I’ve been a big fan of Nothing’s budget-friendly sub-brand, CMF, for some time now. Both the CMF Phone 2 Pro and the CMF Buds 2 Plus left lasting impressions on me, with their unique design languages, as well as with their knack for punching above their weight technologically.

Well, CMF is certainly at it again, and this time with dedicated speaker hardware. The company has launched two new products: the Speaker S (which is the subject of this article), and the taller (and double-decker) Speaker M. Both devices are shaped to vaguely resemble milk cartons — yes, milk cartons.

In my testing, the CMF Speaker S is an absolute delight of a product. Here are my thoughts after toting the miniature music machine around in my bag over the past several days.

The CMF Speaker S is milk-tastically adorable

A unique design that’s ‘inspired by the sharp geometry of a milk carton’

The Speaker S is downright adorable. In typical CMF fashion, the device forgoes your run-of-the-mill Bluetooth speaker design language in favor of something that’s a genuine conversation starter. The main body is roughly a square, with a pinched top section that serves as a built-in handle. There’s a circular cut out for hanging or looping the product onto a bag or a tent, and there’s a prominent knob on the front that clacks satisfying when actuated.

Despite only costing $50 and being made of plastic, the Speaker S is well-built and sturdy feeling. Buttons are all nice and clicky, and the entire unit is IP68 water and dust resistant. The black model features a pop of red-orange color to accent its appearance, while the red-orange variant accents its look with black. At 11.78oz (334g), it’s also quite lightweight, all while still feeling well-balanced and substantial in the hand.

Uniquely, the front plate of the Speaker S is removable, and the front knob is modular, allowing you to mix and match colors and designs as you please. CMF has even gone a step further, by also releasing schematic files for 3D printing your own parts. This is much appreciated, and I wish it was something more tech products offered on the whole.

The Nothing X app is slick and streamlined

Pairing and configuring CMF Speaker S units is a breeze

Thanks to the Nothing X application, which is free to download from the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store, pairing the CMF Speaker S is a simple and intuitive process. The app features a basic equalizer with custom EQ parameters and presets to choose from, and there’s a built-in Ultra Bass mode, a Night Mode, a Low Lag Mode, a Wide Soundstage Mode, and more.

You can also customize the main knob’s functionalities from within this interface, with options for rotate, single press, double press, triple press, and press and hold. By default, these are mapped to volume control, play/pause, skip forward, skip back, and Ultra Bass, respectively.

Nothing X also allows you to pair two Speaker S units together for a stereo effect, or to connect multiple speakers together via Party Mode (which works in tandem with the Auracast button found on the back of each unit itself).

How does the CMF Speaker S sound?

A bigger-than-expected soundscape

In terms of audio specifications, the Speaker S features a single 45mm full-range driver, two passive radiators, a frequency response range of 70Hz to 20,000Hz, and 10 W RMS output. Other key specifications include Bluetooth 6, dual connection compatibility, NFC for fast pairing, Google Fast Pair and Microsoft Swift Pair operability, and AAC, SBC, and LC3 codec support. There’s also lossless USB-C audio playback support with latency below 60ms.

USB-C-based charging is on deck, and CMF says the Speaker S can play audio for up to 18 hours at a time. In my experience, battery life has been rock solid, though it does take a decent amount of time to charge the unit from zero up to one hundred percent. Rapid charging would’ve been a nice cherry on top, but it’s hard to complain at this price point.

Audio quality wise, the Speaker S is surprisingly solid for its size and price. No, this isn’t going to replace a high-end speaker system by any stretch of the imagination, but out-of-box tuning is clear, audio can fill up a room without issue, and there’s plenty of bass to work with. The soundscape doesn’t feel tinny, which, to my untrained ears, is enough to make for a compelling sonic experience.

Of course, you’ll want to pair two Speaker S units together for a proper stereo effect, and doing so is arguably necessary to fill a larger room or to facilitate an outdoor event or a party environment. When paired together, sound is noticeably richer, and for a total cost of $100, audio quality with this setup is genuinely better than I expected. USB-C wired audio, meanwhile, is naturally going to offer the best-possible sound, making it a compelling option for use on, say, a desktop.

Overall, it’s hard not to love the CMF Speaker S. While far from the most technologically advanced Bluetooth speaker out on the market, the device’s character is charming, and its sound quality is a cut above what I’d expect at the price range. I do wish the unit came with a charging cable and a carabiner in the box, but that’s minor criticism for what is otherwise a very sound product on the whole.

This device was provided to Pocket-lint by Nothing.