- Incredible sound quality in a small footprint
- Connects wirelessly up to 30 feet away
- Works with all Bluetooth-enabled devices: smart phones, tablets and more
- Rechargeable for up to 4 hours of wireless play
I'm always looking for new ways to get portable sound to boost what I get from my iPhone and iPads. I was excited to test out a wireless set of speakers at such a low price point. What I can say is I was pleasantly surprised by all of the following:
+ Nice design to the speaker that just feels like a solidly built product.
+ Rubber bottom on speaker allows it to easily grip onto surfaces.
+ Sound is clear with some decent level of bass for such a small speaker. I tried all types of music including classical and did not experience some of the "humming" reported by others. I'm not sure if this was addressed by the manufacturer in later versions, but I was impressed and saw only minimal distortion at full volume.
+ Bluetooth range was impressive as I saw minimal distortion only when getting beyond about 15 feet. Keep in mind that most Bluetooth devices ranges advertised are maximum with some distortion, so 30 ft is what you get before you just flat out get an abundance of distortion. I did find that solid objects like walls will limit the range, which you find with other Bluetooth products.
+ Pairing was simple with all my iOS devices.
+ Added bonus of having an AUX in and Play/Pause/Rewind/Forward controls on the speaker even though it's unnecessary, since you can use your device as a remote for the speaker. The AUX in is a nice tough for anyone who doesn't have Bluetooth support, but then again I would not purchase a speaker whose main purpose is Bluetooth for a device without Bluetooth.
+ Included packaging is re-usable for storage, which is convenient.
The only thing that was really a small negative for me is that the cable provided for charging is rather short and unless your outlet is close enough to a solid surface you may have to leave the speaker hanging for charging, but this was something I easily saw past.
Overall this is a very solid Bluetooth speaker at a great price point when compared to other similar options. It's a great entry point for anyone interested in a Bluetooth speaker. Keep in mind that all my testing was performed on iOS devices. I tested on an iPhone 5, iPad 1 and iPad 2. iPhone 5 was running iOS 6 and the iPads were running iOS 5.
********* I received this product for free as part of the Amazon.com Vine program. Nonetheless, I review the product in the same manner as I would if I had purchased it myself. *********
Buy HMDX Audio HX-P230GY JAM Bluetooth Wireless Speaker Now
This is a great little speaker. The new smart phones are very good at connecting with it.
I can't agree with a previous review about the humming noise. Yes it hums IF it is turned to full volume and you have turned your music device down to low... your smart phone or player should be up to full volume and then you should use the volume on the speaker to control the volume. Magic>>> NO HUM. This is true with any connection. this same hum will occur on my home stereo if I use the volume on my player to control the volume instead of the speaker volume control.
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I've been annoyed for a while that the speakers on my iPod Touch just weren't that great, and my laptop's speakers were downright embarrassing.
In a matter of moments I paired this speaker (right out of the box, with no additional charge) with my iPod Touch (VERY easy to do, go to Settings, Turn the BlueTooth on, when it sees the speaker, select it, enter the PIN found on the bottom of the speaker, play your music) with my iPod and was playing music, and it sounded wonderful. The music is clear, and the base is powerful.
It does have a little pop sound when it is turned on and again when it connects with your device. I've also noticed that it starts out pretty loud each time I turn it on, so I know to turn it down right away.
I love that I can walk around the room with my iPod and not be tied down with speaker wires. It is also nice that the speaker can be taken anywhere!
I had to laugh at the strawberry scent I smell when I open the jar the JAM speaker comes in. It is fun.
Charging is easy using the included micro usb connection. Just plug into your computer or USB outlet. When the speaker's light turns to green, it is fully charged.
I also love the grip material on the bottom, it keeps the speaker from slipping or bouncing on hard smooth surfaces.
In all, this little speaker packs a punch! Love it. (Plus, it is small enough to put in a purse or bag)
Want HMDX Audio HX-P230GY JAM Bluetooth Wireless Speaker Discount?
First off, I would like to explain that this may be an ongoing review. I just bought this item last night, and being a person who understands electronics, I usually wait for my reviews. This time, I figured I would start the review, and then I can come back and edit. Therefore, you may see some updates or changes below.
Second, don't let my initial 4-star rating fool you. I was torn on how to rate this product for the value of what you pay, or vs. other speakers. I decided to put this up against much larger bluetooth speakers, and I think it speaks volumes that a $40 item is 4-stars compared to $150 bluetooth portable speakers.
I'm going to start with what most peopls call "cons", but I'm just going to note them as minor nuisances
-The cord is only about 6 inches long....BUT...its your standard android type charger. Since I'm a Samsung Galaxy boy, myself, I have a ton of these cables. It is currently charging with an old LG cable I found
-Some have mentioned a slight hum in the speaker. This is pretty common with most Bluetooth devices. This goes away when you start playing music. There have been some that said, "once you hear the hum, you always hear the hum". I purposely turned the music all the way down just to hear the hum. I listened to it at my desk for 5 minutes, and then played music again. I don't notice any hum, and I am TRYING to hear it. So, although there is, in fact, a hum, I'm not noticing it when in use.
-Its not a great bass machine, but again, is this really a con? Do people buy a prius to drag-race? Cannot really hold that against this machine, so again...that is why I said a "minor nuisance" (and that is a stretch)
-The power switch is on the bottom
-There is an extreeeeeemly loud series of beeps every time you turn it on. You know its coming, so you can try to shield it. Its still somewhat annoying, and not good for starting up in quiet places. There may be a way around this, I just haven not figured it out.
-The controls on the speaker itself are a little slow to respond, but honestly, who is going to use this? It is only a minor delay anyway. I just tested them to see what they were. I control everything from my phone.
I tried this thing out approximately 10 times in Bed Bath and Beyond. I kept messing with their display and was rather disappointed that I couldn not try my own music on their display. So, that kept me from trying it at first. Plus, I am always concerned that the display model is set up differently and it just won't sound as good at home in larger rooms...which takes me to my pros, and what I love about this (so far)
-The sound fills a room. Its not that massive BOSE sound, but its pretty close in how it fills a room. I listen to a lot of 90's acoustic rock and that stuff sounds incredible. Now, if you get to some of the newer club-rap type of music, there is not a lot of power, but it doesn't sound distorted either. Still sounds good, it just is not going to blow your hair back and rattle windows
-I had the phone about 15 feet away from the device and it played beautifully. What is funny is Pandora played clearer than my recorded music...here is why that is a pro. Because, I realized a lot of my recorded music is garbage from the internet and typically poor recordings, which leads me to believe that this device really picks out the clarity of songs. Much like a good set of headphones might actually make some of my bad recording actually sound bad because the headphones are so clear.
-The construction is very sturdy
(pending a battery test)
any standard charger that comes with most android phones can charge this.
-line in that will work with non-USB devices
-packaging is actually very nice. I will keep this for storage.
If you are skeptical about buying this, just buy it from a place that has easy returns. Thus far, I have no desire to return it. As far as performance goes, it is a solid 5-star product for the price. Again, I gave it four stars only because its slightly not as powerful as some bigger, more expensive speakers. I realize that may not be a fair assessment, but, again, I think it speaks more to the product that I give it 4 stars in comparing it to the larger portable Bluetooth speakers. I think the only way I would have a problem with this speaker in the future, is if for some reason performance decreases, or I find that the battery lasts a very short amount of time. I will update this, if needed, in the future. If you don't hear from me, that means its still doing well :)
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I picked up the HMDX Jam and was excited it didn't cost $200. It's debatable if it is worth ~$40, you'll have to be the judge if the annoying issues with this product aren't a big deal.
PROS:
1. Small
2. Fairly Loud
3. Sound is OK
4. Rechargeable battery
5. Only $40 vs. a Jambox cost of $200 or others at $100
CONS:
1. Bluetooth sometimes requires powering the Jam on/off a couple of times to connect to my phone. Slight annoyance, but hey it's only $40
2. Loud (i.e. max volume) "duh, duh, duh" EVERY time you power on the unit with Bluetooth connected. You can't disable or reduce the volume of this notification. Again an annoyance, you can muffle the speaker once you know the sound is coming.
3. There is a very noticeable "humming" sound from the unit when using Bluetooth connections. It is most noticeable during acoustic type music (vs. busy, pop type music). It is somewhat covered when playing at loud volumes for busy music, but once I heard it I could hear it in every song. This noise is not there when using the line in, so it is likely tied to the Bluetooth module in the Jam. I actually took mine apart and tried to shield/filter out the noise without success (shielding didn't help, new filtering at 1st stage amp, which isn't used for Line-In, didn't help). It seems to be inherent to the analog output of the OVC3860 Bluetooth module HMDX is using. Talked to HMDX tech support about this noise and they confirmed it on one of their test units. They're response was "that's how it sounds when on, you should probably take it back". At least they were honest about the Jam's limitations and realized once you hear the hum/buzz/hiss it will take an effort to ignore it. I think this issue will end up being a deal breaker for me and I'll keep my eyes open for a sale on the Logitech mini Boombox or the Jawbone Jambox. Hey, you get what you pay for....especially with straight from Ch!na items. Oh, and here's another reviewer that called out this same noise as "electronic fax machine-esq".....
