Bose refreshes super-tough SoundLink Flex speaker with new features and aptX streaming

There are a great number of Bluetooth speakers out there, with superb options from the likes of Sonos in the Roam 2 and Move 2, Bose in the SoundLink Max and SoundLink Flex, and Ultimate Ears in its Wonderboom and Everboom options. That's only a tiny selection of our favourites though – there are plenty of other excellent options on the market, too.

However, Bose has made one of its options even more compelling, replacing the SoundLink Flex with a 2nd generation model that brings a number of improvements.

The portable Bluetooth speaker not only adds a new Shortcut button, matching that of the SoundLink Max, but you can customise that button through the Bose app too, choosing to connect to your Spotify account for quick music playback, or access the voice assistant on your connected phone.

There's also Advanced Audio Coding (AAC) Bluetooth codec standard support and aptX, allowing for Snapdragon Sound on compatible Android devices.

The 2nd generation of SoundLink Flex has the same design as the original model, along with the same audio performance, neither of which will get any complaints from us, though you will get new colour options including Blue Dusk, Sandstone, Alpine Stage and Black.

Like its predecessor, the SoundLink Flex offers up to 12 hours of battery life. It is water and dust resistant and you can pair it with another compatible Bose speaker to activate Party Mode for in-sync audio, or Stereo Mode if pairing the same Bose speakers for left and right channels.

PositionIQ technology meanwhile, can automatically sense the SoundLink Flex's orientation, adjusting the sound output accordingly.

Through the Bose app, you can also adjust the SoundLink Flex's equaliser settings to make sure you are getting the sound output you want, or create a SimpleSync with another compatible Bose product.

It's worth mentioning that the SoundLink Max – which launched in May 2024 – also received a firmware update, bringing pairing to the larger portable speaker, as well as the ability to pair it with another SoundLink Max for playback in Stereo Mode or Party Mode.

The Bose SoundLink Flex (2nd generation) costs the same as the original at £150 in the UK, $149.95 in the US and AU$249.95 in Australia. The SoundLink Max costs £399 / $399 / AU$599.