UPDATE: Just as I finished this video some of these showed up on the Bose Refurbished sites in the UK & Germany (and possibly elsewhere). If you want a Smart Speaker 500 this might be the last best chance to get one with a warranty at a discounted price - check your local Bose website for info.
I keep hearing the phrase 'Bose Selecter' - maybe something to do with DJs? Have you ever reviewed that? Any idea what it is - the Google doesn't help me much. Love your show you make it easy for us olds to understand the newfangled music magic! Thanks!
Drives me nuts that more people aren't concerned about cloud services that can change their terms or even disable functionality after you've bought them. Imagine an old CD player saying "sorry track skip limit reached - please subscribe to CD premium" or worse "CD license in your region has been revoked - CD playback has been disabled.".
@@victortitov1740, nothing pisses me off more than when a Blu-ray won’t play because you don’t have an internet connection for it to load ads and bs movie previews and shit.
"I want to be able to approach the f. thing and press a button...". I feel the same, and reminded me of the scene in "I Robot" movie when someone couldn't voice command a music player that only worked with buttons.
I was speaking to some young colleagues in their 20s in the office and they had no idea what stereo was. They were so used to listening to a single speaker they hadn't realised that stereo made it so much better.
@@raifmeyer6914 Most of the under-fifty crowd I've seen using earbuds have only one earbud in, so they can make phone calls and/or listen to music when they're not supposed to, like when at work or driving, and a good quantity of them are using non-headphone-jack iPhones, so I can see that being possible!
One thing I've learned in my 29 years: if it depends on the cloud/ app is not yours. Local controls in this case are a small thing but very appreciated
I'm not sure about the 500 but a lot of the Soundwave stuff can be controlled by homeassiant as people have reverse engineered the local API on the devices
For most Smart products, they may call it smart now, but 10 years from now when it has no way to work (no server, no app), it won't be smart at all. It will be taking up space in a landfill. lol
If I were a reviewer covering products like this, I would avoid ever using the term "the cloud", and instead only use the more accurate phrase "some other guy's computer".
I disagree that it's an "old person" thing to just want controls that have a level of redundancy - something that should you lose a remote or the app doesn't work any more, you have controls still. Nor is it old person to want what we've had established in the past. It's basic empathy and a standard.
App discontinued, and it becomes a piece of e-waste ... not first thing to end up like that, perfectly functional but unusable. The more they put on the phone the less I want that thing around me
He said "old fashion" - which means out of style, not really to do with age. Lack of buttons is a pet peeve of mine esp. in things like vehicles where you expect buttons for climate control and it is a screen.
@@eNodeTG I know he did. I was talking more generally. There's a quite common thought online that this is an old person thing. In fact, there's a whole Reddit thing about it.
@@patrickcardon1643 Absolutely. I've always been finnicky about what I buy, and having a lack of such redundancy is a no-buy for me. I know how things will stop working and to have something such an achilles' heel is just wrong to me.
Agreed! I've noticed that too many modern televisions also have shed the buttons that allow basic functionality - sometimes even the power switch! Thankfully I have two Logitech Harmony remotes which allow for almost infinite programming of just about any device in the known universe.
Nothing wrong with “old fashioned”. I think far too much technology nowadays is unnecessarily over complicated and not particularly user friendly. Give me knobs and switches all day long
It makes a bit more sense when you start to realize that few of the devices we think of as 'a' computer are actually a single computer. Typically, there's a number of computers of varying capabilities communicating with each other. So you can turn off the computer that processes your speech into text, and the computer that processes that text into an actionable request really can't 'hear you' beyond 'well, all I know is there's some kind of audio'. It'd be like you trying to tell what TV show your neighbor is watching by watching the light change colors outside the window.
The other issue with first gen HomePods is that their logic board dies out of the blue and as they’re not repairable, you’re left with a very expensive door stop
It only advertises the streaming service when you use voice commands. It doesn't say anything when moving onto the next song. It's still annoying, but it isn't as bad as it could be.
LMAO at imagining that being what happens every single time. Even occasionally it's irritating but EVERY time would be enough to get out the baseball bat for some repairs.
Thanks for still being active! every Saturday when I wake up I know there is a video ready. such consistency for years while only making them yourself is awesome! Just checked and the first mention in my email is from 11 years ago 😮. at that time you still had your blog and I think I was searching for a car cam.
Thank you so much for putting me at ease. Even though I am only in my mid 40s, I feel that a plain old stereo system that you can walk up to and make it do things is all you need sometimes. I have actively walked away from devices that looked appealing to me at first because 95% of the functions are only available through a bloody app. Thank you for making me not feel weird in an “old man yelling at clouds” kind of way. All best from a year long viewer of your channel.
Count me in. My surround system offers various ways of integrating its control functions into whatever, but what do I still use every day to control it? Its good old IR remote. Grab, point, press (swap batteries and try again).
I am always thinking about the app not getting updates and then not working on newer OS versions and then me throwing away a device I like only because I literally can't control it anymore because the software no longer works.
@@kernowmcrae or is sold to someone who changes their EULA to collect data on you to sell to ad companies and your speaker suddenly tells you which dish soap to buy.
I have a white rectangular thing on my wall, just inside the door and it has an angled bit of plastic with part of it sticking out. When I want to turn a light on or off, I simply press on the part that sticks up, and the light instantly turns on or off. It's a miracle product. I don't have to utter a sentence and hope that it understands me before it finally turns on or off.
@@patrickcardon1643 don't want to burst your bubble, but pretty sure it does have electronics in it.. It doesn't have a little wizard in there making the lights go on and off.. 😂
I have this Bose, bought in lockdown… sound is tremendous. Bit glitchy and if your WiFi signal drops as the AirPlay just drops out. But the sound quality is superb!
The batteries on those things last forever too. I had lost my headphones after a move, and found them like 2 years later. They still *easily* hold a charge for an entire vacation.
I've had mine for about 5 years, and I'm really impressed with how deep the bass can get... this is essentially what replaced the Bose Wave. It doesn't seem to be discontinued in the U.S.... The only thing I don't like about mine is that the electronic touch controls sometimes stick and you have to unplug it and plug it back in to reset it. I love mine, though. I mainly use it for listening to SiriusXM Satellite Radio (a subscription radio service here in the U.S.) over the Internet.
I have the other Bose Smart Speaker which was on the website next to this one. The cylinder version. It's mono only and puts sound out in all directions. But the sound quality is really good, for such a small device, and I've used it a lot. It is also very well suited to camping - I use it in the caravan, and in the awning I can also tie it so it dangles from a pole, and I can use it on a table at small gatherings. It's very versatile. And the battery life is really good too. There are some downsides. I would love to collar the person who wrote the firmware for it, because it has quite a few issues. Intermittently, when you turn it off, it gives you all indication that it turned off but next time you go to use it the battery is at 0%. Sometimes it does this, sometimes not, and you don't have any way to know once you have turned it off. Also, occasionally it gets itself into some weird state where it is on, but not playing any sound, and no longer responds to any controls. You have to wait for the battery to run out to do anything about it, which in that state takes ages. And, finally, there is no Aux port - BT only - which has frustrated me on many occasions. So the smaller Bose Smart Speaker is definitely not perfect but I have had many years use out of it and the sound quality is great.
Wild how different people's taste can be. I fell in love with the Apple homepod's sound. So i love that like you I craved the stereo aspect so i purchased a second homepod to pair with it (I bought both on sale for $200) Music and movies are just amazing. (You randomly stumble on a badly mixed 'Dolby Atmos' track that completely ruins the experience)
I definitely get where you’re coming from. Almost all BT speakers have just 2 buttons, power and pairing. Worse even, they use some proprietary app that isn’t supported after a year or two. I recently bought a medium sized PA Bluetooth speaker at a thrift store. The brand is Ecoxgear. It features BT, AM/FM, microphone Aux and USB input. It has multiple buttons on the top to control track, volume, Radio frequency, favorite presets, EQ. Best of all it has a service panel to replace the battery. It can run off of wall mains or battery. The sound is decent and in stereo but it doesn’t produce a wide sound stage because they’re front firing. It has two woofers and two tweeters. Additionally, it has a pair of rear facing radiators to help with bass. It’s cool to know that there’s good stuff being made, although it’s few and far between
I still use my large warfdale speakers from the 1980s . I have never heard anything that sounds better despite all the modern speakers claims . Thanks for the video
Let's go back in time where RUclips / Facebook haven't existed yet. No matter how people/audiophiles criticised Bose. Yet it's effective, simple & sound's awsm back in the 80s. Bose 1 way mini drivers provided a deep rich bass, something like Tivoli Audio, although it's mono, but sound quality was amazing! Let's appreciate the design & effort in Bose products.
I'm old school too: it's not stereo if it's not a pair of speakers apart from each other and forming a triangle with the listener's head, or a pair of headphones. While some "smart" capabilities could be useful and fun, I'd rather it have a line / headphone out so I can connect it to a proper hi-fi system.
Some soundbars create a very convincing illusion of a pair of speakers spaced apart in the room. Think it’s all to do with the side/rear firing speakers in them, and some time alignment/phase trickery.
@@musguelha14 That only works in the imaginary parties from marketing mind where peope sit around the coffee table while eating pizzas and laughing. In real life use cases, the speaker is sitting on a teenager bed side, a family kitchen counter, or your tool bench.
I got one of those speakers about 1.5 years ago and so far I didn't regret the purchase. It's sitting in my office and I use it as a PC speaker (via bluetooth) and with my phone (AirPlay). It works well and I'm pleased with the way it sounds. I live in the US and TuneIn hasn't given me any issues yet. Radio stations from the US, UK and Germany are saved to the presets and play just fine. Voice assistant is not in use. I agree with you, it's really nice that this thing has a display showing album art and song title.
Apple HomePods support stereo if you pair two together! Plus then you also get Dolby Atmos too. Love your vids but I don’t think you gave the HomePod a fair comparison to say it doesn’t do stereo.
Tune In does work in the UK, but not for any local BBC station and most of the foreign music stations are blocked. Some BBC World Service stations are available.
Yes, bbc cut them off to try to centralise everything in their Sounds app. Radiofeeds website is excellent as it has every station available to stream (including BBC stations) and even works on old iPod touches.
This thing makes me kind of want to get a raspberry pi, a touch display, some buttons, a regular dumb stereo speaker, and basically tape everything together to make a more versatile small music box. But yeah, personally I don't trust any of those smart devices, basically every manufacturer either has a proper remote killswitch for those things, or can kill most of their functionality by just ending the online service they rely on for their function. Having one of those with a small linux distro running where you could add your own services more easily would be pretty cool though.
I got this device as a present years ago and it works great in my bathroom for music when I'm taking a shower. I can just shout what I want to hear while I'm showering and it obliges.
Hey Matt, not sure if you're aware, but with the Google Nest speakers, you're able to pair them together as stereo. I've got a set of the full sized ones and you can put them as far apart as you want for however much stereo separation you want!
The whole TuneIn legal situation in the UK is bad for consumers. It gives the music companies complete control over what you can do with music for your own personal use and it gives radio station operators the ability to wall garden their stations into their own app by shutting down competition and allowing the ability to paywall radio stations once FM and DAB disappear (they're already doing the freemium model online). Thankfully the third party app and Internet radio set I use hasn't come under the eyes of the music industry and radio station operators - yet.
Sounds as rough as FM radio here in the US, ownership of stations is divided between two companies 50/50 :/ And even then finding an Fm tuner in anything but a car is rare.
@@bobbuilder3687 It is. At least the FM band is closing here at some point. It was actually meant to be closed by 2023 but it was then decided to wait on closing the FM band till 50% of the listening is Digital. And that is very soon. And so in my country the FM signal is closing down at some point soonish.
I love this channel and the music, whats the D&B sample you were playing on vinyl through the AUX? Also Bose the portable soundlink bluetooth speakers are still great. Ive had mine for years and it’s still going strong.
You’re by far my favourite channel we’re of a similar age I can remember some of the things you show but not all it’s very educational and I appreciate the time and effort you put in and the fact you’re not American if you could make longer videos min 30 minutes that would be great
I also insist on stereo. In two rooms of our house, we have an Echo Dot (3rd Gen) with speakers (Logitech Z337). They work brilliantly, sound really good with music.
TIL: That song I heard a million times as a child but only remembered a few notes and no lyrics of is "Brown Eyed Girl" by Van Morrison. Thanks Techmoan!
I love my Bose Companion 2 Series III Multimedia Speaker System for my computers. Have multiple ones from my Amiga to my main PC. I really love the dual audio inputs. One for the Amiga and one for my MT-32 MIDI device.
It surprised me when the HomePod was released after the lukewarm reception of the iPod Hifi. I keep thinking about getting an iPod Hifi on eBay and retrofitting it with Bluetooth, AirPlay, etc.
I've been using a Huawei Sound X for 4ish years and honestly I don't have any complaints. I have pretty high ceilings in my kitchen (where it lives) and it fills the entire room with a good amount of sound. No bs apps to download. Just connects via bluetooth no quarms and has good quality and loudness
was able to get one for $300 AUD 2nd hand, looks like a cool speaker to have set up in the kitchen and connected to my ipad that is always at home so who ever is in the kitchen can turn it on and use it straight away without having to connect their phone
i listen in stereo too. it's not an option. the last time i listened in mono was in 1986 when i had a shoebox cassette recorder as my "system". and even then, as an infant, i knew i wasn't getting the best listening experience. i don't even understand how we've regressed to the point of low bitrate mono audio as the default. we're basically back to wire recorders.
Thank you for letting me know that I'm allowed to not buy this. My wallet has been a sobbing mess since this channel started. I keep having to buy all these things because you've basically been forcing me to. Thank you again for your solicitude.
I’ve got Bose smart speaker 300. And the tune in radio no longer working is a real pain as it always where I listen 6 music whilst making coffee in the morning. That being said still a great little speaker
I'm hopeful that the new Bluetooth 6.0 standards lower latency and ability to broadcast to multiple audio devices will lead to a new generation of better satellite speaker devices.
I’ve been using two of the Apple’s in stereo mode for about 5 years. Really like it. For the past 3 years I’ve had a pair of the Apple Mini’s in another room in stereo also. To me, it’s no complaints- the stereo is so much better.
The sound test makes the Bose sound like a muffled HomePod. The HomePod may not have a screen or extra features but the tech that goes into that really makes a difference with definition and overall sound signature
No way. Listen to it in person instead of rehashed through RUclips. Apple has nothing on Bose. I know as I’ve got one in my kitchen and an Apple at work. Not night and day mind you, but Bose is way richer.
Honestly, with how Sonos utterly screwed all of their customers, I would avoid smart speaker ecosystems as much as possible. If it requires an app to function, it’s out.
@sunspot42 You still can't use Sonos at all without agreeing to the sale of your data. So no, Sonos is doing absolutely nothing to solve the issues. @mida8261 Good to hear the Bose doesn't require an app for Bluetooth, but they also need to allow AirPlay without it, which includes WiFi configuration. They could have a web server with an admin interface, or at the very least the app needs to let you set up the speaker's WiFi settings without actually creating an account or signing in. I'd like to see confirmation that's possible.
The bleeps had me cracking up the whole time! Even though I knew you weren't swearing I couldn't help but laugh. Sometimes even if I'm not that interested in the product your showcasing, it's those little things you do in your videos that keep me coming back. From the puppets to inserting Cuba Bijion here and there and now the utilitarian bleeps that end up being hilarious. Also I'm kind of surprised in your preferred taste of music. Every time you start playing a cool hip-hop track I'm impressed. Cheers
Awesome device! I have two Homepods set up as a stereo pair for music and TV-sound, but if I didn't need separate speakers at each end of my TV, I might have opted for this instead... very clever and well-sounding smart speaker!
Being behind means you are not a tester and you often get a device which cant be stripped down from functionality further than it is now. And if it works now, it will probably not fail due to known and unfixed issue.
Thats surprising about the TuneIn radio being banned in the UK. I listen to Retro Soul Radio London through TuneIn on my echo Show at home and we listen to Heat Radio on the shopfloor through TuneIn on a Sonos network player.
Since the mid-1990#, it’s ben desperately obvious that consumers have very little understanding of ‘what’ goof audio sounds like. or where it comes from.
I'm pretty sure Techmoan was the "Blown Away Guy" in the old Maxell cassette commercial from the '80s...? His need for extremely high quality audio hasn't changed a bit.
I bought the Bose Companion 5 speaker set for my computer way back when because of the simulated surround sound. That was back when there was a whole mess of computer surround sound systems with 5 speaker setups. And naturally it was always a pain in butt having to set up the surround speakers. Having to put a shelf behind you, or use goofy tripod stands. So I finally broke down and got the Companion 5 set, and 500 bucks was a huge outlay of cash for me at the time. But holy smokes, did I love those things. Such a fantastic set of speakers. I still have them, though they're old enough now that the capacitors are shot in it, so it turns itself off anytime the subwoofer starts to get a touch loud. Edited for God-awful spelling errors in my rush to get to work this morning. And because I was in the middle of a rather large brain fart. And I agree totally on the phone thing.
Apple got the idea from the Hitchhiker's guide to the Galaxy Nutrimatic Drinks Dispenser also known as the Nutrimat Machine and the Nutri-Matic Drinks Dispenser is a Sirius Cybernetics Corporation product designed to work out what drink someone wants through taste bud patterns and neurological signals. It is well known for producing a liquid which is almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea.
I picked up a 10 year old Sony 1000W 5.1 surround sound system for £70, added a BT module for £12 and connected it to my TV. I connect my laptop through the TV using wireless so I can play music from just about anything anywhere. I have a Bose speaker and a JBL one that both have ipod docks built in and I can stick an old ipod on them and play something while I relax. Not the newest or up to date but they work OK and do what I need for not a lot of money. The sound quality is also pretty good when you crank up that 1000W Sony system, I did upgrade the satellite speakers because speakers were actually cheaper than buying new cables funnily enough but the difference is only about 35-40W. They also do an extra set of wireless speakers but I can't justify the expense on 10 year old tech.
Sometimes I wish I worked for one of these tech companies so I could design a much better user interface. All of these devices seem to have tragic oversights, as if they dont bother allowing a test group to try using it before being deployed onto the market. Things like: non-illuminated buttons, screen text which is too small, non-intuitive controls buried in endless menus, no auto shutoff timer, non-updateable firmware, non-replaceable proprietary connectors, dependence on cloud services, etc...
I avoid app based or cloud based things like the plague because I can lose everything if the app owner says "I'm not supporting this anymore." Bose did this and bricked speakers which is why I'll never buy a Bose product and the one speaker I do have was a freebie that my boss was throwing out because it had no app or cloud service, crazy man.
Speaking of good things that are discontinued, I have a couple of Yamaha Frame speakers, an ISX-80 hanging on the wall in my kitchen and an ISX-18D next to my bed. I really like them (except for their bluetooth functionality), it's a shame that they stopped making them and never did any followups. If you've not heard of them, they're neat form factors and have some decent sound quality for their size and shape, and they do airplay and join in on Yamaha Musiccast (like how Sonos links speakers together).
I like these two products, but I’m not too interested in the rest of their range nowadays, other than the QC35 headphones I already own. I’m never really a fan of a company, it’s all on a product by product basis. It’s a bit like my local Chinese take-away, they make one decent dish, the rest is best avoided.
Literally no one can catch up with the current trend because tech products are just cars at this point. They depreciate the moment you touch them and you're expected to use them for max two years then toss them and buy a new model that's barely different from the last.
Planned obsolescence. These tech companies need to keep shareholders happy (and stock prices rising). The Must increase profits every quarter. How can they do that if you aren't continually buying new tech and have multiple subscription services.
Maybe clearer, b/c like he said it was crispy highs plus a sub, whereas Bose sounded more like two full range speakers. Less clear, but more natural. 🤔
@@jgrim03that’s why I said “…better to me…” as in I prefer the sound of the HomePod. Sound preference is a subjective, not trying to convince anyone that one is better than the other. It’s what I prefer.
UPDATE: Just as I finished this video some of these showed up on the Bose Refurbished sites in the UK & Germany (and possibly elsewhere). If you want a Smart Speaker 500 this might be the last best chance to get one with a warranty at a discounted price - check your local Bose website for info.
I keep hearing the phrase 'Bose Selecter' - maybe something to do with DJs? Have you ever reviewed that? Any idea what it is - the Google doesn't help me much. Love your show you make it easy for us olds to understand the newfangled music magic! Thanks!
Currently available on Amazon.
@@Fanny-Fanny😂
Available refurbished in the US as of Saturday morning for $339, but they’re out of the black
That's convenient!
Drives me nuts that more people aren't concerned about cloud services that can change their terms or even disable functionality after you've bought them. Imagine an old CD player saying "sorry track skip limit reached - please subscribe to CD premium" or worse "CD license in your region has been revoked - CD playback has been disabled.".
which is totally a thing with blu-rays btw...
@@victortitov1740 more like _boo_-rays ammirite?
@@victortitov1740, nothing pisses me off more than when a Blu-ray won’t play because you don’t have an internet connection for it to load ads and bs movie previews and shit.
@@ericcarabetta1161 This should be illegal.
CLOUD = Corporate Lock On User’s Data
"I'm not someone else, I'm me." - Mat Techmoan, Oct 2024. Great words to live by right there!
If you're not you, you're nobody.
"Blah blah blah blah passion fruit.
Blah blah blah blah every night."
-Mat Techmoan, Sept 2020
I like when you bleep out the voice prompt, because then I can just imagine you're saying "Hey, fucker, turn on the lights!"
If I could change the vocal prompt to "Fucker", I 100% would.
I assume it’s actually some fantastic british expletive.
I was thinking the same thing, it sounds like he's swearing at the device all of the time which is really funny.
@@mikeomatic9905 like twatbadger?
I just like that he did it out of courtesy to the one person out there who also has three sets of studio lights
Bleeped Techmoan gives me flashbacks to those Techmoan/8 Bit Guy YTP videos
I don't know about you but I don't really like flossing my teeth.
@@spacewolfjr*hangs up phone*
"I want to be able to approach the f. thing and press a button...". I feel the same, and reminded me of the scene in "I Robot" movie when someone couldn't voice command a music player that only worked with buttons.
I was speaking to some young colleagues in their 20s in the office and they had no idea what stereo was. They were so used to listening to a single speaker they hadn't realised that stereo made it so much better.
They never used headphones?
@@raifmeyer6914 Most of the under-fifty crowd I've seen using earbuds have only one earbud in, so they can make phone calls and/or listen to music when they're not supposed to, like when at work or driving, and a good quantity of them are using non-headphone-jack iPhones, so I can see that being possible!
@raifmeyer6914 Bet they just use a single airpod or earphone 🙄
One thing I've learned in my 29 years: if it depends on the cloud/ app is not yours. Local controls in this case are a small thing but very appreciated
Especially as Bose have completely shut down the retail branch of their company. That doesn't bode well for their apps.
Ya' know... a remote would've been even better to include.
I'm not sure about the 500 but a lot of the Soundwave stuff can be controlled by homeassiant as people have reverse engineered the local API on the devices
For most Smart products, they may call it smart now, but 10 years from now when it has no way to work (no server, no app), it won't be smart at all. It will be taking up space in a landfill. lol
If I were a reviewer covering products like this, I would avoid ever using the term "the cloud", and instead only use the more accurate phrase "some other guy's computer".
I disagree that it's an "old person" thing to just want controls that have a level of redundancy - something that should you lose a remote or the app doesn't work any more, you have controls still. Nor is it old person to want what we've had established in the past.
It's basic empathy and a standard.
App discontinued, and it becomes a piece of e-waste ... not first thing to end up like that, perfectly functional but unusable. The more they put on the phone the less I want that thing around me
He said "old fashion" - which means out of style, not really to do with age.
Lack of buttons is a pet peeve of mine esp. in things like vehicles where you expect buttons for climate control and it is a screen.
@@eNodeTG I know he did. I was talking more generally. There's a quite common thought online that this is an old person thing. In fact, there's a whole Reddit thing about it.
@@patrickcardon1643 Absolutely. I've always been finnicky about what I buy, and having a lack of such redundancy is a no-buy for me. I know how things will stop working and to have something such an achilles' heel is just wrong to me.
Agreed! I've noticed that too many modern televisions also have shed the buttons that allow basic functionality - sometimes even the power switch! Thankfully I have two Logitech Harmony remotes which allow for almost infinite programming of just about any device in the known universe.
Nothing wrong with “old fashioned”. I think far too much technology nowadays is unnecessarily over complicated and not particularly user friendly. Give me knobs and switches all day long
Don't forget subscriptions and them getting all your data while all you want is something a switch can do
And stereo sound.
I agree with you !!
The big companies think that voice commands and apps are less complicated
"The mike is muted."
Hey, Google, play Kraftwerk
"I can't hear you; the mike is muted."
It makes a bit more sense when you start to realize that few of the devices we think of as 'a' computer are actually a single computer. Typically, there's a number of computers of varying capabilities communicating with each other. So you can turn off the computer that processes your speech into text, and the computer that processes that text into an actionable request really can't 'hear you' beyond 'well, all I know is there's some kind of audio'.
It'd be like you trying to tell what TV show your neighbor is watching by watching the light change colors outside the window.
@@rosonowskibut it can still tell speech from other audio?
The expletive made me laugh harder than it should have. We've all had our frustrations with smart speakers,friend
It's a good device. The buttons not being at least slightly illumanted is an oversight though.
Would be even better if they were illuminated!
@@e28forever30I have one under a counter and it's really frustrating not being able to see the damn buttons. lol
This guy’s taste in music is phenomenal
Been subbed for over 11yrs and I've got to say you have a great taste in music.
The other issue with first gen HomePods is that their logic board dies out of the blue and as they’re not repairable, you’re left with a very expensive door stop
They are repairable but by quite few people (nics fix for example) around the world. basically the most common issue is DC Filters and SB Diodes
I have two Home Pods that I use to listen to my TV, they work quite well. They are both first generation and nothing has happened to them yet.
honesty they are door stops regardless if they are working or not
@@SharpMaxwellthey’re really not. As a stereo pair I’ve not found any smart speakers come close to how good they sound.
I think more @#%$^$#$ really suits Techmoan
I think I'd rapidly get annoyed if my speaker kept advertising the branding of the streaming service and the device with every new song.
It only advertises the streaming service when you use voice commands. It doesn't say anything when moving onto the next song.
It's still annoying, but it isn't as bad as it could be.
Yeah ! I was just about to type the same thing, for this reason its a non runner for me.
LMAO at imagining that being what happens every single time. Even occasionally it's irritating but EVERY time would be enough to get out the baseball bat for some repairs.
Thanks for still being active! every Saturday when I wake up I know there is a video ready. such consistency for years while only making them yourself is awesome!
Just checked and the first mention in my email is from 11 years ago 😮. at that time you still had your blog and I think I was searching for a car cam.
Thank you so much for putting me at ease. Even though I am only in my mid 40s, I feel that a plain old stereo system that you can walk up to and make it do things is all you need sometimes. I have actively walked away from devices that looked appealing to me at first because 95% of the functions are only available through a bloody app.
Thank you for making me not feel weird in an “old man yelling at clouds” kind of way.
All best from a year long viewer of your channel.
Haha, I'm 34 and I feel the same way. I can't stand it. I'm grateful my car stereo has buttons with bluetooth and isn't a tablet.
Count me in. My surround system offers various ways of integrating its control functions into whatever, but what do I still use every day to control it? Its good old IR remote. Grab, point, press (swap batteries and try again).
I am always thinking about the app not getting updates and then not working on newer OS versions and then me throwing away a device I like only because I literally can't control it anymore because the software no longer works.
It's all fun until the company turns their server off.
@@kernowmcrae or is sold to someone who changes their EULA to collect data on you to sell to ad companies and your speaker suddenly tells you which dish soap to buy.
I have a white rectangular thing on my wall, just inside the door and it has an angled bit of plastic with part of it sticking out. When I want to turn a light on or off, I simply press on the part that sticks up, and the light instantly turns on or off. It's a miracle product. I don't have to utter a sentence and hope that it understands me before it finally turns on or off.
Those gas mantles do give a lovely glow.
I have some ear phones with wires attached, which means they never run out of power or need charging. Amazing.
What is this sorcery you speak of, do you not have to have to grab your phone to turn off your lights?
No battery to change, no electronics to break down, easy to repair or replace ... you wonder why it worked for so many people for so long ...
@@patrickcardon1643 don't want to burst your bubble, but pretty sure it does have electronics in it.. It doesn't have a little wizard in there making the lights go on and off.. 😂
I never thought I would hear "foot inserted into bottom" on Techmoan's channel!
so much swearing too, but luckly he beeped it.
@@emuboy85 Techmoan has changed smh
I have this Bose, bought in lockdown… sound is tremendous.
Bit glitchy and if your WiFi signal drops as the AirPlay just drops out.
But the sound quality is superb!
I got some of those Bose noise canceling headphones years ago and I was always amazed at how quickly it connects to my phone and cancels noice
The batteries on those things last forever too. I had lost my headphones after a move, and found them like 2 years later. They still *easily* hold a charge for an entire vacation.
I've had mine for about 5 years, and I'm really impressed with how deep the bass can get... this is essentially what replaced the Bose Wave. It doesn't seem to be discontinued in the U.S.... The only thing I don't like about mine is that the electronic touch controls sometimes stick and you have to unplug it and plug it back in to reset it. I love mine, though. I mainly use it for listening to SiriusXM Satellite Radio (a subscription radio service here in the U.S.) over the Internet.
I have the other Bose Smart Speaker which was on the website next to this one. The cylinder version. It's mono only and puts sound out in all directions. But the sound quality is really good, for such a small device, and I've used it a lot. It is also very well suited to camping - I use it in the caravan, and in the awning I can also tie it so it dangles from a pole, and I can use it on a table at small gatherings. It's very versatile. And the battery life is really good too.
There are some downsides. I would love to collar the person who wrote the firmware for it, because it has quite a few issues. Intermittently, when you turn it off, it gives you all indication that it turned off but next time you go to use it the battery is at 0%. Sometimes it does this, sometimes not, and you don't have any way to know once you have turned it off. Also, occasionally it gets itself into some weird state where it is on, but not playing any sound, and no longer responds to any controls. You have to wait for the battery to run out to do anything about it, which in that state takes ages.
And, finally, there is no Aux port - BT only - which has frustrated me on many occasions.
So the smaller Bose Smart Speaker is definitely not perfect but I have had many years use out of it and the sound quality is great.
Wild how different people's taste can be. I fell in love with the Apple homepod's sound. So i love that like you I craved the stereo aspect so i purchased a second homepod to pair with it (I bought both on sale for $200) Music and movies are just amazing. (You randomly stumble on a badly mixed 'Dolby Atmos' track that completely ruins the experience)
Can they be configured as L/R like that?
I definitely get where you’re coming from. Almost all BT speakers have just 2 buttons, power and pairing. Worse even, they use some proprietary app that isn’t supported after a year or two. I recently bought a medium sized PA Bluetooth speaker at a thrift store. The brand is Ecoxgear. It features BT, AM/FM, microphone Aux and USB input. It has multiple buttons on the top to control track, volume, Radio frequency, favorite presets, EQ. Best of all it has a service panel to replace the battery. It can run off of wall mains or battery. The sound is decent and in stereo but it doesn’t produce a wide sound stage because they’re front firing. It has two woofers and two tweeters. Additionally, it has a pair of rear facing radiators to help with bass. It’s cool to know that there’s good stuff being made, although it’s few and far between
I still use my large warfdale speakers from the 1980s . I have never heard anything that sounds better despite all the modern speakers claims . Thanks for the video
Yeah, I used to have some Warfdale Es, and I do miss them!
Honestly, I’ve done conversions on all my Bose devices. I love the Wave series. I’ll keep mine forever and upgrade them when it’s available
I’ll have your HomePod if you’re not using it! I love mine, got four 😂
Paired with another the stereo is fantastic
This. HomePods as a stereo pair works very well.
9:15 woops, wrong 3rd Base there. Pop Goes The Weasel!
@Techmoan, do you keep all the things you review on your channel ? great content look forward to your videos
Let's go back in time where RUclips / Facebook haven't existed yet. No matter how people/audiophiles criticised Bose. Yet it's effective, simple & sound's awsm back in the 80s. Bose 1 way mini drivers provided a deep rich bass, something like Tivoli Audio, although it's mono, but sound quality was amazing! Let's appreciate the design & effort in Bose products.
I'm old school too: it's not stereo if it's not a pair of speakers apart from each other and forming a triangle with the listener's head, or a pair of headphones. While some "smart" capabilities could be useful and fun, I'd rather it have a line / headphone out so I can connect it to a proper hi-fi system.
Some soundbars create a very convincing illusion of a pair of speakers spaced apart in the room. Think it’s all to do with the side/rear firing speakers in them, and some time alignment/phase trickery.
@@Jonathan_Doe_ yeah, sound wave reflection certainly does its thing here.
the homepod sounds a lot better as a stereo pair... also as tv speakers...
ok boomer
Always great when you watch a Techmoan video in the weekend
why do they insist on garbage can design, i want regular box thing with spekaers in it pointing towards me
Look up Paul Carmody's Isetta, prob my favorite lil boombox these days
Mac Pro late 2013 wants a word with you.
Because Apple chooses form over function. It was even worse under Jony Ive.
Because they're omnidirectional speakers, it's supposed to be one speaker that fills a whole room.
@@musguelha14 That only works in the imaginary parties from marketing mind where peope sit around the coffee table while eating pizzas and laughing. In real life use cases, the speaker is sitting on a teenager bed side, a family kitchen counter, or your tool bench.
I just recently bought an Amazon Show, and it has pretty good speakers. Even only half-way turned up, it still shakes the desk.
Yeah, Some of the newer ones are especially nice
I got one of those speakers about 1.5 years ago and so far I didn't regret the purchase. It's sitting in my office and I use it as a PC speaker (via bluetooth) and with my phone (AirPlay). It works well and I'm pleased with the way it sounds. I live in the US and TuneIn hasn't given me any issues yet. Radio stations from the US, UK and Germany are saved to the presets and play just fine. Voice assistant is not in use. I agree with you, it's really nice that this thing has a display showing album art and song title.
Apple HomePods support stereo if you pair two together! Plus then you also get Dolby Atmos too. Love your vids but I don’t think you gave the HomePod a fair comparison to say it doesn’t do stereo.
Tune In does work in the UK, but not for any local BBC station and most of the foreign music stations are blocked. Some BBC World Service stations are available.
Yes, bbc cut them off to try to centralise everything in their Sounds app. Radiofeeds website is excellent as it has every station available to stream (including BBC stations) and even works on old iPod touches.
This thing makes me kind of want to get a raspberry pi, a touch display, some buttons, a regular dumb stereo speaker, and basically tape everything together to make a more versatile small music box.
But yeah, personally I don't trust any of those smart devices, basically every manufacturer either has a proper remote killswitch for those things, or can kill most of their functionality by just ending the online service they rely on for their function.
Having one of those with a small linux distro running where you could add your own services more easily would be pretty cool though.
I picked up an ipod/mp3 case and speaker combined, boxed and unopened, connected with a wire from a charity shop. At £5 this was a bargain.
I got this device as a present years ago and it works great in my bathroom for music when I'm taking a shower. I can just shout what I want to hear while I'm showering and it obliges.
Hey Matt, not sure if you're aware, but with the Google Nest speakers, you're able to pair them together as stereo. I've got a set of the full sized ones and you can put them as far apart as you want for however much stereo separation you want!
The whole TuneIn legal situation in the UK is bad for consumers. It gives the music companies complete control over what you can do with music for your own personal use and it gives radio station operators the ability to wall garden their stations into their own app by shutting down competition and allowing the ability to paywall radio stations once FM and DAB disappear (they're already doing the freemium model online). Thankfully the third party app and Internet radio set I use hasn't come under the eyes of the music industry and radio station operators - yet.
Dab and fm aint going anywhere
Sounds as rough as FM radio here in the US, ownership of stations is divided between two companies 50/50 :/ And even then finding an Fm tuner in anything but a car is rare.
TuneIn is still working on my WiiM.
@@bobbuilder3687 It is. At least the FM band is closing here at some point. It was actually meant to be closed by 2023 but it was then decided to wait on closing the FM band till 50% of the listening is Digital. And that is very soon. And so in my country the FM signal is closing down at some point soonish.
@@chrisward000 Either you're outside of the UK or they are in violation of a High Court decision.
I love this channel and the music, whats the D&B sample you were playing on vinyl through the AUX? Also Bose the portable soundlink bluetooth speakers are still great. Ive had mine for years and it’s still going strong.
The album/ep is in the background of the shot. Zero T is a great artist
Thank you, didn't see anything for the vinyl.
You’re by far my favourite channel we’re of a similar age I can remember some of the things you show but not all it’s very educational and I appreciate the time and effort you put in and the fact you’re not American if you could make longer videos min 30 minutes that would be great
I also insist on stereo. In two rooms of our house, we have an Echo Dot (3rd Gen) with speakers (Logitech Z337). They work brilliantly, sound really good with music.
Just got a new Renault as a work car. Decided to try the voice commands for the navigation and so far it has 0% success.
Its a Renault, thats expected
You gotta speak French
Just play the British Anthem on the radio, and it'll do whatever you want it to 😊
Computer says Renault.
TIL: That song I heard a million times as a child but only remembered a few notes and no lyrics of is "Brown Eyed Girl" by Van Morrison. Thanks Techmoan!
The best channel on RUclips, par none!
Thank you for being a standard of excellence, Techmoan!
“bar none”.
I love my Bose Companion 2 Series III Multimedia Speaker System for my computers. Have multiple ones from my Amiga to my main PC. I really love the dual audio inputs. One for the Amiga and one for my MT-32 MIDI device.
It surprised me when the HomePod was released after the lukewarm reception of the iPod Hifi. I keep thinking about getting an iPod Hifi on eBay and retrofitting it with Bluetooth, AirPlay, etc.
Sounds are so objective! I am fascinated by all your trials yet still go back to Alexa running though my 1974 Sony HP 310 with matching speakets.
I really like to imagine that Mat was saying "Hey shithead etc" every time you talked to any of the assistants.
I've been using a Huawei Sound X for 4ish years and honestly I don't have any complaints. I have pretty high ceilings in my kitchen (where it lives) and it fills the entire room with a good amount of sound. No bs apps to download. Just connects via bluetooth no quarms and has good quality and loudness
was able to get one for $300 AUD 2nd hand, looks like a cool speaker to have set up in the kitchen and connected to my ipad that is always at home so who ever is in the kitchen can turn it on and use it straight away without having to connect their phone
i listen in stereo too. it's not an option. the last time i listened in mono was in 1986 when i had a shoebox cassette recorder as my "system". and even then, as an infant, i knew i wasn't getting the best listening experience. i don't even understand how we've regressed to the point of low bitrate mono audio as the default. we're basically back to wire recorders.
A bit annoying when it says “playing on Bose 500 smart speaker” every time you want a new track or album.
Thank you for letting me know that I'm allowed to not buy this. My wallet has been a sobbing mess since this channel started. I keep having to buy all these things because you've basically been forcing me to.
Thank you again for your solicitude.
I’ve got Bose smart speaker 300. And the tune in radio no longer working is a real pain as it always where I listen 6 music whilst making coffee in the morning. That being said still a great little speaker
You got me interested in the Bose speaker too, but as a discontinued product it is sadly still rather expensive.
I'm hopeful that the new Bluetooth 6.0 standards lower latency and ability to broadcast to multiple audio devices will lead to a new generation of better satellite speaker devices.
I’ve been using two of the Apple’s in stereo mode for about 5 years. Really like it. For the past 3 years I’ve had a pair of the Apple Mini’s in another room in stereo also. To me, it’s no complaints- the stereo is so much better.
The sound test makes the Bose sound like a muffled HomePod. The HomePod may not have a screen or extra features but the tech that goes into that really makes a difference with definition and overall sound signature
No way. Listen to it in person instead of rehashed through RUclips. Apple has nothing on Bose. I know as I’ve got one in my kitchen and an Apple at work. Not night and day mind you, but Bose is way richer.
Honestly, with how Sonos utterly screwed all of their customers, I would avoid smart speaker ecosystems as much as possible.
If it requires an app to function, it’s out.
Apps are optional with this system. You can just use the bluetooth function and it'll be good enough.
Seems like Sonos is trying to fix that now after the outcry. My worry is they've hosed themselves and this marks the start of their demise.
@sunspot42 You still can't use Sonos at all without agreeing to the sale of your data. So no, Sonos is doing absolutely nothing to solve the issues.
@mida8261 Good to hear the Bose doesn't require an app for Bluetooth, but they also need to allow AirPlay without it, which includes WiFi configuration. They could have a web server with an admin interface, or at the very least the app needs to let you set up the speaker's WiFi settings without actually creating an account or signing in. I'd like to see confirmation that's possible.
i have 3 of these and i love them, the buttons and the screen did it for me.
The double tap & triple tap is basically the same as the EarPods remote - interesting!
Great review !
2:11 Poltergeist!
(Okay, okay, Editing-geist)
Matts love for decent Hip-Hop is always refreshing
That does look like a nice little smart speaker. I'm still stuck on big speakers and separate hifi components for my music reproduction duties
I like all those features. what is the best/similar alternative that is not discontinued?
The bleeps had me cracking up the whole time! Even though I knew you weren't swearing I couldn't help but laugh. Sometimes even if I'm not that interested in the product your showcasing, it's those little things you do in your videos that keep me coming back. From the puppets to inserting Cuba Bijion here and there and now the utilitarian bleeps that end up being hilarious.
Also I'm kind of surprised in your preferred taste of music. Every time you start playing a cool hip-hop track I'm impressed. Cheers
Awesome device!
I have two Homepods set up as a stereo pair for music and TV-sound, but if I didn't need separate speakers at each end of my TV, I might have opted for this instead... very clever and well-sounding smart speaker!
Being behind means you are not a tester and you often get a device which cant be stripped down from functionality further than it is now.
And if it works now, it will probably not fail due to known and unfixed issue.
It’s time for the Bang&Olufsen cassette deck.
the question is .. would a nice 2.1 system hooked up to an old phone sound better for less ?
Thats surprising about the TuneIn radio being banned in the UK. I listen to Retro Soul Radio London through TuneIn on my echo Show at home and we listen to Heat Radio on the shopfloor through TuneIn on a Sonos network player.
This sounds a perfect product for me so much better than any of any of my Google home smart speakers
Since the mid-1990#, it’s ben desperately obvious that consumers have very little understanding of ‘what’ goof audio sounds like. or where it comes from.
Love my 500, had it for years and sounds excellent 🙂
I'm pretty sure Techmoan was the "Blown Away Guy" in the old Maxell cassette commercial from the '80s...? His need for extremely high quality audio hasn't changed a bit.
Slick Rick, nice. I knew you were a man of good taste.
I bought the Bose Companion 5 speaker set for my computer way back when because of the simulated surround sound. That was back when there was a whole mess of computer surround sound systems with 5 speaker setups. And naturally it was always a pain in butt having to set up the surround speakers. Having to put a shelf behind you, or use goofy tripod stands. So I finally broke down and got the Companion 5 set, and 500 bucks was a huge outlay of cash for me at the time. But holy smokes, did I love those things. Such a fantastic set of speakers. I still have them, though they're old enough now that the capacitors are shot in it, so it turns itself off anytime the subwoofer starts to get a touch loud.
Edited for God-awful spelling errors in my rush to get to work this morning. And because I was in the middle of a rather large brain fart. And I agree totally on the phone thing.
I first saw a Bose radio @ my relatives' house in Ewa Beach, Hawaii in the 1980s.
I actually have a Bose Wave 2 I still use as a PC speaker. My old Bose Wave 1 is now the speakers for my parents TV. The CFD on those goes bad though
Apple got the idea from the Hitchhiker's guide to the Galaxy Nutrimatic Drinks Dispenser also known as the Nutrimat Machine and the Nutri-Matic Drinks Dispenser is a Sirius Cybernetics Corporation product designed to work out what drink someone wants through taste bud patterns and neurological signals. It is well known for producing a liquid which is almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea.
I picked up a 10 year old Sony 1000W 5.1 surround sound system for £70, added a BT module for £12 and connected it to my TV. I connect my laptop through the TV using wireless so I can play music from just about anything anywhere. I have a Bose speaker and a JBL one that both have ipod docks built in and I can stick an old ipod on them and play something while I relax. Not the newest or up to date but they work OK and do what I need for not a lot of money. The sound quality is also pretty good when you crank up that 1000W Sony system, I did upgrade the satellite speakers because speakers were actually cheaper than buying new cables funnily enough but the difference is only about 35-40W. They also do an extra set of wireless speakers but I can't justify the expense on 10 year old tech.
Sometimes I wish I worked for one of these tech companies so I could design a much better user interface. All of these devices seem to have tragic oversights, as if they dont bother allowing a test group to try using it before being deployed onto the market. Things like: non-illuminated buttons, screen text which is too small, non-intuitive controls buried in endless menus, no auto shutoff timer, non-updateable firmware, non-replaceable proprietary connectors, dependence on cloud services, etc...
I went back to an iPod classic in the Bose sound link II. No internet no problems.
Thanks for turning me on to Unicorn Heads and Zero T & Onj!
Another excellent video, that's not really stereo though is it?
I avoid app based or cloud based things like the plague because I can lose everything if the app owner says "I'm not supporting this anymore." Bose did this and bricked speakers which is why I'll never buy a Bose product and the one speaker I do have was a freebie that my boss was throwing out because it had no app or cloud service, crazy man.
Speaking of good things that are discontinued, I have a couple of Yamaha Frame speakers, an ISX-80 hanging on the wall in my kitchen and an ISX-18D next to my bed. I really like them (except for their bluetooth functionality), it's a shame that they stopped making them and never did any followups. If you've not heard of them, they're neat form factors and have some decent sound quality for their size and shape, and they do airplay and join in on Yamaha Musiccast (like how Sonos links speakers together).
It would seem that you became fan of BOSE, even though it's a bit late. It does look very neat though.
I like these two products, but I’m not too interested in the rest of their range nowadays, other than the QC35 headphones I already own. I’m never really a fan of a company, it’s all on a product by product basis. It’s a bit like my local Chinese take-away, they make one decent dish, the rest is best avoided.
@@TechmoanNever have words been truer.
I may not be into smart assistant speakers but this one looks really good.
Literally no one can catch up with the current trend because tech products are just cars at this point. They depreciate the moment you touch them and you're expected to use them for max two years then toss them and buy a new model that's barely different from the last.
Planned obsolescence. These tech companies need to keep shareholders happy (and stock prices rising). The Must increase profits every quarter. How can they do that if you aren't continually buying new tech and have multiple subscription services.
Call me crazy, HomePod sounded better to me, but that’s over RUclips video. But it sounded clearer than Bose.
Maybe clearer, b/c like he said it was crispy highs plus a sub, whereas Bose sounded more like two full range speakers. Less clear, but more natural. 🤔
@@jgrim03that’s why I said “…better to me…” as in I prefer the sound of the HomePod. Sound preference is a subjective, not trying to convince anyone that one is better than the other. It’s what I prefer.