IKEA’s $60 Bluetooth Speaker Doubles as a Dimmable Lamp

A bedside desk, kitchen counter, or shelf can get crowded rapidly. It’s your decision softer night mild and a speaker for music or podcasts, however including each means extra cables, extra objects, and fewer usable house. IKEA’s BLOMPRAKT combines a Bluetooth speaker and dimmable lamp in a single compact design.

Ikea BLOMPRAK Bluetooth Speaker
Value: $59.99
The place to Purchase: Ikea

The concept is easy, however the sensible query is whether or not it really works greatest as a lamp, a speaker, or an accent piece. The listed options embody heat, dimmable lighting and Bluetooth audio, however no stereo mode. We’ve not examined its sound high quality or quantity in use.

A two-in-one design for small surfaces

BLOMPRAKT is sized for a nightstand, desk nook, open shelf, kitchen counter, or facet desk. IKEA lists it at 9 inches broad, 8 inches deep, and 9 inches excessive. That compact footprint is the product’s core benefit. It will possibly substitute two separate objects the place house is at a premium.

The speaker might be positioned at totally different angles, and twin twine slots beneath assist route the ability cable in a tidier path. That may be a small design element, but it surely issues in a small setup the place a visual cable could make a shelf or desk look cluttered.

IKEA lists a built-in LED mild supply with a heat 2700K shade temperature. Holding the management dims the sunshine. As a result of IKEA doesn’t publish a lumen ranking on the product web page, patrons mustn’t assume it could substitute a devoted desk lamp or brighten a room. It’s extra precisely understood as a heat accent mild for winding down, listening, or including ambiance.

What the speaker specs inform us

BLOMPRAKT connects to a telephone, laptop, or different suitable system by Bluetooth. IKEA says the vary is at the least 10 meters with out interference, although partitions, room structure, and different wi-fi gadgets can cut back that distance in an actual residence.

The technical specs checklist one 2.8-inch full-range driver, 10 watts of complete energy output, a frequency vary of 78Hz to 18kHz, and a most sound strain stage of 76.1dB. These are producer specs, not listening-test outcomes. They don’t set up how clear, full, or loud the speaker will sound in your house.

The important thing limitation is stereo. IKEA explicitly lists no stereo mode. A single BLOMPRAKT performs mono audio, which is regular for a speaker of this dimension however related for patrons who need a wider soundstage for music. IKEA additionally notes that sound depends upon room dimension, speaker placement, the incoming audio supply, and the settings on the linked system.

The dearth of stereo mode guidelines out utilizing it as a left-and-right stereo pair. Its two-in-one design combines Bluetooth audio with ambient mild; comparisons with different audio system would require listening checks.

Multi-speaker mode expands protection, not stereo separation

IKEA says BLOMPRAKT helps multi-speaker mode with different IKEA Bluetooth audio system that embody the identical function. That may be helpful in case you already personal suitable IKEA audio system and need the identical podcast or playlist in a couple of space.

Nonetheless, IKEA says multi-speaker mode performs the identical sound from each linked speaker in mono. It’s a method to prolong protection, not create a left-and-right stereo system. It could be useful throughout an open kitchen and eating space, however it’s not an alternative choice to correctly positioned stereo audio system.

The supply system should stay inside vary of the primary speaker, and the added audio system should stay inside vary of that main unit. That ought to work extra simply in an open condo than in a bigger residence with thick partitions and a number of flooring.

Spotify Faucet provides one shortcut for Spotify customers

Spotify Faucet is considered one of BLOMPRAKT’s extra distinctive options. IKEA says urgent the button resumes Spotify music from the place it was final performed. Further presses can floor suggestions based mostly on listening historical past.

That may be handy when a telephone isn’t in hand. However the shortcut is barely helpful for Spotify listeners. Apple Music, YouTube Music, Tidal, podcasts from one other app, and native audio information can nonetheless play by commonplace Bluetooth, however they don’t acquire the Spotify Faucet management.

The speaker is rated IP20, which is an indoor-use ranking and doesn’t present significant water safety. It belongs on a dry shelf, desk, or counter, not open air or close to a bathe.

Purchaser match

BLOMPRAKT could attraction to somebody who needs a compact, design-led object that mixes heat mild and Bluetooth audio in an indoor house. It makes essentially the most sense on a nightstand, kitchen counter, desk, or shelf the place decreasing litter issues as a lot as sound output.

Take into account it for the mixed lamp-and-speaker design, Spotify Faucet, and compact dimensions. It doesn’t supply stereo mode or water safety, and the product web page doesn’t publish a brightness ranking.

Ikea BLOMPRAK Bluetooth Speaker
Value: $59.99
The place to Purchase: Ikea

Sound high quality, bass efficiency, and whether or not its quantity fits your room stay untested. If music efficiency is your precedence, search for hands-on listening evaluations earlier than deciding. In case your precedence is lighting a desk or room, select a lamp with a broadcast brightness ranking.