Ikea really impressed us with its 12-inch Eneby Bluetooth speaker, so we had high hopes for the smaller 8-inch model.
While the 8-inch Eneby costs $40 less than its bigger sibling, at $49, it requires an optional $20 battery pack if you want to make it portable.
The speaker sounds quite good for its size, and of course the larger Eneby isn't portable at all.
When you factor in the cost of a battery, however, the 12-inch model is simply a stronger buy.
Design
The Eneby is available in white or black, with a gray tweed removable speaker grille.
In true Ikea style, some assembly is required with the small speaker, which measures 8.0 by 8.0 by 3.0 inches (HWD) and weighs about 3.3 pounds (minus the battery pack).
The handle that fastens onto the top panel must be affixed using the included hex key.
That handle should come already affixed, or it should be able to attach to the speaker without the need for a tool that you will likely lose shortly after opening the box.
The compartment for the optional battery pack, which is located on the bottom panel of the speaker, is also a little frustrating.
A lid pops off and locks shut with the aid of a coin to turns its latch.
This aspect of the design feels less than luxurious, and we nicked the plastic a bit trying to open it.
Why not make a lid that can be opened without a tool or coin? And hey, why not just include the battery instead of charging a hefty $20 for it.
On the front panel, a knob/button controls power/pairing and volume, which is independent of your mobile device's master volume levels.
There's no playback or track navigation control, however—you'll have to skip tracks and pause music on your device itself.
There's also no speakerphone functionality, which is something you typically find on portable speakers.
The Eneby packs a 1-inch tweeter and a 3.2-inch woofer (for comparison, the larger model uses dual 4-inch woofers).
There's a 3.5mm aux input on the rear panel, as well as a connection for the included power cable (no cable is included for the aux).
The back panel also houses a bass port for air moved by the drivers to escape through.
With the battery pack installed, the Eneby becomes portable and gets up to 10 hours per full charge, though your results will vary with your volume levels.
The audio performance in portable, battery-powered mode is nearly identical to wired mode except for a minor drop-off in volume—you still get the same basic bass and treble response.
Performance
On tracks with intense sub-bass content, like The Knife's "Silent Shout," the small Eneby produces a hefty amount of bass response for its size and price.
However, at moderate to high volumes, it can sound as if the enclosure is rattling from the bass vibrations—not distortion, but a sound artifact nonetheless.
At more moderate volumes, the bass response feels hefty and balanced out nicely by the highs.
See How We Test Speakers
Bill Callahan's "Drover," a track with far less deep bass in the mix, gives us a better sense of the Eneby's sound signature.
The drums on this track sound full and rich through the speaker—there's some increased bass presence to them, but nothing over the top.
Callahan's vocals have a strong low-mid richness as well, and it's nicely balanced out with some high-mid crispness.
The acoustic guitar strumming gets a bright attack through the drivers, and the higher register percussive hits are delivered with an ideal high frequency presence.
This is a somewhat bass-forward sound signature, but it's balanced out by the higher frequencies.
On Jay-Z and Kanye West's "No Church in the Wild," the kick drum loop gets a solid high-mid presence, allowing its attack to retain its sharp edge and slice through the mix.
The sub-bass synth hits that punctuate the beat are more implied than delivered—the woofer can't reach down to those sub-bass depths like a true subwoofer.
This isn't to say things sound thin, but there's some bass on this track that the smaller Eneby can't recreate.
The vocals on this track are delivered with ideal high-mid and high frequency clarity, without a hint of added sibilance.
On orchestral tracks, like the opening scene from John Adams' The Gospel According to the Other Mary, the lower register instrumentation receives a slightly boosted presence.
The stage still belongs to the higher register brass, strings, and vocals, however.
Generally speaking, across all genres, the Eneby delivers rich bass depth—not as powerful as its larger sibling—and an ideal crisp high end that is quite similar to the larger model.
Conclusions
The 8-inch Ikea Eneby sounds great, it just feels like a less complete product than the larger, non-portable model.
There are plenty of solid-sounding speakers in this price range that are portable, with the battery included, and have speakerphone functionality.
Consider the Sony SRS-XB10, the EcoXGear EcoCarbon, or the JBL Flip 4.
Not all of them sound quite as powerful as the Eneby, but all are simply more user-friendly on the portability and features fronts.
If you don't care about fielding calls through your speaker or having to buy a separate battery, the 8-inch Eneby is a solid portable option.
But the real star of the family is the non-portable, $89 12-inch model—it sounds fantastic, with no assembly or extra purchases required.
The Bottom Line
Ikea's 8-inch Eneby Bluetooth speaker sounds great for the price, but it isn't portable unless you buy an optional battery pack.
