Short answer: the Defender, though neither ranks well in its class. It ranks #83 out of 111, ahead of the original Turtlebox at #105, and costs $29.01 less. Both are rated below 3.0/5 among the 111 boombox speakers, and the Tribit Stormbox Blast, ranked #2 at $179.99, is a better place to start if sound quality matters. The Turtlebox is discontinued; its replacement is the Turtlebox Gen 3.
The Defender packs in more practical extras. Its pros describe a rugged 10 lbs (4.54 kg) outdoor speaker with IP67 protection, a floating design, a built-in flashlight, a bottle opener, an aux input, USB-C power-bank output, and a claimed 25 hour battery life. Independent testing cited in its notes found it gets very loud for its size, and it offers three ecoEQ presets: a bass-heavy default, a more balanced indoor mode, and a brighter outdoor mode.
Its weak point is dispersion. The cons note a single front-facing driver layout with narrow dispersion, meaning clarity and detail drop noticeably off-axis and the soundstage is limited. The default tuning can also run over-bassy at lower volumes, and there’s no app, precise EQ, battery indicator, or multi-speaker party mode.
The original Turtlebox’s cons are harsher still: the notes describe it as sounding basically identical to the later Gen 2 and Gen 3, say it will never hit its claimed 120dB at a proper one meter measuring distance given its actual 50W output, and note it charges from an external AC power brick rather than USB-C.
Buy the Defender if you want the better rated, better equipped speaker for less money, and don’t mind narrower off-axis dispersion.
Buy the Turtlebox only if you find one secondhand and specifically want its stereo-pairing capability; it’s discontinued and outranked by the Defender either way.
Want more options? Browse the full Portable Bluetooth rankings.
A rugged, floating waterproof speaker that gets very loud for its size, with a flashlight, bottle opener and power bank.
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Specifications Side By Side
| EcoXGear Defender | Turtlebox | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $299.99 | $329 Discontinued |
| Ranked | #83 of 111 in Boombox Size Portable Bluetooth Speakers | #105 of 111 in Boombox Size Portable Bluetooth Speakers |
| Battery Life | 25 hours (Manufacturer specified) | 25 hours (Manufacturer specified) |
| Stereo | No | Yes |
| Omnidirectional | No | No |
| TWS | Yes | Yes |
| Bluetooth | Yes | Yes |
| Bluetooth Codecs | SBC | SBC |
| App | No | No |
| EQ | Yes | No |
| Party Mode | No | No |
| Power Bank | Yes (USB-C, 5V/2.1A) | No |
| USB Playback | No | No |
| Built-in Microphone | Yes | No |
| Power Input | USB-C | AC Power brick |
| FM Tuner | No | - |
| IP Rating | IP67 | IP67 |
| Weight | 10 lbs (4.54 kg) | 10 lbs (4.54 kg) |
| Bluetooth Version | 5.1 | 4.0 |
| Amplifier Power | 100W | 50W |
| Aux Input | Yes | Yes |
| Dimensions | 6.7” x 15.4” x 9.6” (170.2 x 391.2 x 243.8 mm) | 12” x 7” x 8.7” (305 x 178 x 222 mm) |
| Drivers | 52mm full-range driver | 1x 6x9” (152x228mm) woofer + 1x 1” (25mm) tweeter |
| Digital Aux Input | No | No |
| Strap | No | - |
| Bass Extension (-10dB) | - | ~65Hz |
| MicroSD Playback | - | Yes |
Watch Them Compared
Videos and reviews that test both speakers side by side.
- Outeraudio: Turtlebox vs EcoXgear Defender Sound Comparison
- Everyday Man: Soundboks Go Vs Turttlebox Vs EcoXGear Defender
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