Bluetooth speakers are a great idea in theory - no messy cables, carry them around the house to watch your movies or listen to music. We've reviewed a few over the years, but results have been mixed, including poor sound quality.
BlueAnt claims the M1 is the "world's most powerful" Bluetooth speaker, and while we didn't find it earth shatteringly loud, the 28Watt RMS set does the job for close-range listening.
The M1 is A2DP compatible, and Blueant is plugging it as a way to stream tunes from a Bluetooth laptop, PC or Mac. We tested it on a Mac, and it was a pleasant surprise how easy it was to get everything working - first set up the device, entering the passkey included in the manual, then "Browse" for Bluetooth devices. OS X seems to think the M1 is a set of headphones, but despite the mislabeling everything worked without a hitch.
A slick touch is the ability to skip tracks, pause, play from the speaker itself - the music selection will change in iTunes.
We also had a quick test streaming music from a Bluetooth phone, which worked fine, but we don't know many people who carry around enough music on their mobile to use this function.
The only kink in the "no cables" idea is if you want to hook up your iPod, you'll need to plug-in via the 3.5mm jack, unless you have a Bluetooth accessory for your iPod.
We've looked at Bluetooth arrangements for hooking up iPods to sounds systems before, and they're not always cheap.
Overall, this is more than adequate sound for gaming or iTunes from your desktop. The output isn't particularly loud, but unplug from the mains power completely and it might suffice in the backyard or lounge room for a party, though you'll need to recharge eventually (BlueAnt claims 10 hours playback at medium volume).
