Short answer: the Marshall Acton III. Both are rated 3.7/5 for sound quality (#11 and #13 of 29 powered desktop speakers), and the Marshall Acton III costs $298.99 against $549 for the Denon Home 250, with sound quality a draw, the lower price decides it.
The case for the Denon Home 250: A Wi-Fi smart speaker with stereo sound from one cabinet, built in Alexa, AirPlay 2 and HEOS multiroom. It streams over Wi-Fi as well as Bluetooth, which the Marshall Acton III cannot. It links with other speakers (HEOS multi-room, stereo pair with a second Home 250), which the Marshall Acton III cannot. Watch for: Trusted Reviews’ own complaints are a slightly disjointed hand-over between the bass and midrange, and a safety-first treble response that avoids sounding harsh at the cost of outright detail.
What the Marshall Acton III does well: A compact home speaker with classic Marshall amp styling, Bluetooth and an aux input for a small room or desk. It has an adjustable EQ, which the Denon Home 250 lacks.
Buy the Marshall Acton III. Both are rated the same for sound quality, and it costs $250.01 less than the Denon Home 250.
Looking for alternatives? See the complete Powered Home rankings.
Prices on this page were last checked November 7, 2026 at 7:34 PM UTC. Product prices and availability are accurate as of that date/time and are subject to change; the price and availability shown on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
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Specifications Side By Side
| Denon Home 250 | Marshall Acton III | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $549.00 each | $298.99 each |
| Ranked | #13 of 29 in Medium Size Powered Desktop Speakers | #11 of 29 in Medium Size Powered Desktop Speakers |
| Aux Input | Yes | Yes |
| Battery Life | No Battery | No Battery |
| IP Rating | None | None |
| Party Mode | Yes (HEOS multi-room, stereo pair with a second Home 250) | No |
| Power Input | External AC adapter | - |
| Stereo | Yes | Partially (1 woofer) |
| Weight | 8.2 lbs (3.7 kg) | 6.3 lbs (2.85 kg) |
| Wi-Fi | Yes (2.4/5GHz) | No |
| App | Yes (HEOS) | Yes |
| Bluetooth Codecs | SBC | SBC |
| Built-in Microphone | Yes | - |
| EQ | No | Yes (Bass/Treble) |
| Power Bank | No | No |
| TWS | No | No |
| Amplifier Power | 80W (Class D, combined) | 60W (Woofer: 30W, Tweeters: 2x15W) |
| Drivers | 2x 19mm tweeters, 2x 102mm mid-bass drivers, 133mm passive radiator | 4” (midrange/woofer), 1x 4” midrange, 2x 0.75” Dome tweeters |
| Inputs | Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Ethernet, USB, 3.5mm aux | Bluetooth, Aux |
| XLR Input | No | No |
| RCA Input | No | No |
| TRS Input | No | No |
| Optical Input | No | No |
| Coaxial Input | No | No |
| USB Input | Yes | No |
| HDMI Input | No | No |
| AES Input | No | No |
| Bluetooth | Yes | Yes |
| Bluetooth Version | 5.4 | 5.2 |
| Dimensions | 11.8” x 8.7” x 4.7” (300 x 220 x 120 mm) | 10.2” x 6.7” x 5.9” (260 x 170 x 150 mm) |
| Voice Assistants | Amazon Alexa | - |
| Streaming Services | HEOS app streaming (Spotify, Amazon Music, Tidal, Deezer, SoundCloud, TuneIn), AirPlay 2 | - |
| Frequency Response | - | 45Hz - 20kHz (Manufacturer specified) |
| Woofer Cabinet | - | ported |
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