The iPhone’s speakers sound better than Scosche’s BoomCam MS portable speaker

The US$49.99 Scosche BoomCan MS is a great idea in concept, but a bust in realization. The idea is a clever one: a small speaker that attaches to a MagSafe-equipped iPhone (iPhone 12 and later).

Apple says that MagSafe “improves wireless charging for a better, more efficient experience and introduces an ecosystem of easy-to-attach accessories that beautifully complement iPhone 12 Pro models.” It features an array of magnets around the wireless charging coil that connect to the iPhone  and provide up to 15W of power while still accommodating existing Qi-enabled devices.

Scosche’s BoomCan MS does attach to MagSafe phones as promised. Connecting via Bluetooth 5.3 is quick and easy. The speaker is fairly durable, being waterproof (IP67 rating) and rustproof. It provides up to five hours of playing time. And you can pair two of them..

Then there’s the audio quality ….

There’s no nice way to put this: it’s terrible, tinny, and lacks any punch to the bass. Pairing two of them would probably improve the sound. I haven’t tried this, but I can’t imagine two BoomCan MS speakers working in tandem would provide more than mediocre sound quality based on the audio output of one of the units. 

By the way, Scosche notes that the Magnetic Wireless Speaker can be used as a kickstand for your iPhone. It can, but doing so dilutes the audio even more. 

The built-in speakers on my iPhone 13 Pro Max sound much better and offer more volume than the Scosche Magnetic Wireless Speaker. And $50 is too much to spend for a smartphone kickstand.