Jabra Solemate Review
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Portable, solves the iPhone 5 dock issue, good sound performance.:
Price can be daring but worth it.The Solemate is a nice little speaker that performs very well beyond the miniature and portable device it comes across to be. Taking it out of the packaging you might be wondering if it will handle your sound very well and surprisingly it outperforms expectations.
With the release of Apple’s iPhone 5, one big issue for most users who rely on docking stations is that they can no longer use their speakers with the 30pin dock with it, however with the availability of Bluetooth connectivity the Jabra Solemate helps soften the blow of having to buy Apple’s converter kit.
The Solemate is a nice little speaker that performs very well beyond the miniature and portable device it comes across to be. Taking it out of the packaging you might be wondering if it will handle your sound very well and surprisingly it outperforms expectations. Take a look at the unboxing video and overall impressions videos below:
Unboxing
Overview/Video Review
Design
Putting the device down on the table and examining it, you begin to realise that every bit of the Solemate has been designed with great attention to detail; the grill, the speakers, the buttons and the way it interacts with user when its in paring mode, connected and to check battery status.
The aesthetics also gets good rating with the matte finish and if you are worried about the ruggedness of the device, you have no need to worry as it is very durable and will survive drops; the shoe grip on the button is inspired by an actual shoe style grip which is cool and holds the aux cable underneath it so no hanging wires when in use unless you are charging it whilst using it.
Inside the packaging you alse get a sound bag which allows you to put your solemate inside and listen to your music without affecting the sound quality; the materials used for the bag is the same used in the speaker system itself and also serves as a waterproof case for when you are out an about with it or at the beach. It also has a carrying wrist strap built in to the left side so that it is easy to carry about and enhance the portability feature.
Functionality and sound performance
There is no installation needed, and setting up was so easy I did not have to open up the manual; although if you do struggle it is available for you. To get started you just need to flick the on button on the side and all the way up and hold till you hear the pairing mode song alert, put your phone to search for the bluetooth device and connect until you hear the paired up song alert and you are good to go.
Any sound source like spotify, music app or even your phone calls will be routed to the Solemate; it is as easy as that, you can also use the button on the device to increase or decrease volume. The simplistic nature of the device means you do not have too many buttons to play with which is a good thing. If you own an iPhone 5 or iPhone 4s, you can also use Siri with the Solemate which is a bonus and on your status bar, you can see the battery levels of press the status button on the Solemate.
Sound performance was excellent, the bass, the treble performed beyond expectations and the solid build also meant no crackling or annoying vibrations at the low end and high end of the volume. It has been a joy to play with the Solemate and will make a prefect companion for the iPhone 5 or 4s for holidays and such occasion.
Verdict
The Solemate is definitely worth the price and performance and with the lack of 30 pin dock on the new iPhone 5, it will make a good choice of sound system for the iPhone. The light weight and accessories included also means no extra spend and makes it future proof as long as Bluetooth technology exists.
