Apple’s ecosystem has never sounded better — AirPods, HomePods, Apple TV with Dolby Atmos — and yet the humble desktop speaker often remains an afterthought. For Mac users who spend long hours at a monitor or in front of a gaming console or smart TV, the audio situation can range from mediocre built-in speakers to a rat’s nest of half-compatible gear. But this Edifier M90 speaker review explains how the stellar new boxes do a great job of solving any number of audio problems in different settings. They bring potent audio power to practically any gear.
Edifier M90 speaker review
Edifier M90, introduced at CES 2026 and on sale since April 15, makes a compelling case that one well-designed pair of compact active speakers can handle everything: your Mac, your Apple TV, your other TV, your gaming gear, your iPhone via Bluetooth and more. After extended listening sessions, my verdict is largely glowing. I’m loving them as my new TV speakers, as I already have a perfectly good set of near-field Edifier M3 speakers in my M4 Pro MacBook Pro setup.
Boasting 100-watt RMS audio power and HDMI eARC connectivity, these desktop speakers serve well in TV and gaming setups. They feature remote control, Hi-Res Audio, LDAC codec, Bluetooth 6.0, HDMI eARC/Optical/USB-C/AUX input and subwoofer output. Comes in black or white colors.
- Great for desktop and TV setups
- HDMI eARC/Optical/USB-C/Blueooth 6.0 connectivity
- Remote control
- No AirPlay 2
- Lots of features, so they're not a bargain-basement option
Table of contents: Edifier M90 speaker review
- Design and build quality
- Connectivity: Where the M90 really shines for Apple users
- TV integration is easy
- Sound quality
- App, EQ and daily controls
- A few caveats to consider
- At-a-glance specs
- Edifier M90 speaker review: Verdict
Design and build quality
Photo: David Snow/Cult of Mac
The M90s arrive in either white or black satin finish over fiberboard cabinets, and they look immediately at home next to a Mac Studio or iMac. At 5.24 inches (133 mm) wide, 8.35 inches (212 mm) tall and 8.86 inches (225 mm) deep per speaker, they occupy a bookshelf-friendly footprint without dominating the desk or TV stand (mine just fit without slipping off the edges).
The finish is smooth and cleanly executed, with softened corners and a recessed tweeter up front that gives the face a calm, purposeful look. The subtle Edifier logo sits beneath each main driver, and an activity LED on the primary speaker is the only other visual detail. These are not flashy speakers, and that restraint works in their favor.
Each speaker weighs just over 6.6 pounds, and the pair feels solid rather than plasticky. The two units are connected via a five-meter active cable with multi-pin connectors — Edifier’s standard approach for its stereo systems. All the electronics live in the primary speaker, which ships as the right channel by default. Via the Edifier ConneX app you can swap channels. That’s useful when a desk layout demands the active unit sit on the left.
Connectivity: Where the M90 really shines for Apple users
Photo: David Snow/Cult of Mac
Broad connectivity is the M90’s headline act. On the back of the primary speaker, you will find HDMI eARC, optical, USB-C and a 3.5mm aux input — plus a dedicated subwoofer output for expansion later. Wireless connectivity runs on Bluetooth 6.0, and the speakers carry both Hi-Res Audio and Hi-Res Audio Wireless certification, with 24-bit/96kHz end-to-end digital signal processing throughout.
For everyday Mac use, USB-C is the obvious starting point. Plug a USB-C cable into the M90 and your MacBook Pro or Mac mini, and the system appears immediately as an audio output device — no drivers, no fussing with Audio MIDI setup unless you want to. The M90 then handles all conversion internally at 24-bit/96kHz, bypassing the Mac’s own DAC entirely and taking full advantage of the speakers’ processing chain.
TV integration is easy
Photo: David Snow/Cult of Mac
HDMI eARC integration with Apple TV 4K is similarly clean. Connect an HDMI cable from your Apple TV to the M90, enable HDMI CEC on your TV (or connect the M90 directly to an eARC-equipped TV), and suddenly you have volume control from the Apple TV remote and proper pass-through of whatever the TV is receiving. It is the sort of connection that makes a two-speaker stereo system feel genuinely capable as a TV audio solution. And at this price it is rare.
My main use of the speakers finds them powering sound from my 50-inch Roku TV. It has its own speakers, but they’re barely worth mentioning, so I was using a cheap soundbar. I connected the Edifiers via optical cable and a nice new HDMI eARC cable — the speakers come with all relevant cables but the eARC cable, unfortunately. The eARC milks every ounce of data at high speed to build the richest sound. It’s overkill for me because I’m not a gamer. But movies with dynamic scores will sound their best (but hopefully short of these 100-watt boxes inspiring neighbors to call the police; maybe that won’t happen til I get a subwoofer).
And so is Bluetooth pairing
Bluetooth pairing with an iPhone or iPad is instant and stable. The speakers support Bluetooth multipoint, so I can keep my iPhone 16 Pro and M4 iPad Air paired simultaneously, and switch between them via the ConneX app without re-pairing. So, in addition to playing TV audio through them over eARC or optical, I can play music over them via Bluetooth 6.0. It may seem blasphemous in the halls of Cult of Mac, but with this one-stop solution from Edifier in the same room, I’m thinking of selling my paired HomePod 2 speakers. Perish the thought!
One important caveat for Apple loyalists: LDAC — the high-resolution Bluetooth codec the M90 supports — is an Android-specific feature. iPhones stream via AAC over Bluetooth, which is Apple’s preferred codec and still sounds very good. But if you were hoping to push true hi-res wirelessly from an iPhone, you cannot. For that, the USB-C connection is your route.
Edifier M90 speakers: Sound quality
Photo: Edifier
Under the hood, each speaker houses a 4-inch long-throw aluminum mid-bass driver and a 1-inch silk dome tweeter, driven by a bi-amped Class-D design: 35 watts per mid-bass driver and 15 watts per tweeter, totalling 100 watts RMS across the pair. The quoted frequency response runs from 50Hz to 40kHz, with an 85dB signal-to-noise ratio.
In practice, the M90s sound notably bigger than their cabinet size suggests. The imaging is precise and the soundstage has genuine width — a quality that becomes obvious on well-recorded acoustic music or anything with considered stereo placement. Vocals sit forward and are clearly defined. The mid-bass has authority without bloat; kick drums feel punchy rather than boomy, and acoustic guitar body resonance comes through with texture rather than muddiness.
The high end is smooth rather than airy, which will suit listeners who find many compact speakers fatiguing over long sessions. That said, these aren’t high-end studio monitors someone would use in professional recording. The speakers’ warmth flatters streaming audio and pop production, great for casual living room use.
Bass extension at 50Hz is competitive for this cabinet volume, though it does taper off below that figure. If your listening involves a lot of electronic music with deep sub-bass, the dedicated subwoofer output invites expansion — Edifier sells several options, and any brand with RCA input will work.
App, EQ and daily controls
Photo: David Snow/Cult of Mac
The Edifier ConneX app (iOS and Android) gives you a nine-band custom equalizer, three saveable presets, input switching and channel swapping. It is not a feature-packed audiophile control center, but it covers the essentials. And the EQ proves genuinely useful for dialing in a preference or compensating for a particular listening position. You can assign EQ profiles to presets and switch between them via the included 2.4GHz remote, which is a convenience few competitors at this price offer.
That remote matters more than it might seem, because the only physical control on the speakers themselves is a volume knob on the back of the primary unit. It is not a dealbreaker — you will quickly train yourself to reach for the remote — but it is less ergonomic than a front-mounted knob, and if you lose the remote, you will be walking around your desk with greater frequency than you might like. Of course, you can control more than just volume from the app on iPhone.
A few caveats to consider
In a world where some bookshelf speakers cost thousands, no product at $369.99 is without compromises. Auto wake-from-standby only functions on Bluetooth and HDMI inputs — if you primarily use USB-C or optical, you will need to power the speakers on manually each session. The default auto-off timer can also trip up longer listening sessions and requires a visit to the app to adjust.
There is no AirPlay 2 support, which isn’t great news for Apple-centric buyers. If a HomePod mini is already in your life and you are hoping the M90 will slot into a multi-room AirPlay setup, it will not — the Bluetooth and wired connections are your integration points. That said, for a Mac-tethered desk setup or a direct Apple TV pairing, AirPlay is an optional convenience rather than a critical gap.
Edifier M90 speaker: At-a-glance specs
Photo: Edifier
- Price: $369.99
- Drivers: 4-inxh aluminum mid-bass + 1-inch silk dome tweeter (per speaker)
- Amplification: Class-D bi-amped, 100W RMS total (35W × 2 + 15W × 2)
- Frequency response: 50Hz – 40kHz
- Connections: HDMI eARC, optical, USB-C, aux 3.5mm, sub out
- Bluetooth: 6.0 with LDAC (up to 990 kbps), Multipoint
- Hi-Res certification: Hi-Res Audio + Hi-Res Audio Wireless
- DSP: 24-bit / 96kHz end-to-end
- Dimensions: 133 × 212 × 225 mm per speaker
- App: Edifier ConneX (iOS & Android), 9-band EQ
- Available in: black, white
Edifier M90 speaker review: Verdict
★★★★☆
The Edifier M90 is a genuinely impressive compact active speaker system at a price — $369.99 — that undercuts most of its closest competition. For Apple users with a Mac on the desk and an Apple TV box under the TV, the combination of USB-C plug-and-play, HDMI eARC, Bluetooth multipoint, Hi-Res Audio certification and a capable app-controlled EQ covers nearly every use case in a single small footprint.
The sound punches well above its size and price, with honest imaging, clear vocals and a smooth treble character that rewards extended listening. The rear-mounted controls are a minor ergonomic annoyance, LDAC will not help iPhone streamers, and AirPlay 2 is absent. But for a Mac-centric desk or a compact TV setup where a soundbar feels like overkill, the M90 makes a strong, sustained argument for itself.
Boasting 100-watt RMS audio power and HDMI eARC connectivity, these desktop speakers serve well in TV and gaming setups. They feature remote control, Hi-Res Audio, LDAC codec, Bluetooth 6.0, HDMI eARC/Optical/USB-C/AUX input and subwoofer output. Comes in black or white colors.
- Great for desktop and TV setups
- HDMI eARC/Optical/USB-C/Blueooth 6.0 connectivity
- Remote control
- No AirPlay 2
- Lots of features, so they're not a bargain-basement option
David Snow, an expert on Apple hardware and software, writes on a variety of technological and cultural topics for Cult of Mac. They include Apple news, technology buying guides, and features about computer setups and Apple TV shows and movies.
With 30 years of experience covering technology and other subjects, he has written and edited for numerous print and online publications, including CMP Media, TechTV.com, CNET, Wired News, Red Herring magazine, Law.com, The National Law Journal and Law Technology News magazine. Among other roles, he served as executive editor of the Law.com network of websites and editorial director, technology, for ALM Media.
Snow graduated with a B.A. from Syracuse University with majors in magazine journalism and psychology. While there, he worked as a reporter for The Daily Orange newspaper and associate editor of Equal Time magazine.
Founder of the blog At the Waterline, he can be reached on X (formerly Twitter) via @atthewaterline and on Mastodon via @dsnow.
