The HUAWEI Sound Is A Complete Replacement For Your Home’s Sound System
Over the weekend I got the chance to go hands on with Huawei’s latest collaboration with Devialet – the new HUAWEI Sound. It has a slightly smaller form factor than HUAWEI’s Sound X, but still packs quite a punch. The bottom line of this review is that I wouldn’t think twice about ditching my entire lounge surround sound system in favour of this device.
This isn’t your typical Bluetooth speaker dangling off a carabiner on your bag while you go to the beach. This is what I’d describe as a premium home entertainment speaker fully equipped with a 4-inch 40W subwoofer and three full-range 5W loudspeakers. Put this in the middle of a room and you have an instant party with a full 360° surround sound experience.
Getting set up is simple. A power cord snakes in underneath the speaker and a handy QR code stickered on the top provides a fast shortcut to downloading the HUAWEI Life app. This isn’t necessary for connection, as the HUAWEI Sound has tap-to-transfer connectivity via NFC, Bluetooth or, if you’re going oldschool, an auxillary plug hidden at its base. HUAWEI Life does provide the ability to get a bit more nitty-gritty with the sound though, providing sound profiles for Hi-Fi, Voice, and the excellent Devialet SPACE SoundStage. You can also push the bass 6dB in either direction.
The SPACE SoundStage uses some AI wizardry to recreate 360° surround sound by pushing the input signal into direct sound, reflected sound and ambient noise through its three separate speakers. The speakers then pick up a signal from the location of the listener and then use this to tweak the sound to give it that 360° feeling.
Once you’ve decided on your method of connection, a ring of coloured light appears around the rim of the HUAWEI Sound. This will flash in different way to let you know what it’s up to, filling up when you play with the sound, or set it to pairing, etc. Four more touch sensitive buttons appear on the top, giving you some control if your phone isn’t handy.
This thing has that perfect “hefty, so it must be valuable” feeling. Its sleek, shining surface is terminated around the bottom half by a glossy fibre grid cloth which lets sound out, but no dust in. In the middle are oval gaps letting you get a peak inside at the Two SAM (Smart Active Monitor) powered passive units, in a “Push-Push” configuration around the woofer. These thump satisfyingly along with the music offering the bass good fidelity with no distortion, letting it hit low frequencies and offering a wide dynamic range. They are an attention magnet though, so watch for kids sticking their fingers into it to see what’s going on. My wife did this very thing and yelped in surprise when it kicked back with a thump of bass.
I’m always looking to modernise and simplify my home. If I got to hold onto this review unit, my old amp and speakers would quickly find their way to the rubbish bin. The HUAWEI Sound has all the bass and range I want in a home system, as well as the connection options to keep a tablet stationed nearby for fast playlist queuing. The amount of space it would save in the process is just a bonus.
Available exclusively at 2degrees from the 22nd February at an RRP of $399. For a limited time, save $100 when you add it to your interest free phone on an eligible plan.
