Customer Reviews

Philips Fidelio SBD7500 Portable Speaker Dock for iPod/iPhone (Black)

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

You get the speaker dock, a very nice carrying case, an 18" long 3.5 mm cable if you want to hook it up to something other than an iPhone/iPod, and an AC adapter with a nice long cord. It can also use 4 AA batteries. The carrying case has a piggy-back case that you can use to hold the A/C adapter, or leave it off to travel light if you plan on just using the batteries; a nice touch. The battery compartment is a little awkward to use, but not too difficult. A tip-out stand holds it at a good angle.

I hooked it up to my PC via the 3.5 mm cable, and tried the bass boost feature, which worked nice. The unit has its own volume control so you can fine-tune the listening level easily. These controls and the on/off switch are recessed, giving a clean appearance, but making it a bit hard to operate the sliding switches. I compared the sound to some PC speakers, and what a difference! These were so much better; no tinniness, just nice rich sound. And the bass boost works well. The manufacturer claims 8 hours of playing using batteries. So far, looks like that is a good estimate. There is a small power light behind the speaker grille that glows when it is on, which is nice; it already reminded me once that I forgot to turn it off!

Though this unit works well, it has a very bad design flaw that any buyer considering it should be aware of. When using it as a portable getting power from its internal AA batteries, even when you shut the unit OFF with its ON/OFF switch, the four batteries will self discharge to dead in about a week because the unit still draws current from the batteries even when shut OFF.

I considered my unit to be defective because of this problem but when I contacted Philips support to request a exchange unit under warranty, I was informed that this battery drain was normal and that I needed to remove one or more of the batteries when not using the unit to prevent the batteries from going dead. Dumb, dumb, triple dumb design flaw in my opinion!

Why even have an ON/OFF switch if you must remove a battery to really shut it OFF!

This portable speaker system from Phillips certainly comes in handy. It is extremely easy to use--just plug it in and insert your iPod or iPhone in the very obvious jack, then press "play" and you're good to go. That it charges as you go is of course helpful. And it is small enough you could easily take it with you in a bag or suitcase, with no extra pieces to worry about losing or breaking. However, the sound quality is not that big of a step up from what comes out of my iPhone itself when I simply play it with the headphones detached. It sounds at best like a decent small radio or car radio. Considering that I recently purchased a 5-disc changer stereo system that ALSO interfaces with my iPhone for only less than $100 more, and which has large speakers and superb sound quality, I have to say this little system is somewhat overpriced. Honestly I could not see spending the money on it unless I traveled very frequently and needed a charger with speakers for that purpose.

One thing to keep in mind when you're buying this speaker system... it's a portable system. This should not be compared to something you would plug into a wall or leave sitting in one room all the time. To compare the two is like comparing a portable TV with a wall TV... yeah the wall TV is better for the price but there are some benefits of having something you can just bring with you wherever you go.

The number one benefit of this product has to be that music just sounds good with it. I've had other portable speakers which buzz when they're plugged in or just don't make enough sound and in this speaker's case I don't have that problem. Yeah, I can't DJ a loud party with it but honestly if you're going to go that route by plug in the wall speakers, for sure.

As mentioned by another reviewer (I wanted to confirm it wasn't just mine so I looked around) there is some weird issue with the battery life and this unit. I think most of the other reviewers probably gave the unit a full run down but didn't test it again in a week or so after use so maybe didn't see it? Either way it eats up batteries even when it's off. So you should definitely remove the batteries between uses to make sure you don't waste a ton when it's not plugged in. I'm not sure of the mechanics of how that all works out but I'm guessing something is still taking some of the charge out.

Either way it's definitely worth buying if you plan to be on the road a lot and don't want to integrate with your car for speakers or if you go camping and want to listen to music with friends. I wouldn't put too much faith in it for any heavy lifting but it's not really made for that use so you're barking up the wrong tree either way if you think that it's not comparable to some heavy duty plug in the wall thing.

I wanted a small unit with decent sound that would be compatible with my 7th gen 160GB iPod classic while it was in its case. That seemed a tall order and I looked at dozens before finding this. Although some other docks might have worked fine with my iPod, it wasn't stated and I didn't want to take a chance. I also didn't want to have to remove the iPod from its Agent18 plastic case for docking. I found this dock on the Apple site and only wish I'd known Amazon carried it since they are traditionally faster and less hassle for me than buying elsewhere.

I was looking for a speaker dock that was a modest size so I could set it in a particular spot in my kitchen where my iPod would be handy either for listening or charging. Although the dock will run on batteries, I appreciate the ability to plug it in. I very much like the small size compared to many other docks and I find the sound quality much above average. I have Bose CD radios and have relatively high expectations, but was willing to settle for somewhat less if my other conditions were met. I am completely satisfied with the sound. I listen to a mix of music but almost none from today's popular recording artists so I can't speak to that, but for classical, opera, vintage things from the 60's through the 80's and jazz, I find the quality extremely good considering that some of the recordings themselves will limit the quality to some degree. I can turn up the volume fairly high and enjoy just as good sound as at a soft level. There is a button to boost the bass, but I don't use that as my music doesn't require it.

The iPod will charge with the dock turned off (as long as it is plugged in). Turn the unit on to play the music. A small light illuminates when it's on to alert you to that status.

There is no remote, but where I have it that is not an issue. What matters more to me is that I can use the iPod click wheel to make my selections and it feels very sturdy in the dock. The dock's back support 'leg' runs nearly the length of the dock so it doesn't feel like it will tip. Because the connector sits away from the dock by a small amount and is raised as opposed to being down in a cradle, I can connect my iPod while in its case, for which I'm very grateful.

All in all I am completely satisfied and recommend this to others with similar requirements, or who want a small portable unit with a case and good volume.

Now let's be honest. If there is anywhere in the world of electronics where you notice the difference between high quality and low quality, it's in speakers. Good speakers will blow your mind; bad speakers will blow your ears. So when I saw this product I was somewhat skeptical. For $100 it just didn't seem Phillips could possibly create a worthwhile product--one that would function well and produce good sound.

I was largely impressed. The Dock is very easy to use--no surprise there. How hard could it really be to plug in your iPhone? There's nothing hard about using it. But it all comes down to sound quality, doesn't it? And here I was quite impressed. Though the speakers are small and are powered by AC or batteries, they still manage to produce decent sound. Now obviously this isn't the sound quality you'll get out of a great set of speakers. But for what it is and the price they cost, I don't think you could realistically hope for much more.

So when reviewers are saying the sound isn't good, well, keep in mind both the price range and the product. No, you wouldn't want this quality of speaker hooked up to your TV. But for this kind of use they do the job very well.

I was excited to get this product as I travel, go camping and also frequently spend time on my boat.I like it very much, the sound is much better than the cheap folding speakers I had been using. I was quite surprised by how loud the volume got before there was distortion.

I used this with an iPhone 3Gs and it worked perfectly. No pop up about having to put the phone in airplane mode or any interference.

I have an Incipio Silicrylic case on my phone and was able to get it into the dock without too much trouble, which was nice. I hate accessories that require you to remove the case.

The speaker looks good, and comes with a neoprene case to protect it. The case isn't very pretty though. There is an odd, somewhat floppy, attached pouch for the a/c adapter that looks like a bit of an afterthought, but at least it's there.

The only reason I give this 4 stars is the stand. It is thin plastic and swivels out when you press on it. The attachment does not feel terribly robust, and I worry about its durability. Also, the battery cover is behind it and didn't close securely the first time I installed the batteries.

UPDATE: Six months later I am still using this and it's held up fine. I love it. I still wish the flip-out stand was a bit bigger/more robust, it's pretty easy to knock over. But I am very happy with it overall.

Ok here are my thoughts:

PROS
-Nice looking finish
-Can charge Iphone/Ipod while listening
-No need to take the iphone case off
-GREAT rich and bassy sound (tried like 6 more at the store)(tried it at the beach and sound level is enough for 8 persons)
-Neoprene bag
-Can use normal AA batteries
-Great for travelling (small, case, batteries)
-Comes with an app to use it as an alarm or timer
-Pouch to put the adapter in or an mp3
-Can use it as a Docking station to recharge Iphone/ipod with thing turned off

Cons
-Pouch is too small for the adapter.
-The support leg is hard to push (in mine at least) and it should be bigger, it feels like you can tip it easily.
-the battery door is kind of awkward to close

I bought this for my daughter to take back to college. She wanted portable but not tiny and tinny.

The good - nice sound for the size and price. Packs nicely into the sleeve that it came with and would slip into a backpack easily. Works with Ipod docking and also headphone style jack like my android uses.

The bad - It would not turn on most of the time. Once in a while it would come on and sound great. Most times we could not get it to work. We went on Philips site and used chat to talk to a service person. After a number of questions and answers, the rep stated that they have had reports of problems and offered to ship us a replacement. We accepted the offer and hope to get a good working unit soon.

UPDATE: Got the replacement. Worked for a day. Next day operating it the same way it won't work! Philips will reimburse us as soon as we ship it back - great. This is simple electronics that they can't build right.

Dismayed by the battery drain design flaw (read the other reviews), but sound quality is quite good and the unit packs well for travel.
If only Phillips had fixed the battery drain problem before they released it.