appeal to more than the usual outdoorsy types. This Bluetooth Speaker is just the start.
Buy Eecoo’s Atmosphere Flame Lamp for $59.99 on Amazon.