LG’s Xboom brand now includes smart speakers and a plethora of glowing LEDs

With IFA 2018 just a mere week away, LG is taking the wraps off its 2018 Xboom lineup of speakers that will include the LG WK9 and LG WK7, as well as the PK3, PK5 and PK7 speakers, the latter of which now fall under the Xboom Go banner.

If some of these speakers look familiar, it’s because they appeared at CES 2018 earlier this year without the Xboom monicker next to their name.

“By expanding our XBOOM [LG's capitalization] brand to include wireless and smart speakers, LG is opening up new possibilities with XBOOM leading our entire home audio business,” said Head of LG's Convergence Audio and Video Business Division, Seo Young-jae in a press release.

While this is more of a branding move than anything else, LG’s new-and-improved Xboom lineup is honestly delivering everything and the kitchen sink when it comes to audio features. The series sports a trio of waterproof portable speakers with Hi-Res Audio support up to 24-bit/576Kbps, as well as a pair of Google Assistant-equipped smart speakers, the LG WK9 with Google Smart Display and the Google Home-esque LG WK7.

Similar to years past, at the top of the range will sit two DJ systems, the CK99 LOUDR Hi-Fi system and 1,800-watt monolith LG OK99 home entertainment system.

LG Xboom

Business in the front, party in the back

If you're nervous that all these LEDs might take away from the speakers' sound quality, don't fret. Meridian Audio has partnered with LG to make sure these speakers sound as good as they look.

The partnership with Meridian Audio extends to LG's soundbar lineup – which includes the Dolby Atmos-equipped LG SK10Y – and could help LG better compete with similarly configured products from Samsung and Sony.

While CES gave us our first opportunity to go ears on with the Xboom lineup, IFA 2018 will give us a second opportunity later this month when the show starts on August 31.