Expert Analysis: JBL Clip 5 as the Ultimate Compact Bluetooth Speaker - A Comprehhavioral Review

Key Takeaways

The JBL Clip 5 is a convenient, ultra-portable option for both indoor and outdoor listening.
Impressive sound quality for a small speaker, plus a big 12-hour battery life.
It’s also a substantial improvement over its predecessor, the JBL Clip 4 speaker.

Who knew a tiny speaker could be this good? The JBL Clip 5 packs a big punch in a small, convenient, clip-able package. It’s an excellent option for both outdoor and indoor listening, and I’m shocked by the number of improvements that JBL has managed to deliver with this fifth-generation product.

JBL Clip 5

9/ 10

The JBL Clip 5 packs a serious musical punch, delivering big JBL Pro Sound with punchy bass. Your friends won’t believe how much great JBL Pro Sound comes out of such a small speaker.

Pros

Impressive audio for such a small speaker
A go-anywhere design and 12-hour battery life
Supports Auracast multi-speaker pairing
It’s a substantial upgrade over the JBL Clip 4

Cons

No options for wired audio
It’s more expensive than similar speakers
Auracast only works with other JBL speakers

$80 at Amazon See at JBL

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Price and Availability

The JBL Clip 5 sells for $79.95 and is available through most major retailers, including Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy, and JBL itself.

Specifications

Speaker Type

Mono

Maximum output power

7W RMS

Connectivity

Bluetooth 5.3

Weight

0.628lbs

Dimensions

3.4 x 5.3 x 1.8in

Battery

Up to 12 hours (or 15 in Playtime Boost mode).

Frequency

95Hz - 20kHz

Ports

USB-C

Buttons

Power, pairing, Auracast, volume, and playback

Water and dust resistance

IP67

Expand

A Substantial Upgrade Over the Old Clip 4 Speaker

Jerome Thomas / How-To Geek

My first impression of the Clip 5 was one of surprise. I turned it on, started playing music, and immediately thought “Wow, I don’t remember the old Clip 4 sounding this good!”

I couldn’t trust my memory, so I tested the Clip 5 against its predecessor. The leap in sound quality shocked me. Not only does the Clip 5 sound better than the two-year-old Clip 4, but it gets louder, too. The bass is puncher, the high-end is more detailed, the mid-range is smoother, and there’s less distortion when cranking the volume. And, to be clear, the Clip 4 already sounded pretty solid. JBL just took things a step further.

Of course, this is a small speaker with a limited frequency response of 95Hz to 20kHz. It can’t reproduce “deep” or “rich” bass frequencies, nor does it provide any bone-rumbling sub-bass. However, JBL has found a way to make the bass punchy and audible, which is a perfectly acceptable compromise. You can hear the bass just fine, but you can’t feel it. The high-end and mid-range frequencies aren’t perfect either, but they sound pleasant to me, which is all that matters in a speaker of this size.

My only negative comment about the sound quality is that it lacks depth. Everything sounds kinda mushed together. Presumably, JBL is using a compressor or limiter to make the audio louder, so this may simply be a trade-off for consistent volume levels. The fact that this speaker plays in mono may also reduce the depth of songs that make excessive use of stereo or contain stereo phasing issues.

Oh no, an app! Don’t worry; the JBL app isn’t required when setting up or using the Clip 5 speaker. In fact, I only downloaded this app to test the five-band EQ.

JBL provides a handful of preset EQ options for the Clip 5, including an option that lifts voices and may be useful for podcasts or streaming video. The five-band EQ lets you build a custom audio profile with boosted bass, reduced high-end, or whatever else you want. Personally, I think that a simple three-band EQ labeled “bass, mids, treble” would be more appropriate for this particular speaker, but the five-band approach probably gives customers an increased sense of control, so I get it.

And, like other current-generation JBL Bluetooth speakers, the Clip 5 supports Auracast multi-speaker connectivity. If you get a bunch of Auracast-compatible speakers together and press their Auracast buttons, they’ll connect to each other. Plenty of Bluetooth speakers have offered similar functionality, but Auracast is special because it’s an established Bluetooth 5.2 capability, rather than a brand-specific technology. Technically speaking, Auracast speakers from two different brands should be able to connect with one another, but JBL’s Auracast implementation is currently limited to JBL speakers.

I only received one Clip 5 speaker for this review, and I don’t have any other Auracast-capable speakers. So, I couldn’t test the Auracast feature. But JBL gave me a demonstration of its Auracast implementation at CES 2024, and I was mostly impressed by the results. The pairing process is relatively simple, it has no noticeable impact on audio quality, and you can add an indefinite number of speakers to a group. However, I did notice a 20-30 millisecond delay between some of the speakers.

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A Bigger, Better Carabiner

One of the JBL Clip 4’s headlining features was its improved carabiner. Well, the Clip 5’s hook has an ever larger opening than that of its predecessor, meaning that it can attach to larger items.

This is a more substantial change than you might expect. I ran around the house trying to hook the JBL Clip 4 and Clip 5 on different items, including bicycles, door knobs, shower heads, and curtain rods. I was surprised to find that the Clip 4 couldn’t attach to items that could technically fit in its carabiner—the carabiner’s opening was just too small. The Clip 5 had much less trouble attaching to everyday items, so it’s a better option for those who need a Bluetooth speaker with a clip.

The opening of the Clip 5’s carabiner also feels stronger and more reliable than that of the Clip 4. However, this may be because my Clip 4 is two years old. It may simply be more “worn in” than the Clip 5 that I’m testing.

I should note that a carabiner design, while versatile, may not be ideal for all users. I actually prefer the Tribit Stormbox Micro 2 ‘s rubber band when cycling, as it fits snugly to my bike’s handlebars without flopping around and provides easy access to playback controls.

A Do-Anything, All-Day Design

Take it to the beach, dunk it in a pool, or hang it in your shower. The JBL Clip 5 sports an IP67 rating, meaning that it’s fully protected against sand or dirt and can be fully immersed in a meter of water for at least half an hour.

For reference, the Clip 5’s predecessor also offered IP67 protection. But there are plenty of usability upgrades here, such as an increased battery life—12 hours instead of 10. You can even push the Clip 5 to a maximum of 15 hours if you set it in Playtime Boost mode, though this significantly reduces the speaker’s bass response, so I wouldn’t suggest using it for anything but podcasts.

JBL also gave the Clip 5 a slight redesign with more legible buttons and a thicker rubber backing. While these may seem like minor improvements, my eyesight is pretty terrible, so I appreciate that the buttons are easier to see. And plenty of Clip 4 customers complained that its spaghetti-like rubber backing peeled off —I assume that the Clip 5’s thicker rubber strips won’t experience this problem, though we won’t really know until customers put the Clip 5 through some abuse.

Of course, my favorite usability upgrade is the carabiner, which we discussed earlier. If JBL had only upgraded the carabiner, I would’ve been happy—increased battery life and other tweaks are just icing on the cake.

Should You Buy the JBL Clip 5?

Jerome Thomas / How-To Geek

If you need a highly portable Bluetooth speaker, the JBL Clip 5 is a stellar option. It sounds great for its size, it’s got a long battery life, and its integrated carabiner can attach to bags, bikes, tree branches, shower heads, curtain rods, or other common items.

There are just two things to note. First, a tiny speaker like this cannot defy physics. I’m always impressed by the sound quality of JBL’s Clip speakers, but they do not offer the deep bass or intricate detail of larger speakers. The purpose of the JBL Clip is to deliver reasonably good audio in a super-practical, ultra-convenient package. This is something I’d keep in my bag or hang in the bathroom, but it could never be my primary listening device.

And, unfortunately, the JBL Clip 5’s $80 price tag is somewhat excessive. The Clip 5 is just $10 cheaper than the larger, louder JBL Flip 5 , and it’s almost twice the price of the old Clip 4 speaker (although the Clip 4 originally sold for $80 in 2022). There are also some strong competitors in this product category, such as the Tribit Stormbox Micro 2 , which I think is a better option for cycling than the Clip 5.