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M**D
Wow! High Price Performance for Low Bucks!
UPDATES AND COMMENT:February 17 -- Replacement unit arrived, battery life issue is resolved. Am still standing by my original 5 Star review. Douni was very communicative on the issue, and exchange was accomplished smoothly through Amazon. Battery is now lasting the advertised length of time (approx. 12 hours). Entire experience continues below, including original review in December, 2017.February 7 -- just a little over a month of owning this, and battery life has diminished to just over 3 hours of use. It started holding a charge for less and less time, over the course of occasional use. I have contacted Douni (it comes with a 12 Month Warranty) and they have referred me back to Amazon, who have told me to return the unit (postage paid by Amazon), be fully refunded, and order a new unit. So, as always, if one runs into product issues, Amazon takes care of the customer, and the Douni warranty is being fully honored here.Douni Customer Support was very responsive and helpful, directing me through the return process Amazon provides. Douni has said the replacement should perform with full battery life, and cited that not all production runs are perfect. So, seems there is some quality control, but every company has issues. My UE MegaBoom, for example, has both connectivity and charging problems, so no company gets it right on every single product.I will update on battery life of the replacement, once it arrives. If that one is also having that issue, I will reduce my rating accordingly, and simply return the unit for a refund.My comment regards the bizarre complaints about 5 Star Reviews, claiming this product is receiving fake reviews. While I know there is, sadly, the risk of fake reviews these days, I would discourage anyone from simply assuming positive reviews are fake, simply because they are positive. That makes zero sense. I know it's the age of "fake news" hysteria, but good products do get good reviews and thus far, my experience is on par with positive reviews I have read -- which is what helped me to choose to buy this product. Also, video/audio reviews on YouTube are clearly not "faked" since one can hear the quality of the unit, obviously.If one refuses to believe that a product is good, I guess that's one's own choice, but I can certainly attest to the validity of my own review and my positive experience as echoed by others. And, no, I have no affiliation with Douni and yes, I paid full price for my purchase.I have NOT reduced my Five Star rating, for the battery life issue (since I can freely replace the defective one, not even needing to pay postage) because, although I see others have also had a similar complaint, any product can have production issues, so at this point I am giving Douni the benefit of the doubt that a replacement unit will not have this issue. I won't downgrade a product review for issues unless those issues can't be resolved.Frankly, since it has a one year warranty, I don't see why anyone would just give a bad review without giving the manufacturer a chance to make it right. As I say, if the replacement also has a battery life problem, then I will certainly let everyone know, since that's what the Amazon community of reviewers is all about, in helping each other learn as much as they can about products we buy, sight unseen.And, because of the value of this community, such is why fake reviews are not helpful, but nor are disparaging remarks or hysterical doubts against positive reviews merely because they are positive. If one has a bad experience, review the product accordingly, but it seems out of place to slam other reviewers simply because of one's own poor experience. And, as I say, given Amazon's return policy and the one year warranty from Douni here, there seems little reason to not try a replacement first, before concluding that the product is a disaster.On all other scores, this remains an outstanding product with outstanding sound production and, while audio appreciation is subjective, to a degree, my unit sounds amazing, certainly on par with much pricier entries in the market, which is why I will replace it, rather than just return it. I'm no certified audiophile, but I can certainly appreciate how one speakers sounds, versus another, and this one is definitely as good as much more expensive ones and in some cases superior.My Original Review follows, and I still stand by it:December, 2017:I'm a big fan of wireless speakers, having grown from the age of wired external speakers to make your phone playlist worth listening to, and I now have a number of "antiquated" wired speakers, as I've moved on to various Bluetooth models. I think the biggest challenge for me is the overwhelming array of options and the desire to try to get the best sounding speaker without moving up into the $300 territory. Most of my research to make a final decision comes thanks to online reviews and decent Youtube audio comparison videos.I currently have a Photive Cyren (1st gen, like 30 bucks) which sounds great for a small, highly portable speaker, but I rarely listen to it anymore, since getting a UE Boom. Then I picked up an Anker Soundcore Sport XL, which is a tad more robust and about on par with the Boom for sound. That gives me three options at home or in travels. Picked up the UE MegaBoom for bigger noise outside, and when I'm at the office working and wanting some sound to carry around, but I have found it a bit finicky.The MegaBoom has nice rich sound but occasional issues with charging as well as connecting. Had a huge frustration with it last week, it refused to connect to my HTC, phone, and, idiot me, I didn't think to check my phone to see if it was the problem (since the UE MegaBoom often refuses to connect to various devices for whatever reason), so I thought it had given up and died on me, and I set about looking for another "BIG SOUND" Wireless speaker (turns out it was my phone having the issue that day, but the UE MegaBoom has constant connectivity issues, even when my phone is not being difficult, and has charging issues sometimes as well).What drew me to this one was a sound comparison video where it was pretty much blowing the doors off of everything else and was competing on a level with much higher priced units (like, in the $300 range). Plus, I liked that it seemed loaded with features, including the "proximity sensing" controls, which aren't lit up all the time, but will light up when your hand gets near, making it perfect for accessing controls in dim lighting. Long battery life, and even the ability to use it to charge up my phone were added bonuses. It's not as "outdoor" oriented as other options, but it's not like I have need to use it in a rainstorm, and quality of sound seemed a better goal than being Amazon Jungle proof.Basically, among the less than $100 options for a room filling speaker, this one seemed not only the best of the bunch, but even seems to sit well against the high priced options, and I'm certainly a big fan of getting $200 to $300 quality for a mere seventy bucks.Upon unboxing, I was very surprised at the heft of this device. It's less portable from that perspective, a chunky block of well built tech, but the payoff is in the performance. I thought I was listening to a full set of speakers, to be honest. I did not expect it to fill the room so much, and maintain quality despite its loud volume. I think it is superior to my quirky, temperamental UE Mega Boom, less muddled, richer and more even across the full range of sound, from lows to highs. I tried playing some "FLAC" tracks (search on Youtube for a real sound treat) and was astonished at how it came across, as if the performance was right there in the room.I think, all in all, sound tech continues to advance, and this is a prime example of how good the technology is becoming. While this can not compete, of course, with a full home sound system, it's very impressive for what it can accomplish in a still portable design.Bottom line, if you want big audio in a beautifully designed package, for a very reasonable price, you can't go wrong with this speaker.Pros: Rich, full sound that can really blast while still maintaining quality. Long battery life. Beautiful build. Can charge devices from it. Proximity sensing controls. Full range of controls. Auxiliary in for non-BT devices. Did I mention great sound???Cons: None, for me --But, be mindful of the following: It is heavy, so it's not as favorable for tossing it in your backpack or something. Did not come with a case, so I bought one ($20, but nicely made), but many speakers don't come with a case, so that's kind of standard, to have to buy one. The one that is available for it, here on Amazon, is good, and has a carry handle. Power/charging cord is a wall unit, NOT a USB, so you can't plug it into an external battery pack. You need a "wall" outlet for charging, which is different from many wireless speakers which you can charge from a portable power bank. But, the battery lasts, and charge time is not too bad at about 4 hours, so, if you want big sound on the go, this will still work.I wanted it more for a mobile sound source, in home, so needing a wall plug is not a minus, but it's something to keep in mind if you are looking for something ultra portable that can be charged up from a portable power bank, instead of from a wall outlet.SUMMARY: I love it, and will likely buy a second one for the office, since I took this one home, and still only have the MegaBoom at the office, and I feel this one sounds better, and has zero connection problems or charging issues.A great buy! Highly recommended. Five stars all day!
C**.
Great sound and build quality. Beautiful too!
I've only had this speaker a little over a week, but I really felt the need to write an early review. If I have any problems down the road, I will update my review. The Douni A5 just really impressed me when I first used it. The initial Bluetooth pairing and connecting to a six year old laptop and two phones was a breeze. And connecting to them after the initial pairing works equally well. It does show the percentage of charge on my Moto X4 in 10% increments. The on board lights show 30-60-100%. So about an hour or so after it hits the 30% mark, it's time to recharge. You should never completely discharge a lithium battery unless you know that it has a protection circuit built into the battery to prevent an over discharge. Over discharging will ruin the battery. I don't know if these have one, so I will try not to play it 'til it stops. I got 10 hours of rockin' roll music from it with the volume set anywhere from 50-80%. The 80% was about 10% of the time. So 12 hours might be doable at 50% volume. But I think that would be pushing it. And yes, I did run it until it stopped. I wanted to play it until the little battery symbol on top of the speaker turned red and shut it off, but within a few seconds of turning red, it stopped playing. Now I know. The sound quality is quite impressive for the size of this speaker. It's very "smooth" and balanced slightly toward the bass end. And bass that is plenty deep enough to give the A5 a nice, rich full sound. If you run an EQ app, you can tune it to your liking. I use REEQ to tailor the sound a little, but it really sounds great without it too. Where you place the A5 will have a considerable impact on how it sounds. It also has good volume in the 45-65% range. Using the buttons on the speaker to change the volume, you'll have about 28 increments from no sound to full volume if you just give them quick presses. Using your phone will result in much larger jumps in volume. Also it doesn't have obnoxiously loud on/off tones and screaming voice conformations. Just very, very soft tones for on/off and a pleasant, soft voice for connecting. I didn't think I would care much about the sensor that detects your hand getting near the top where the buttons are located, triggering the backlight, but it turns out it's a fantastic feature. So glad it's there. I also like the auto shut-off after 40 minutes of no signal. At night I play the sound of a flowing stream along with night sounds (country, not urban) to help me fall asleep. I set that to play for an hour or two, and once finished, I know the speaker will shut itself off. And it also sounds very real too! It's not water resistant in any way, nor is it a light speaker to go hiking with or carry around for awhile. It's the size of a small brick and at a little over 2.5lbs, it feels very solid and well built. It's also absolutely beautiful, to me anyway. I only wish you could pair multiple units to each other, at least two. But you can't :(
C**N
So promising, almost perfect.
I bought this unit as a music source in a small office. Overall, the unit works as promised, with one exception. Pairing via Bluetooth was painless, at higher volumes (and this speaker is surprisingly loud), it works great. Never tried it as a conference speaker but imagine it would work great in that capacity.However, try to use it at low volumes and you might run into trouble like I did. Using either AUX-IN or Bluetooth, very low music volumes turn very "staticy", reminiscent of a badly tuned analog FM radio station. Thus on volume "1" via Bluetooth, the quieter passages are 1/2 static and 1/2 signal. Since the default amplification of the unit cannot be changed, there is no way to address this issue other than to play the music at higher volumes. I am returning mine for this reason and docking one star in the process.Another design issue is that the USB charge-port for your phone is only active when the unit is awake. So don't treat this as a portable charge bank unless its running.Other than that, the unit is solidly built and should work great for someone who enjoys louder music sources, especially outdoors where higher volumes are usually needed.
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