The eternal quest for the perfect blend of form and function in our increasingly gadget-strewn lives. Unfortunately, not all attempts to merge technology with furniture are successful, as evidenced by the DecorTech Bluetooth Speaker End Table.
This table's designers aimed to create a stylish piece that doubles as a speaker, but unfortunately, their efforts fell flat. The result is an end table with a speaker that sounds decent, but its placement is impractical and poorly designed.
The main issue lies in the fact that speakers need to be positioned correctly to produce optimal sound quality, which makes this particular design problem. When placed at the back of a couch, as most people would do with such a device, it does a poor job of hiding behind the furniture, revealing unsightly power cables and obstructing airflow.
The wireless charger and buttons are convenient features, but their placement doesn't help alleviate the issue of poor speaker positioning. The FM radio is another inclusion that feels like a mismatched component, requiring an awkward antenna extension that's more likely to collect dust than improve sound quality.
In terms of audio performance, the speakers do a decent job of handling ambient and instrumental music, but struggle with vocals. With its relatively low price point, this table could be seen as a budget-friendly option for those who want to experience the convenience of having a speaker in their living room.
However, despite its solid execution on many fronts, the DecorTech Bluetooth Speaker End Table falls victim to the original design sin: ignoring the fundamental function and limitations of both the end table and the speaker. As a result, it's more gimmick than genuinely useful piece of furniture.
Perhaps designers will take a cue from this review and strive for better integration in future products, or maybe the market will simply decide that such a product is too impractical to be practical.
This table's designers aimed to create a stylish piece that doubles as a speaker, but unfortunately, their efforts fell flat. The result is an end table with a speaker that sounds decent, but its placement is impractical and poorly designed.
The main issue lies in the fact that speakers need to be positioned correctly to produce optimal sound quality, which makes this particular design problem. When placed at the back of a couch, as most people would do with such a device, it does a poor job of hiding behind the furniture, revealing unsightly power cables and obstructing airflow.
The wireless charger and buttons are convenient features, but their placement doesn't help alleviate the issue of poor speaker positioning. The FM radio is another inclusion that feels like a mismatched component, requiring an awkward antenna extension that's more likely to collect dust than improve sound quality.
In terms of audio performance, the speakers do a decent job of handling ambient and instrumental music, but struggle with vocals. With its relatively low price point, this table could be seen as a budget-friendly option for those who want to experience the convenience of having a speaker in their living room.
However, despite its solid execution on many fronts, the DecorTech Bluetooth Speaker End Table falls victim to the original design sin: ignoring the fundamental function and limitations of both the end table and the speaker. As a result, it's more gimmick than genuinely useful piece of furniture.
Perhaps designers will take a cue from this review and strive for better integration in future products, or maybe the market will simply decide that such a product is too impractical to be practical.