On the side you'll find a power input connector and a 3.5mm standard audio input (for non Bluetooth devices). The next con on this one is that it doesn't charge via standard USB like most other devices in this space. The negative is that you have one more charger to travel with but it does charge faster than other devices using USB charging. It also comes with a charging cradle which means home based charging is as simple as dropping it into the cradle.
There is a USB port on the device but that is used for firmware updates.
Battery
Bose says the battery lasts 7 hours and they are almost on the mark with standard use.
Going from empty to full takes 3-4 hours.
Sound Quality
Unlike other reviewers, I am not enamored with the Bose name and love some of their products sound quality and hate others.
When compared to other mid-sized competitors, the Bose SoundLink mini produces a decent amount of room filling sound. It actually is louder than most of its similarly sized competitors. It fills a standard room with loud enough sound for a get together but doesn't match the loudness of its bigger SoundLink or the bigger competitors. Also the smaller you get, the flatter the bass. The bass is respectable but not "club quality".
I thew a slew of different types of songs at it and it performed very well for a Bluetooth speaker (Bluetooth having a narrower less bit intensive capability). Where possible, I always prefer a straight digital out signal or a wires connection but sometimes Bluetooth is the only option and this device provides good sound reproduction. Only a handful of aggressive soundtracks played at maximum volume showed some distortion. Most of the time music played without any distortion even at maximum volume.
Bass is medium quality but overall separate and sound-stage was fairly good. High were particularly clean and vivid. It definitely merits the Bose badge for sound quality.
Pairing
The device was easy to pair (and paired reliably) to an iPhone, iPad, Samsung Galaxy S4, Nexus 7 and Nexus 10.
Verdict
If you need a mid-level portable Bluetooth speaker than this is my current best pick at round $199.
The device comes with the AC adapter and the charging base. The protection skin can be purchased separately in various colors.