TravelSound PoPz

• 
• 
• 

• Expert Rating

  2.50 / 5

• User Rating

  Be first to review

• Price

  $ 29.95 (AUD)

Dave Jansen Good Gear Guide 05/04/07 Follow @pcworldau

Pros

• Compact design, reasonable sound quality

Cons

• Not loud enough

Bottom Line

The Creative Labs TravelSound PoPz is inexpensive and has reasonable sound quality but it's hampered by a low volume output.

Would you buy it?

• Yes 0
• No 0

Own this? Write a review

Inconspicuous and compact, the PoPz look mores like a small pouch than a speaker system. When opened, the interior is dominated by two white stereo speakers and a single 3.5mm stereo jack.

We tested the speakers with a wide range of music and found the sound quality to be good, but not excellent. Bass was lacking and there was some muting in the high treble registers. Mid-tones were quite good, but there was a little lack of definition there too.

Considering the price and size of these speakers, these results were expected. As far as audio quality goes, the TravelSound PoPz is on par with the majority of portable speaker systems that we have reviewed. We did find its maximum volume output to be weak.

The Creative PoPz is a passive speaker system and as such doesn't require batteries to run. While not having to continually replace batteries may be a good thing, the trade-off is that the speakers can't amplify the audio signal they are receiving. At the maximum volume level on our MP3 player, a conversation between a small group of people easily drowned out the speakers. Trying to use these speakers outdoors, in areas with even moderate ambient noise, would be fruitless.

There isn't much else that can be said about the PoPz. While it's an inexpensive speaker system and produces reasonable sound quality, the low volume output limits its usefulness.