Our editorial read, built on published evidence: the Willen II is one of the best-sounding palm-size speakers around, with a 17-hour-class battery, IP67 toughness, and the Marshall look. Independent testing shortens the battery story, it's mono-only with no custom EQ, and deep-bass lovers should look elsewhere. At street prices, fair. Check the price on Amazon.
— THE VERDICT · JUDGEANY EDITORSA Marshall that fits in your palm
Marshall announced the Willen II in late August 2024, alongside the Emberton III (HardwareZone's coverage was first published August 30, 2024), at a US list price of $119 — £99 in the UK and €119 in the EU, per The Speakershacks. Marshall deliberately did less with this one: a single 2-inch 10W full-range driver, two passive radiators, a sealed cabinet, and mono output, all inside a 0.36 kg (0.79 lb) box measuring 100.5 x 100.5 x 43.4 mm. IP67 sealing covers 30 minutes at 1 meter of water, and it ships in Black and Brass or Cream. This review is built from published reviews and owner feedback. We don't run a test lab: every measurement below belongs to the outlet that published it, and the score is our editorial judgment based on that public evidence.
Sound: the best small Marshall, with real limits
The hands-on reviews agree on the shape of the sound: warm, balanced, and far bigger than the footprint suggests. YugaTech, after living with the unit, heard “impressive, audible thumps” from the tiny frame with no bass distortion at normal levels — mids and lows are the strongest part of the mix, highs “do well enough to not be considered a weakness,” and it never fatigues. Stuff India heard the same arc: bass reaching down to 75Hz per Marshall's official spec (the original Willen stopped at 100Hz), a warm and tidy presentation with the classic Marshall midrange push, and guitar timbre it called impressive for something this small. Two catches from the same review: you need around 80% volume or more to pull out the subtle detail, and the bass is refined rather than heavy — Gizbot's phonk test confirmed it, calling the speaker “clean and balanced, but not for bass lovers,” with clear but unremarkable calls. The counter-evidence is worth stating plainly: Australia's CHOICE lab scored the Willen II 42% overall with a 31% sound-quality score, named it the worst speaker in its $101–200 bracket, and called the sound “borderline.” Two things temper that for us. CHOICE's $199 Australian RRP is a different market from the ~$99–119 street price the speaker has actually sold at in the US, and the Best Buy owner record skews positive — the recurring complaints are bass depth and the missing custom EQ, not the basic competence a 42% score implies. Our read: it sounds excellent for its size and price, and underwhelming by absolute audiophile standards.
Battery: 17 hours, with an asterisk
Marshall's claim is 17+ hours of playtime. The asterisk comes from two independent sources: CHOICE's lab measured 13 hours 37 minutes, and Best Buy owners typically land around 15 hours of real-world use — close to the claim, not on it. Marshall's own numbers for charging hold up on paper: a 20-minute quick charge adds 5.5 hours of playback, and a full charge takes 2.5 hours over USB-C. One boundary worth knowing: the USB-C port charges the speaker only. Unlike the bigger Middleton, the Willen II won't top up your phone.
Design, controls, and the app with no custom EQ
The hardware is the part nobody argues about: the classic Marshall amp grille, a multi-directional knob for volume and track control, a rubber fastening strap that hooks onto backpacks and bike handlebars, and a built-in mic for hands-free calls. Bluetooth is 5.3 LE with multipoint per Marshall's support page, YugaTech found no noticeable lip-sync lag watching video, and the speaker is LE Audio-ready with Auracast broadcast promised through a future firmware update — Marshall guarantees at least 2 years of firmware support from last sale. The app gives you EQ presets — one owner-favorite setting piles on bass, another trims the highs for podcasts — but no custom EQ band, a gap Best Buy owners and YugaTech both flag. One durability wrinkle: YugaTech's sample had the leather-look trim start to peel from the frame (it pressed back in). The ruggedness is mostly about the sealing, not invulnerability.
Value: a sale-price speaker
At its $119 launch price the Willen II sat at the premium end of the pocket-speaker bracket, but it hasn't stayed there. PhoneArena reported an Amazon discount in August 2026 at 31% off — just under $90 against a usual price of about $130 — and deal trackers in India logged its all-time low in the same stretch. One detailed Best Buy review summed up the split verdict: “excellent for its size,” and “a bit steep” at list. Ours matches: around or under $100 it is an easy recommendation for a desk, a shower rail, or a jacket pocket. At full list, the Clip-class competition costs less and the mono-only output stings more. Check the current price on Amazon before you decide.