The Boom 4 is an easy pick for anyone who wants a portable speaker they never have to baby: it sounds clear in every direction, survives water, dust, drops, and even floats, and the UE app's EQ presets and PartyUp pairing are genuinely useful. The 15-hour battery is real at moderate volume and optimistic at high volume, and bass lovers will find the low end polite rather than deep. If toughness and coverage matter more than maximum thump, this is one of the safest portable speakers to buy. To see the current deal, check the current price on Amazon before buying.
— THE VERDICT · JUDGEANY EDITORSWhat the Boom 4 is
The Ultimate Ears Boom 4 is a 2024 update of UE's mid-size portable speaker, and the headline change from the Boom 3 is the charging port: Micro-USB is finally gone, replaced by USB-C. Everything else about the formula stays familiar — a fabric-wrapped cylinder that fires sound in every direction, rated IP67 so it survives dust, a dunk in water, and a drop, and it floats if it goes in the pool. At 620 g and 184 mm tall, it is a bag speaker rather than a pocket one. This review aggregates manufacturer specs, What's the Best's hands-on review, Trusted Reviews' testing notes, and owner feedback. JudgeAny runs no test lab; the scores below are editorial judgments built on that evidence.
Sound: clear first, deep second
Two 40 mm active drivers and two passive radiators produce the Boom 4's 360-degree sound, with a maximum level of 85 dBC. What's the Best's reviewer found the sound crisp and detailed, with quiet passages staying clear at low volume, and called the bass mostly true to UE's "balanced sound with deep bass" claim — with one caveat: at lower volumes the sound can seem a little thin. Trusted Reviews' tester, after weeks of testing across genres from grunge to hip hop, came away impressed by how the speaker holds onto clarity even when the volume is pushed right up. Four preset EQ modes in the UE app (including a podcast mode and an outdoor mode) let you bend that tuning toward voices or open air. What the Boom 4 does not do is go as low or as loud as bigger speakers — The Good Guys' owner summary records some buyers finding the bass lacking next to similar-priced rivals, and at 85 dBC it fills small and medium rooms rather than a whole garden.
Battery: the rated 15 hours depends on the volume knob
UE rates the Boom 4 at up to 15 hours per charge, with Dell listing a 3-hour recharge over USB-C (the adapter itself is not in the box). What's the Best, listening quietly in the background, was still going after 20 hours with 40% left — the 15-hour rating assumes 30% volume. The Good Guys' owner summary points the other way: several buyers found battery life disappointing at higher volume. Treat 15 hours as a moderate-volume figure; loud outdoor sessions will land noticeably lower.
Durability and everyday use
This is the Boom 4's strongest card. IP67 means dust-tight and waterproof to 1 m for 30 minutes, it floats, and it is drop-tested from 1 m. Trusted Reviews' tester called the design properly rough and ready after weeks of testing across genres, and noted the speaker holds its clarity even when the volume is pushed right up. Bluetooth range is rated at 45 m, and two source devices can stay connected at once. The Magic Button on top plays, pauses, skips, and jumps into a preset playlist on Spotify, Amazon Music, or Apple Music, and PartyUp pairs it with other UE speakers (including Megaboom, Epicboom, and Hyperboom) for a bigger setup.
Where the evidence disagrees
Battery life is the main split, as above: 20-plus hours at low volume in one review, owner complaints at high volume, against a 15-hour rating. The honest read is that volume, not the battery, decides the number. Bass is the second split: UE markets deep bass, What's the Best found it mostly true, but some owners call it thin next to rivals, and What's the Best itself noted thinness at low volume. The speaker's size explains both gaps — a 620 g cylinder can only move so much air. Neither disagreement changes the overall picture: a tough, clear-sounding portable speaker whose headline numbers need a volume caveat.
Who should buy it
The Boom 4 suits anyone who wants one speaker for the kitchen table, the beach bag, and the poolside, and who values toughness and 360-degree coverage over maximum bass. If deep low end or longer battery life at high volume matters more, the bigger Megaboom 4 or a JBL Charge 6 is the better-shaped alternative. To see the current deal, check the current price on Amazon before buying.