Beosound A1 or Beoplay P2

Looking for a fairly cheap ( by B&O standards) Bluetooth portable speaker. Is there an obvious choice between these two?

A1 . If you can afford A2,much better

Loved the A2, we sold quite a few and no issues.

A1 is amazing for its size, not heard the new one yet.

thorne:

Looking for a fairly cheap ( by B&O standards) Bluetooth portable speaker. Is there an obvious choice between these two?

I own two A1s (for use in stereo mode), two A2s (ditto) and an A2 Active. When I heard the P2 I was very disappointed. The P2 has much less bass than the A1, although it is much smaller and “pocketable”.

As the other folks have commented, the A1 is really good, and the A2 - in my view - has amazing bass for its thickness. Placement is key to getting the tonal balance right (or tweak using the app).

Lawrence

The sound on the A2 is excellent but the battery life is terrible, on 50% volume it lasts 2 hrs, anything higher than that maybe 1hr. The P2 has excellent battery life and the sound for such a small speaker is impressive but obviously the bigger speakers will have better bass. I have never owned a A1. 

I have both!

The A1 is superior. I now have the 2nd Generation A1 and it's a build improvement over the first model (although sounds the same to me). A1 battery life is not terrible at all. The 2nd Generation lasts hours. I've sat out in the sun all day with it running.

However, the P2 is better for travel. Much better. You can slip it in your pocket if necessary. Sound quality isn't as rounded as the A1, but better than you'd expect for such a small device.

Thanks for all the advice. I think I’ll go for the A1, which seems to meet my needs

I also have both.  If you don't care too much about portability, then go with the A1.  It's all around better.  However, it is quite a bit bigger and heavier.  Prior to the recent world events, I used to travel a bit for work and space/weight was always at a premium so I moved from the A1 to the P2 for travel purposes.  Given I was mostly listening at low volumes in a hotel, the sound difference didn't make up for the weight/size difference.  I can say the P2 performed excellently for this purpose.  Ultimately, the A1 is better, but the P2 sounds great for its size.