Bang & Olufsen 1280346 Beoplay Beolit 17 Wireless Bluetooth Speaker - Grey

love it! the quality of sound is wonderful, the only down fall to this product is the battery.

After carefully reading numerous reviews at audio web sites and customer reviews here at Amazon I decided to purchase the Beloit 17. If the negative reviews ended up being representative, I could easily return it to Amazon.BATTERYBattery life seems to be the main controversy when reading reviews of the Beloit 17. Bang and Olafson claims UP TO 24 hours of battery life when the speaker is operated at a moderate listening level which they say is at level 14 of 32. This is clearly stated on their web site. Assuming level 32 is the maximum, level 14 would be less than half or 44% of full volume. There does not appear to be any way to determine volume level accurately, so I used the Beoplay application and made my best guess about where 50% was based on the digital volume control knob. That level is very adequate for what I would characterize as a “normal” listening level with the speaker up to ten feet away from my listening position indoors. In the first twelve hours of use over three days, my battery went from 91% to 55% so I would certainly expect to come pretty close to the stated 24 hour battery life with a fully charged battery at my current listening level. Obviously your mileage may vary but my speaker is clearly operating within the stated parameters. I can also tell you this speaker can crank out some serious volume at 75% volume and up, but no 2200mAh battery is going to drive a 5.5 inch long stroke full range driver, two 4 inch passive radiators and three 1.5 inch tweeters for very long at that level. If you need to crank it up, then plug it in first; any one expecting more needs to go to the B&O website and read the (to me) very clear specifications listed there under “Battery”. Know what you are getting before you hit that buy button!SOUNDI have a lifelong interest in music and sound systems. This does not make me an expert, but with fifty plus years of experience, I do know what I like from my sound systems. I currently use Totem Arro speakers, paired with a Totem Storm as my main sound system. All of my music is in various hi res formats (flac, aiff, etc). I also use Audeze LCD-X headphones for those times when I want to engage in serious listening. My plan for the Beloit 17 is to pair it with my iPhone and iPad for general listening and streaming and when watching the occasional movie on my iPad Pro or MacBook. Obviously, this is not competing with my main system; for a Bluetooth speaker the sound is full and clear with well balanced lows and mids. I'd say it may be a bit bass heavy, but it is not objectionable to my ears and can be modified/mitigated via the Beoplay app. Moving the sound into the bright quadrant on the app seems to work well for me. Otherwise, if you are just streaming a service such as pandora for easy listening, it just blends nicely into the background. For what it's worth this speaker compares very favorably with my Bowers and Wilkins A7 which I have been using for that purposeup to this point. Bluetooth offers more flexibility than Apple airplay so I can also use it with my Sony hi res Walkman which is android based.SPEAKER FUNCTIONSBluetooth pairs easily, and everything works as it should. I have not, as yet, tried the special function button but I will update this review if there is anything worth noting. It charged quickly, and works well with the Beoplay app. Nothing to complain about so far.GENERAL STUFFThe quality is, in a word, outstanding. Packaging was Apple like. Fit and finish is perfect. Compared to “comparable” speakers it is worth (to me) the somewhat high price. I found it for $50 off at an Amazon reseller. While this is a “portable” speaker, it does weigh more than five pounds so don't plan on taking it with you when you go for a walk!I like it and plan to keep it. Highly recommended so far, but of course I will update my review should that change.Edit 8/28I recharged the speaker battery and have been playing it at moderate (40%) to loud (60-70%) levels for a current total of 24 hours and my battery at the moment is between 10-15% (solid red light on device). According to the level displayed on my Apple Watch (the Apple Watch beoplay app displays remaining battery life as a percentage) it is now at 14%. I plan to run it down completely, but I fully expect to get another hour out of it and possibly more. Music that is bass heavy seems to impact battery a bit more but for my use that's much more than I was expecting based on other user reviews.I also downloaded the latest software V6.0.3 with no issues and also connected to my lone Android device (Sony NW-ZX2 high res audio player) which uses Bluetooth 3.0 with no issues and playback was excellent with no drops or cut outs. Based on other reviews I was concerned the speaker might not work as well with an Android device but my Sony which is running Android V4.2 seems to work perfectly.Connecting the Beolit 17 to my Sony NW-ZX2 with a mini plug instead of Bluetooth kicks everything up a notch. The speaker definitely sounds better and I can take advantage of all the functions my Sony has to offer (DAC, ClearAudio+, equalizer, volume controls etc.). For those of you who own a hi res digital audio player this is a definite enhancement. I could even connect my Sony NW-ZX2 to my Sony PHA-3 portable amplifier which has a balanced output and then port the left and right channels to two separate Beolit 17 speakers for true hi res stereo. I already have a very nice setup so I'm not going to rush out and get another Beolit 17 but I'd love to borrow one to try it out!I'm still loving it and wondering even more about some of the negative reviews. I managed a full 24 hours of use at or above comfortable listening levels so It certainly meets my needs. I'm certainly not suggesting I don't believe other reviewers, but I also can't believe there could possibly be that much variance between devices. It's still a solid five stars for me.

Quick Review: The Beolit 17 is fun to use and also $100 cheaper than the older Beolit 12 and 15, coming in at $499. Combined with the great sound, portability features, name brand, USB-C charging and good app support, I'm giving it 5-stars.Detailed Review:The Beolit 17 seems to be a nice upgrade over the previous iterations (the 12 and 15) in both sound quality and feature set. I owned neither, but demo'ed them both in the physical B&O store before it closed in Tysons Corner, VA.My background:I currently also own both the original green Beoplay A2 portable and grey A6 "lifestyle" B&O Play series speakers. I have also owned and returned the S3 (unimpressive sound for original MSRP) and A2 Active (poor battery life and poorer sound than original A2). As far as other portable and/or small Bluetooth or streaming speaker setups, I have experience with the Mass Fidelity Core, several Sonos speakers, the small Bose SoundLink Mini I/II, UE Boom/MegaBoom. For real listening, I'm also a HiFi enthusiast with systems including Dynaudio Confidence C1 and Focal Micro Utopia Be speakers, if that means anything to you.Sound:The sound is full, clear, crisp, subjectively good to me for a portable Bluetooth speaker, and the Beolit 17 can reach high volumes considering its small size. As I experienced with the A2 Active that I returned, the bass seems slightly more emphasized than I remember in the previous A2 model I have on-hand or Beolit models I demo'ed at the B&O store. The bass emphasis is there over the previous Beolit models, but is less noticable than the A2/A2 Active tuning, where the treble and bass EQ seemed very tipped up at both ends of the spectrum compared to the older model. It is possible to tweak things a bit with the Beoplay iPhone app using the Tonetouch controls (a four quadrant block including Warm, Excited, Relaxed and Bright). I was always impressed with the A2's sound reproduction for its size but A/B'ing the A2 and the 17 showed how much better range and fullness the 17 has - and rightly so for its size.Battery/Charging:The advertised battery life is 24 hours. There is also some outlandish claim like this on the A2 I own. Neither the A2 or the 17 live up to the B&O battery life claims in real life, unless I suppose you listen at very low volumes. In my unscientific test over the past couple days, I got around 7-8 hours of battery life per charge listening to the unit at least 50% volume, which is acceptable to me. In a worst case scenario, I'll plug in a spare 20,000mAh USB battery pack and go for a LONG time....which leads me to another great feature of this unit: USB-C charging. Yes, a USB-C quickcharger IS included, unlike the A2 Active, which just came with a USB A to C cable! The cable included with the Beolit 17 is a USB-C to C cable and the quickcharger has a single USB-C port on it. Charging is fast and I've tested it via the included charger as well as a 5-port Anker charger I have and both work well. I assume the included charger works better since it's a real USB-C charger, but I didn't time it.Portability:It's not light, but I wasn't expecting it to be. The leather handle is nice to have but I can see it wearing out if used for a long time. USB-C charging increases the portability because it really can be used with any charger or external battery pack, as long as you have a C-type cable.Other:-Bluetooth 4.2: Works great with my iPhone 7 Plus which also has BT 4.2. The range is much improved and I can walk around my entire 3-story townhouse without losing connection. I even took the trash out to the curb the other day and forgot I had the phone in my pocket - it didn't drop the connection.-Color: I bought the "Stone Grey" dark grey color, which is very handsome. It's not quite black and the contrast of the polycarbonate against the aluminum grille is very sleek and nice.-"Connect Feature" Customizable feature button: A nice addition over the previous models which lets you choose what to do with an extra button they put on the thing. You can choose from 1) a remote control option which will play/pause, go to next track, or previous track depending on the number of times you press it, 2) Alarm function, 3) Custom Tonetouch setting, 4) Last Played Song, 5) Nothing. I left mine on the remote control option which makes the most sense to me.-Pair to another Beolit 17: Nice to have if you want to drop another $500 bucks on another one of these things. I'll pass on that for now.-Beoplay App: Just a note here - I got one of, I assume, the first units. My unit arrived on Monday, 3/6/2017, way ahead of when I anticipated it. I already had the Beoplay app to use with my A2 and H7 Headphones. The first thing that happened after pairing the Beolit 17 to my phone and adding it to the app as a firmware update to v5.2.4(170210) which as described in the update notes, included support for the customizable button. I don't know what version it shipped with or how it sounded, because I did the firmware update before using it at all. The App works great, always connects to the unit and offers all the functionality I would expect.Comparisons:-Mass Fidelity Core: Compared to the Mass Fidelity Core, for the same price ($499 now), the 17 is a CLEAR winner. The Core has less volume capability, less fullness and had seemingly distorted bass at comparable (normal) listening volumes. Sure, the Beolit 17 lacks a remote and optical input, but it DOES have a 3.5" minijack input and USB-C quickcharging instead of an external proprietary brick charger. It also has a cool leather handle for actual, real portability.-Others: Compared to the other BT speakers I listed above (Bose, UE, Sonos), the Beolit 17 blows them out of the water. It's an unfair competition to the other models considering the price of the Beolit. I've always loved the usability of Sonos, but the sound has always been unimpressive and flat, not to mention they don't run on batteries. I'm sure there is a better comparison to be made, but quite frankly, I haven't seen many other options that offer the size and portability features that the Beolit series does.Summary:Overall, I'm happy with my purchase. The Beolit 17 is fun to use and also $100 cheaper than the older Beolit 12 and 15, coming in at $499. Combined with the great sound, portability features, name brand, USB-C charging and good app support, I'm giving it 5-stars.

Es una altavoz extraordinario, fuera de lo corriente, pero hay detalles que no van acordes a un producto de su supuesta categoría. No tiene ningún fallo aunque hay aspectos notables que deberían ser más "perfectos".1) La construcción es impecable por diseño, materiales y montaje, con un reparto de pesos perfecto.El asa cruzada de cuero es perfecta para cogerlo y van ancladas a la parte superior separada del chásis: es algo que parece lógico y que no todos los modelos incorporan, hace que nunca jamás haya una vibración o ruido molesto al reproducir audio con niveles altos de volumen.2) Los botones están en la parte superior y tienen retroiluminación led. Además de los típicos hay uno configurable a través de la aplicación móvil Beoplay. Responden bien a la pulsación pero al altavoz le cuesta un poco más tiempo del que debería en ejecutar la acción deseada.El encendido y apagado tienen pitidos ascendentes y descendentes respectivamente para poder distinguirlos.En la parte inferior hay conexión mini jack y un led de estado de carga junto a la ranura USB-C3) La primera conexión BT no la pude hacer directa. Tuve que descargar la app de BO y esperar casi 20 minutos para actualizar el altavoz entre descarga e instalación de firmware. Después si puedes enlazar a través de la app o sin ella directamente.Es preferible configurar los parámetros en primer lugar y el botón asignable con la opción de tono (una especie de ecualizador con limitadores de espectro digitales) y olvidar la app por completo. La app es lenta en enlazar, sin embargo las conexióm directa es la más rápida que he visto hasta ahora, es instantánea. Realmente la app Beoplay no sirve de mucho.4) La autonomía es genial en todos los casos. Es cierto que supera incluso las 20 y pico horas de reproducción...pero en bajos volúmenes. Si utilizas 3/4 de su capacidad tendrás entre 5 y 8 horas con tranquilidad. La carga por USB -C es una maravilla, completamente descargado se recarga en menos de 3 horas.5) La calidad de audio es de primera categoría aunque con matices. Con formatos de audio de alta calidad como FLAC o WAV suena de escándalo pero tiene problemas de presión sonora, hay que subir volumen casi hasta la mitad, o incluso más, para escucharlo todo con nitidez.Saca pecho con formatos mediocres como mp3 a 128 kbps aunque el sonido no es del todo natural,está manipulado y coloreado.En general suena con mucha potencia de frecuencias graves, realzadas y agradables que en algunos momentos están muy saturadas sin llegar a la distorsión. Las frecuencias medias están recortadas para evitar un sonido hueco pero se pierden ciertos matices. Las frecuencias agudas tienen los picos brillantes y los rangos molestos rebajados.En conjunto el audio es de escándalo pero no produce un sonido todo lo puro que debiera ser, hay momentos en que a una distancia prudencial no terminan de entenderse algunas voces o instrumentos por carencia de su ecualización y exceso de los extremos graves y agudos.En una frase, podría sonar mejor aún. Quedan por mejorar la app móvil y su lenta conexión. En el resto de apartados está en lo más alto.

I got this on sale for $449 and I could not be happier.I DJ for fun at house parties and I had a pair of powered speakers I would take with me, but they are rather cumbersome. I wanted a portable speaker that I can take to parties that can fill a room(as often my friends usually have rather under powered speakers in their house) as well as use it outside or wherever it strikes my fancy. I was debating between Beolit 17 and HK go play but went with Beolit 17 as it was on sale and it is a more portable unit than the go play.Bluetooth works wonderfully, and when the unit is plugged in it can be really cranked up.

I struggled to select which portable bluetooth speaker to get. In shop comparisons were tough as the environment was always noisy and far far larger than my living room. So I managed to get hold of each of my top choices and try them at home. In addition to the BeoLit 17, I got Ultimate Ears Megablast, Ultimate Ears Mega Boom3 and Bose Revolve Plus.The Ultimate Ears had the best online reviews but, to my ear, they were a bit weedy in terms of sound quality and sounded like small speakers with turbo chargers - louder and richer than you might expect to look at them, but in the end not really satifying. The Alexa on the Megablast was terrible, I had to speak very loudly and artificially precisely to get it to respond correctly. I tried using the direct app function to make use of wireless rather than bluetooth on the megablast and that improved the sound quality a lot... but I am not prepared to have to shout out the speaker to get the sound quality I want.The Bose Revolve Plus was great sounding and I nearly went for it as it is a lot less expensive than the Beolit.. Swapping from the Bose to the Beolit seemed like hardly any difference.... until you swap back again and the difference was clear. I did a blind test on my partner and she picked the Beolit everytime.I have had the Beolit a few weeks now and I am delighted with it and totally convinced it was worth the extra money.What about the Sonos Move I hear you say. Well, I rejected it quickly based on in shop tests, it didn't seem to have the richness I wanted and it was suprisingly directional despite this being one of the supposed highlights for the Move.I considered the Ultimate Ears Hyperboom, but couldn't find one to try and I got the impression it was the best for VERY LOUD, which is great for parties but not for everyday.Hopefully this is helpful, but everybody's tastes and ears are different, so have fun trying for yourself.