Ever since I started working from home in 2019, my days start around 8:45 am, and I head straight to my desk after making a cup of coffee. Post-work, I join my partner in the living room, and we watch something together (or I dip into a video game). When I head to the gym, I play energetic songs to keep me going. My pre-pandemic commutes were filled with two 30-minute trips where I could play my favorite artists and discover new music on the subway here in New York City. And when I lived in New Jersey, my old job required an hour-long drive where I could listen to burned CDs in my Dad’s 2006 Honda Accord. I’m not forced to sit still for a period of time anymore—which is great in a lot of ways—but for me, it does mean less music time. One hobby that’s helped is a spiraling addiction to vinyl. I spin records when I’m doing mundane tasks around the house, like cleaning on Sunday mornings. My secondary solution? A Bluetooth speaker in the shower. It’s not quite the same, but it lets me play tracks I haven’t listened to in a while for a few minutes a day. It’s the specific shower speaker in question that has almost re-created the experience I’ve had from my commutes: Ampere’s Shower Power Pro automatically roars to life when I start my shower, and it’s hydro-powered, so I almost never have to recharge it. Ampere got its start making mobile charging accessories, and the Shower Power is one of its first forays outside its wheelhouse. There are two models: Shower Power and the Shower Power Pro. I’ve been testing the latter since February. The Pro model is slightly bigger, so it offers better sound, or so Ampere says, and there’s a ring of LEDs at the end for a bit of sparkle. The LEDs are impactful only if your bathroom is dimly lit (or if you’re showering in the dark), so I hardly use them. The Pro model is slated to get an app that will let you track water usage and temperature (the LEDs will flash red if the water is scalding hot and purple if it’s really cold), but even after more than nine months, it’s still not out (Ampere says it will launch this month). Still, I’d stick with the basic Shower Power to save some cash. Just stick your hand in the shower to see if the water is hot or not. It feels well-built, and I love that it’s made from recycled ocean plastic (specifically, 16 recovered water bottles). Installation is also a breeze. I’ve tested it on three different showerheads, and I’ve had zero problems. Ampere has plenty of instructions that show how to install it with different heads, but you’re essentially attaching this hydro-powered speaker in between the shower arm that sticks out the top of your bathroom tiling and the showerhead. The water flows through the Shower Power’s turbine and generates power for the Bluetooth speaker connected to the side (you’ll hear the slight whir of the turbine). Don’t worry, the speaker has an IPX7 water-resistance rating, so it’s safe. You can easily twist the speaker to disconnect it and tote it around the home, so it’s not limited to your bathroom. There are playback and volume buttons on the speaker itself, including a button to turn it off. My showerhead is far too high for my partner to reach, so those controls are unavailable to her. Ampere sells a waterproof remote control you can use, and even a phone holder for cheap to get around this. I ended up attaching this tablet mount to my shower rod so I could have my partner and I’s shared tablet nearby to choose songs mid-shower. The speaker automatically turns off a few minutes after the water stops flowing if there’s no music playing. What makes the Shower Power more worthwhile than just playing tunes from your phone or tablet is that it can get loud. It feels like you’ve got a proper jam session going as your scrub. The audio quality itself is decent. The bass is a little muddy, and the mid-tones lack clarity—you can definitely find better-sounding speakers for the money—but I like the convenience of never needing to recharge it. I also love that it automatically turns on when water starts flowing out of the showerhead—I barely have to do anything. It takes a few seconds to pair with my tablet and it plays a little jingle when it’s connected. All I need to do is hit play in the music app on my device, and voilà, I’ve got tunes echoing throughout the room. My partner, who rarely shows much interest in the various gadgets that arrive at my doorstep, absolutely loves the Shower Power. She uses it less for music and more to loudly play a YouTube video as she showers, using the aforementioned tablet mount to watch. We’re conscious of how long we spend in our showers, and anecdotally, I don’t think this addition to our bathroom has noticeably increased the length of time in there for either of us. It just makes it more enjoyable. I’m singing along in the shower more, something I used to do in the car on the way to work, and I now have some time in my WFH day to play my favorite tunes. All without having to futz about with a speaker, let alone recharge it. That’s a win-win in my ears. Special offer for Gear readers: Get a 1-Year Subscription to WIRED for $5 ($25 off). This includes unlimited access to WIRED.com and our print magazine (if you’d like). Subscriptions help fund the work we do every day.
