Danish company Bang & Olufsen has released an updated version of its premium Beolit Bluetooth speaker, with the high price of $850 in the Australian market.
The Beolit 20 is Bang & Olufsen’s newest audio release after a disappointing 2019/20 year in sales, with a “disappointing” 29% revenue decline, confirmed by CEO Kristian Tear earlier this year.
The lunchbox-sized speaker is an upgraded edition of the 2017 Beolit 17, with new features such as a Qi wireless charging pad which can charge devices such as earbuds or phones while it is playing.
According to bang & Olufsen, the Beolit 20 has 30% longer battery life and offers 37 hours of listening at low volume – but just under 4 hours at max volume.
The design hasn’t changed much, with a leather carrying strap, USB-C port for charging and a jack for wired connectivity.
As for the audio, the speaker has a 5.5-inch woofer, three 1.5-inch full-range drivers and a pair of 4-inch passive bass radiators. It promises a room-filling, True360 omnidirectional sound, with 77dB bass capability and 93dB in mid-range loudness.
The Beolit 20 is available now in two colours, Grey Mist and Black Anthracite, from today, and is priced at A$850 from Bang & Olufsen and select third-party retailers.
Bang & Olufsen only ventured into the audio market in 2017 and struggled with a shortfall of revenue recently.
“A disappointing year for Bang & Olufsen. The unsatisfactory results were primarily due to lack of progress with the ongoing transition towards a demand-driven retail model and higher-than-expected sales through unauthorised channels,” said CEO Kristian Teär.
“We launched several initiatives to address these challenges, but just as we were starting to see the first results of these efforts, we were hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and the lock-down of countries around the world.”
