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Anker Soundcore Motion 300 review

A portable speaker designed for great sound in the great outdoors.
By

Published onNovember 15, 2023

Anker Soundcore Motion 300
The bottom line
The Anker Soundcore Motion 300 is a budget-friendly audio adventure companion. Featuring an IPX7 protection rating and decent sound in a durable compact package, you don't have to think twice before tossing this speaker into your backpack or gear bin for a weekend getaway.

Anker Soundcore Motion 300

The Anker Soundcore Motion 300 is a budget-friendly audio adventure companion. Featuring an IPX7 protection rating and decent sound in a durable compact package, you don't have to think twice before tossing this speaker into your backpack or gear bin for a weekend getaway.
Product release date
October 9th, 2023
Price
$79.99
Dimensions
Speaker: 199 x 50 x 92mm
Weight
830g
Waterproof
IPX7
What we like
IPX7 Rating
Compact and durable design
Bluetooth 5.3
Backlit controls
Companion app with customizable EQ
Stereo pairing with a second Motion 300
Attractive price
What we don't like
Slightly heavy
No 3.5mm wired option
No dust rating

The Soundcore Motion 300 is Anker’s take on an affordable, adventure-ready Bluetooth speaker. With a durable, waterproof design and three possible speaker orientations for an optimal listening experience, the Motion 300 might be the best option for getting decent sound in just about any outdoor setting you find yourself in.

Editor’s note: this is the first version of the article. Updates will follow as the market changes.

About this Anker Soundcore Motion 300 review: We tested the Anker Soundcore Motion 300 over one week. It ran firmware version 1.1.5, and the Soundcore app ran version 3.4.2. The company provided the unit for this review.

The Anker Soundcore Motion 300 is a great option for outdoor enthusiasts who wants a soundtrack to accompany their adventures. It’s built to endure the bumps and bruises of travel and camp life, not to mention any unpredictable weather you might encounter.

With SmartTune adaptive EQ that can change with the speaker’s orientation and a versatile housing design, you have multiple placement options for great sound wherever you set up camp. Balance it on the woodpile, hang it from your truck canopy while gearing up at the trailhead, or for those less adventurous, it’s also a great speaker to bring on a picnic or a relaxing day in the park.

What’s it like to use the Anker Soundcore Motion 300?

The detachable strap adds another option for speaker placement.

The Motion 300 is wrapped in a durable, rubberized silicon. It sports a metal speaker grill and a detachable strap and is built like a tank. The power button is recessed and easy to find. It quickly connected to my phone, and once the speaker is powered up, the control strip is nicely backlit. The USB-C charging port has a hefty waterproof cover tab, showing you don’t have to baby this one. It’s ready to be strapped to a paddle board, tossed in a gear bin, or hung from the nearest tree branch around a campfire, thanks to the handy button strap.

Along with the detachable strap, you’ll also notice two sets of rubber feet — one set on the bottom of the speaker and the other on the back. The Soundcore Motion 300 is designed to perform in three positions: standing, lying, and hanging. It uses Anker’s SmartTune technology to adjust playback frequencies depending on the speaker’s orientation.

Soundcore names these modes “Immersive” when standing, “360 Degree” when laying, and “Dynamic” when hanging. While perhaps fancier than it sounds, what’s happening is a slight modification to the EQ to compensate for the speaker’s position. The frequencies change depending on which EQ setting you have selected, but generally, by adjusting the speaker from a standing position to a laying position, you’ll get a boost in the treble frequencies. You’ll notice a slight reduction in lows and highs when moving the speaker from laying to hanging.

Unfortunately, the app EQ doesn’t tell you exactly which frequencies are being changed, but as you move the speaker from one position to another, you can see these minor adjustments being made in real-time with the EQ open in the app. You also have the option to turn off this Adaptive Direction feature at any time through the app if you’d prefer your settings to stay consistent, no matter what position the speaker is in.

How do you control the Anker Soundcore Motion 300?

Top down view of the Motion 300
The recessed power button is easy to find amongst the control strip.

The waterproof control strip of the Motion 300 is located along the top of the speaker. Once you have power, all buttons are backlit and easy to find. You can also control various features through the Soundcore app, including play/pause, volume, EQ settings, firmware updates, and the brightness of the backlit controls, which is a nice touch. Most of the buttons on the speakers are single-function; below is a breakdown of how they operate:

Power ButtonBluetooth buttonBassUP buttonVolume -Play / Pause
Multi-function
Volume +
One press
Power Button
Power on
Bluetooth button
Bluetooth pairing
BassUP button
BassUP on/off
Volume -
Volume down
Play / Pause
Multi-function
Play / Pause
Answer / End call
Volume +
Volume up
Two presses
Power Button

Bluetooth button

BassUP button

Volume -

Play / Pause
Multi-function
Next track
Volume +

Three presses
Power Button

Bluetooth button

BassUP button

Volume -

Play / Pause
Multi-function
Previous track
Volume +

Press and hold for 2 seconds

Power Button
Power off
Bluetooth button
Enter / Exit TWS Pairing Mode
BassUP button

Volume -

Play / Pause
Multi-function
Activate Voice Assistant Software
Reject a Call
Volume +

Should you use the app for the Anker Soundcore Motion 300?

Screen captures of the various functions in the Soundcore app.
The Soundcore app gives you access to preset and custom EQ options and the ability to modify some of the speaker’s default settings.

Downloading the Soundcore app is recommended. It allows you to toggle Adaptive Direction on and off, change the EQ preset, or customize your own with the provided graphic EQ. In the custom EQ section, selecting ‘Full-Band EQ’ put my phone in horizontal mode and offered -6db to +6dB of cut or boost at frequencies from 48Hz to 20kHz — plenty to work with while fine-tuning your own preset.

A portion of the app also allows you to create your own background noises for studying or sleeping. You can choose up to three background sound effects: a campfire, ocean waves, raindrops, bird chirps, and more. The quality of these recordings is quite good, and you can also independently adjust the volume of each one for your perfect background mix.

What Bluetooth codecs does the Anker Soundcore Motion 300 support?

The Anker Soundcore Motion 300 hanging from a tree branch.
Finding a home for the Soundcore Motion 300 in the wild is easy.

The Soundcore Motion 300 Plus uses Bluetooth 5.3, which supports low-latency audio streams with LDAC and AAC codecs for high-quality audio. It also helps the speaker connect quickly to your device with greater security and less interference and gives you an approximate connection range of 328ft.

The Soundcore Motion 300 quickly connects via Bluetooth 5.3 with the usual steps.

  1. Press the power once to turn on the Soundcore Motion 300
  2. Open Bluetooth settings on your device
  3. Press the Bluetooth pairing button on the speaker
  4. Select ‘Soundcore Motion 300’

How long does the Anker Soundcore Motion 300’s battery last?

The manufacturer quotes a 13-hour battery life for the Anker Soundcore Motion 300. Our testing showed that under our standard conditions, it exceeded this, and the battery provided 16 hours and 15 minutes of continuous music playback, calibrated to peak at 75dBSPL at 1m (bass-up mode not engaged).

How does the Anker Soundcore Motion 300 sound?

Anker Soundcore Motion 300 in upright position
The Soundcore Motion 300 is excellent for smaller gatherings, both indoor and outdoor.

You do have to have realistic expectations when it comes to the sound quality of smaller portable speakers. The Soundcore Motion 300 is powerful enough to keep a small gathering going and has good clarity, but thanks to Hoffman’s Iron Law, you won’t get any bone-rattling low end out of a compact speaker of this size.

While listening in standing mode, the stock Soundcore Signature EQ preset provides a low-end boost and increases selected higher frequencies. With this setting engaged, the high-end detail of the keys on Tears for Fears Head over Heels /Broken can clearly be heard. The BassUP EQ shortcut button is as tempting as ever and once engaged, it enhanced the low-end groove of the bass guitar on Khruangbin’s Mr. White nicely. It’s worth noting that you lose some of the desirable high-end the Signature EQ offers. Suppose you turn up the volume and find the BassUP preset overpowering. In that case, there is also a more neutral-sounding Balanced preset that worked well with the electronic layers on Boards of Canada’s 84 Pontiac Dream. Of course, there is always the option to make your own EQ preset if these presets aren’t tuned to your liking.

The 30 watts of stereo sound this little speaker puts out is plenty for smaller-sized social gatherings or use at home, but if you’re looking to pump up the jams and want some window-shaking low-end, you’ll need something larger like the Anker Soundcore Motion Boom Plus.

Can you use the Anker Soundcore Motion 300 for phone calls?

With a simple press of the Play/Pause button, you can take and end a phone call thanks to the speaker’s built-in microphone. Catching up with a friend over FaceTime, I connected the Soundcore Motion via Bluetooth to my laptop for better audio, and it was a welcomed addition to our time online.

Should you buy the Anker Soundcore Motion 300?

A Soundcore Motion 300 speaker upright on some mossy rocks.
The Soundcore Motion 300 offers an IPX7 protection rating against water damage.

The Anker Soundcore Motion 300 is an excellent buy if you’re looking for a portable Bluetooth speaker. You have multiple placement options and can tweak the EQ settings to your liking. It’s not the lightest portable speaker out there, but it’s built like a tank and is waterproof, so you know it will survive a weekend camping trip.

Anker Soundcore Motion 300
Anker Soundcore Motion 300
Anker Soundcore Motion 300
Hi-Res sound • SmartTune technology • Powerful bass
MSRP: $79.99
A portable speaker designed for great sound in the great outdoors.
The Anker Soundcore Motion 300 is a budget-friendly audio adventure companion. Featuring an IPX7 protection rating and decent sound in a durable compact package, you don't have to think twice before tossing this speaker into your backpack or gear bin for a weekend getaway.

What should you get instead of the Anker Soundcore Motion 300?

A JBL Flip 6 Bluetooth speaker sitting on wet sand by the ocean.
The JBL Flip 6 survives dunks into saltwater, and sand doesn’t get behind its grille, thanks to its IP67 rating.

If your budget is flexible, or maybe you spend most of your outdoor time at the beach, you can always check out the popular JBL Flip 6 $99 at Amazon It’s lighter in weight and has an IP67 protection rating which means it can handle dust as well as being waterproof. You’ll get that great JBL sound and a companion app, but your EQ options are limited to just a three-band equalizer if you like to tweak.

Bose SoundLink Micro (blue) waterproof speakers hooked onto a white backpack.
The Micro can easily hook onto a backpack and project sound during a hike or stay there during a commute.

The Bose Soundlink Micro $99 at Amazon is also worth a look if you’re into portability. It’s incredibly lightweight, has a rubberized, durable finish similar to the Soundcore Motion 300, an IPX7 protection rating, and a handy strap to help with placement. Although once again small in size, it can only produce so much low-end, so you will experience some sound degradation if you plan on cranking this one up.

Frequently asked questions

Yes, with an IPX7 rating, the Motion 300 is protected against “temporary immersion” in water.

Yes, there is a built-in microphone so you can field a call while connected to the Motion 300.

No, the Motion 300 only connects via Bluetooth.

You’re provided with 30 watts (2×15) of output power.

No, there is no dust rating for the Motion 300.

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