Soundcore Flare 2 Review - The Summer Speaker of 2020!

Well, it's finally summer time. Well, whatever summer there is. But summer is finally here, and as you know, I have a little tradition I do every summer on my channel, this review of the Summer of Reviews of whatever. It's 2020. Nothing will stop it, so welcome everybody to the Review of the Summer, whatever you want to call this little series I do in the summertime, and what a way to kick off the summer. Even though we are living in some weird times and some very strange times, it isn't going to stop everybody from having some pool parties, having a good time, and today, I'm going to take a look at a product that is probably one of the best Bluetooth speakers you could buy, not only for 2020, but the best Bluetooth Speaker for the summer of 2020. I am, of course, talking about the Soundcore Flare 2. I will tell you everything you need to know and whether if I recommend you pick this up or not, so if you want to know, stay tuned.

What's happening, everybody? It's Michael here. Welcome back to another special edition episode of Technoid, and welcome to the Summer of Reviews. It's a little miniseries I like to do wherever I take products and review them in the summer. I hope you all have an excellent day. Thank you for tuning in. Thank you for joining me on my annual thing that I do. To new subscribers and to new people joining off for the first time, I am actually a tech show host that hosts a show called Technoid. I talk about the latest news and rumors, but once in a while, I branch off to do reviews and talk about MMA, so if you like the content and you like what you see, please subscribe and turn on your notifications, so you do not miss an episode.

Let's get down to business. In today's episode, I'm going to take a look at the Soundcore Flare 2. At the recording of this video, the Soundcore Flare 2 retails for around $80 (prices may change). With all my videos, I get a disclaimer out of the way and then I'll break down this entire video for you. Here's a couple of disclaimers. Number one, this review is not sponsored by anybody. I paid for these speakers myself. I was a little bit low on funds. I did try to reach out to Soundcore to see if they could help me out. They did not respond to me. There's no animosity there, though.

I do want to, however, give a shoutout to two YouTubers from UNCLEAR and ShoAndTech. I want to thank you two for really trying to help me get a hold of somebody from Soundcore and even Anker. Thank you for trying to help me. I really do appreciate it, and you guys deserve a lot of respect, so thank you guys for trying to help me out. Now, for disclaimer number two, everything that I say in this review is all 100% opinion-based. I'm going to try to break this down the best that I can and also give you the facts about the Soundcore Flare 2 without boring you, and number three, I just want you guys to enjoy the video. Without further ado, let's get it going.

It has pretty much been confirmed that Soundcore is wanting to dip their hats into pretty much everything from wireless headphones to wireless earphones, and now, to Bluetooth speakers. Now, Soundcore has done Bluetooth speakers for Anker. This is kind of their newest version of what they like to call the Flare lineup, so you have the Flare Mini, the Flare, the Flare+, and now, you have the Flare 2. Now, the Soundcore Flare Two is a very interesting Bluetooth speaker because while it's not considered a budget-end Bluetooth speaker, it is still considered by many to be a budget-end Bluetooth speaker. But honestly, after using this thing for almost about a month and actually breaking this thing in, I got to say guys, this speaker should not be classified as a budget speaker. I will explain everything you need to know. Let's take a look at the unboxing.

Inside, you get your little booklets with USB-C and your papers. There's nothing typical there. Inside, you get the Soundcore Flare 2 speaker wrapped in a protective housing, and the speaker itself is actually pretty decently sized. I was expecting it to be a little bit bigger, but this honestly is a perfect frame for the speaker itself.

Taking a look at the Soundcore Flare 2, this thing is actually really clean. Now, on the top, you have your command prompts. You have your power-on button, your play and pause media, and volume controls. You also have a light indicator where you can change the light color. You can basically change it to your preference. I'll explain how you can do so and also with the app. Around the back of the speaker, you have your Bluetooth pairing button and also PartyCast, which I will also explain. You have your bassUp technology, which helps to amplify the bass, and also in the back of a little flap, you have a USB-C port.

The Soundcore Flare 2 is rated for a 12-hour battery life. If you turn the lights off, it'll give you an extra few hours depending on how you use the volume. But considering that the light feature is the main part of the show, you're going to want to keep that on, especially for show. Now, the whole speaker itself is wrapped in a nice mesh material. The mesh actually feels very premium and actually feels very rugged, so not only is this thing built to last, but it's certified perfectly. It has IPX7 rating, so you can literally fully submerge this thing into a pool, and it will be fine. You don't have to worry about shocks or anything. With this being IPX7-rated, that is a major positive.

Now, let's talk about the internal speaker. Inside of the Soundcore Flare 2, you have a 20-watt driver and dual passive base radiators. The bass is lined up with rubber to keep the speaker from moving, so basically, it allows you to feel the bass if you put it on a surface. I'll explain a little bit about that as we go along in the review. Now, the speaker itself is prompting 360-degree sound, so you could hear it from everywhere, and in my testing, I found there were no weak spots on the speaker. I went around the whole thing. I tried to grab as much, and to my surprise, there was no weak spot. Usually, in a Bluetooth Speaker, you have a piece that's either blocked off or just doesn't give you the full 360 degrees. This thing did a good job, so shout out to Soundcore for that. That claim is true to its word, 360 degrees.

Now, let's talk about the light feature, which is really one of the main selling points, that the Soundcore Flare 2 gives you a light feature. It gives you two arrays. Now, the original Flare had a light indicator at the bottom. A lot of people said that's cool, but you don't really get the feel. The good news is, they've also added the ring on the top. It does eat away a little bit at the battery, but again, you could turn the lights off if you don't want them on. They give you a nice array of colors, and it's in-sync with the beat of your music. I really like the light feature. I like the rainbow immersive colors. I like the spinning wheel. I love everything about it. It's so cool. This thing is actually a fun speaker. The keyword is fun because it's really nice. The speaker itself also, because it's dual-driven with the light rings, you can customize this by also accessing the app.

Now, again, with all Soundcore products, you're going to have to use the app, and when you use the app, it gives you a lot more. Now, in terms of what the app gives you, you can change the lights. You can also customize put whatever colors you'd like. You can also change the volume, play and pause, update the firmware, and you can learn how to use some of its features. Now, my only negative, my first negative of the video, is that the Soundcore Flare 2 app is a little bit limited in terms of EQ and also maybe some light features.

I just wish they could have added a little bit more to make it a little bit more customizable. The Soundcore Flare 2 EQ set by default is not terrible, but it could have been a lot better for me anyway. I feel that the normal default browser for EQ is perfectly fine, but I wish they had expanded it like they did with their Masters EQ for the Liberty Air 2 and the Liberty 2 Pro. Now, I've done enough talking. When do you want to hear the sound test? Well, judging by the timing of this video, you probably want to get to it. I'll explain a little bit about the other things after, but let's get to the Soundcore Flare 2 sound test first.

Watch/listen to the sound test from 8:38 to 9:58.

Now, the sound test is actually a very special part because this part of the video is brought to you by Sirol. If you guys don't know who Sirol is, I'm going to explain it real fast. Sirol is an up and coming artist who I've been listening to for a solid year. He was very kind enough to provide me the music for this. I really want to shout out Sirol. He is a great dude, a great artist, and I really want to thank you for letting me use your music for the sound test. He just released a new track, so I'm going to sample some of his most popular music in this test. Please let me know what you think. If you want to check out Sirol for yourself, I will leave a link to Spotify and Apple Music here. Here's the audio sample for the Soundcore Flare 2.

Taking a look at the sound signature, this thing really did surprise me. Now, paying $80 (prices may change), I didn't expect it to sound anywhere near as JBL or anything like that. But guys, I have to be upfront and up and personal with you guys. I like that personal, but just got to be personal. This thing sounds incredible. For $80, I'm surprised that they were able to make it sound that good. The bass is nice. I'm going to explain a couple of things here before I go any further. The bassUp technology is on by default when you use it. The bassUp technology actually makes it sound a lot better, so instead of it sounding flat and dull, unless you don't want too much emphasis on the bass, when you use the bassUp technology, it not only ups the mids and gives you a nice low end, but it doesn't actually distort as bad as most people think. I would advise you to use the bassUp technology in the Soundcore Flare 2 to its maximum. This thing sounds great.

Now, again, going back to the sound quality, it reproduces the music so well. It sounds like you're coming straight from listening to in your headphones. It really sounds nice and clean. You've got your low end with that base up. The mids are nice. The high is sort of there. You can't make it out too well, but it's not to the point where you can't hear your highs. The frequency weight range of the speaker, honestly, is a nice profile. The bass may be a little bit too overpowering, but it's not deep and punchy like most people are thinking. It's honestly a nicer bass than what I've heard. The music signature is really nice. Now, this is all good and well with one. But what happens when you add a second speaker? You guys thought I was going to stop there? Hell no. I don't go small. I go all in. We got two Soundcore Flare 2s. Let's do another sound test with two speakers.

Okay, so now that you've heard both Soundcore Flare 2s, you're probably asking, how do you get them to sync up with two? Well, this is where Soundcore comes out with their PartyCast. Now, PartyCast is basically a wireless streamer that allows the speakers to sync up into one. It'll allow you to sync up to so many different speakers. They made a ridiculous video. Honestly, guys, no disrespect, but that Linus video where he showed off the speakers, you could tell he didn't put any effort. He was literally just paid to use 100 speakers. Like, come on, Linus, put some work into it. But in all honesty, you could connect it to 100+ speakers, and they will all perform in unison.

Now, the Soundcore Flare 2 doesn't offer stereo sound, so if you were hoping you can get a stereo setup, you're not going to get a stereo setup. It's mono, and it works nicely though, I will say. And honestly, two of these alone make the damn thing worth it. You don't even need a third or a fourth. Two of them are enough. It filled up not only my room, it filled up my living room, filled up my kitchen, and when I took it outside to my pool deck, it filled up very nice. Now, again, when you use two, that's where the party is really at, and that's another positive because the music is just fun.

With the lights and everything, you could literally dance to it. You could literally do anything. Honestly, I have to say, this thing was a blast to use not just for listening to music, but also connecting to my smartphone, connecting to my tablet. The thing works perfectly. The Soundcore Flare 2 is honestly a good speaker. It's versatile. It's very customizable. Now, a couple of things before I end the video. I know I sound like I'm going all over the place, guys, and I really do apologize. I will try my best to kind of detail everything, so that way you don't seem too confused.

Here's a couple of side things you need to know. As for updating the firmware, there are no firmware updates as of now. The way you activate PartyCast on the Soundcore Flare 2 is you hold down the Bluetooth buttons in the back for three seconds. You got to hold it down for three seconds because if you hold it for two or maybe even a second, it will disconnect the speaker from any device you're using, and it will think it's trying to pair to another device. Please make sure you're aware of that. It does support Bluetooth 5.0.

The Soundcore Flare 2 has no aptX support. But honestly, you don't really need aptX support, ADC support, and other codes listed. I'm not too swabby on that, so what I'll do is I'll leave a link at the end of the video where you can read more about the spec sheets, the audio codes, everything you need to know. And also, one last thing, I just want to shout this out. The app is definitely useful when you have multiple speakers. You can not only work them in PartyCast mode, but you can change the lights together at the same time when in PartyCast, so definitely keep an eye on the app because I'm telling you the app makes a big difference.

Overall, what do I think of the Soundcore Flare 2? Well, honestly, as I said at the beginning of the video, these are the speakers for 2020. These are not only some of the best sounding speakers that I have used, these are some of the best speakers I've ever bought. Not only do these things sound tremendous, they sound great for $80 (prices may change). Considering for the most part that this is coming from a company that already makes good headphones, their audio is actually very good. Soundcore is stepping up their game. They want to make a dent, and they want to do it the right way. By allowing yourself to make a product like this to get people into, you have already reached an audience. Now, to be fair, a lot of the reviews you see are mostly sponsored by Soundcore, so you're not going to get the full truth to an extent. I'm not trying to call anybody out, but I'm just being honest, so I'm going to give you everything, and this is the truth.

There are a lot of positives for the Soundcore Flare 2. The sound quality is amazing. The light show is excellent. The battery life surprisingly performed very well. I was able to go more than 12 hours with 50% to 60% volume. The PartyCast is actually very convenient, nice and quick. And also, I'm being honest in saying that when you pair with your smartphone, it works as a nice speakerphone. It doesn't have a microphone, but it works perfectly when you're nearby, and the callers will never even know you're using this thing.

Here are my only Soundcore Flare 2 negatives. There is no stereo mode. The PartyCast is a little intuitive, so you're going to have to get a little used to it because sometimes you can mess it up. I wish that there was an indicator for the PartyCast that you know you've done it right, because when you're connected, you don't necessarily know if you did it right or wrong. It said you just got to hold it near to it. But the thing is, I would like a little sound indicating that you've done it successfully. Another negative that I have with the speaker, and these are just my personal things, I wish the bass was a little bit deeper.

While it is a good bass and it's not overpowering even with the bassUp technology, I wish it had been a little bit punchier because if you're going to make this a summer speaker where you can get the best experience, I really wish this had been a little bit deeper. But honestly guys, like I said, this is the speaker of 2020. This is the speaker not only to get for the summer, but this is the best speaker that I've ever used. It is a fun speaker. It is enjoyable. It sounds great, and for $80 (prices may change), I advise you to pick up the Soundcore Flare 2.

That's it for today's episode. That is my review of the Soundcore Flare 2. If you have questions or concerns at all, please hit me up in the comments section here. I will answer anything and everything you need to know. Again, I apologize if this video is really long. I will leave timestamps in the description and in the comments section, so you can get to which part you want to get to. As always guys, thank you so much for watching. If you liked the video, hit the like button. If you disliked the video, hit that dislike like button. It works as well. It helps circulate my videos on YouTube. Again, thank you to Sirol for providing the music for today's sound test. As always guys, thank you so so much for watching and peace.