QUICK LOOK

• Portable Speaker
• Bass Frequency Transmitter
• Approximately 20 hours battery time

FACT: Noise is noisier in the bathroom than anywhere else in the house. If you’re one of those people who like to sing in the shower, but can clear an entire house when you do, then this is bad news for you (and your fellow housemates and fur kids).

SOLUTION: The WOWee One portable speaker, connected to your favourite music player, stuck to the bathroom door. Wait, did you say “stuck”?! Yes, stuck onto the door, with its gel backing.

Okay, I have to admit, this did not work as effectively as I had hoped.

FACT: The WOWee One does not stick to matte or rough surfaces for a very long time.

SOLUTION: Stick it to the shower door instead! (Take care! As we all know, water and electronics DO NOT mix well.)

Okay, so what does the WOWee One do?

The WOWee One is more than just a portable speaker. Press its sticky back (hard) up against a flat, solid surface, and the speaker’s sound changes entirely – the solid surface becomes your bass transmitter and increases the sound range and quality.

Charge it, plug it in, and you’re good to go

The WOWee One can be charged via a USB charger cable (supplied), with a single charge carrying up to 20 hours of playtime. It can be connected to an MP3 / MP4 Player, iPod, iPad, cellphone, laptop or any other device that supports a standard 3.5mm audio jack.

Tell me where to stick it!

The best surface by far for the WOWee One’s gel backing is glass. Attach the speaker to a window, and you have sound transmitted on both sides of the glass, loudly and clearly. Second to this, any flat, solid, smooth surface is a great transmitter. Desks, mirrors, shower doors, tile floors and even the screen of an iPad all make for great sound transmitters for the WOWee One.

The speaker does not stick to rough or matte surfaces very successfully. In fact, it will deceive you into thinking that it can in fact stick to these for a few seconds, before crashing wildly to the floor. What?! You dropped it?! Yes! Luckily, the speaker is strong and durable, and survives a fall from non-friendly sticking surfaces, such as wooden doors and curved-surface fridges.

Sticky means fluffy

Even though the speaker comes with a plastic cover to protect the gel backing when not in use, the gel does tend to pick up fluff and dirt easily. The best way to clean this is to wet your finger (with water, sillies, no licking!), and to thoroughly wipe the backing. Leave it to dry in open air. Whatever you do, don’t wipe it dry with a cloth! Now, wash your hands..

This all sounds great! But is it really that useful?

Fun as this gadget is, it’s still quite a gimmicky device. It’s great fun for when you have guests around, but wouldn’t easily fall into day-to-day use. This of course depends on your current music setup.  I found that it was easier to use my current speaker setup for daily music, while the WOWee One was great for those impromptu braai evenings and get-togethers with friends, when connected to an iPad or cellphone, and stuck to an outside sliding door.

The WOWee One may not be an everyday device, but it’s great for a high-quality portable sound solution. With a number of accessories available from the international online store, it seems the WOWee One is here to stay for a while. Will this gadget have long-term staying power in the market though? Only time will tell.

Turn ons

• Compact, portable – much easier to transport than a bulky speaker or amplifier.
• Excellent sound quality.

Turn offs

• The pink. (But that’s just if you don’t like pink. Luckily the WOWee One is also available in black and chrome, matte black, and white. Customised branding options are also available.)

Price: R699.00