Holiday Gift Guide: BOSEbuild Speaker Cube Review

The Bose Corporation is well known for delivering quality sound products and have recently introduced this build-it-yourself kit which lets kids explore the actual science behind sound and music. BOSEbuild is a Bluetooth speaker that comes with various components that kids put together to make it work. Builders assemble with such components as magnets, wire coils, power supplies, speaker panels, 40 clips, as well as housing covers with papercraft templates for customization.

Kids will learn several important STEM concepts, including magnetism and types of metals, how copper coils work with magnets, using a magnet to launch a copper coil into the air, how vibrations create sound waves, isolating sounds via a slider tool, how to make LED lights dance to the sound of music in various colors, testing the sound of different pitch frequencies, and much more.

How it works:

The BOSEbuild Speaker Cube works in conjunction with a companion app built by Bose Corporation that takes kids through the process of building their own Bluetooth speaker. After downloading the app, it’s necessary to touch your device with the BOSEbuild speaker control panel which pairs the two Bluetooth devices together and prompts the user to name their speaker.

Here’s the real deal review of the BOSEbuild Speaker Cube:

Ideal:

Easy to follow instructions

Instructions in the companion app are easy to follow and include clear visuals, animations and videos that guide kids through the engaging hands-on activities.

Process can be completed in a short amount of time

The process of building the BOSEbuild Bluetooth speaker can be completed in less than an hour. However, because the app teaches several science concepts, you will want to encourage your kids to take a little longer to fully understand those concepts.

Kids can customize the Bluetooth speaker with special lighting effects and custom covers

Lighting effects and personalized side covers to customize the BOSEbuild Bluetooth speaker: Once all components have been put together, kids get to customize their own BOSEbuild cube speaker with colored lights and custom covers that create special shadow effects.

Fun and Engaging

Finally, kids get to learn fun facts that encourage exploration as they are building the speaker. The app provides content through the use of visual aids and videos that delve deeper into each step by explaining how and why various components work.

Ordeal:

Unfortunately for Android users, the building app is currently only available for Apple devices. With the growth of this product, however, I can imagine that this will be changing soon.

The Real Deal:

IF you’re looking for a fun and educational gift for your child or teen, the BOSEbuild speaker is a fantastic choice. It appeals to both children and adults alike, so parents could actually enjoy working on this project along with their child. It’s recommended for kids 8 older, so it’s also a great gift choice for teenagers in your life. Best of all, the final product is an actual blue tooth speaker with BOSE quality sound that they can actually use. It retails for $149 on Amazon.com, but if you have a young scientist who is interested in electronics, it’s totally worth it.

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