UE Boom

So what is it?  An energy drink?  A microphone?  and what does it have to do with scooters?

The UE Boom is a blue tooth speaker system about the same size and form factor as a monster energy drink but, don't let this fool you.  This thing is loud and the sound quality, while it's never going to replace a huge hi fi system, is amazing.   And while there are many blue tooth speaker systems out there, what makes this one unique is you can pair it with an additional UE Boom and get a true stereo image via smart phone app.   While bass response on a unit this size is a challenge, it does surprisingly well.  

What makes it of interest for us who ride scooters is the mounting options it has.  The most usufull for scooter riders is the 1/4 20 threaded mount on the bottom of the unit.   This feature makes it really easy to mount to a bike with something as simple as a Pedco Ultra Clamp.  These clamps are used for mounting camera's to poles, open car windows and about any other place you can think of, including scooter handlebars, and grab bars.  Mounting a single UE Boom  to the grab bar on the back of my 250 scooter, I have good sound to speeds of 40MPH or so and that's only because the wind noise in my cheap helmet drowns it out.  Mounting it to the handlebars, behind the windshield, I was able to hear it well to about 50mph ( Did I mention this thing is loud ???).  I can only imagine how loud it would be with a second one.  My other idea is to put it in my backpack and see if I can hear it better. As it is, it sounds much better then 90% of the scooter sound systems I've heard. 

Stopped at a park, it does really well of course.  You will have no problems hearing it or you can simply take it off the bike and bring it with you. The unit is water resistant and shock proof.  Battery life is ~15 hours at 1/2 volume (loud enough to be uncomfortable if inside).    Charging is done via USB port and pairing it with multiple devices is simple.  Once paired with a smart phone or iPod, the volume control on the device controls the volume of the unit.  On my iPod, I even get a battery meter on the phone to tell me how much charge the unit still has.  The only real drawback of the unit is, it's a bit pricey.  MSRP is 199.99 but you can find it on Amazon for 189.99.  Pedco ultra clamps go for under 30 bucks.  The two together are pretty priceless.