Music is a very important part of my life. For me to really be happy and productive at work, I have to have some music playing in my office. This means that bluetooth speakers are a must for me. This week, Rapoo sent me not one but two bluetooth speakers to play with and review for you all, the Rapoo A500 and the A3060. We are going to start with the larger A500, and do the A3060 in it’s own review.
Packaging and Aesthetics
The A500 comes in a nice clear package from Rapoo, so you can see exactly what you are getting with this speaker. The speaker measures a small 5.5 inches in length, 2.5 inches tall, and roughly 1.5 inches deep rectangle shape. The A500 comes in six colors (red, white, green, blue, black, and yellow) and is packaged with a USB cable for charging, a 3.5 jack cable to connect your non-bluetooth devices, and a carrying bag for the speaker. The speaker I received was the black one, and I did like the overall aesthetic look of the A500. For me, the look of the device, especially in black, is meant to me a bit more stealthy to the eye. This speaker can hide out on top of your shelf and play music, without drawing attention to itself.
Connectivity
Pairing to the A500 through a bluetooth device is an easy task by simply using the bluetooth connectivity of your device. What I really liked about the A500 as a bluetooth device, is that I can use the device even if the On/Off switch on the back is turned to Off. I don’t have to worry about having to get up and turning on the device just to listen to music, which is fantastic if you put your speaker up high like I did.
Hands Free
The A500 can also be used as a hands free device, thanks to the microphone in the speaker. Sound quality as a hands free device is just ok. I had a hard time hearing some people through the speaker as I drove. Also, due to the size of the speaker, I just didn’t have a great place to put it in my car. Sure, some two sided tape could do the trick, but then you got this speaker attached to your dashboard. No thanks, I would rather just keep my headset.
Sound
Ok, now for the important part, the sound quality of the A500. The volume range of the A500 is decent enough for it’s size. It’s loud enough to listen to music in a good size room, without being over powering. The overall sound quality is good for the size of the speakers, but the bass is really lacking in the A500. Playing anything that relies on heavy bass through the A500 is an exercise in disappointment. The high and low notes sound clean, but the bass is just not there.
Final Thoughts
Overall, when it comes to the most important aspect of any speaker, the A500 just comes up ordinary. The speaker itself is designed nicely and comes with everything you need to connect to all your current audio devices, but the sound quality is just average for me. The Rapoo A500 will run you about $45 US, so depending on your need for a speaker and what you are looking for, the price could be a determining factor on whether or not you will enjoy the A500. For me, I would rather spend a little more money on a speaker that can hit the bass a little harder.
[easyreview title=”Product Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”3″ ]
