Description
The Bose SoundLink Revolve (Series II) is a cylindrical portable Bluetooth speaker designed to throw sound in every direction rather than at a single seating position. Bose builds the argument for it around placement flexibility: put it in the middle of a table and everyone gets the same presentation, or push it against a wall and let the output reflect back into the room. The listing specifies an aluminum body, an IP55 rating, a rechargeable lithium ion battery quoted at up to 13 hours, and a built-in speakerphone with voice assistant access. Model number 858365-0100 covers the black finish reviewed here.
What the Revolve II Is, and Who It Suits
This is a mid size portable speaker rather than a pocket unit or a party box. Listed product dimensions are 3.23 inches deep by 3.23 inches wide by 5.98 inches high, with an item weight of 1.46 pounds. That is a shape you can carry in one hand and stand on a bathroom shelf, a kitchen counter or a garden table, and it is heavy enough that it stays where you put it.
The 360 degree design suits shared listening: a family kitchen, a group on a balcony, a workshop where people move around. It is less suited to a desk where you sit in one fixed spot facing the speaker, because omnidirectional dispersion trades stereo imaging for even coverage. If a desk is the actual use case, a conventional stereo pair such as the Mackie CR2-X Cube desktop speakers is the better geometry. Bose does address stereo separately, and we cover that below.
Sound and Pairing Features
The 360 degree claim
Bose describes true 360 degree sound with consistent, uniform coverage, and states that the tapered cylindrical shape is part of that design. The specification block lists a dynamic driver and a single audio channel, which is consistent with an upward firing driver and a dispersion structure rather than a multi driver array. Bose describes the output as deep, loud and immersive. Those are the manufacturer’s words and this review does not treat them as measured results, particularly because the imported specification block contains a signal to noise ratio field reading “1”, which is not a usable figure and appears to be a data import error.
Two speaker modes
The listing describes two ways to use a second Revolve. Party Mode plays the same content from both units for more volume and coverage. Stereo Mode splits the channels so instruments and vocals spread across a wider soundstage, which is the answer to the imaging limitation of a single omnidirectional speaker. Bose SimpleSync is listed separately and pairs the speaker with other members of the Bose Smart Family, and the Bose Connect app is described as handling device management and firmware updates.
Calls and voice
A built-in microphone supports speakerphone calls, and the listing states you can reach your phone’s default voice assistant from the speaker itself. It also mentions connecting the speaker to an Amazon Alexa enabled device such as an Echo Dot for further control. The specification block lists the controller type as Amazon Alexa, so treat Alexa support as an external pairing arrangement rather than a microphone array with Alexa built in.
Battery, Charging and Ports
Bose quotes up to 13 hours of playback from the internal lithium ion battery, with a listed charge time of 2.25 hours. The listing specifies a Micro-B USB charging port and includes a USB cable and a wall charger in the box. There is also an auxiliary analog input for wired sources, which is genuinely useful for older equipment and for venues where Bluetooth is unreliable.
The Micro-B port is the detail to note. This speaker first appeared in April 2021, and Micro-USB charging was already becoming unusual by then. If your household has standardized on USB-C, this is one more cable to keep track of. A speaker such as the JBL Charge 5 takes a different approach to charging and doubles as a power bank, which is worth weighing if you travel with several devices.
Highlights
- 360 degree dispersion from a tapered aluminum cylinder measuring 3.23 by 3.23 by 5.98 inches.
- Up to 13 hours of quoted battery life, with a 2.25 hour listed charge time.
- IP55 rating against dust and splashes, with a metal body Bose describes as durable.
- Party Mode and Stereo Mode for two paired Revolve speakers, plus Bose SimpleSync.
- Built-in speakerphone with access to the connected phone’s voice assistant.
- Auxiliary analog input alongside Bluetooth, listed with a 10 meter Bluetooth range.
- Ships with the speaker, a USB cable and a wall charger.
Things To Consider
The imported specification data for this product contradicts itself in several places, and it is worth naming rather than resolving. The “Is Waterproof” field reads TRUE while the water resistance level field reads “Water Resistant” and the description gives an IP55 rating. IP55 means protection against dust and low pressure water jets, not submersion, so the TRUE entry in that field is misleading. Treat this as a splash resistant speaker and keep it out of the pool. The speaker size field reads 10 inches, which cannot describe a driver inside a 3.23 inch wide enclosure and is another data error. Battery capacity is listed as 1 amp hour without a voltage, which makes it meaningless on its own.
More significant for a buyer: the listing marks this product as discontinued by the manufacturer. That has practical consequences. Firmware support, app compatibility and warranty service on a discontinued model are all on a shorter clock than on a current product, and stock is whatever remains in the channel. It also means the color options Bose describes, Triple Black and Luxe Silver, may not both be available.
Finally, the 13 hour battery figure is a manufacturer quote at an unstated volume level. Portable speaker runtime falls sharply at high output, so plan around a shorter figure if you use it loudly outdoors.
Who Should Buy It, and Who Should Not
Buy the Revolve II if you want one speaker that sounds the same from anywhere in a room, you value a metal bodied unit that tolerates being carried around, and Bose’s tuning is what you are after. The 360 degree layout genuinely earns its keep in kitchens, gardens and shared spaces where nobody sits in a fixed listening position, and the Stereo Mode option gives you an upgrade path if you buy a second unit later.
Look elsewhere if you need submersible protection, if Micro-USB charging is a dealbreaker, or if you want the loudest output for the money, since bigger enclosures move more air. The Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 4 and the Marshall Stockwell II are the closest comparisons in size and intent, while the Sony ULT Field 1 takes the bass forward route. Our portable Bluetooth speakers category collects the rest of the field.
