JBL Charge Essential Vs Charge 5: Ultimate Speaker Showdown

You’re going on a long trip with your friends and want to carry a Bluetooth speaker; however, you don’t have one! 

Well, a trip without music is boring, so you’d want to get an easy-to-carry speaker with you as soon as possible, won’t you?

So, the next thing you do is to get up and get to the store, where you can see all kinds of speakers. However, two speakers, JBL Charge Essential and Charge 5, catch your attention.

We’ve compared them side-by-side to help you make the best choice for your trip.

JBL Charge Essential and Charge 5 Deals:

What to do now?

Choosing a suitable speaker for your trip could be difficult, especially if you are making a decision without doing any research.
Neither of these seems to be happening, so continue reading to know which one suits your trip JBL Charge Essential or Charge 5.

You might be interested in seeing how the JBL Charge Essential 2 stacks up against the JBL Charge 5. Just so you know, there aren’t massive differences between the JBL Charge Essential and the Charge Essential 2. To make things easier,we did in-depth comparison between JBL Charge Essential and Charge Essential 2 here. It will give you even more insights into these fantastic speakers.

The Audio Games: JBL Charge Essential Vs Charge 5

Design

Do you believe in love at first sight? Cause you might as well fall in love with the design and looks of one of these two speakers Charge Essential or Charge 5. 
Charge Essential has a cylindrical design with rounded edges and a  fabric mesh cover wrapped around the speaker, protecting the drivers and giving it a sleeker and more modern look. In comparison, Charge 5 also has a cylindrical shape with more pronounced edges premium fabric mesh cover, which makes it more textured and durable. Experience the sleek design of the JBL Charge 5 for yourself!

Furthermore, Charge 5 has an integrated carrying strap and handle, making it easy to carry on a trip. Charge Essential doesn’t have a strap, but its cylindrical shape makes the speaker easy to carry.

Dimensions

Now let’s talk about the size and dimensions of the two speakers; it’ll help you pick one that has a size suitable for your needs. 
JBL Charge 5 is compact, with a height of about 9.65 cm, length of 9.4 cm, width of 22.3 cm, and weight of 960 g; this speaker is easy to carry anywhere without much hassle. However, Charge Essential takes compactness to another level because of its much sleeker size, with a height of 8.7 cm, length of 8.97 cm, width of 21.3 cm, and weight of only 770 g. So, according to the size and dimensions, JBL Charge Essential is smaller and lightweight, making it a winner of this round for its compact size.

Features

Now it’s time to look at the detailed monologue of all the incredible features of Charge Essential and Charge 5!
First of all, Charge Essential and Charge 5 are Bluetooth speakers and provide wireless connectivity through a wireless connection so that you can forget about the wires clutter and horrible wire tangles nightmares. Another feature both speakers have is an automatic switch-off, which allows the speaker to turn off automatically if it’s inactive for a specific time. 

Furthermore, both speakers are water resistant, but Charge 5 takes the protection to another level with an IP67 rating, making it immune to water and dust. 
Now, that’s something, isn’t it? 
You can have your speaker fighting for its safety. You don’t have to rush and save it from water splashes or dust. Instead, the Charge 5, with its IP67 protection, will subdue these monsters on its own. Charge 5 also has a built-in strap, which makes it easy to carry around during a trip. However, Charge Essential doesn’t incorporate such a feature.
Finally, your Bluetooth speaker’s social skill is another amazing feature you would want to have. 
Now, you might be thinking, what did I mean by the gibberish Social Skills? Of course, the speaker won’t go out and make friends!
Well, it’s the ability of a speaker to connect to a chain of speakers for simultaneous audio playback.

Now, Charge Essential has no feature that helps it connect to other Charge series speakers for a better audio impact. However, Charge 5 again takes the lead with its amazing Partyboost mode, which allows the user to connect it with a chain of other Partyboost-supported speakers for playing the audio in multiple rooms or for a more booming audio effect.

Sound Quality

Now, let’s look at the sound quality of the two speakers. You certainly wouldn’t want a speaker that produces a sound as unpleasant as a poorly singing friend, would you?
You’ll have to choose carefully because the audio quality is also about what type of audio you prefer.
JBL Charge Essential has a power output of about 5 Watts and a frequency response of about 65 Hz to 20 KHz, which means it decently covers most frequency audios. It has a single 2-inch x 3.5-inch full-range driver, which delivers balanced sound with decent clarity and detail. It’s suitable to fill a small to medium-sized room with sound. However, at some level of depth, the bass response might not be satisfactory.

On the other hand, Charge 5 is a bit louder and more powerful compared to Charge Essential. With a Power output of about 40 watts and a frequency response of 65 Hz to 20 KHz, this one has louder audio to fill larger rooms. It has a 3.5 inches large driver with two dedicated bass radiators. It improves the overall sound experience by enhancing the audio performance, resulting in a richer and more powerful sound with better bass response. 

Furthermore, JBL Charge 5 also supports the Partyboost feature. Hear it to believe it! Click here to dive into the immersive sound of JBL Charge 5. allowing it to connect with a chain of compatible speakers to play audio in multiple rooms.

Both speakers certainly hold their ground when it comes to sound quality. But if you lean more towards the powerful, bass-rich sound, Charge 5 is a definite winner. Click here to experience the excellent sound quality of the JBL Charge 5.

Connectivity

JBL Charge Essential and Charge 5 are Bluetooth speakers, which allow wireless connection with the audio source. However, Charge 5, being the new kid, offers a newer version of Bluetooth, i.e., Bluetooth 5.1, which has a better connectivity range, faster transfer rate, more stable connection, and fast connectivity. On the other hand, Charge Essential has Bluetooth 4.1, which is also good for wireless connection but can’t defeat Charge 5.

Now, let’s say there’s a device you want to connect to your Bluetooth speaker which doesn’t support Bluetooth connection.
What would you do now?
In the case of Charge 5, there’s nothing much you can do. However, Charge Essential has a way out of this with its extra connectivity feature. This speaker supports an Aux 3.5mm cable input, which allows it to connect with an audio source through a wired connection. 

Battery Life

Who wants to deal with the inconvenience of a speaker running out of power unexpectedly during a trip? It’s a situation nobody wants to face, especially when you’re in the middle of nowhere! Therefore, it’s crucial to select a speaker that can reliably keep the music playing throughout your journey, or at the very least, until you find a place to recharge it.

Both the Charge Essential and Charge 5 speakers come equipped with rechargeable batteries boasting an impressive 20-hour battery life. However, there’s a notable difference in their battery capacities. The Charge Essential packs a 6000 mAh battery, while the Charge 5 features a more substantial 7500 mAh battery. This means that the Charge 5’s battery is more likely to endure longer, especially when playing music at higher volumes and during continuous use.

What’s even more convenient is that both of these speakers double as power banks. So, imagine finding yourself in the middle of nowhere with a dead phone battery and an urgent need to make a call. In such a scenario, you can simply connect your phone to either of these speakers and give it a much-needed charge. It’s like having a lifesaver with you on your journey!

Portability

For a trip where you’ll be on your feet most of the time, it’s important to have a speaker to carry along easily. 
Now, both Charge Essential and Charge 5 have compact sizes and are lightweight, making them suitable to carry in a handbag or carry bag. However, Charge 5 has a built-in strap, allowing the user to carry it on a shoulder or hand easily without much hassle. 

Price

Budget could sometimes act like your mom, forcing you to buy something or dropping the idea of buying something. 
So, you might want to know the price range of the two speakers to see if your budget would allow you to get the one you want.
Charge Essential is an older model, and although it has several cool features, not anywhere near the newer high-end models. It is generally priced lower than Charge 5. It typically falls within a price range of around $100 to $150 USD.

On the other hand, JBL Charge 5 is slightly more expensive for all its cool features and sound quality. The price range for the Charge 5 is typically around $150 to $200 USD.

Usability

Now, which of the two speakers would fit in most use-case scenarios?
You won’t want to pick one, which is shy and not tough enough to go through every type of situation safely, would you?
Charge 5 has better usability in almost all cases; you can easily carry it to beaches and pool parties because of its IP67 rating, making it dust and water-resistant. It also has a carry strap, making it easily portable and suitable for hiking and road trips, where you can’t afford to have a lot of burdens.

In addition, Charge 5 also has a long battery life which can work even with louder volumes, making it suitable to fill in bigger rooms. It also features the Partyboost mode, allowing it to connect with multiple speakers for more powerful and louder simultaneous audio playback.

So, all in all, Charge Essential could be used suitable in some cases, but Charge 5 takes the lead with its rugged build and cool features, making it fit for all use-case scenarios.

Now, that we have explored the features of both Charge Essential and Charge 5, which one seems like the perfect fit for you?
🔥 Exclusive Deals: Grab the JBL Charge Essential at a special price here! or Upgrade your audio game with the JBL Charge 5 here! 🔥

The Solitary Victor: Charge Essential Vs. Charge 5?

Now is the time to announce the winner, the moment you have been waiting for eagerly and impatiently.

So, in a huge round of applause, we announce Charge 5 as the winner of this combat.

Although Charge Essential has several cool features like compact size, lightweight, Bluetooth and Aux connectivity, decent sound quality, water resistance, and cheap rates; yet, Charge 5 takes the lead.

Charge 5 subdues the former one with its amazing sound quality that can produce impressive deep bass, mid and high-range frequency audios, have long battery life, louder volume, Partyboost mode for simultaneous playback, water, and dust-resistance, better portability because of a built-in strap, and Bluetooth 5.1 for better connectivity.

So, if your budget is in favor, you can pick JBL Charge 5 without any second thoughts or hesitation.

However, if you’re on a tight budget, you may choose Charge Essential because it is also a great competitor with great features for its price.

here’s a comparison table for the JBL Charge Essential and JBL Charge Essential 2:

	JBL Charge Essential	JBL Charge Essential 2
General Specifications
Output power (W)	5	40
Audio Specifications
Dynamic frequency response range (Hz)	65 Hz – 20k Hz	60 Hz – 20k Hz
Dimensions
Dimensions (in)	8.4 x 3.5	8.7 x 3.8 x 3.8
Dimensions (cm)	21.3 x .89 x .87	22.0 x 9.60 x 9.34
Weight (kgs)	.77	0.93
Weight (lbs)	1.7	2.05
Control and Connection Specifications
Bluetooth profiles	A2DP 1.3, AVRCP 1.5	A2DP 1.3, AVRCP 1.6
Bluetooth frequency	2402 MHz – 2480 MHz	2400 MHz – 2483.5 MHz
Bluetooth transmitter power	≤ 9 dBm (EIRP)	≤ 12 dBm (EIRP)
Bluetooth version	4.1	5.1
Battery
Charging time (hrs)	4	4
Maximum music playing time (hrs)	20	20
Features
Charging cable	Yes	Yes
Powerbank	No	Yes
Waterproof	Yes	Yes
Where to Buy	Amazon	Amazon