Travel speakers comprising a subwoofer and two satellite speakers aren’t the most common of holiday gadgets, but this is exactly what’s on offer with Thinkoutside’s Boomtube H20.

It’s a particularly innovative approach that involves two small speakers slotting neatly either side of the cylindrical subwoofer to fit into the travel case provided.

To set it up, simply twist off the speakers, wire them up to the sub and plug in a portable music player via its line input.

Volume and bass boost controls can be found on the subwoofer, along with a headphones port. There's no dedicated iPod docking station, though.

What’s most impressive about the Thinkoutside Boomtube H20 unit is the 40W of power that has, somehow, been crammed into a device that is just twice as long as a video iPod.

To emphasise the grandeur of such claims, a pair of foam earplugs are bundled in the box; entitled ‘for your neighbours’. While humorous enough this is perhaps a little ambitious, the diminutive size of the H20 will impose its own sound restrictions regardless of how effectively it’s been built.

This was apparent when testing; we were a little disappointed by the lack of bass from the subwoofer, although perhaps this is because our sights had been set so high to begin with.

Bass-aside, the actual sound quality from the H20 is extremely impressive. Having three separate speakers makes for a more versatile sound-scape and that 40W of power makes for quite a dramatic experience.

Its rechargeable battery will last around five hours, signified by an LED that changes colour to reflect battery status.

Being so powerful, we can see the BoomTube acting as a perfectly adequate accompaniment to a computer or games console. Although there are more compact travel speakers around, the sacrifice for a little less luggage space for a great deal more portable sound will be a justifiable compromise for those that love their music.

In essence, the H20 is a powerful, compact and reasonably priced speaker. While it doesn’t quite have the thumping bass the name suggests, it still performs admirably.