REVIEW – So many portable Bluetooth speakers, so little time. Yeah, I know, first-world problems. But if you are looking for an inexpensive portable speaker that has decent sound, can get wet, and doesn’t cost much, where do you look? Reviews like this one are a good start, but search around and read (or watch) many reviews and chances are good that there’s a speaker out there that will check all the boxes as the cliché goes. One speaker worth checking out is the Coolme Stage GoFree Portable Bluetooth Speaker.
What is it?
The Stage GoFree Portable Bluetooth Speaker is a retro-looking handheld speaker that looks cool wherever it’s placed. It’s designed to mimic a guitar amp (think Fender or Marshall). If you didn’t look closely, it could be mistaken for a Marshall Bluetooth speaker—which looks like amps, also.
The Stage GoFree sports many features for such an inexpensive speaker. It has 40 Watts of power driving two far-field speakers and two passive radiators for enhanced bass. Coolme has “Subwoofer” stamped in large type on the rear radiator. It’s a bit of hyperbolic marketing.
The top of the Stage GoFree speaker has three round gold buttons in the canter flanked by embossed Volume up and down (+ and —) buttons. The gold buttons are On/off/play/pause, Bluetooth for pairing and TWS (more on TWS later), and Playback Source Switching. This button controls the three input sources the GoFree accepts: USB, Bluetooth, and AUX. All necessary cables are included.
The front of the Stage GoFree speaker is interesting. Under the front metal speaker grill sits a thin, but bright light bar. The colors from this light bar can be set to solid amber, solid but changing, rainbow, and two modes that pulse to the beat of the music. If the light show becomes annoying, it can be turned off. Coolme included a basic equalizer (EQ) with three basic settings: Bass, Treble, and Normal.
What’s included?
- Speaker
- USB-A to USB-C cable
- AUX 3.5mm cable
- Manual
Tech specs
Click to expand
- Bluetooth 5.3
- Power: 40 Watts
- Two speakers
- Two passive radiators
- Light bar
- Equalizer
Design and features
I like the looks of the Coolme Stage GoFree Portable Bluetooth Speaker, but then I’m a sucker for retro anything. The case is covered in a slightly padded, faux-texturized leather coating. Even though it’s easy to carry, a small strap is attached for attaching to a carabiner or hooking on a finger or two.
The Stage GoFree Speaker is waterproof with an IPX7 rating. This means the speaker can be underwater for 30 minutes at a depth of 3 ft. with no damage.
The side of the Stage GoFree Speaker has three ports: USB-A, USB-C, and 3.5 mm AUX. The ports are protected from moisture by a thick, rubberized seal.
Controlling the lights and EQ settings is a bit more difficult than other settings. The buttons are tiny and set at each end of the light bar. They must be pressed hard to feel the “click”.
Using the speaker is fairly intuitive. I’m not sure why the Bluetooth pairing button doesn’t have the proper Bluetooth logo next to it. Instead, they used a sound wave icon. The “M” button is for Playback Source Switching allowing the speaker to be connected via USB, wireless or AUX. However, pressing the button while using Bluetooth did nothing.
One cool thing the Stage GoFree Speaker will do is charge a smartphone via the USB-A to USB-C cable. Well, it would be cool, but it would not charge my iPhone 15 Pro Max. Maybe the 15 Pro draws too much power—I don’t know. All I know is it doesn’t.
Coolme explains the three EQ modes: Bass—immersive depth for bass lovers; Treble—Clarity for vocals; and Normal—balanced frequencies. It all sounds nice, but I had difficulty distinguishing between them—especially at lower volumes. I could detect more of a difference at louder volume, but not dramatically.
Volume is more than decent on the GoFree speaker. I’ve heard better-sounding speakers, but they always cost more, sometimes much more. For $50, this speaker holds its own. Some distortion or bass boominess creeps in at max volume, but this size speaker isn’t designed to fill a room. It’s more suited to personal listening or for a small bedroom. However, if not pushed, the GoFree speaker can sound good.
My music sounded okay with this speaker, but sometimes the audio came off a bit muffled. Clarity is not this speaker’s strength, but if you’re a bass head, you may be more than pleased.
One way to make the GoFree speaker sound a bit better is to connect two GoFree speakers via true wireless stereo (TWS). This transforms each speaker into a left and right stereo speaker—hence the name. This not only adds depth to the music, it adds a bit to the overall volume for a more immersive listening experience. Since each speaker is 50 bucks, buying two for true stereo could be considered a bargain.
What I like about the Coolme Stage GoFree Portable Bluetooth Speaker
- Inexpensive
- Cool retro styling
- Light bar (if you’re into that)
What needs to be improved?
- EQ modes can be too similar
- I’ve heard better audio, but not at this price
Final thoughts
The Coolme Stage GoFree Portable Bluetooth Speaker is a good choice for someone on a tight budget or as a gift to a younger person who might think the light show is cool. For everything the GoFree Speaker does, the price is great. If you want an interesting-looking speaker with a few extras for not much money, it would be hard to do better.
Addendum
When I wrote this review, the GoFree Speaker was $50. It’s now $100—a price I cannot recommend. However, Coolme has a half-off coupon code (in checkout) which brings the price back down to $50.
Price: $99.99 ($50 with coupon code)
Where to buy: Coolme
Source: The sample of this product was provided for free by Coolme. Coolme did not have a final say on the review and did not preview the review before it was published.
