Marshall Emberton III Portable Bluetooth Waterproof Speaker - Black & Brass

Why it's worth it

The Emberton III packs a warm, room-filling sound into a case the size of a paperback, with a rated 32-plus hours of playtime and IP67 sealing. Tom's Guide measured it past 31 hours at moderate volume — unusual honesty in a category full of optimistic specs.

Battery life is the headline. Marshall rates it above 32 hours, and Tom's Guide recorded 31.5 hours at moderate volume — essentially matching the claim, which almost nothing in this category does. For camping, that means you charge it before the trip and never think about it again. Cold changes the math, though: Battery University notes lithium-ion capacity drops 20 to 30% below freezing.

It's the best-looking speaker here, and that's a legitimate reason to buy it. The guitar-amp styling with brass hardware means it doesn't look like a piece of gear when you bring it inside, so it lives on a bookshelf between trips instead of in a closet. A speaker you leave out is a speaker you use.

From our review of 8 waterproof outdoor bluetooth speakers, by Genevieve Dubois, Home & Living Expert

What we like

• +Battery life is the headline
• +It's the best-looking speaker here, and that's a legitimate reason to buy it
• +Marshall's True Stereophonic tuning spreads sound wider than the small cabinet suggests, and Dynamic Loudness adjusts the tonal…
• +At under a pound and a half it disappears into a backpack

What to know

• –It doesn't get very loud
• –There's no power bank, no aux input, and no multi-speaker ecosystem beyond pairing with other Marshall units
• –It's a rounded brick with no handle or strap