Photive HYDRA Rugged Water Resistant Wireless Bluetooth Speaker. Shockproof and Waterproof Wireless Speaker with latest Bluetooth 4.0 Technology - Red

I've taken it out on a boat where it's been doused with beer, soda, water, ect. I hang it in the shower, play it during hikes, and use it by the pool. The Photive HYDRA handles the elements extremely well (I've even dropped it a couple times). At about the size of a can of Monster Energy, the HYDRA is portable while still packing a punch sonically.More importantly, however, is the sound quality. Expect loud and crisp music that has no trouble filling a room. I compared the HYDRA to my roommate's Jawbone Jambox Mini, and the HYDRA more than outclassed it (for nearly $75 less, too). While the Jambox does a better job reproducing bass (the only area the HYDRA doesn't overly excel in), it does so while sacrificing overall sound quality, resulting in muted and muddy playback. I also noticed on particularly bass heavy sections of tracks, the Jambox decreases in volume to compensate. It should be pointed out that the HYDRA definitely highlights vocals very well.The only two significant detractions for the HYDRA would be 1) it has no built in lanyard or area where a clip can be placed, and 2) there is no indicator for when the battery life is low. Both are minor issues, but can prove annoying. I followed another reviewer's advice and constructed a bag out of paracord so I could hang it from my backpack while outdoors.PROS:-Great value-Excellent overall sound-Loud with crisp reproduction at high volumes-Water, Dust, and Shock Resistant-Great battery life-Flat angle design allows you to direct sound easilyCONS:-Underwhelming bass (though acceptable for a portable Bluetooth device)-No battery life indicator-No built-in clip or area for a lanyard

I initially purchased this speaker as a Christmas present for my sister-in-law. My wife surprised me with the same gift that morning. Even though I had read the many positive customer reviews, I was still skeptical of it's quality because it wasn't a brand I had any experience with or even recognized. In addition to bold, crisp audio output, delivering on its water-resistant feature was also crucial to me because I really wanted a well-built speaker I could use in the shower. As a self-confessed, unashamed "man-boy," I had to take a shower immediately and try this gadget out.Upon opening the box, I was very impressed by the weight and sturdiness of it's construction, as well as the excellent feel of the rubber skin, which offers tremendous grip even when wet. In contrast to some others, I've found drying the Hydra off incredibly easy by simply covering it up in the damp towel I just used and patting it down. It's dry after just five or ten seconds. With regards to audio quality, this speaker performs as well as the more expensive Jambox, if not marginally better. What the competition may offer in deeper bass, the Hydra makes up for in volume. It's pretty darn loud while still offering some percussion.Sound quality alone provides enough reason to choose this product over the more expensive Jambox. The fact that the Hydra offers water-resistance (this thing gets drenched in my shower every morning), can survive ordinary falls and thumps, and allows you to skip forward or backward AND answer calls (or occassionally turn off my cell phone's alarm when it's sitting by my bathroom sink when I'm showering) makes the Hydra an incredible option for it's functionality at an affordable cost in a space that tends to be expensive and disappointing from time to time.My one criticism is the ultra flexible, all-rubber cap that covers the charging and auxiliary ports as well as the on/off switch. While it fits surprisingly snug for such a flimsy-feeling part and has yet to fail me, I am still not sold on it's ability to always protect those components from receiving enough water to damage the device. I would have rather paid an extra dollar or two for the Hydra to have a sturdier cap that would offer consumers a greater peace of mind.

I bought this product for my husband's kayak 2 Christmas's ago. We have only used it in the house and not in water until last weekend and we finally took it on the river. The first boat flip the cap came unhooked and disappeared and now the speaker won't even work. So aggravating because we checked and double checked that the cap was securely snapped in and twisted on tightly. It's supposed to be "rugged". I would return if I could. Very upset and will not be purchasing a PHOTIVE product again.

I got this for a friend who just built very nice outdoor stone fire pit and wanted speakers but did not want to spend the money right now. Her girls also use it to play in the yard and the sound is great and the phone can be really far away - surprisingly so. I also have a HDMX bluetooth speaker that I love. However, after using that and then this one, I want to get myself one. The sound is so much bigger and crisp - still just using the same iPhone. Plus, it's waterproof! I can attest after a few drinks one night it was left out in a heavy rain and still works like a charm. That aside - the sound is great. Great price, good battery life, get it!

Got this for both my husband and my brother-in-law for Christmas last year. We are so happy with it! We use ours all the time, and after almost 10 months of continuous use really have no issues. The sound is great (it gets pretty loud for a tiny thing!). We have used it in the shower many times, camping, at cookouts, even brought it on the plane to Puerto Rico and used it on our beach vacation, and it still works perfectly. Very happy with it! Love that it has a rechargeable internal battery.

I purchased this speaker in August 2014 and used it lightly under normal circumstances. It worked fine as a speaker, delivering adequate sound and is lightweight and water resistant. However in October 2015 while attempting to charge the built-in rechargable battery, the USB port broke off from within this speaker and came out of the speaker still attached to the USB plug (cord), leaving me with no way to recharge it. As this speaker comes with a one year warranty from date of purchase against defects, anyone reading this can clearly see it broke shortly after the warranty ran out. For this reason I'm only giving it 3 stars.