Harman Kardon’s new Bluetooth speaker has a classic HK design that takes me right back to 2005 – but with a very modern speaker setup

  • 160W Bluetooth speaker with an iconic design
  • Integrated customizable lighting that moves with the music
  • Roughly $300 / £230 / AU$464 before taxes and tariffs

Harman Kardon has unveiled its new Aura Studio 5 wireless Bluetooth speaker in Japan.

Like all of the Aura Studio speakers its transparent dome takes me right back to the Harman Kardon SoundSticks that graced so many Apple Mac owners’ desktops from the aughts onwards – speakers so iconic that they’re in the New York Museum of Modern Art – but this is very much a speaker for today with up-to-date Bluetooth, integrated lighting and a powerful amp.

Harman Kardon Aura Studio 5, on top of a sideboard, emitting purple light onto the walls

(Image credit: Harman Kardon)

Harman Kardon Aura Studio 5: key features and pricing

The new generation of Aura Studio speaker comes with built-in lights to light up your room, and there are five pre-set nature themes – campfire, cherry blossoms, galaxy, harvest and ripples – that you can customize via the companion app. The app also enables you to change the EQ, pair two speakers together and keep the firmware up to date.

The speaker is designed to produce a 360-degree sound field from its 25mm tweeter, six 40mm mid-range drivers around the outside for 360-degree sound, a 143mm subwoofer and 160W amplification, and it delivers a frequency range of 45Hz to 20kHz. Harman says its Constant Sound Field technology delivers consistent audio throughout your room irrespective of where you’re sitting.

Bluetooth is 5.4 and there’s a wired 3.5mm aux input for other audio sources.

So far this is a Japan-only release, with a price tag of 46,200 yen (roughly $300 / £230 / AU$464 before taxes and tariffs). The current model, the Aura Studio 4 is $299 / £279 / AU$399, so similar pricing is likely when the model launches elsewhere.

Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!

And of course you can also follow TechRadar on TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form, and get regular updates from us on WhatsApp too.

Read more @ TechRadar

Latest posts

Samsung launches ‘Galaxy Card’ credit card

Samsung has announced its new credit card, the “Galaxy Card,” which offers up to 5% cashback on Galaxy device purchases. Read more @ 9to5google

SpaceX in your index fund, explained

AUUUUUGH | Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge, Getty Images Index funds are touted as one of the safest ways to invest. Rather than picking...

The Odyssey turned me into an IMAX believer

After seeing Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey for the first time early last week, I came away impressed, but somewhat conflicted about two of the...

The FCC is planning to retroactively ban disguised DJI gadgets

The Skyrover X1 vs the DJI Mini 4 Pro. | Image: AirPhotography Last October, we told you how the FCC had given itself the power...

Here are the 30,000 songs Sony is suing Udio’s AI music generator over

Sony Music Entertainment has filed another lawsuit against Udio, accusing the AI music generator of infringing the copyright of more than 30,000 of its...

Samsung is betting big that you’ll want the wide Galaxy Z Fold 8, report details

A new report reveals Samsung’s plans for the Galaxy Z Fold 8 series and the Galaxy Z Flip 8, with the company betting big...

Snapseed Camera adds geotags & saving originals on Android

Another update for the Snapseed Camera on Android this month introduces location metadata and support for saving the original image. Read more @ 9to5google

The Sideload 039: Digital landscaping

Welcome to episode 39 of The Sideload, a 9to5Google podcast. This week, Will is joined by Chris Wedel of Gadgets & Gravel to discuss the modern...

Google Photos toggle lets you switch between classic search & Ask Photos

Google Photos has rolled out a “classic search” toggle for Ask Photos that delivers a big quality-of-life improvement. Read more @ 9to5google

Adobe’s ‘natural look’ camera app embraces generative AI

Welcome to the “what is a photo” debate, Adobe. | Image: Adobe Adobe's experimental camera app has taken an unexpected turn. After Project Indigo was...