Logitech V20 Notebook Speakers Review

Most laptop computers have sound systems that are very lacking, and some notebooks don’t; even have on board speakers. This can be a problem if you are a music lover or want to watch a movie on the road. Logitech has a set of portable speakers that is intended to be used with laptop or desktop computers and doesn’t require a sound card to function called the Logitech V20 Notebook Speakers. Read the review to find out all the details.

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Features & Specifications
The Logitech V20 Notebook Speakers are completely USB powered and require no external power adapter to operate. On top of one of the speakers are keys that allow you to control your music from the speakers. Controls include play/pause, stop, forward, backward, mute and volume up/down.

Size wise the Logitech V20 Notebook Speakers are about the size of a standard paperback book each and come in a fitted carry case made of padded fabric. On the back of each speaker is a stand that pops out to allow the speakers to stand upright during use. Inside each of the cool looking black and silver speaker enclosures are a 2” Max-X high-excursion driver and a 3” pressure driver for bass response.

Connecting the Logitech V20 Notebook Speakers requires one single USB cable for power and to get audio from your computer. My Windows XP Pro test machine recognized the Logitech V20 Notebook Speakers right away and in less than one minute the OS configured the speakers and they were ready to use, no drivers were required.

Testing the V20 Speakers
Sound quality is top notch with the Logitech V20 Notebook Speakers no matter the volume levels played at the sound was clear and showed no distortion. High and mid range sounds were clear and sounded great, low end bass sounds were weaker than I prefer, but quite good for a small set of speakers.

When used for playing music the vocals were clear and life like and the instruments were vibrant and rich sounding. I was quite impressed with eth sound quality these little speakers put out. I also used the speakers for some conference calls with Ventrilo along with my Blue Snowball USB mic and the Logitech V20 Notebook Speakers worked very well for that as well.

I tested music playback on the Logitech V20 Notebook Speakers with Rhapsody music service streaming. The controls on top of the Logitech V20 Notebook Speakers worked perfectly. As long as the Rhapsody window was open and the active window I cold skip tracks, pause, stop and play tracks without resorting to clicking the Rhapsody player window. Once the Rhapsody screen was minimized, I could no longer control the music from the Logitech V20 Notebook Speakers.

The speakers don’t weigh much when inside the padded carry case that Logitech includes. However, when in the case the system is quite bulky for a portable set up. The case and speakers definitely wouldn’t fit inside my crowded laptop bag when I am on the road. Overall, at an MSRP of $69.99 the Logitech V20 Notebook Speakers are great for those with the room to carry them on the road and are a huge improvement over the majority of onboard speaker systems for notebooks.

Verdict

Conclusion

Pros

• Integrated controls work well for controlling music
• One USB connection is all these speakers need

Cons

• Could use deeper bass
• The speakers are bulky when in the included bag

Verdict
The Logitech V20 Notebook Speakers sound good and are very easy to use. Perhaps the best feature is that they require no AC adapter, the entire works is powered and get the sound from one USB connection. If you are a mobile type that prefers speakers over headphones the Logitech V20 Notebook Speakers are made for use on the go, just be sure your laptop bag or briefcase has room for them.

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