British-based audio company Orbitsound has unveiled a new soundbar, the One P70. At its £299 price point it's very well positioned to undercut some of the big-boy competitiors and deliver TV-boosting sound.

Our quick take

Orbitsound One P70 p

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Orbitsound One P70

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But that's not all the P70 can do, for it's been designed to be used in three different ways: pop it flat under a TV to act as a soundbar; wall-mount it (everything is included in the box); or flip it 90-degrees to face upwards and act as a tabletop speaker. It's a soundbar one minute, a standalone speaker the next (the logo can even pop-out to be flipped by 180-degrees so it's always the right way up).

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Because Orbitsound has mounted two central 2-inch drivers at 90-degrees the One P70 gives a broad spread of sound both horizontally (around 120-degrees) and vertically. There's also a 5.25-inch subwoofer integrated within to give the bass extra kick, while two additional side-mounted 2-inch drivers ensure a wide spread of audio. Ideal for all-encompassing sound for you and your fellow TV-watchers/music-listeners.

Ahead of its launch we got to listen to the fairly compact soundbar (it's 700 x 172 x 75mm) and the added grunt from that woofer added bags of extra life to the Star Wars Rogue One trailer compared to a standard TV offering. It's not going to deliver the lowest sub-bass like a standalone 10-inch unit would, but the whole point of this all-in-one unit is to keep things compact and attractive - no separate box in the corner.

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It's a good looking unit too: we think Orbitsound has come a long way in the last five or so years when it comes to design; the P70 finished in bamboo is our particular favourite, or there are white and black options. The metal grille has a tight mesh and quality look and feel to it too.

Part of the One P70's overall appeal is that it doesn't overcomplicate things. Around back there's a recessed opening with optical and 3.5mm Aux inputs, next to the power socket. That, plus Bluetooth wireless connectivity, is your lot when it comes to connections.

Controls are positioned to the side, or there's a soft-touch, rubber-like coated controller included in the box to take control of things.

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There's no HDMI, but this is, according to Orbitsound, to avoid the associated costs - and that it would give no advantage to audio quality because of the way the company's AirSound technology processes incoming signals (there's no 5.1 surround, for example, it's not plausible with this setup). HDMI might be missed if you wanted to plugin multiple devices, but that's the only instance we can think of.

That not overcomplicating nature only leaves one element of the design that we're less keen on: the volume panel has rather crude LED lights that we think should appear more diffused or be a small LCD panel for more complex feedback/animations. The lights on the earlier A70 Airsound Bar look more complete, for example.

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Even so, given that the near competition can often cost twice the price of the One P70, Orbitsound has savvily targeted its market. Good looks, good sound, multiple functionality and everything you need included in the box. Can't say better than that.

The Orbitsound One P70 will be available from 27 February in black for £299. The white and bamboo wood finishes will be available later in the year for the same price.