Creative Inspire S2 Wireless

The Bluetooth moniker conjures up images of a totally wireless experience, but--like nearly all "cordless" experiences--there are plenty of wires here. The speaker cables--about 6 feet long each--are hard-wired into the two satellites and connect to dedicated ports on the sub, where you'll find a knob for controlling the bass levels. And, of course, you have the power cord running to the subwoofer.

The idea here is that you'd place the speakers in a fixed location (most probably on a desk or shelf) and then have the freedom to move your laptop around the room and not worry about being tethered to a set of speakers to get your sound. Alternately, you should be able to stream any A2DP-compatible Bluetooth audio source to these speakers. The list includes newer iPhone and iPod Touch models, and most media-savvy cell phones.

The Inspire S2 comes with a USB dongle that you connect via a USB port on your computer and the drivers automatically install themselves; the dongle is compatible with both Windows and Mac PCs. In your audio settings menu, you then have to tell your computer to output sound through the Bluetooth connection. Note that the A2DP wireless stereo Bluetooth and AVRCP Bluetooth remote control profiles are supported at a range of 30 feet. Once that's set up, the dongle should automatically connect to the speakers.

We didn't have a problem pairing our computer with the speakers and setting up a wireless connection. Things were just as simple when we went to pair an iPhone 3GS with the system, but we did have a little trouble reconnecting--sometimes it took a few tries. Alas, Bluetooth remains a little finicky, but that experience is par for the Bluetooth course--not a knock that's specific to the Creative Inspire S2.

Though we were generally pleased with the setup side of things, what ultimately impressed us about the Inspire S2 package was how good it sounded for its size. Of course, we've heard better sound from larger systems that retail for around the same price. But the key here is that the Creative speakers offered a reasonable amount of bass and good detail. They played fairly loud, too, though they strained themselves when we pushed the volume to the highest levels.

If you're looking for a wired 2.1 system that costs less than $100, Altec Lansing's Expressionist Plus offers similar sound to the Inspire S2. However, if Bluetooth is what you're after, and you like the compact qualities of the S2, we have no problem recommending it, especially for smaller rooms (such as a dorm room or a bedroom). It may not blow you away with its sound quality, but it certainly surprises you with how much bigger it plays than its size would otherwise indicate.