Bose® - SoundLink® Bluetooth Mobile Speaker II - Dark Gray

Ordered this product a few weeks ago and so far I've been quite impressed. The sound is surprising rich and full for a device of this size. It was very easy to setup with both my phone and my tablet so I can play music through either. Sounds almost as great outdoors as it does in my living room! Battery life is decent, I probably get about 8~10 hours, but I'm sure your mileage will vary depending on how loud you play it, and it works just fine plugged in with the included charger as well. To be honest, I haven't really tested this thing out yet at high volumes or listening over crowd noise, (though of course I cranked it up quite a bit just to test it out when I first got it), but then again, that's not really what I bought it for. To those giving negative reviews, I wonder if their expectations simply exceed what this product is designed to be...a *portable* *wireless* speaker system -- it's obviously not designed to replace a high-powered home theater system or anything of that nature. More importantly, I have yet to come across any other portable BT speaker system that sounds anywhere as close to as good as this one does.

I have been using the i-F2 by Sonic Impact foe the last 5 years. I really like it but I wanted to move on to Bluetooth. I bought the Soundlink and the Big Jambox to compare the sound quality. I've read most of the reviews on the net and watched a bunch of you tube videos as I'm sure you have. So I'll just tell you my thoughts on both speakers. First the Big Jambox. I found the sound to be tinny. Yes, this is what everyone says is the best part of the sound of the big jam, the mid to highs. I like more bass than it is capable of producing, even messing with the equalizer on my iphone. The battery life is a big plus. I don't have a need for the speaker phone so it is non issue for me. The Soundlink can wash out the mid and highs at low volumes. I found that if you turn the equalizer off on the iphone the mids and highs are fine. If you listen to Pandora on either one, the equalizer on the iphone doesn't effect the sound at all. I like the size and portability of the soundlink, it's about the size of my i-F2. All in all I like the sound of the Bose better, so I decided to keep the Soundlink. My Soundlink came with a car charger and I paid $279 for it. I really think if you're interested in one of these speakers, you need to get both and take them home and spend some time listening to each, inside and outside. It really is a personal preference thing.

The SoundLink 2 is, as the title of this post suggests, way better than the first version. I bought the SoundLink 1 at Best Buy based on the product display at the store. The sales guy assured me there wasn't any difference between SoundLink 1 and SoundLink 2. Boy, was he wrong. Upon setting it up at home, I immediately was very displeased with the sound quality. It was, as others have complained, very muffled...no depth to the sound at all. It was better in iTunes because there is an equalizer. But since most of my music is played through Spotify, which does not have an equalizer, I needed a speaker that sounded great right out of the box. Enter the SoundLink 2. I returned the first version after I read that Bose had made improvements to the sound quality in the second version. They did indeed. Listening to some R.E.M. right now and it sounds terrific even as compressed Spotify files. One side not: make sure you set up the speaker in a corner or against a wall to utilize the speaker in the back of the unit. Makes a huge difference.

It's a good speaker with good sound projection. A good part of the reason that I bought it, is because it has the BOSE name. Quite honestly, I think BOSE my be somewhat overrated and get more credit than due to them, simply because of their advertising campaigns. I bought this speaker to pair with my ipad. Sometimes, I'll use the ipad in the kitchen or living room to listen to different radio / tuner apps (pandora, tunein,etc), To its credit, it does fill the room with sound, with little to no distortion, even at the maximum volume setting. At home, I keep it plugged into an outlet, so I don't have to worry about the short battery life when it's stand alone. (estimated 3 hours). It paired effortlessly with my ipad: Turn on the speaker power, push the bluetooth symbol on it, go to ipad bluetooth settings to discover it and it was done. Everything was setup, plugged in and ready to go in about 5 minutes. The big problem I have is that the speaker shuts itself down in 30 minutes if it doesn't detect activity, regardless if it's plugged into the wall or not. I have to charge the ipad, so this means that I have to sync it back again, every time. In addition, the speaker reverts back to its minimum volume level. There is no volume indicator on the speaker itself. The only way to determine if you're at the maximum volume level is to keep holding down on the + and wait until the bluetooth symbol on the speaker flashes twice. As a side note, I've checked the bose website for software/firmware updates, thinking they may have discovered this issue and have a fix for it but there were none. I paid $300 for the speaker and I don't think it's really worth that. It would be more reasonably priced in the $75-$100 price range. There may be better speakers for a better price and less hassle out there.

Okay, so I have been researching streaming iPhone / iPad docks for the past few months. After strong consideration of many different systems, I landed on the Bose Soundlink II for many reasons. The sound is quite good for a smallish speaker. Add to that simple controls, easy setup, and an attractive styling (yes, I spent the extra $50 for the limited edition for pure aesthetics, not practical, oh well). The unit does a superb job of filling our modestly sized family room with beautiful music. I have heard notes and details that I never knew existed before in songs I've heard hundreds of times. It may not be the biggest, loudest, or appeal to the audiophile crowd, but for us it is near perfect.

I bought this SoundLink II after buying MANY different sets of in-ear and over-ear headphones. I quickly decided they were not for me, so I invested in this gem. It lasts on one full battery charge, three hours or so, for almost 18 hours of continuous music play. I use it on five devices, two laptops, iPhone, iPad, iPod, and it works EASILY with all of them. I take it to work, use it at home, and connect it to my iPad and use it when watching Netflix. I would suggest this Bose SoundLink II to anyone who is willing to spend a little extra on a nice set of portable speakers. I don't like docks because it sometimes can end up damaging the connector pins, especially at house parties, so the bluetooth is perfect and hasslefree.

I originally bought the $399 Bose Sound-dock for my new iPhone 5. As soon as I got home I realized it did not work with the 5-pin connector on the new iPhone 5. I went to Apple and bought a 30 to 5-pin connector cable. The sound quality was not good. Not 'Bose" good anyway. So I did some research and went back to Best Buy and exchanged it for a Bose Sound-Link Wireless II knowing that I could use it wirelessly with my new iPhone 5. Which, in reality, is fantastic because the days of docking your iPod/iPhone/iWhatever with your "Bose-Dock" and then having to physically get up to access your device are now over. I can use my phone like I need to, from where I am, and still play music through the Bose device. The sound quality is excellent for a wireless device! Range is very, very impressive. The amount of sound it can put out is very surprising. Aesthetically, the Bose speaker is attractive. Perhaps just slightly 70's looking especially with that leather folding cover (I bought the Silver one) Overall, I love it! Wireless speakers have come a long way in the last 5 years and Bose seems to have perfected it!

I've been searching high and low for a portable solution to fill the mobile speaker void. I tried docks, but hated giving up my phone. I tried the jamboxes, and they were alright, but kind of tinny sounding and not warm and inviting to listen to. I finally sat at the in-store demo on the Soundlink II and debated, turned the volume up and down repeatedly and just couldn't find anything wrong with it. I decided that I really liked it, and wanted it to be able to use outside for parties, take to work and have it on my desk, and use it for concert tailgating. My girlfriend bought it for me as a surprise gift, and I couldn't be happier with it.