Nokia Play 360 - Anyone try it?

[jh20001]

So I was browsing around looking for new things to check out and I came across the Nokia Play 360 bluetooth speaker. It's a little pricey weighing in at $149 so I am reluctant to jump on something like that but it would be nice to have a little music here and there throughout the house (like something to hid behind a plant for ambient but good quality background music when guests are over. Any thoughts?

It does support NFC so I think that's pretty cool.

 

[Soxpranos]

Its a good buy. Got this for my workout room which is 14' x 14' and does the job. It does support NFC and Bluetooth. Good buy for the price tag. I also have the Power Up in my living room which can handle much bigger rooms.

 

[Beltelmel]

I bought two of them on Amazon. The first for $99 (a lightning deal thankfully mentioned here on WPC); but I only picked one up. Later I decided to get a second. The regular Amazon price was $149 and did not want to pay that and was able to get it for $119 a few days ago.

 

[octavian90]

I own two blacks....adore them. Wish I pulled the trigger during the 99 dollar amazon sale...chickened out.

 

[jh20001]

Its a good buy. Got this for my workout room which is 14' x 14' and does the job. It does support NFC and Bluetooth. Good buy for the price tag. I also have the Power Up in my living room which can handle much bigger rooms.

I just ordered one (PowerUp). I saw there was two versions so I got this one. Looking at the reviews around it seem this would handle the larger room better. I was iffy about the Play 360 but I am a JBL fan (used a lot of their professional speakers in the years), so the PowerUp having "JBL" on it really helps give weight to the reviews for me. However, I may try one of the Play 360's for one of the smaller rooms as everyone seems to have good things to say (and the NFC support is cool...seems the JBL one doesn't). Regardless you have reviews all over on the PowerUp stating people buy it without using any of the other features outside of using it as a bluetooth speaker and all said they love it.

No loss. If it doesn't live up to my expectations I'll just send it back and research another option

 

[DynaDog]

I'd recommend two Play 360s. I haven't heard the PowerUp, but I can't imagine the stereo separation is any good. I'm not an audiophile but the 360s sound good to me.

Also, the battery life on the 360s is outstanding, and the batteries are replaceable with a regular Nokia phone battery. The portability is fantastic, I use them in the house, the garage and the yard. And the bluetooth range is very good. I can have my 920 on the charging pad on the second floor and be listening in the basement. The only drawback is that the NFC pairing can be a bit quirky, but that might be operator error.

I paid full freight for these last July and it's one of those tech purchases that feels completely worth it, even after a lot of use and a lot of time. The integrated charging on the PowerUp is nice, but it still needs to be plugged in. For me, the portability of the Play 360s and the stereo separation trump the convenience of the integrated charging. Hope you enjoy whatever you end up with!

 

[jh20001]

I'd recommend two Play 360s. I haven't heard the PowerUp, but I can't imagine the stereo separation is any good. I'm not an audiophile but the 360s sound good to me.

Also, the battery life on the 360s is outstanding, and the batteries are replaceable with a regular Nokia phone battery. The portability is fantastic, I use them in the house, the garage and the yard. And the bluetooth range is very good. I can have my 920 on the charging pad on the second floor and be listening in the basement. The only drawback is that the NFC pairing can be a bit quirky, but that might be operator error.

I paid full freight for these last July and it's one of those tech purchases that feels completely worth it, even after a lot of use and a lot of time. The integrated charging on the PowerUp is nice, but it still needs to be plugged in. For me, the portability of the Play 360s and the stereo separation trump the convenience of the integrated charging. Hope you enjoy whatever you end up with!

Haha, after all the comments and read reviews I bought one of the Play 360's as well (white one as I have a great spot for it). Using it as a hidden speaker though tucked behind surroundings in the room, I don't know if I will have problems with reflection or not (forcing me to put it in the open). I got white so if I was forced, it should blend into the open.

 

[tissotti]

Love play 360 speakers and the automatic connection of the speakers for stereo. Got 2 myself that i bought for my old Nokia N9.

Anybody knows does PlayUp have that same stereo connection feature btw?

 

[slashd0t]

I love my Play 360! Use it everyday!

 

[ZiiimZooon]

I really love my Nokia Play 360! Using it for both music and gaming at home! It's surely worth the money!

 

[s0briquet]

If anyone is looking for something similar to the play 360 with 1/3 the price, but still very good audio try this -> Amazon.com: Satechi ST-69BTS Audio Cube Portable Bluetooth Speaker System for iPhone / Android Smart Phones / iPad / Tablets / Macbook / Notebooks: Computers & Accessories

it doesnt have nfc, but the bluetooth works fine

 

[jh20001]

Holy crap, got the powerup so far. Sounds really good. Can't wait to see what the 360 sounds like.

UPDATE!

Just got the 360 in. I was hoping one would under-perform the other significantly so I had an excuse to send one back so I wouldn't have spent so much money lol, but I am surprised. Both sound really good and I have a purpose for both

 

[EBynum]

Anybody knows does PlayUp have that same stereo connection feature btw?

I asked NokiaCareUS on Twitter, and the rep said no, the PlayUp does not have the same stereo connection feature. Seems crazy that they would take away such a useful feature.

Out of curiosity, has anyone been able to compare the sound quality of the Nokia Play 360 vs the JBL PlayUp? The Nokia rep said the sound quality is the same, but that seems a little hard to believe. What would be the point then of getting the PlayUp over the Play 360? The PlayUp has half the battery life (10 hrs vs 20 hrs for the Play 360) and can't be paired with a second speaker for stereo sound. If the sound quality is indeed the same, then the new JBL PlayUp seems like a step backwards.

 

[Alberich60615]

Not much too add here, but I would definitely add to the chorus praising the 360. I've got one already, and would love to get another. (Just wish the price would come down just a bit first...)

 

[zokstar]

I got one just before xmas time. I actually quite like it. I use it mainly for my room when getting ready to go out, chilling out and when playing movies/tv eps from my tablet! Great buy, y ou cant go wrong!!

 

[jh20001]

I asked NokiaCareUS on Twitter, and the rep said no, the PlayUp does not have the same stereo connection feature. Seems crazy that they would take away such a useful feature.

Out of curiosity, has anyone been able to compare the sound quality of the Nokia Play 360 vs the JBL PlayUp? The Nokia rep said the sound quality is the same, but that seems a little hard to believe. What would be the point then of getting the PlayUp over the Play 360? The PlayUp has half the battery life (10 hrs vs 20 hrs for the Play 360) and can't be paired with a second speaker for stereo sound. If the sound quality is indeed the same, then the new JBL PlayUp seems like a step backwards.

Sound quality is kind of the same. PowerUp feels like it has a little more volume to it. It def has a better range at least. The PowerUP is more like a mini stereo speaker in itself so it's not meant to be paired with another speaker. More like a bluetooth boombox more than anything. I like them both but if you are more worried about price more than anything....I'd say the 360 all the way.

 

[EBynum]

Sound quality is kind of the same. PowerUp feels like it has a little more volume to it. It def has a better range at least. The PowerUP is more like a mini stereo speaker in itself so it's not meant to be paired with another speaker. More like a bluetooth boombox more than anything. I like them both but if you are more worried about price more than anything....I'd say the 360 all the way.

Just to clarify, my question had to do with comparing the sound quality of the Play 360 with the JBL PlayUp (MD-51W), not the JBL PowerUp (MD-100W). The PlayUp is the small, portable speaker, which is the successor to the Play 360.

 

[jh20001]

Just to clarify, my question had to do with comparing the sound quality of the Play 360 with the JBL PlayUp (MD-51W), not the JBL PowerUp (MD-100W). The PlayUp is the small, portable speaker, which is the successor to the Play 360.

Ah!! My apologies I misread

I don't know anything about the Playup.

 

[JernejB]

I have 2 and they the "slave" one is crackling when connected to win8 machine. Did any of you have any problems? I don't get it when i'm connected on my NL800 it works fine but on my or GF's win 8.1 it's crackling, updated the drivers and still nothing!

 

[jh20001]

No problems here. Kind of jealous though as AT&T has it (JBL PowerUp) on sale right now for $119!!! No fair, I spent too much now lol. I almost want to buy one for the master bathroom of my house ^^...almost. At the lower price, I was trying to think of reasons to get another one.

Link thanks to....whatever the heck I was reading a second ago and pasted it from ^^ [end of cite]


I am also a big fan of the HMDX Jam Party speaker. A buddy has one and it sounded pretty cool. (review | amzn reviews)

There was one other....someone brought it into work. I'll have to get the name of it. I still like the PowerUp better though since it has Qi charging.