NudeAudio Move M review

The NudeAudio Move M looks oddly like a soap-on-a-rope thanks to the piece of string tied through a couple of holes at one corner. This waterproof Bluetooth speaker is about the diameter of a CD, around an inch and a half thick, and its rounded-off square shape rests comfortably in your hand. The bottom half of the speaker is covered with a flexible rubbery silicone sleeve.

Unlike most splash-proof speakers, which are firmly encased in their covers, the Move M has an easily removable sheath. However, the speaker is useless without it, as the buttons are on the sheath itself and slip into the main body of the speaker when the two are joined. We’d have felt happier with a more secure join between the speaker and its cover but didn’t experience any problems with the sheath slipping off or the buttons failing to work.

On one side are four buttons for power, volume up and down and a Bluetooth button which can also be used to answer phone calls, putting the speaker into hands-free talk mode. Next to this is a tiny hole marking the presence of the built-in microphone. Turn the speaker round and you’ll find a Micro USB port and a 3.5mm auxiliary input for non-Bluetooth devices. The Move M only supports standard SBC Bluetooth audio, but a speaker of this size isn’t high-quality enough for you to notice compression artefacts from a lossy codec.

The NudeAudio Move M is a little larger than most budget portable Bluetooth speakers, and the manufacturer claims that the extra size makes for a larger acoustic chamber, giving sound greater space in which to resonate and thus producing a more emphatic bass than you’d usually expect from a portable mono speaker. To our surprise, this claim proved to be entirely correct. Even our heaviest hard bass and most bass-heavy hip-hop tracks kept some of their punch, while busy, range-spanning metal and orchestral tracks sounded rich and balanced.

Of all the ultra-compact mono speakers we’ve tested, the Move M has the best battery life, clocking up a massive 20 hours and 48 minutes in our tests. It distorts a little if you push it up to maximum volume and it’s not massively loud, but it had more than enough volume to keep us entertained both outdoors and around the house.

Among the compact mono portable Bluetooth speakers we’ve reviewed, the Move M provides the best sound across everything from folk to chart pop music. It’s a little larger and slightly more expensive than most of its sub-£50 rivals, but its smooth sound is hard to beat when it comes to sheer quality. It wins a well-deserved Budget Buy award.