Reccommend me a great music dock

December 3, 2012 12:39 PM

Please recommend me a dock/speaker solution to play music from an iPhone 4s and Android devices as well.

I want to get a dock and/or speaker for my girlfriend to listen to music in her kitchen. She has an iPhone 4s and I plan to get a Nexus 4 or Galaxy sometime next year. In order of decreasing importance, I'm looking for the following from this device:

- Works with iPhone 4s
- Decent sound quality
- Works with Android devices
- Attractive form factor/appearance.

It would be awesome if it had a usb port for changing phones off of as well. The source for sound here will probably be Spotify much of the time, if that matters.

I'm open to Bluetooth, Wifi, or dock solutions and my budget is $100 but I could go to $150 for something really awesome.

She does not plan to upgrade to the iPhone 5 super soon so the thunderbolt issue should not be huge. As a pony request if this thing had a USB port to charge phone off of that would be great too.

posted by Aizkolari to shopping (9 answers total)

The jawbone jam box. Awesome!!!
posted by pearlybob at 12:42 PM on December 3, 2012

I highly recommend the Jambox. It's small, cute, has good sound. Really well designed.

It works by bluetooth and comes with an audio cable, so you can use it either way. I use it with my laptop and iphone.

It does not charge, but because it connects via bluetooth, you can have the phone + charger plugged in to the wall and carry the speaker wherever you want.
posted by valeries at 12:43 PM on December 3, 2012

I had a Jambox which I replaced with a Big Jambox (I needed more sound and less portability,) but they're above your target price; for $100 it looks like the Soundfreaq Songkick is among your best options — it meets all your needs and it'll charge your phones via a USB port. It doesn't look as striking as the Jamboxes (my first one was green, my Big Jambox is this really nice superdark grey,) but for half the price and with a pretty good Wirecutter review, I'd go that route.

If you do decide to go Jambox, they're $130 on Amazon at the moment.
posted by heeeraldo at 12:50 PM on December 3, 2012

Thanks for the Jambox suggestions. I'll look in to that for sure. However, portability is not really a concern so I'd be OK getting a larger unit if that meant better sound quality for the price.
posted by Aizkolari at 12:54 PM on December 3, 2012

I recently got one of the Soundkicks that heeeraldo mentions. It's good—I can recommend it. Sound is remarkably good for something as small as it is, it runs on battery power, and can charge a phone over USB even when it is running on battery power. My wife uses it with her iPhone over Bluetooth and it is a no-brainer once you've got it set up. $100 and they stock 'em at Target for instant gratification.
posted by adamrice at 1:12 PM on December 3, 2012 [1 favorite]

I love my jambox, but do be careful -- the latest firmware cuts the volume down by nearly 50% and the company seems to have no interest in fixing it. If you get one, do not update it!
posted by AmandaA at 1:15 PM on December 3, 2012 [1 favorite]

I love my Soundkick. Surprisingly full bass response for something that small. Works with all android/iOS devices. Also lets you pair with bluetooth, so you can connect your laptop to it too.
posted by softlord at 2:04 PM on December 3, 2012

I like my Altec Lansing speakers. They make a lot of ipod docks - not flashy, but they sound good.
posted by ablazingsaddle at 6:02 PM on December 3, 2012

I got one of these and it sounds good. I'd say volume-wise it's fine in a medium-sized kitchen with a few people having dinner, but I'd want something more powerful in a larger space or if we were having a party.

Thanks to everyone for their input.
posted by Aizkolari at 12:43 PM on January 18