The Differences in Fugoo’s Bluetooth Speakers: The Style vs. Sport vs. Tough, Plus the Style-S


We’ve examined everything about Fugoo’s Bluetooth speaker offerings in the Style, Style-S, Sport, and Tough lines in order to tease out exactly what the differences are and which is right for whom.

As usual, this means a meta-review of everything put out by consumer testing organizations, audiophile bloggers, and tech reviewers. We’ll have a little more on the results below, but first, a quick side-by-side comparison.

Update History of This Article

This article was originally published on August 10, 2017.

Side-by-Side Comparison: The Fugoo Tough, Sport, Style, and Style-S

Fugoo Tough

• Practically indestructible: The most rugged of the four, and the most rugged speaker we’ve ever looked at, period. Built for extensive outdoor use in messy and rough environments.

• Water- and dustproof: Rated IP67

• 360-degree sound from six drivers

• 40-hour battery

• Portable: 2.3 x 7.75 x 2.9 in. (59 x 197 x 73 mm)

• Weight: 1.4 lbs. (0.62 kg.)

Cannot pair with second unit

• Price: $54.99

 

Fugoo Sport

• Very Rugged: Can withstand dunking in water, mud, drops; built to handle use with outdoor sports like kayaking, mountain biking, etc.

Water- and dustproof: Rated IP67

• 360-degree sound from six drivers

• 40-hour battery

• Portable: 2.3 x 7.4 x 2.9 in. (59 x 187 x 73 mm)

• Weight: 1.1 lbs. (0.519 kg.)

• Cannot pair with second unit

• Price: $55.99

 

Fugoo Style

• Rugged: Can withstand dunking, dust and dropping, fine for pool and outdoor use

Water- and dustproof: Rated IP67

• 360-degree sound from six drivers

• 40-hour battery

• Most Portable: 2.1 x 6.5 x 2.6 in. (54 x 165 x 66 mm)

• Weight: 1.1 lbs. (0.519 kg.)

• Cannot pair with second unit

• Available in five colors

• Price: $79.99

Fugoo Style-S

• Rugged: Can withstand dunking, dust and dropping, fine for pool and outdoor use

Water- and dustproof: Rated IP67

• Directional sound from four drivers

• 15-hour battery

• A bit bigger: 2.5 x 8.3 x 2.9 in. (65 x 211 x 77 mm)

• Weight: 1.7 lbs. (0.655 kg.)

• Can be paired up (if you buy two units) for stereo sound or doubling volume

• Price: 

Critical Meta-Review: The Differences Between Fugoo Speakers and Which Is Right for Whom

The most important thing to note when comparing these speakers is that the core of the Tough, Sport, and Style speakers is actually the same, whereas the Style-S is a bit bigger and has its own configuration of drivers and sound.

In fact, if you’re really indecisive, you could buy any one of the Tough, Sport, or Style speakers plus an alternate jacket or even two, so as to dress the speaker for the occasion, so to speak. Changing the Fugoo jackets is pretty straightforward but does involve some screws for the Tough and the Sport jackets.

The Fugoos’ Ruggedness

All four of these speakers are able to stand up to a lot of abuse, which is their main selling point when compared to other speakers on the market. They are rated at IP67, which is a binding claim from Fugoo for its degree of both dustproofing and waterproofing. With this International Protection Marketing code, the 6 indicates that it is completely sealed off from dust, and the 7 states that it can be completely immersed in water for 30 minutes come out of the bath still ready to party. The Fugoo’s IP67 goes beyond the IPX7 of most other waterproof speakers (such as the UE Boom 2, UE Roll 2, etc.) and splashproof IPX4 speakers (such as the Bose Revolve or Revolve+).

In addition, Fugoo claims that these speakers are “shockproof” and that they’ve been “drop tested at six feet”. Various reviewers have abused the speakers and reported that they do indeed hold up to this and much worse treatment.

From there, the differences are in the amount of extra protection you want in terms of the jacket. The Fugoo Tough has the bulkiest and most indestructible housing: fiber-reinforced resin and solid aluminum. The Sport model is more svelte and streamlined, but still ready to go on outdoors adventures, get hosed off, and head out again. The Style and the Style-S models are supposed to be for the more reserved adventurer, but since they’re also completely dust-, water-, and shockproof, and have the same core, they are absolutely fine in any normal outdoor use. (Hence, since they have the same core and the Fugoo Style is the cheapest, it is the one to get unless you’re really planning on subjecting your speaker to serious abuse.)

Battery Life

The Fugoo Tough, Sport, and Style models claim an incredible (ridiculous? excessive?) 40-hour battery life; reviewers and customers generally found that it did in fact last nearly that long, or alternately lasted through very extensive use over several days without plugging in.

The Fugoo Style-S, on the other hand, offers “only” 15-hour battery life, which still tends to be quite a lot for most needs.

Sound

The Fugoo Tough, Sport, and Style get generally positive reviews for their sound from audiophiles and tech sites. Exceeding most other speakers of this size, the core for these three smaller Fugoo speakers has six separate drivers: two tweeters, two mid/woofers, and two bass drivers. Critics agree that this configuration offers Fugoo’s promise of 360-degree sound plus a lot of clarity for the middle and upper end. Some felt that the bass tones were lovely for a speaker of this size, while others found them lacking.

As for the consumer organizations, Consumer Reports didn’t care much for how these Fugoos sound, though they were comparing them mainly to much larger and less outdoorsy speakers. Other countries consumer testing organizations haven’t yet given them a listen. We’ve noted that most critics agree that the competing UE Boom 2 and a few other speakers offer better sound, and we suggest other choices as well for those looking to pay less or to carry a very small speaker. The Fugoo Tough/Sport/Style’s strongest points are rather their ruggedness and battery life; they’re not for the most demanding audiophiles but rather for those who want their speakers to be able to join them in rougher, longer adventures.

The Fugoo Style-S is relatively new as of this writing and only a few critics have weighed in. While it is larger, it has only four drivers and delivers directional sound; we see this as a major disadvantage. On the other hand it is pairable in the sense that you could buy two of them, pair them together, and play music for a larger, presumably outdoor space. Also, some felt that Style-S distorted at high volumes. Personally we’d rather get a UE Boom 2 or Megaboom, which critics loved more universally. But here’s what the Fugoo Style-S has going for it in comparison to those speakers: it floats, is rated as dustproof, and is generally likely to withstand more extreme abuse.

Fugoo Tough, Sport, Style, and Style-S Speakers Spec Comparison

Here are the speakers’ measurements and links to check the latest pricing from Fugoo and the other merchants that sell them. We’ve also listed the more squat Fugoo Go and the much bigger Fugoo Style XL, Sport XL, and Tough XL versions for comparison.

Pricing advice: The cheapest prices that we find at last check are at the Amazon links below, but you can check the other listed sites as well for comparison.

SpeakerWeight (oz.)Length (in.)Width (in.)Height (in.)Also Available atPricing
Fugoo Style15.66.52.12.6newegg
B&H Photo Video
Fugoo Go168.851.93.3
Fugoo Sport18.37.42.32.9
Fugoo Tough227.752.32.9newegg
B&H Photo Video
Fugoo Style-S23.18.32.52.9newegg
Fugoo Style-XL6211.333.814.52newegg
B&H Photo Video
Fugoo Sport XL6612.044.214.72BestBuy
newegg
Fugoo Tough XL7913.184.374.64newegg

Wrap-Up: Which Fugoo Speaker Is Right for You

Fugoo Style
The speaker with great battery life that’s built to withstand outdoor adventures, the most rugged small Bluetooth speaker on the market and should hold up just fine for almost everyone’s needs.
Fugoo Sport
If you’re really, really, really intending to get rough while cranking out your tunes (and you’re willing to drop a bit more money) you could go for the Fugoo Sport
Fugoo Tough
For even more protection (and money) you’ll get the bulkier, crazy-tough housing of the Fugoo Tough.
Fugoo Style-S
Similar to the Fugoo Style, but bigger, and with directional rather than 360-degree sound, built to withstand water, dust, and shocks, and offers the option to be paired with a second unit.

No Comment

Leave a reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.