Bang & Olufsen launches what could be the coolest-looking wireless speaker on the planet

You’ll be shocked – shocked! – to discover that this B&O speaker isn’t going to be battling any budget Bluetooth speakers

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We love a piece of tech that makes us go “ooooooooh” at a single photograph of it, and the new Bang & Olufsen Beosound A5 Spaced Aluminium is absolutely one of those. Hand-crafted from over 3,500 individual aluminium discs it’s one of the strangest, most striking and to these eyes most beautiful speakers we’ve seen in some time. We alreadythought that the normal Beosound A5 is pretty. But this isspectacular.

It’s also quite expensive. Where the normal Beosound A5 was launched with a list price of $1,099 / £899 / AU$1,950 for its most affordable version, the Spaced Aluminium is $1,399 / £1,299 / AU$2,489.

That’s alotof money, for sure, compared to most of thebest Bluetooth speakers. But just look at it.

More than just a very pretty speaker

The new finish isn’t the only thing that’s new in the Beosound A5. Two new features are coming to the speaker range too: Automatic Stereo Pairing, which does exactly what it sounds like, and Fluid Sweet Spot, which needs a bit more explanation. It’s designed to work with your paired A5 speakers, and when you’re sitting comfortably you can then tap on the B&O app and it’ll adjust the stereo to ensure that wherever you’re sitting becomes the sweet spot for the best stereo image. As these updates are coming via the Mozart software, they’ll be available to existing A5 speakers too.

As before, there’s over 12 hours of play time between charges, an integrated wireless phone charger, AirPlay 2, Chromecast and Bluetooth 5.3. You can use your A5 as part of a B&O multi-room system and it works over Wi-Fi with services including Spotify, Tidal and Deezer. Inside, there are four class D amplifiers, two mid-range drivers, a woofer and a tweeter capable of delivering impressive room-filling audio. It’s not quite 360-degree audio but it sounds much bigger than you’d expect from the relatively small size of the device.

We really rate all versions of the speaker: in ourB&O Beosound A5 reviewof the Dark Oak model – there’s also a Nordic Weave version – we said that it was the Danish luxury brand’s best speaker to date, marrying drop-dead gorgeous looks with sublime audio prowess. Its weight – just under 4kg – means it’s transportable rather than truly portable, and of course the price means it’s out of reach for many. But as with other B&O audio products there’s substance to match the style: you can definitely hear where your money’s going.

The Beosound A5 Spaced Aluminium is available from today, 26 October 2023.

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Writer, broadcaster, musician and kitchen gadget obsessive Carrie Marshall has been writing about tech since 1998, contributing sage advice and odd opinions to all kinds of magazines and websites as well as writing more than a dozen books. Her memoir,Carrie Kills A Man, is on sale now and her next book, about pop music, is out in 2025. She is the singer in Glaswegian rock bandUnquiet Mind.

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