iPod docks are a dime-a-dozen these days, go in to any electronics retailer and you’re bound to find a bunch cluttered together on display the majority of which will have some unfortunate commonalities. Poor sound quality, ugly design and useless “extended-features”. JBL’s new OnBeat “Loudspeaker Docking Station”, I’m happy to say, rises above all of those and has delivered one of the more enjoyable dock experiences I’ve had without costing a thousand dollars.
One of the biggest surprises for me with the OnBeat was just how good this small unit sounded. At just 27cm wide and 13cm deep there’s not a lot of room for massive speakers let alone good ones. I’ve come to almost expect a crappy quality of sound from dock units in this “bedside table” range of sizes. There’s an expected lack of good quality bass and the somewhat tinny top-end but from Jay-Z to David Gray I was pretty impressed to the point I was content to use the unit as my background accompaniment for cleaning the house instead of my AppleTV connected home theatre. The “Dual JBL Phoenix full-range transducers” (aka the speakers) are extremely clear and even topping out the volume left little to no distortion, which may equate to the relatively high price tag compared to other units this size, which after using it are justified.
The simplicity of the OnBeat’s design is one of its most pleasing features. One of my pet peeves with iPod docks is how the iPod/iPhone connected to it stand out in the most ugly of ways. Apple’s own ill-fated iPod Hi-Fi Speaker was one of the worst offenders of this. The OnBeat has an elegant wave like design that envelopes the attached device incorporating it into its body whilst still leaving it accessible. iPad somewhat fall back to the ugliness but only because of their size in contrast to the OnBeat’s small footprint.
iPhones and iPods also have the added bonus of the dock connector being able to swivel 90 degrees. I’m sure this has been done before on other speaker docks but I’d not seen one work so easily and keep the iOS device centred correctly in the dock. It’s the little things that make all the difference! In fact the only part of the design I didn’t care for is that depending on which iOS device you have attached there is a different clip that you’re meant to attach to the speaker’s central dock column that hugs your iPhone, iPad, etc. This clip comes in different sizes depending on what you have attached, an annoyance if you have multiple devices you want to constantly swap around but for most it will be a “do once and never again” task.
The OnBeat’s facade has been kept button free, in fact the entire device is scarce on buttons, limited to only three. One at the rear responsible for powering the device on and off and two on the right side for a hardware based volume control. The volume controls could have technically also have been omitted as they merely adjust the attached iOS device’s volume via the dock connector but their presence makes that adjustment far easier.
Connectivity wise the rear of the OnBeat includes the aforementioned power button, it’s power plug (connects to a small brick transformer), audio in (3.5mm) - for those non iOS devices, USB - to connect the speaker to a PC and allow for wired syncing whilst your device is connected and finally an RCA Video out should you want to pass on your playing video’s output to another screen. I’m guessing if you’re doing that the device you’re connecting through to will have a better sound system and it’s a bit superfluous but then if it wasn’t there I’m sure people would ask why.
As a bare-bones dock the OnBeat does something that most of its similar sized brethren does not; it sounds good! For its compact and stylish size I’ve honestly not heard another dock compete, especially at high volumes. Sure it’s bass & top-end aren’t going to be able to compete with a full size speaker array but it does a damn good job and is ideal for that bedside unit, dorm room or study space.
Pros
- good all round sound quality
- in dock charge & sync
- aesthetically pleasing design
- rotating dock mount for widescreen view (not really for iPad)
- top end can get tinny at time
- no battery power
- remote range is awful
- a bit pricey
Review: JBL OnBeat