Customer reviews from jbl.com
JBL - Link 500 Wireless Speaker with Google Assistant
Average customer rating
4.4
(38 Reviews)
Rating breakdown 38 reviews
5 Stars
24
4 Stars
8
3 Stars
3
2 Stars
2
1 Star
1
88%of customers recommend this product.
(
30 out of
34)
Customer Reviews for JBL - Link 500 Wireless Speaker with Google Assistant
Customer Rating
5
Overall great
on December 19, 2018
Posted by: Losman
from St. Louis, MO
Bought for my kitchen. It rocks.
Google is a bonus.
Recommend if your a music fan like me.
Google is a bonus.
Recommend if your a music fan like me.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting jbl.com
Customer Rating
2
Great sound, poor Google Home function
on March 28, 2019
Posted by: Bosecki
from Detroit Metro
I bought the JBL Link 500 a few weeks Ago and am impressed with the sound quality and loudness (seems to be much better about 6” from wall versus against it). The google home functionality is much worse than a stand alone google home, this I have been disappointed with, seems to not recognize commands are for “itself” and will often play requests on other google device in house.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Response from jbl.comBy Mario, Customer Service, March 31, 2019
Thank you for your review, our sincerest apology for the inconvenience. Your feedback will be communicated to the proper department to improve our current and future product line. We would like to work with you directly, please submit a case request at www.jbl.com/support-contact.html and the Customer Service team will be more than happy to further assist you.
Written by a customer while visiting jbl.com
Customer Rating
5
impressive
on November 13, 2019
Posted by: carvinal
from new york
worked perfect with my other google devices. Even set up with my xm sirrius that my other google products didn't do out he box.Very pleased. would consider other products from JBL
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting jbl.com
Customer Rating
2
Poor sound quality
on December 11, 2019
Posted by: Traie
from Tampa, Florida
I did not care for this speaker the sound quality was not at all what I would expect from a speaker that cost almost 500 dollars. The bass was to heavy, and almost murky sounding, and the design of the speaker gives you the impression that the sound would be widely dispersed but it's very directional. If you are standing on the side its like stepping out of the stream of sound itself.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Response from jbl.comBy Kris, Customer Service, December 17, 2019
Thanks for posting a review. We're sorry to hear about your experience. Your feedback will be communicated to the development team to improve our current and future product lines. Let us know if you have other questions in the future. Just contact us at https://support.jbl.com/us/en/
Written by a customer while visiting jbl.com
Customer Rating
5
You have to get one!
on May 17, 2018
Posted by: Dogsnif
from Virginia, United States
[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] My first impression upon taking the Link 500 out of the box was how large it is - it is bigger than it looks in pictures and is fairly hefty. That was a good sign for me! I placed the speaker on a table behind one of the den chairs - so it is essentially out of sight (a wife requirement). Setting it up from there was easy. I plugged it in, downloaded the Google Home app*, followed the app's instructions, and that was it. It only took 2 or 3 minutes. (*Actually, I had already downloaded the Google Home app for use with a Chromecast Audio I had purchased previously.)
Being an audio guy, the first thing I wanted to do was play some music. I was very happy to find that the Link 500 has Spotify built-in, especially since that is my streaming service of choice! I started out easy by asking Google to play “some Diana Krall” while I was cooking dinner. No problems there. I then followed that command by asking it to play a specific song – Midnight Rider – off of the Gregg Allman album Laid Back. The Link 500 handled that and similar request easily.
The sound is very, very nice. I had previously experienced this kind sound in my den with some of my small to midsized bookshelf speakers (including JBL's). The Link 500 replaced those speakers and went on to fill my large living room (400 sq ft) with excellent sound without taking up near as much space. The music playing filled the den with clear sound at even low volumes without being overbearing. The bass was smooth and the highs were crisp and clear without distortion.
I had previously relied on a ZAGG Origin Portable Bluetooth Speaker to stream music in the den and its smaller version in the master bathroom. Those speakers are not voice activated however and they do not offer a mobile interface. Listening to the Link 500 and the larger ZAGG for ten minutes, I realized that I was more at ease with the sound produced by the Link 500. Even the most over-the-top songs (think Brass Monkey by the Beastie Boys) were enjoyable even at high volume.
The Link 500 is the first voice activated speaker I’ve used. The only thing that comes close was Siri on my iPhone. I thought that speaking to the speaker would be difficult as, in my limited experience, voice activated products leave a lot to be desired. That was not a problem with the Link 500. After its initial voice training, it recognized my “Hey Google” commands every time – whether shouted over the railing upstairs to almost whispering it in the same room. I was impressed! Other than my requests to play specific pieces of music, I typically used the built-in Google Assistant to make requests about the weather and to set timers. I did put it through its paces by requesting such things as: the temperature of the dark side of Mercury, the distance to a certain address in a distant city and even the meaning of the initials JBL – which it answered perfectly – James Bullough Lansing!
To sum up, I find that the JBL Link 500 is a good-looking speaker and is very simple to operate. It also has excellent built in capabilities and when it is playing music it is really impressive. In other words, you have to get one!
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting jbl.com
Customer Rating
5
Best JBL Speaker Yet!
on April 27, 2018
Posted by: Peijae
from Nederland, CO, United States
[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] So I received this amazing JBL Link 500 a week ago and have definitely tested all aspects of the speaker. I personally have owned a Flip 3, Flip 4, Charge 3, Pulse 2 and the Xtreme, so I am definitely familiar with the JBL sound and quality. After putting through its paces I can easily give this speaker a 9/10 rating. Its truly amazing! I am selling some of my other speakers now and this is my new primary home speaker. It really is that good. Here’s my pros and cons so you have an idea about what you are buying:
Pros
1.Build. Excellent compact form factor and nice, simple design. The button layout is perfect with any control you could need outside of the Google Assistant technology. Nice mesh on the front, clean design and a passive driver in the rear. This speaker is built with high quality in mind and it shows.
2.Setup. The setup was so easy it isn’t even funny. You simply download the Google Home app on your Android or IOS device and you now have a personal robot to configure and walk you through the process. This is great for people who want voice control rather than having to manually connect and control the device.
3.Built in Chromecast. This is so convenient it’s literally a revolution to the world of speakers. This JBL can connect to most streaming apps and look for any artist or song up for you. It streams everything through your Wi-Fi signal so you will get crisp and clean sound quality vs Bluetooth alone. This means your speaker is always ready to play music for you when you get home without any connecting time. It also means you don’t have to drain your phone or laptop battery to play music. No more dead devices or battery juggling to keep your tunes going. That’s a huge deal for me.
4.Google Assistant. This is the most priceless feature of this amazing speaker. It basically turns your speaker into a robot assistant to look up the weather, play tracks, check flights, find a local business, set alarms, or nearly anything you want to ask it. I didn’t think I was going to really get into this but once I used it I was blown away. I no longer have to look up things on my laptop or phone, I can just ask Google. Besides being so convenient for the average home user, this is also great for the elderly, handicapped or someone needing the virtual assistance.
5.Connect. This speaker also allows users to link this JBL Link 500 with the Link 300, Link 20 and Link 10. I do not have any of these other speakers so I haven’t been able to test this. I will be trading for or buying a smaller Link 20 or Link 10 to put in the bedroom and pair with this though.
6.Sound. Even if this was not a Wi-Fi smart voice assistant speaker, I would say it’s the best JBL speaker I have heard yet. It has a nearly flat balanced sound signature with crystal clear highs, full mids and super thick bass. This means it’s going to play your artists music and you will hear it the way it was meant to be heard. It reminds me a bit of my Focal studio monitors but with the right EQ tuning for clean pleasant listening. This Link 500 also has very little compression at full volume and the highs are never piercing, which seems to plague most speakers. It can definitely rock your house at full volume and definitely lives up to its large room capacity. I can’t say enough about it’s enjoyable sound signature. If you like EDM OR Hip Hop, this speaker will blow your mind with its full and deep bass. Or if you like acoustic music, its mids and highs will not disappoint you. One of the best sounding speakers I have heard without a doubt.
2.Setup. The setup was so easy it isn’t even funny. You simply download the Google Home app on your Android or IOS device and you now have a personal robot to configure and walk you through the process. This is great for people who want voice control rather than having to manually connect and control the device.
3.Built in Chromecast. This is so convenient it’s literally a revolution to the world of speakers. This JBL can connect to most streaming apps and look for any artist or song up for you. It streams everything through your Wi-Fi signal so you will get crisp and clean sound quality vs Bluetooth alone. This means your speaker is always ready to play music for you when you get home without any connecting time. It also means you don’t have to drain your phone or laptop battery to play music. No more dead devices or battery juggling to keep your tunes going. That’s a huge deal for me.
4.Google Assistant. This is the most priceless feature of this amazing speaker. It basically turns your speaker into a robot assistant to look up the weather, play tracks, check flights, find a local business, set alarms, or nearly anything you want to ask it. I didn’t think I was going to really get into this but once I used it I was blown away. I no longer have to look up things on my laptop or phone, I can just ask Google. Besides being so convenient for the average home user, this is also great for the elderly, handicapped or someone needing the virtual assistance.
5.Connect. This speaker also allows users to link this JBL Link 500 with the Link 300, Link 20 and Link 10. I do not have any of these other speakers so I haven’t been able to test this. I will be trading for or buying a smaller Link 20 or Link 10 to put in the bedroom and pair with this though.
6.Sound. Even if this was not a Wi-Fi smart voice assistant speaker, I would say it’s the best JBL speaker I have heard yet. It has a nearly flat balanced sound signature with crystal clear highs, full mids and super thick bass. This means it’s going to play your artists music and you will hear it the way it was meant to be heard. It reminds me a bit of my Focal studio monitors but with the right EQ tuning for clean pleasant listening. This Link 500 also has very little compression at full volume and the highs are never piercing, which seems to plague most speakers. It can definitely rock your house at full volume and definitely lives up to its large room capacity. I can’t say enough about it’s enjoyable sound signature. If you like EDM OR Hip Hop, this speaker will blow your mind with its full and deep bass. Or if you like acoustic music, its mids and highs will not disappoint you. One of the best sounding speakers I have heard without a doubt.
Cons
First of all there really isn't much to complain about but I’ll try my best to nit pick for you.
1.No aux in. This is not really a huge deal at all for most people, since the Wi-Fi capability and Bluetooth will handle most everything. But for people who may want to integrate this into older technology TV’s, MP3 Players or Ipods, it is not going to work. However, if you are shopping for this quality speaker you probably have updated your equipment. My TV does not have Bluetooth, so I was unable to connect via Aux port. However if you don’t need it, no big deal at all.
2.Google Assistant is still being integrated fully, so some features are not released for the JBL Link 500 yet. An example would the Sleep Timer. It will be available soon but isn’t updated on the speaker as of today. But remember, like any new device, updates will continue to be released and it will only get better and better over time. 90% of the Google Assistant features are definitely there and its very nice to use the voice controls.
3.No speaker phone. This might be a needed feature for some users. However for me, this is great. One of the most annoying things is when you are enjoying your music with friends and incoming phone calls stop the music. I like my phone calls and my music separate for that reason. And since this speaker handles everything via Wi-Fi without my phone doing the streaming, this is actually going to be a pro for some people.
2.Google Assistant is still being integrated fully, so some features are not released for the JBL Link 500 yet. An example would the Sleep Timer. It will be available soon but isn’t updated on the speaker as of today. But remember, like any new device, updates will continue to be released and it will only get better and better over time. 90% of the Google Assistant features are definitely there and its very nice to use the voice controls.
3.No speaker phone. This might be a needed feature for some users. However for me, this is great. One of the most annoying things is when you are enjoying your music with friends and incoming phone calls stop the music. I like my phone calls and my music separate for that reason. And since this speaker handles everything via Wi-Fi without my phone doing the streaming, this is actually going to be a pro for some people.
All in all, I extremely satisfied with this speaker. For the price, you are getting great build quality, a compact design with huge balanced sound, Google Assistant to help you with everything, seamless streaming of your favorite apps and reliable JBL sound. If you need only one home speaker to do much more than play music beautifully, this is it. I am going to be selling several of my house speakers and larger Bluetooth speakers now, as this does everything in one unit. This speaker deserves the 9/10 rating without a doubt. I’ve had a ton of speakers and this is my new favorite of the collection. You will not be disappointed if you buy this speaker, you will be smiling. Thanks for reading and great job on this one JBL!
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting jbl.com
Customer Rating
5
LOVE THE DESIGN & PORTABILITY
on April 28, 2018
Posted by: SF415
from SF, CA, United States
[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] THANK U JBL FOR ADDING GOOGLE ASSISTANT TO THIS GREAT SPEAKER, NOT 2 MENTION BLUETOOTH COMPATIBLE ALL IN ONE, NOW I DON'T HAVE 2 OPEN MY LAPTOP OR USE DATA ON MY CELL 2 SEARCH FOR MUSIC OR ANYTHING ELSE ON THE INTERNET...ALL U HAVE 2 DO IS ASK & U DEFINITELY, MOST DEFINITELY SHALL RECEIVE!!! MUST MENTION THE PACKAGING! LOVE 2 BE ABLE 2 OPEN THE BOX & SEE HOW JBL MAKES SURE THAT THEIR PRODUCTS ARE ALWAYZ THE BEST FROM THE INSIDE OUT!!!...HANDS DOWN BEST SOUND, AMAZING DESIGN & TECHNOLOGY ALL ROLLED INTO 1...DOESN'T GET BETTER THAN JBL BABY!!! OTHERS TRY 2 DUPLICATE BUT THERE'S NO COMPARISON WHEN IT COMES TO JBL'S CRAFT....CANT WAIT 2 SEE WHAT JBL WILL DEBUT NEXT...WAITING WITH SUCH ANTICPATION...THANKS JBL FOR BEING TOP NOTCH IN THE WORLD OF SOUND !!!
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting jbl.com
Customer Rating
1
Not expected
on November 18, 2019
Posted by: Avi2690
from Bentonville Arkansas
I have order for black but they gave white and the sound quality is good it automatically disconnects the Bluetooth and google voice don’t respond and WiFi won’t get connected immediately need to setup from first
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Response from jbl.comBy Shad @ Customer Support, Customer Support, November 21, 2019
We’d like to know more about your issue. Please contact our Customer Support Team through this link, https://bit.ly/2OaekpO, and a representative will reach out to you within 24-48 hours.
Written by a customer while visiting jbl.com