It’s not unusual for video game peripheral manufacturers to experiment with other media related products, putting their own spin on things. Companies native to making products such as headsets, mice and keyboards occasionally try their hands at watches, monitors and even portable speakers. Razer is one such company that is no stranger to occasionally prying itself away from the gaming community to bring forth products that cover different aspects of media. They are a force to be reckoned with these days, often attending major gaming conventions and tournaments to give people a taste of their high end products. I’m Team Razer all the way. They have never released a bad egg yet whether it be headsets such as the Kraken or Manowar to their ambitious attempt at a watch, the Razer Nabu. You know that buying a product that’s laden in black and green with that Celtic style logo is going to be money well spent.
Razer played their cards right with the Leviathan sound bar, a perfect alternative to any conventional speaker system that gives you unprecedented 5.1 surround sound from a single stationary position. It’s a great product that has been toned down in favour for a more portable option when it comes to sound. This doesn’t mean you’re getting a poorer product, quite the contrary. The Leviathan Mini is, as its name suggests, a smaller variation of the Leviathan sound bar which may be an ideal gift for any family member this Christmas.
Opening the box unveils the speaker sitting atop a pedestal-like compartment which has a quick guide, an official product guide and the charging mini USB cable and plug. Removing the speaker itself gave me an instant first impression that this was without doubt a premium product. It had an impressive weight to it considering the unit was no wider that small ruler and no thicker than the length of a toothpick. All in black with the Razer logo in silver front and centre. On the top of the Leviathan Mini are three buttons for volume up, down and a circular multifunctional button used for skipping tracks and muting and playing. On one side is the power and Bluetooth sync buttons and a tiny NFC symbol on the opposite side meaning it allows NFC compatibility which is impressive.
Turning on the Leviathan Mini gives off a satisfying basey boop sound as the power button lights up, the colour of which determines the battery level going from green and orange to red. Connecting my smart phone to the speaker was extremely easy requiring nothing more than holding in the Bluetooth button so it emits a radar searching tone and linking it by tapping it on the scanning screen in my phone, it connected straight away without issue. I was the free to play anything with audio including music, videos and even take calls.
The Leviathan Mini may have downgraded from a 5.1 sound to a 2.1 sound but holy hell this thing packs a punch! Medium volume allows full recognition of each of the top quality sounds the Leviathan Mini gives off. Even my lowest quality music files sounded like they were upscaled. I could hear every instrument, every chord and riff and the impressive base regardless of whether I was holding the unit or it was placed on a surface, it could be heard crystal clear. This was nothing, though, compared to full volume. At full whack, the Leviathan Mini certainly earns its name. No not the mini part, the Leviathan part. Defined as something very large and powerful, the Leviathan Mini holds its own brilliantly even against the largest sound systems and can fill a large theatre hall with ease. The size of the unit is deceptive. Held in my large adult hand, although it feels premium quality and very expensive, it blasts out sound like I didn’t expect. My jaw hit the ground and it never came off until I switched the power button to off. I never had to worry about it dying on me either as it boasts a whopping ten hours’ battery life which must be true as I’ve used it nonstop for 5 hours and the power button was still green.
One of the coolest features of the Leviathan Mini, though, is its ability to be joined up to a second unit to give double the sound quality and volume. We only got supplied one unit so we couldn’t test how it improves the sound but judging by the illustrations in the included booklet, a second speaker can either share the sound or act as a left or right speaker whilst your current unit can act as it’s alternative.
The Leviathan Mini also has a microphone built in which has two functions. Voice activated commands and a mic for phone calls so speaking to someone via speakerphone is a lot clearer thanks to its sensitivity. The other person could hear my clearly and I don’t have to tell you if I could hear them or not.
Developer: Razer
Publisher: Razer
Platform: Bluetooth, NFC
Release Date: January 2016