Customer Ratings & Reviews

I purchased a the Bose Portable Home Speaker on May 6, 2020 and use it almost daily both inside and outside of my home. The carry handle and optional wireless charger make very easy to move around the house and yard. Pro's: -Great sound in a small package. It is very loud and has solid bass. -360 degree sound is great for outdoors. -Built-in Alexa works great. -Wifi works great as long as you are not too far away from your router. -Carry handle is great for moving it around. We mostly use ours outdoor by the pool by hanging it on a shepherd hook. -Solid build quality. Does not look for feel cheap. -We bought the black version as we were worried the white one would get dirty (specifically the carry handle) by bringing it outdoors. Con's: -It is only water resistant, NOT waterproof. So if you use this outside, make sure it does not fall in your pool, or get left outside in a bad rain storm, etc. -Battery Life. There is absolutely no way it lasts 12 hours especially when using it with wifi. At 50% volume, with a very good wifi signal, I am only able to get maybe 6-7 hours of use. I was really hoping to get at least 10 hours or more, but that seems completely impossible. Bose should have built this with a bigger battery. -You need a fairly strong wifi signal. Once you bring this outside, you can't go very far before you lose the wifi signal. Our is located about 30-40 feet from our router and it occasionally loses signal. It will cut out for a few a minutes, then usually comes back on. -The Alexa microphone works pretty good, but no where near as good as an actual Alexa Echo device. We often have to shout at it for it to hear us, especially if music is playing. -The optional wireless charging pad should be included at such a high price point. Having to pay an additional $30 was annoying, but it does work very well and is a must have in my opinion. -Price. Although it is a very high quality, great sounding speaker I am not sure it was worth $349 +$29 for the wireless charging pad. There are competitors out there was are almost as good for about half the price, specifically Ultimate Ears Mega Blast which is a close 2nd in my opinion for sound and build quality. Overall, very happy with this product and I hope it lasts a long time.

Typical Bose. Bold, rich sound from small packages. Micro Bose Sound my first. Marginally louder than Revolve+II I tested but way pricier. Why? Battery discharges sooner than expected at full volume. Best high in a wall corner, to reflect sound. Handle a big plus all Bose Revolves should have.

Great sound and nice design. I Iike Bose sound. It was difficult to set it up and almost return the product. I had trouble activating the product. I tried several times and had to spent several time researching. After several attempts and following the troubleshooting procedures I was able to activate the product from other iPhone.

I love this speaker, great upgrade to the smaller one. Sound is much richer, definitely worth the money. Had a problem with it turning on and Bose service was great.

Nice sound for small speaker Battery life not best

Beyond my expectation for quality sound. Great for outdoor spaces, easy to use.

This Bose speaker has a wonderful sound. It delivers crystal-clear, deep bass and highs that are sharp and easy to hear without losing quality. The 360° sound effect makes whatever you’re listening to feel like it surrounds you, rather than coming from just one direction, which creates a more immersive audio experience, all with the Bose seal of quality. The only reason it doesn’t earn five stars is the Alexa connection. Sometimes you have to reset the speaker to factory settings in order to reconnect it to your Alexa account, which can be very tedious. Because of this, I often just use it with Bluetooth instead. Other than that, I love the speaker for what it is, and the battery actually lasts quite a long time—as long as you remember to turn it off when you’re not using it.

Out of the box performance is great. I had to do minor tweaking on my end to get a superb sound, and now it’s awesome. It has all the signatures of Bose quality and I’m pleased with their product. In the short few days I had this, I received notice of a firmware update. It was a rather quick update, might have taken about 10 minutes. I don’t have many cons about this product. There are only 3 dings that come to mind. Two have to do with the downloadable app and the third is the actual speaker. Some people might call it unfair, but it’s the truth. My first ding is adjusting the volume within the app while connected via Bluetooth. For some reason while in the app, when I make adjustments to the volume, it gets really loud and then quite. I have no idea why this happens, but it’s every time I adjust the volume. I’m curious to see if anyone else is experiencing that too. Even if the volume is low and I want to make it louder, it spikes and then goes down. I’m guessing this will be a simple firmware update. My second is with the battery life. I’ve seen better battery life from portable speakers, so I’m a bit disappointed but overall it doesn’t ruin my experience. I believe the product description says about 12 hours of consecutive play. So far I tested 3 consecutive hours and the battery dipped to about 65%, so I’d agree with their 12-hour claim. Again, this isn’t a major concern just a minor inconvenience for those on the go. My third issue is that you can’t turn it on and off within the app. I know it’s petty, but what’s the point of having a portable speaker and app if you can’t power it on or off within the app? Chalk it up to laziness. This in no way is a deal breaker, just my opinion. I know standby mode allows me to turn this on and off, but standby mode drains the battery. Pros: Easy Setup! Great Sound Durable Long Charge Cord Ability to make sound adjustments Alexa Voice Control Google Assistant WIFI connection Smart Speaker Setup so people on my WIFI can play a song Cons: Battery Life is only about 12 hours Can’t turn on and off within app Price Not a speakerphone Not fully waterproof Overall I’m very pleased with this speaker system. I do feel it’s a bit pricey compared to some of the competition, but the sound quality will definitely impress you. It’s a relatively new product, so I’m confident they’ll be able to work out the kinks. If they can make a few minor adjustments within the app, this can be truly perfect. I’m not fully confident I’d recommend this product to friends and family. Although the Bose name is really impressive and the sound is great, there are some minor things that prevent me from doing so. If you don’t mind spending over $350 on a portable speaker, then definitely look at this product.

I have both the Bose Portable Home Smart Speaker and the Sonos Move. If all I wanted was a portable speaker I certainly could’ve spent less and gone with a bluetooth-only model, but I like the ability to have a portable speaker that is used primarily at home where I can easily connect from my iPhone/iPad using Wi-Fi and AirPlay 2. So between just the two? I like the aforementioned Bose slightly more than the Sonos. But just slightly. Portability/Charging… The Bose is smaller, lighter and just much more pleasant to carry around than the Sonos. Additionally, for convenience, should I ever take these speakers traveling, the Bose so far has accepted all the old USB-C chargers I’ve got sitting around. However, the Sonos despite also having a USB-C charging port, is apparently pickier about which chargers it will work with because none of my USB-C chargers will charge the Sonos. Speaking of charging, though, I highly recommend getting Bose’s optional charging base. Prior to buying that I was always running out of power despite me thinking I had turned the speaker off. At the new higher MSRP that Bose charges for this speaker nowadays it’s too bad it isn’t just included in the box. As for sound quality… At quieter to moderate volume levels I slightly prefer the sound of the Bose. At louder volumes my preference shifts slightly toward the Sonos. I tend to listen at lower volumes, and as such I appreciate the Bose’s sound signature because its treble is easier to hear at lower volumes than it is on the Sonos, in my opinion. I think the Sonos Move’s treble is somewhat dull in comparison—more so at quieter volumes, less so at higher volumes. (Note: For additional comparison, I also own a couple Sonos One’s and a Sonos Five; those speakers also have more detailed treble than the Sonos Move, in my opinion, despite adjusting the EQ up a tad.) My slight preference for the Bose Portable aside, I’ll admit that the sound is clearly colored and has a little bit of what I guess is the, ahem, “Bose sound” whether good or bad. It’s pleasant enough, but listeners with a trained ear for Hi-Fi probably think it’s bad. Bass fanatics might initially be pleased with the Bose, but in a direct comparison across quite a number of different songs it becomes apparent that the much larger and heavier Sonos Move is capable of a bigger bass sound. The actual frequencies it plays may not be a whole lot deeper than what the Bose can do, but the Sonos presents them in such a way that bass is much more apparent and room filling, though, still not room shaking. At similarly moderate to “loud-ish” volumes the Sonos’ bass almost makes the Bose sound hollow, which I maybe wouldn’t have noticed without a direct comparison between the two. Apps/Music Services… Something that knocks down the score of the Bose Portable is its app and its lack of compatible music services, even managing to miss some major ones. This isn’t a big deal if you’re using AirPlay 2 or Bluetooth exclusively, but it’s a pretty big deal if you need to use the app. The Bose Music app also disappointingly only works in a portrait position and not in a landscape position, despite being an official iPad app (as opposed to just an iPhone app). The Sonos app is better as it has practically every music service available and works in landscape mode on an iPad. Voice Assistants/Music Services, again… As for the built-in voice assistants, I’ve not used them on either speaker. But from my understanding both the Bose and Sonos are more limited in what music services they are compatible with via voice commands than what say a Google Nest Mini is capable of. As such, just because you can set a particular music service as the default in your Google Home app, it doesn’t necessarily mean you can actually use that service with your Bose Portable or Sonos Move via Google Assistant voice commands. Apparently not all Google Assistant capable speakers are equal when it comes to functionality. That said, from what I’ve read the Sonos apparently is compatible with more music services when using voice assistants than the Bose is. Conclusion: As I mentioned in the beginning, I have a slight preference toward the Bose Portable Home Smart Speaker. But if the treble in the Sonos Move could’ve been a tad brighter, like say, if the Sonos Move had the exact same treble and detail as the Sonos One or Sonos Five, then I would’ve easily preferred the Sonos Move over the Bose Portable despite it being heavier and otherwise less suited to travel. As it stands, neither speaker is perfect (especially at these price points) and they each have pros and cons. And I certainly wouldn’t fault anyone for getting the Sonos. After all, most reviews on the Internet seem to indicate the Sonos is actually the speaker with the better sound quality and since it includes a charging bass it might actually be the better value now. ***Note: From what I can tell, at some point Bose decided to rename this product from the “Bose Portable Home Speaker with Voice Assistants” to the simplified “Bose Portable Smart Speaker”. Best Buy seems to think they’re the same product according to my purchase history. I, too, think its the same identical speaker, fwiw.***

The unit works great. Being partially handicapped, it’s nice to take my music anywhere in my home from room to room. Including the shower since it’s water resistant but not water proof. My pet peeves are well known to Bose. I really wish there were preset buttons built on the unit. There’s plenty of room for them. Not a fan of yet another app I have to download and use when I already own sound touch AND Bose connect speakers. The fact that I have to open the app to change stations or make any kind of adjustment is tedious. Every time I have to refer to the app I feel like I may as well use it as a Bluetooth speaker. But if you’re a long time Bose lover like me, buy it. The sound is incredible. And now that I can control the bass, it makes it even better using it at night when things quiet down. Haven’t used the voice controls due to privacy concerns but I’m sure it adds another layer of options. It does remind me of an oversized broadcaster’s microphone. Brings back memories.

The sound quality meets, if not exceeds, The high expectation we’ve come to expect from Bose. The portability is also great in that it can get dirty and damp but cleans up great without any negative effects from enduring splashes from poolside use. The flexible handle is comfortable and sturdy. And the battery life is impressive. I’ve run the speaker through a night’s sleep and it’s still going strong when I wake and take it into the bathroom to shower. The big fail: the buttons on top are indistinguishable and should have raised, identifiable blisters for finger recognition at a minimum. But for a quality product from Bose, I would have expected the buttons to light up for easy identification. In a dimly-lit room or at dusk I have to use the flashlight on my phone to use the speaker. For this reason alone the speaker gets the 4-star rating.

The Portable Smart Speaker offers crisp, clear sound with good bass for its size. For the home, I recommend the Bose Home Speaker 500. It offers more power. Besides the Portable Smart Speaker, you may want to consider the Sonos Move for outdoor use. Bose offers the 360 surround sound. Sonos is a more boxy speaker, but offers a clear powerful sound. I own all three.

Sounds great. The handle is a nice feature. Base is good quality for a small speaker and the range is pretty good. The battery will last a while playing music but if you don’t remember to shut it down completely the light and sensors (voice activated) will drain the battery.

Dynamic sound that I expect from Bose. Got this because of the portability and smart speaker. Looks good too. Really nice to have Alexa and be able to stream Sirius. Only drawback is that when you turn off speaker, you lose connection with Alexa and have to reconnect. I guess since it is a smart speaker then it is meant to be on all the time.

Bose seems to be trying to compete with the Sonos line or the HomePod. Its trails FAR behind both in audio performance. It gets plenty loud and has heaps of bass. However, it just doesn’t have the clarify or fullness of Apple and Sonos product that it resembles despite being priced higher than both. It CAN operate on battery for a paltry 12 hours, which is an odd addition. Unless you’re ride-or-die for Bose, consider alternatives.

It’s really a great speaker. Sound quality wise bose speakers always delivers. I have several bose devices at home. But there are two issues. 1. Software/Firware has an issue. Either alexa service will stop working or music serice will stop working randomly after some days. You have to reaet it by holding the play button for 10 sec and the device restarts. Which hopefully fixes thr issue. 2. The charging connection is somewhat unreliable, sometime after connecting the original charger/cable it will say it is not charging. Need to try couple of times and then it works except for these issues, it a good buy

I joined the Bose smart home speaker about a year ago, and I love the experience. I have the soundbar and the Bose home speaker, so adding this was a no brainer. Plays very well with Spotify and apple airplay (my 2 most widely used features), the Alexa works great (although I have them muted usually). If you are NOT a home speaker person, you may want to look into other options. Dont get me wrong, I love the sound of this speaker. It has terrific depth and power, along with portability. BUT if I did not have Bose home speakers compatible with this.... I would've probably saved $50-$100 going elsewhere for a similar experience, or buying a higher end speaker for $350. My recommendation - 1. get this if you have Bose home speakers that play nicely with it. 2. If you really want it and can wait, wait for some sales. 3. if you want a great portable speaker and want to save $, look elsewhere.

it was between Bose and Ultimate ears megaboom 3.Bose won out on sound Quality only,but price was twice as much.i love the size and the weight of this speaker and sound quality.my next choice would UE at $199.

I own one of these Bose smart speakers i purchased from Amazon for a very good discounted price. I'm pleased with the sound performance battery could last a bit longer before charging again. Best Buy open-box price for this speaker is VERY OVER PRICED...should not be NO MORE than $200.00 in EXCELLENT CONDITION.

Good sound quality and very portable! Was unable to pair it with my Bose Soundbar which should have been doable.