Huawei Sound Joy Review
A solid wireless Bluetooth speaker
Verdict
The Huawei Sound Joy is a water-resistant portable Bluetooth speaker capable of deep, tuneful bass. It doesn’t match the brand’s Sound X living-room speaker for sonic finesse, but it delivers better-than-usual battery life – and a flashing LED light show.
Pros
- Excellent build quality
- Drops deep bass
- 26-hour battery life
Cons
- Not particularly dynamic
- iPhone users miss out on the light show
Key Features
- Devialet sound-tuningSound tuning by French audio brand Devialet
- Shake stereo link-upAutomatically pair with another Sound Joy by giving the unit a shake
- Huawei AI Life appCustomise the sound through the app
Introduction
The Sound Joy is a portable Bluetooth speaker with a sense of rugged style. Tuned in collaboration with hi-fi outfit Devialet, it’s a punchy, rhythmic listen. Granted, it isn’t the cheapest or lightest of portables, but it does boast a 26-hour battery life.
The Sound Joy is Huawei’s third collaboration with French hi-fi company Devialet. It’s a portable Bluetooth speaker, unlike its Sound and Sound X predecessors, which were mains-bound for living-room use.
This speaker is landing in a highly competitive area, with no shortage of competition, but the Sound Joy’s performance is good enough – and provided you can access the accompanying Huawei app, it will entertain with a pumping light show, too.
Availability
- UKRRP: £129
- USAunavailable
- EuropeRRP: €149
- Canadaunavailable
- Australiaunavailable
The Sound Joy sells for £129.99, which puts it up against portables such as the Bose SoundlLink Flex and the LG Xboom Go PN5. Widely available, it’s available in a choice of two colours: Obsidian Black and Spruce Green. Our review sample was the former.
The Sound Joy isn’t available in the US, owing to ongoing trade restrictions on Huawei.
Design
- Rugged build
- IP67 splash-proof
- LED light ring
The Sound Joy isn’t the smallest, portable Bluetooth speaker you’ll find on the market, but it’s exceptionally well made.
The cylindrical speaker is wrapped in a fabric mesh, and is bookended by two passive radiators. At one end there’s a flashing LED light ring to accompany your playlists, but this can only be activated via the Huawei AI Life app (for Android and iOS); there’s no on-body control.
Size-wise, it shares roughly the same dimensions as a water bottle, and weighs a relatively hefty 680g. There’s a handy wrist strap, and a five-button control strip for power, Play/Pause, stereo and microphone. Volume is managed by two oversized +/- buttons on the chassis.
The main body sports a large rubberised Huawei logo, while the passive radiators are branded Devialet. Two small feet orientate the speaker for horizontal playback. There’s no hardwire aux input for any local device hook-up, Bluetooth is the only option. The speaker charges via USB-C.
The Sound Joy is IP67-rated, which indicates a level of splash- and dust-resistance. Indeed, it will survive a dunking down to 1m, which allows the Sound Joy to earn a spot at the beach, around pools or near hot tubs.
Features
- Shake to pair stereo mode
- Single Bluetooth connection
Usability is unexceptional. The speaker paired immediately over Bluetooth, and will readily link with other Huawei gadgets, such as a watch or laptop. Bluetooth connection is limited to one device at a time.
A microphone button on the speaker allows you to talk to the smart assistant on your smartphone.
Its Shake stereo link-up mode is rather novel. Take two Sound Joys and shake them in close proximity to one another and they’ll synch to create a stereo pair. Unfortunately, only one Sound Joy was proffered for review, so this grouping talent went untested.
The LED light show is off by default and activated from within the Huawei AI Life app.
Thanks to a chunky 8800mAh battery, battery life is strong with 26 hours of playback. If you’re in a hurry, the speaker also supports 40W super-fast charging. Ten minutes at the wall translates to an hour’s playtime.
Sound Quality
- Powerful mid-bass
- Lacks dynamics
- SAM (Speaker Active Matching) optimisation
The Sound Joy is tailor-made for picnics and pool parties. It can drop deep and hold a tune.
Inside the speaker, there’s a high-end carbon-fibre diaphragm that helps deliver mid-bass down to 50Hz; it’s coupled to a silk-dome 10W tweeter. As is Devialet’s want, a dual “push-push” passive radiator arrangement is used to enhance low-frequency reach.
The acoustic opening to No Small Thing (Tears for Fears, The Tipping Point), with its carefully modulated vocal and strums, proves impressively balanced. As the arrangement thickens, the small speaker blooms, sounding progressively larger. The twin passive radiators pump with purpose.
Twenties, by Ghost, similarly benefits from this solid bedrock, being propulsive and rhythmic.
But the Sound Joy trades dynamics for gutty wallop. Knowing full well that deep beats travel further than toppy treble when out and about, it expends energy where it knows there’s going to be the biggest payoff. It’s designed to entertain the many, not the few.
Consequently, it’s happier with Palm Beach Banga by Fisher than Anya Taylor Joy’s a cappella version of Downtown. Subtlety isn’t a strong suit. It’s high energy not Hi-Fi
The latest iteration of the Outlander theme, by Bear McCreary, features a duet between Raya Yarbrough and Griogair Labhruidh, but it fails to soar. The Huawei app allows you to select one of three sonic presets, but none counter this somewhat heavy performance.
Latest deals
Should you buy it?
You want a portable speaker that’s designed to impress The fabric finish and oversized volume controls lend this speaker a rugged sense of welcome style, and its 26-hour battery is equally impressive…
You’re seeking Devialet’s famed hi-fi performance This is very much a speaker designed to roam, not play at home (although you obviously can if you want)…
Final Thoughts
Perfectly portable, I rate the Sound Joy a solid wireless Bluetooth speaker choice. It’s stylish and well made, with adequate water- and dust-resistance for pool or beach use, and bolstered by the audio credentials of Devialet, you can be sure of bouncy bass and a good sense of rhythm.
If you’re looking for a sound system with a decent battery life, which sounds larger than the shadow it casts, then the Sounds Joy is well worth shortlisting.
How we test
We test every wireless speaker we review thoroughly over an extended period of time. We use industry standard tests to compare features properly. We’ll always tell you what we find. We never, ever, accept money to review a product.
Find out more about how we test in our ethics policy.
Tested for more than a week
Tested with a range of music
You might like…
FAQs
The Sound Joy can be bought from Amazon online, and it’s also in stock from Currys too.
Full specs
Jargon buster
IP rating
An abbreviation for ‘Ingress Protection Code’, which lets you know to what extent a device might be waterproof or dustproof.Bluetooth
Bluetooth is a method of wireless transmission that allows for the exchange of data between devices over short distances.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
