Verdict
The Edifier ES300 sounds great, and it looks the part too. It has solid connectivity, an elegant light strip and a convenient built-in battery. AirPlay support makes it great for iPhone users, but Android users may get more for their money elsewhere.
-
Lovely design -
Excellent sound quality -
Versatile connectivity -
Elegant lighting -
Solid battery life
-
No Wi-Fi playback for Android phones -
It can sound harsh at higher volumes -
Sub-bass response could be improved
Key Features
-
Gorgeous retro design
The Edifier ES300 looks like a miniature retro guitar amp with subtle golden accents. It’ll look great in just about any living room -
Versatile connectivity
With AirPlay support, Bluetooth 5.4, USB playback and an aux input, you can connect the speaker to almost any source with ease -
Built-in battery
While this speaker is primarily designed for use at home, it still has a built-in battery, so you can easily move the party to a different room
Introduction
When I think of premium wireless speakers for the home, I think of brands like Sonos, JBL and Denon. Edifier, at least in my mind, is all about retro bookshelf speakers and computer audio – but perhaps that needs to change.
The new ES300 is a one-box smart wireless speaker, not too dissimilar to the JBL Authentics 300. It also adopts a classy vintage look, quite reminiscent of a retro guitar amp, and comes complete with ambient lighting, a battery for portable use, Wi-Fi connectivity and Apple AirPlay support.
It has everything a discerning home audio shopper could want, and it looks superb, but it doesn’t come cheap. With a price tag of £299 / $399, it had better sound as good as it looks. After listening to the Edifier ES300 for a week, here are my thoughts.
Design
- Stylish retro-inspired design
- Bi-colour underlight
- Backlit touch controls
I have already mentioned how handsome the ES300 speaker is, but it can’t be overstated: this is a gorgeous-looking speaker. The sides are covered in a soft leatherette material, while the front has a dark-grey fabric grille and metallic accents that sit somewhere between gold and bronze.
It’s available in either white or black, and both feature the same goldish-metallic accents. I opted for the darker model, but both look lovely and will easily match a variety of modern living rooms.

There’s an LED strip that runs along the underside of the front panel, and it shines down onto the tabletop below the speaker. It can be set to either cool or warm white to match your home lighting, and it’s a very elegant touch.
On top, there’s a pill-shaped control panel, mostly consisting of capacitive touch controls. The power button is a physical toggle, but the rest respond to touch, and they’re all backlit. You can set the backlighting to only illuminate when your hand is nearby, which is another neat addition.
On either side of the control surface, there are circular controls; one is for the volume, and the other is for the brightness of the LED under-glow. These work a bit like the touch wheel on an old iPod; you spin your finger around it like you’re turning an imaginary knob to adjust them.


I wouldn’t say it’s better or more accurate than the classic volume up and down buttons, but it’s cool, and that matters.
Around the back, there are two oblong bass ports and a fairly minimal array of inputs. There’s a figure-8 AC input for charging, a USB-A that works for music playback and a 3.5mm aux input.
Despite having a built-in battery, the Edifier ES300 doesn’t seem to be designed with portability in mind. It’s not super heavy at just under 4kg, but there are no grab handles, so lugging it about is awkward. Still, it’s easy enough to transport from the kitchen to the living room, for example.
Features
- 3.5mm aux and USB-A inputs
- Wi-Fi and Apple AirPlay support
- Up to 12 hours of battery life
Despite the selection of ports being relatively sparse, the ES300 is easy to connect to just about any source you could want. It has Bluetooth 5.4 and supports LDAC, so you can wirelessly stream tunes from your phone or laptop. There’s multipoint connectivity, so you can keep two devices paired at once and seamlessly switch between them.
Of course, the 3.5mm aux input means hi-fi equipment or dedicated music players will work without issue, too.


The Edifier ES300 also has Wi-Fi, and it supports AirPlay 2, so you can wirelessly cast music from an iPhone, iPad, Apple TV or any computer with iTunes installed. If you’re more of an Android / PC person, the Wi-Fi functionality isn’t very useful, and I think that’s a shame. I had to dig out my iPhone to make the most of it.
That said, the quality of the Bluetooth playback is more than good enough for me, especially if you have an Android phone that supports LDAC. The only downside is that, if you get a phone call, your music playback will be interrupted. There’s also no microphone built into the speaker, so you’ll need to switch to your phone to actually take said call.
There’s a companion app called Edifier Home for both Android and iOS. It’s pretty basic in terms of functionality, but it looks nice and gives you access to the most important functions.


Using the app, you can configure the Wi-Fi connection, switch inputs, choose your EQ and control the lighting mode.
The app lets you switch between cool and warm lighting, adjust the brightness from 0-100% and switch between three lighting modes. There’s a static option as well as a breathing mode and one called “water flow”. The water flow mode is the only slightly unusual one, which has the lights pulsing from left to right.
All of the lighting effects are on the subtle side, and I think that’s a classy choice. However, none of them react to the music, and that seems like a missed opportunity, as the underglow pulsing along with your music would look quite cool, in my opinion.
Sound Quality
- 4-inch mid-bass woofer
- Twin 1.25-inch tweeters
- High-res audio up to 24-bit/96kHz
The first thing that struck me when listening to the ES300 is how powerful it is. It’s not an especially large speaker, but it sounds like one. It doesn’t distort at these higher volumes, either, which is an impressive feat for such a compact unit.
It reminds me of my (ageing) Sonos Play:3, in that it can kick out sounds that feel like they should come from something much bigger, and that it just doesn’t distort, no matter how far you crank it.
Comparatively, the Edifier ES300’s bass response doesn’t extend quite as deep, but the mid-bass has just as much punch. Meanwhile, the Edifier has greater clarity in the highs and better vocal presence, too. I was pleasantly surprised by the fidelity of this single-box solution.


How you feel about it will likely depend on your music preferences. I felt that most rock, jazz and pop tracks sounded exceptional, but genres that utilise the lower sub-bass frequencies like dubstep and Drum & Bass could sometimes feel a little lacking.
Edifier isn’t shy about this; its own spec sheet states a 56 – 40,000Hz frequency response. So it’s clear the speaker isn’t designed to create that super low-end rumble, and 99% of the time that’s absolutely fine.
It’s all about choosing the right speaker for your needs, and the lively mid-bass of this speaker makes rock, indie and 80s songs sound dynamic and appealing. Metal sounds pretty great, too, if that’s your kind of thing.
Being a single unit, you can’t expect much of a stereo effect, but the speaker does a great job of spreading out sound. It sounds great so long as you’re roughly in front, and projects the sound in a wide 180-degree cone.


My only real criticism of the sound quality is that, when you push it to near maximum volume, the detailed treble starts to sound a bit harsh. Honestly, though, it’s only at seriously high volumes. At my typical listening level (around 50%), it sounds great. And unlike many rivals, it sounds excellent when played quietly; you don’t need to crank this to get the full effect, and I love that.
The majority of the time, I listened using the default “classic” EQ, as it sounded best to my ears, but there are other options available via the companion app. There’s one called ‘monitor’ which I think is just a flat-ish EQ, then there’s one for gaming and a ‘vocal’ preset for podcasts and audiobooks.
There’s also a six-band custom EQ that allows you to increase or decrease the volume of certain frequencies by 3dB. If the default EQ isn’t doing it for you, this could be the ticket, but after plenty of fiddling, I still found I preferred the standard profile.
Should you buy it?
You want a stylish and versatile speaker to use around the home
The Edifier ES300 looks lovely, and it sounds just as good as it looks. It’s a great addition to any home audio setup.
You want a smart speaker to use with an Android phone
While the ES300 has Wi-Fi connectivity, it really only works with Apple AirPlay. This means it’s not an ideal choice for Android users, as you’re stuck using Bluetooth or a connection.
Final Thoughts
The Edifier ES300 is a beautifully designed speaker with versatile connectivity, superb sound quality, subtle lighting and a handy built-in battery. It’s a great addition to almost any home audio setup.
That said, it’s not perfect. To get the most from this speaker, you’ll need to be an iPhone user, as the Wi-Fi functionality is purely for AirPlay, and as an Android guy, I found that disappointing. It means the highest quality options and speaker pairing are unavailable, unless you’re using a computer with iTunes on it.
If you’re all-in on Apple and you’re not a sub-bass fiend, this could be a perfect fit, but it’s important to factor in the competition.
The JBL Authentics 300 has been around for a couple of years, and it can now be found for around the same price (or less). It offers similar styling and features, but with the addition of smart assistant control, Google Cast and Spotify Connect. It’s a much better feature set for Android users.
The Marshall Stanmore III is also worth a look as it has similar styling, but it’ll cost you more, and it lacks Wi-Fi. Personally, I think the ES300 is a better buy.
How We Test
We test every wireless speaker we review thoroughly over an extended period of time. We use industry standard tests to compare features properly. We’ll always tell you what we find. We never, ever, accept money to review a product.
Find out more about how we test in our ethics policy.
- Tested for more than a week
- Tested with real world use
FAQs
Yes, you can pair the ES300 with other speakers, but only via AirPlay; there doesn’t seem to be a way to do so using Bluetooth.
No, there’s no IP rating for this speaker; it’s designed to stay indoors. So if you take it outside, check the weather first.
Full Specs
Edifier ES300 Review | |
---|---|
UK RRP | £299 |
Manufacturer | Edifier |
Size (Dimensions) | 277 x 165 x 165 MM |
Weight | 3.7 KG |
ASIN | B0F8Q3QB4T |
Release Date | 2025 |
Audio Resolution | SBC, LDAC, ALAC |
Driver (s) | Dual 1.25-inch tweeters, 4-inch mid-bass woofer |
Ports | USB-A, 3.5mm aux, AC input |
Audio (Power output) | 60 W |
Connectivity | Bluetooth 5.4, Wi-Fi, AirPlay 2 |
Colours | Black, White |
Frequency Range | 56 40000 – Hz |
Speaker Type | Wireless Speaker |