Customer Ratings & Reviews

Now this is genius. The sound from this speaker is unbelievable. I downloaded the app for it and was playing the drums, cymbals, etc. by tapping on the speaker in strategic places. You have the flashing strobe lights and colorful lighting that goes to the beat. It is dust proof and water proof. It truly is much more than just a wireless Bluetooth speaker. It is very unique and unbelievably entertaining. Since you can Bluetooth and synch these together with like Sony wireless speakers for surround sound..I have to buy another one.

Wasn’t as good as the speakers I already have it’s no match with Bose or Harmon kardin nice try Sony

The Sony SRS-XB31 speaker is incredible. I was really surprised with the sound quality. The sound is nice and clear. It is the perfect companion whenever you're in the mood for some music. The Sonzy SRS-XB31 is perfect for a small get-together. The speaker also has lights that play to the rhythm of the music. The app allows for more control of the audio, lights, etc. I would highly recommend the Sony SRS-XB31 speaker to anyone. This would make a great gift for a college/high school student.

This speaker,says on the box that it last's 24 hours. Not true it's less, but it's ok.not bad

it was not very loud and it seemed the display was louder and it took very long to charge

It could have just been the one I purchased. It is said to have 24 hrs battery life, but mine died a little over an hour at 70% charged. Needless to say, I returned it.

Sonos best system as able to connect to other devices unlike sony

I left this speaker in the box for about a year. I have only used it about a dozen times since and now it won’t hold a charge for more than approximately 20 minutes. It is out of warranty and I am VERY disappointed

Sony has impressed me with this speaker as my expectations weren't the highest. This portable has a great look, gets loud, great battery, and you can feel the quality. There wasn't much to really dislike, so it's going to come down to personal preference. In my opinion, its much better looking than some of the other outdoor/active speakers that have been around for a while. Pros: Loud Look and Design Functionality Battery Life Charging Port AUX Port "Daisy-Chain" Cons: Missing drop resistance Standard Bass App This speaker was designed with the outdoors in mind. It's perfect for the beach, camping, or your backyard. I've been very happy with the battery life since it's lasted me through an entire day outside (at high volume), and then some without having to recharge. It also includes a charging port so you can charge a device thru USB. I'm also glad they included the AUX port. Basically is has all the standard features you'd expect. What sets it apart from other speakers is the high quality look and feel. The speaker is heavy and feels good. It's IP67 rated, which is pretty good, but it will not stand up well to drops. That is an important feature for an outdoor speaker, but you lose the look and design with drop/damage resistant speakers. I was very happy with the loudness of the speaker. You can definitely jam out with a small crowd in most environments, but this speaker won't cover much more than the size of a small suburban backyard. The sound was good not great. It is balanced so that the bass does not wash out the mids and lows. The mids/lows don't distort even with loud sound. However, I'm not too happy with the bass. The bass lacked depth and punch. I've heard much better from other competitors, but this improved by using the EXTRA Bass feature within the app. In my opinion, the sound lost some balance with this feature, but overall it was a great improvement. Personally I am not a have of having to use an app to maximize the use of speakers, but it does allow more control over specific functions like the lights. The lights are definitely cool and sets this speaker a part. Lastly, you can connect multiple speakers together to expand your coverage. I recommend looking at this speaker if you're in the market for a portable/outdoor speaker. It has a good price point and will definitely compete with other similar speakers, but the choice will come down to personal preference.

I purchased this speaker and actually loved it at first but once I started to use it daily I would notice the volume would continuously lower on its own. I made sure the speaker was fully charged but after 15-20 minutes it would continue happening. I ended up returning this speaker after a few days.

Nowadays, bluetooth speakers are a dime a dozen. There are speakers that run the gamut from cheap to expensive and the quality is all over the place. This speaker is nice, I like the way it feels to hold it, it has cool lights and sounds pretty darned good. It isn't going to blow you out of your seat, but the sound is quality which is very important to me. There isn't a whole lot to say about this speaker as the market is flooded with them. There is a utility app you can download to control the settings of your speaker. You can't go wrong with this speaker.

Having tried several different mid tier bluetooth speakers in the past, I was not sure what this speaker could provide that would be different. It's clear with the first song that this is probably the next sounding speaker I have used. The bass is deeper than most speakers I have used and the rest of the sound spectrum is excellent. The device is well built and the lights on the device are a nice, fun touch.

The sony xb31 portable speaker is such a bang for your buck, It packs a lot of bass in such a small and compact portable size and gets very loud for such a compact and a speaker. The live sound is fantastic and the lights give it a lot of attitude

This has become my go to on the go speaker. This speaker is tough, durable and sounds great. A couple of things that this has that are different are the LED lighting, LED strobes, and the party booster function. The LED lights are self explanatory, the pulse with the music to give you a mini light show. The party booster is a custom function set up in the app that allows you to hit the sides, top, bottom and front of the speaker to create a variety of sounds. There’s a fairly large choice such as cowbell, bass drum, cymbals, snare and others. You customize which side makes what sound you want when you smack the speaker. It works well, the harder you smack it the louder it is. I can see the party booster as a feature that will get almost no use, it is kind of fun the first couple of times, but I mostly want to leave my speaker setting down somewhere while I listen to whatever it is I’m listening to. This speaker is a typical quality Sony product. Good sound, actually very good sound, and able to take whatever abuse you throw at it. One other thing I read that I haven’t been able to try is the ability to add more speakers, so you can use multiple speakers at once. This alone makes the Sony worth getting. Yes I’d definitely recommend this speaker, it is very good.

Just received my new Sony bluetooth speaker and this thing rocks. Very lightweight. I was glad it came partially charged as I was ready to rock out to it. I quickly skimmed through the instructions but using it was pretty much self-explanatory. I like the fact that as soon as you press the power button, it does one of 2 things, it searches for the bluetooth devices that you want to connect to it, or if you've already connected a device before it quickly connects to it. Inside the box comes the usual instruction manuals, etc, and a USB cable for charging. This model does not come with the charging adapter, which I wish it did. However, having changed phones and whatnot, I have plenty of adapters to charge this speaker. My favorite feature aside from the awesome light show (which responds to music) is the Live Sound feature. The lights can also be disabled to extend the battery life as well. To access this you must download the Sony Music Center app from your respective App Store for iPhones or Google Play for Android. Also within that app you can change up the light-show to your liking. I think Sony has a winner on their hands with this upgraded model. Another point is that this thing freaking lasts all day on a full charge.

Totally disappointed: the speaker failed within a week of purchase, a return attempt at Best Buy failed because it was after 15 days, Sony website failed as it has no apparent steps to return devices.

I got this speaker thinking to use it for presentations when I travel and for enjoying music around the house. It has impressed me with really good sound, both (EXTRA) bass and treble levels. I hooked it up to my phone and iPod, and I play my Spotify and iTunes profiles as I move around the house cleaning, doing laundry, working on the computer, etc. The four foot pads are nice to raise the speaker off the surface from where it is sitting. The construction of the speaker angles the sound up and out for a 3-D experience with LIVE SOUND mode. I tried the sound effects with Party Booster feature where you tap the speaker in different places to make different sounds (scratch, snare, kick drum and cowbell). I didn’t notice much of a difference. Not sure how the sound is chosen or if you can control that. I liked that it is lightweight, just under 2 pounds, and compact enough (9 1/8 " x 3 1/2 " x 3 1/4 " (231 mm x 87 mm x 81 mm) that I can pack it in my suitcase or briefcase to bring with me when I travel for a presentation. Wrapped in a fabric exterior earns it a IP67 waterproof rating, meaning it can sustain against jets of water streamed at it (check the warrantee coverage for specifics) provided the ports and covers are firmly closed. This means you don’t have to panic if it rains while playing it outside or getting splashed by the pool or from a beverage that spills where it is sitting. The exterior will also protect it from dust, sand and dirt that collects in my bags. Not that I am OCD, but I want to something I own to look as good as new beyond the first month. I love the lights! There are multi-colored flashing lights that sync to the beat and line lights that wrap around the front and side perimeter of the speaker. The mini flashing strobe lights on each end of the front of the speaker captures your attention and you can spend more time than you realize staring at the light display. (The SRS XB41 model is a larger, heavier unit with larger speakers, 1.89 vs 2.28, that light up.) A fully-charged battery can last up to 24 hours (in standard mode without the lights). As with any fully charged battery the capacity will depend on the volume, environment and usage. And with rechargeable batteries, the long-term capacity will diminish over time and use. Just remember to charge it as soon as you take it out of the package. Control buttons under the cover: To turn the lights on and off, press the BATT button for 3+ seconds. If you press the BATT button down, it will tell you the amount of battery charge that is left. To join a wireless party chain, press the WPC button. Press ADD to add a speaker. Control buttons on top: Pairing is simple and automatic when the device is powered on. You have the option of Bluetooth and NFC connectivity. Once paired, press the pause/play button to stop the music, press again to resume. Press the pause/play button 2x to cue the next song. Press 3x to play the previous song. Volume control is also located here. I like that it has raised designs for the controls allowing me to use without having to make visual contact. When you open the box, the speaker is inside the white, Styrofoam container. Under that are the directions and warrantee information. DON’T THROW OUT THE BOX until you remove the Styrofoam container as the USB cable is nestled below. You will need to supply your own AC adaptor to plug it in the wall. As with many speakers now, if you find your music source (cell phone or iPod in my case) is running low on battery juice, you can use your smartphone/iPod cable to connect to the speaker and power up. You have the option to download the SONY Music Center app. This app lets you control the playlists, cue forward or back for songs, change lighting patters and sound modes, which is great if you are not close to the speaker, but you are to your cell phone. I really like this speaker, especially for the lights, even without the party. I haven’t tested how far the sound will reach and how clear it will carry when I am in a conference room, but I am eager to put it to the test.

A little hard to hear the music did have to go back to return. Wasn’t really to happy about it.

Very cool idea with the lights, however it drained the battery life and did not hold charge. While it’s on charge it cannot get to max volume too

As I have come to expect from Sony this is a very well built speaker. It is rigged and can ha dale being outside and is water resistant. It was very easy to set up and connect with my iPhone. Sound is very goo but I did notice that when the extra bass is turned on the sound is distorted somewhat sometimes.