JBL OnBeat Loudspeaker Docking Station

• Expected more from JBL

  3.0 out of 5 stars

  First off for this to sound good you cannot have your volume full blast. There is no subwoofer so the bass is forced to go out the tiny speakers. Due to the lack of subwoofer the sound is very muddy. It works with both iPads but portrait only. The brace that holds the iPad is very flimsy and will break easily. I owned this dock for 3 days before I returned it. Worked better with the iPhone 4 than the iPads. Expected a better product from a reliable manufacturer like JBL. … More (Read full review)

  • Written by Anthony L from Wauwatosa
  • Apr 26, 2011

  91 of 99 people found this useful

  Was this useful? Expected more from JBL

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• Not a good product

  1.0 out of 5 stars

  I bought this for my ipad2 and was surprised that I had to send away for the correct bracket. The bracket to hold it was flimsy a nd I had no confidence that it would hold my $600 plus ipad2. The sound was terrible, tin canny and no base. I took it back. … More (Read full review)

  • Written by Robert R from abilene
  • May 1, 2011

  88 of 103 people found this useful

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• Warning! Don't use if iPad is your Alarm Clock!

  1.0 out of 5 stars

  Seldom would I be so negative towards any product, however as this product didn't satisfy the main reason why I purchased it, I mu st give it a poor rating.
  
  My carefully designed plan was to put my iPad 2 running some great clock application on my nightstand. I would be able to read the time without glasses, it's sort of a night light, and with the right application, even receive real-time weather information. During the day, I could listen to my favorite music and at night, have the clock application wake me up. Sounds like a great plan and a simple plan.... but noooooooooo. Some Product Manager trying to be overly Politically Correct thought engaging a Stand By Mode in the event your iPad doesn't generate any audio for some 10 minutes and thereby turning off the speakers would be a good idea... thinking it would save power... And to make matters worse, they decided not to go out of Stand By Mode in the event the iPad begins to speak... That means, unless you set your alarm for less than 10 minutes after you go to bed, the next morning you get to sleep in late... even if you had an important meeting to wake up for!
  
  My comments:
  
  1) It would have been so easy for the JBL On Beat to detect the audio and automatically take itself out of Stand By Mode. My guess is that was the original plan but the final design ended up with a flaw. The good folks at JBL surly would not have intentionally designed something with such a glaring flaw.
  
  2) Having earned a Master's Degree in Electrical Engineering for a major university, I am here to tell you the difference in power consumption between an amplifier that is engaged yet not producing any audio and this same amplifier in Stand By mode is insignificant. This is a "feel good" everything must be green feature rather than any significant savings in one's power bill.
  
  3) To the best of my knowledge, this problem is 100% JBL and no iPad application, outside of something that makes a "keep alive" beep every 5 minutes or so, is going to correct JBL's design flaw.
  
  4) As the iPad 2 is so thin, one needs to carefully line it up before inserting the iPad into its docking position. I would have liked to see some kind of a back-stop so I could seat the iPad as far back as this back-stop and insert. As it is now, one needs to line it up carefully... not a big deal, but again, a simple problem to fix so it's easier and quicker to mount the thin iPad 2.
  
  5) OK... now the good news... assuming the JBL On Beat isn't in Stand By Mode, it sounds great! Perfect for a average sized room in that it fills the room with quality sound... for the price, the sound quality is more than acceptable. … More (Read full review)

  • Written by John M from Alpharetta
  • Jun 22, 2012

  57 of 69 people found this useful

  Was this useful? Warning! Don't use if iPad is your Alarm Clock!

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• Not worth the money

  1.0 out of 5 stars

  The speaker worked fine for a year and a few weeks later it stopped charging. I was able to prop up my phone/ipad to get a charge but that only worked for 2 weeks. Now this thing is useless. … More (Read full review)

  • Written by kavada T from grant
  • Apr 30, 2013

  0 of 2 people found this useful

  Was this useful? Not worth the money

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• It does function as an alarm clock!

  5.0 out of 5 stars

  Now I do not know whether the solution is already offered in these reviews but I had, like a lot of people, alarm clock difficulti es. I send a question to JBL and they helped out perfectly. In short: if you make sure your Iphone has the screen lock switched off AND make sure the app runs on the 'black alarm clock' screen it will give you your favorite music via the JBL speakers when you wake up. So now you have great quality and a good alarm clock. Admittedly the app is somewhat onlogical but in the end it all works out fine. More importantly the helpdesk really helps out. Great product! … More (Read full review)

  • Written by Jeroen N from Soest
  • Mar 6, 2013

  2 of 2 people found this useful

  Was this useful? It does function as an alarm clock!

  Yes No

• Great product, one short fall

  4.0 out of 5 stars

  First of all, let me say that this is a great product. For the size of the speakers, it sounds clear and crisp with some bass. I t doesn't "thump" but if it did, the clarity would disappear. For $150, this is a great buy.
  
  My one short fall is that I, too, wanted to use this as an alarm clock/radio. I was aware that it itself is not an alarm clock. I can use the clock app on the iPad for that. However, as long as you leave it docked, it's always charging the iPad. Regardless of the battery, it is possible to overcharge the battery which can lead to shortened battery life. If it had a way that I could turn the charger off while still listening to music through the speakers that would've been awesome. I know that I can take it off the dock, hook a mini jack up to it from the iPad, and still listen to music. It's just not as convenient as leaving on the dock.
  
  Regardless, great product overall. … More (Read full review)

  • Written by Gary N from Indianapolis
  • Feb 19, 2013

  4 of 4 people found this useful

  Was this useful? Great product, one short fall

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