On the backside of the Brisbane Plus speaker, there is a small rubber cover concealing the USB-C charging port and 3.5mm aux port for connecting the speaker to an audio source (e.g. phone) via an audio cable. Hardware wise, Brisbane Plus also integrates dual sided passive radiators and forward firing twin drivers capable of 16 watts total RMS output. Brisbane Plus' full range drivers have similarly sensitivity (80dB) but slightly lower impedance, which helps boost the volume.

Another neat feature carried over from the original Brisbane speaker is True Wireless Stereo (TWS) mode. This function lets you pair two Brisbane Plus speakers together and effectively create a wireless surround sound system.

As far as audio performance, the sound quality is better via aux cable connection and, you get lower latency too (~10ms), which is ideal when watching movies and playing games. The only downside to Brisbane Plus wired mode is that the aux port does not work when the internal battery is empty. This is likely to be a deal breaker since most bluetooth speakers can be played wired even with a dead internal battery. 

 

When it comes to audio dynamics though, the volume is noticeably louder via bluetooth mode than wired, which seems strange since the aux port is powered by the internal battery. The Brisbane Plus speaker definitely sounds louder via bluetooth connection.You can listen to audio while charging the speaker in wired mode and bluetooth mode, which is a good selling point. In all, it makes sense for Urbanista to drop the 1st gen Brisbane speaker from the line up since the 2nd gen Brisbane Plus is much improved. If you own a 1st gen Brisbane speaker and are looking to upgrade, it is worth it because the 1st gen Brisbane is not compatible in TWS mode so, you cannot pair a Brisbane Plus speaker to a 2st gen Brisbane speaker.