If you’re going to use a portable speaker for a party or gathering, or you just want something for your home that can be moved around, you might as well go big, right?

That’s the logic behind LG’s XBOOM 360, a portable speaker so unique that it will probably only make sense for a specific category of users.

Design

• Weighs 3.2kg
• 16.5 x 16.5 x 32.7 cm
• Available in black and cream

LG has given the XBOOM 360 an entirely unique look and feel, unlike anything else I’ve tested in some ways. The speaker is basically conical, rounded at the bottom and narrowing to a thinner point at the top.

Most of this body is covered in a fabric grille that advertises its 360-degree sound projection, but at the top and bottom there are gaps where you can actually see through the speaker.

It would be tempting to use that top section as a sort of handle but LG has included a strap that can be attached to make moving the xBoom 360 a bit easier, since it’s not that lightweight or small a speaker.

The lower opening is for bass and to act as a stand, but the top is a bigger gap and offers another unique feature – a little down-facing light.

This isn’t some RGB-infused party light like some of Sony’s portable speakers offer, but rather a classy mood piece that gives a gentle warm glow and just screams class.

It’s not just a light – this is actually a reflector that plays its part in helping the XBOOM 360 get its 360-degree sound working from all sides, so the fact that it has a practical use makes it all the more interesting.

When it’s on, and that little light is shining, this is a seriously classy-looking speaker – one that belies its portability and has something of the statement piece about it.

That said, it’s also actively less practical than a smaller or more easily picked-up speaker would be, including similarly premium options like the Sonos Move.

The top of the speaker houses volume and track controls, along with a lighting toggle and Bluetooth button, low-battery indicator and up-firing driver. The power button is on the speaker’s side, low-down but easily accessible.

Sound quality

• 360-degree sound

It’s fitting, given the warm orange light I ended up mostly using with the XBOOM 360’s lighting modes, that its sound can best be described as warm, above all.

There’s a good sense of fullness to its output, which really shines with guitar bands and more deeply-produced material, which does make it a great pairing with a party.

Anything with a pumping baseline, meanwhile, works a treat – the XBOOM 360 won’t necessarily have you feeling the vibrations in your chest like a truly sub-woofered system might, but it’s got enough oomph to get your blood pumping.

The design and name of the speaker obviously hint at its 360-degree soundstage, and that’s something I’ve been impressed by – walk around the speaker and you do indeed get a really continuous experience without any obvious blindspots.

There are some reservations, though. Its maximum volume is appropriately deafening, but this is a speaker that doesn’t have loads of variables at lower volumes (which are the ones most of us actually use more). So, you can find it jumping from near-inaudible to room-filling pretty abruptly at times.

Battery life and features

• 24-hour battery life
• IP54 water resistance

The XBOOM 360 has a fair few tricks up its sleeve – or, at least, it has one big one, in the form of that light, which can strobe through different colours and provide accent lighting as you prefer.

It’s easily controlled through the XBOOM app, with a variety of scenes and lighting modes to spin through, along with a dedicated button on top of the speaker to help you change between different presets.

The light isn’t a total game-changer, but it at least makes this pretty different from other options, and you can quite easily make it look really choice.

More impressive is that it doesn’t dent the speaker’s pretty impressive battery life, which stands at around 24 hours on a charge (with USB-C as the method of charging).

You would hope that a speaker this chunky packs a proper battery, but a full day and night of use is still really solid, making it a reliable option for parties and trips (if you can bear its weight).

The XBOOM 360 has some degree of water resistance, too, although at IP54 it’s more just splash-proof. Any sort of immersion will be really bad news, so this isn’t one you’d want to leave precariously next to a pool by any means.

For something aiming to be the life of a party, that limited outdoor usefulness is a little bit of a shame.

Verdict

This is a really interesting speaker from LG, and a clear improvement over the last generation of xBoom 360, although I’m not certain it’s for everyone. If you want something unique-looking and conversation-starting, then it’s a great option, but given its size and weight there are more attractive options on the market (and slightly better-sounding ones, too).