MP3 speaker dock reviews: How we test
Our experts listened to music at 128kbps
Sound quality
We connect each speaker dock to an iPod and put it through a mixture of technical and subjective sound quality tests. Our expert listening panel is made up of three experienced listeners.
They listen to six contrasting pieces of music played back on an iPod and encoded at 128kbps. Technical tests include an assessment of the smoothness and bandwidth of the speakers, a measurement of the maximum sound level before any distortion kicks in.
It’s worth bearing in mind that none of the speaker docks we’ve tested could be classified as hi-fi quality. Our expert panel considers sound quality generally on a par with an average DAB tabletop radio. The sound quality of an iPod connected to even a modest hi-fi system with bookshelf speakers is considerably better.
Ease of use
We assess each speaker dock according to a series of typical scenarios:
Initial setup Ease of assembly including any adaptors and connection to the mains power supply.
Startup and docking Ease of powering on the unit and connecting an iPod.
Set operation Ease of using any controls or functions present on the set.
Remote control operation Ease of using the remote control, the functions present and the angle of use.
iPod operation whilst docked Ease of accessing the iPod’s face and the ability to access the iPod’s menu system via the unit or the remote control.
Instructions The instruction manuals are assessed for clarity, content and presentation.
Overall rating How easy the product was to use overall.
Power use tests
We also assess power consumption of each speaker dock when in standby and during playback at a normal listening level.
If the dock has batteries, we measure battery life at a moderate listening level.