This 3-foot-tall, record-sized Bluetooth speaker with a screen displaying lyrics and animations popped up on several For You pages in October, with videos usually showing an influencer removing the R1 from its neon-green box. However, what made it somewhat viral was not the product, but its price. “Consumerism is the final boss” was a representative comment. (Many others noted its unfortunate similarity to a robot vacuum.) “For $1,700? Surely we’ve lost the plot,” Best Products’ Josiah Soto wrote in a follow-up article. Although the speaker currently costs “only” $1,049 on Amazon and Walmart, that’s still a crazy price for a speaker with only a screen, many of which are available for $300 or less.
When one came to test this guide, I’ll admit my expectations were low, but in person, it looks at least more high-end than you might expect, sitting on stylish, thin walnut legs with a slot to stash the lanyard. The black “Record” frame is a Jamo-licensed speaker with a 6.5-inch subwoofer, two 105 x 50 mm midrange drivers, and two 0.75-inch tweeters. The entire setup weighs about 35 pounds and connects via 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. When R1 is on, it can display album covers, lyrics and animated visual effects; When closed, it can be set to display a giant, vintage-inspired 24-hour flip clock. I wish there were more “off” display options, and it’s more of a novelty item than a legitimate speaker (for those, see our recommendations here), but I can note that this isn’t for apartment dwellers on higher floors – I installed it on the top floor in my house to test how audible the bass was through the ceiling, and the answer is very much. ,cat merch