I'd suggest that the reason mini speakers are popular has to do with aesthetics since they are often paired with a television in a multipurpose room. And with t

I'd suggest that the reason mini speakers are popular has to do with aesthetics since they are often paired with a television in a multipurpose room. And with the advent of 5.1, having five full range speakers, wiring, and a subwoofer in a small living room doesn't pass the aesthetic test. Bose and other manufacturers have done a good job of developing tricks that fool undiscerning listeners into thinking their system matches the performance of a full range system. But there's no tricking out the physics of low frequencies. Baffles and complex tube resonators can have limited positive effects but they often cause problems in other areas. That said, unless all you care about is sound quality, the aesthetics and performance of a Bose system can in many cases be very attractive.